Tools required:
|
Materials required: |
| Difficulty: | Easy |
| Time: | 30 minutes |
| Drilling/Cutting: | None |
| Broken Nails: | 1 |
| Lotus Positions: | None |
| Symbiotic projects: | iPod, V1 |
Start by removing the radio, following the instructions in the manual:
Unpack the RC10 kit. Everything you need is included, and they've thoughfully provided an extra mounting
strap in case you make a mistake:
Disconnect the main radio harness, and plug in the IR receiver's harness. It has a yellow dummy harness
attached to it to fill the unused portion of the socket. This is needed if you don't have a preamp
connected. If you have the CD changer or iPod controller attached, make sure you correctly interlock
the connector with it, as shown here. The iPod connector is the light blue connector, and the black
dome-shaped object is the IR receiver:
Reattach the main harness, and prepare to slide the radio back into the dash.
Next, you need to place the IR receiver. The Blaupunkt instructions would have you drill a giant hole in your dash to pass the connector for the receiver. Personally, I preferred not to do that, but rather to run the wire out the front of the radio. This is a little tricky, but can be done. Decide where you want to position the receiver, then decide precisely how much slack you will need. Then, very carefully push the radio back into the dash while holding the IR's wire along the lower left corner of the radio. There's room for it to pass, but it's very tight. Push the radio in very carefully, or you will damage the insulation on the IR wire. If you have a little too much slack, it's easy to tuck up in the dash (see below). If you need more slack, ease the radio back out slowly until you can slide the wire.
I opted to mount the receiver next to the bottom of the gauge pod. This looks nice, and provides an easy
way to hide the wire. The dash has a slot leading over to the radio which holds the wire nicely. There's also
extra room in that slot, so you can tuck up extra slack if needed. The end result looks something like this:
Note that the receiver and wire are nicely concealed, and the trim screw for the dash pod is still accessible.
Also note that I damaged the insulation a little on my receiver wire. Be careful!
The next step is to attach the mounting band to the steering wheel. The included instructions cover this
pretty well. The only things I would emphasize are: don't let the cut ends of the strap overlap, and make
sure it's as tight as you can make it. I mounted mine just below the lower-right tactile knob on the steering
wheel. It's out the way, but still handy:
Lastly, mount the remote to the strap using the included instructions. The kit provides padding to put
behind the remote, but you won't need it. The Lotus Momo wheel is so beautifully thick that
the bare remote fits perfectly. Note that you may have difficulty re-engaging the locks that hold the remote
to the strap, but keep trying and you'll get it. It's a very solid system, but a little difficult to lock in:
That's it! You're done.
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