XM Commander install in a 2004 Honda Pilot

92.7 WDRE going all Spanish overnight was the straw that broke the camel’s back. My FM presets dwindled down to just 4 FM stations and a sad four at that. There is only so much z100 and PLJ a heterosexual male could bare to listen to. Actually, for my commute to work, I’m just fine listening to Stern in the morning and then AM radio for the way home. I can always mix it up with something from the CD collection too. It’s those long trips to visit the grandparents is where it gets brutal. With all the music that has been produced in the last 10 years along, it’s amazing the you could hear the same song on 2-3 different FM radio stations at the same time.

A few months ago, the Perk family finally decided on the 04 Honda Pilot as our family truckster. Now that we have the family trip car we always wanted, there was no excuse not to get XM radio.

The cost of the hardware isn’t too bad either. I got the XM Commander unitfrom myradiostore.com for 140 bucks. Ordering from Yahoo store fronts get me nervous, but my order came earlier than expected with everything nicely packed. It seems as though just about everyone at hp.org has got their gear from them so i would definately recommend them.

The Commander is bundled with a FM modulator which allows it to broadcast XM radio through your FM tuner using an used frequency band. After reading just about every thread at hp.org, I decided to buy an adapter that would allow me to plug the XM radio directly into the auxilary port of my stock radio. There were just too many bad posts about how FM modulation sucks to cheap out on doing it the right way. The Blitzsafe adapter was highly recommended, but the cost [110 bucks] turned me off. I decided to go with the PIE adapter which would do essentially the same thing as the Blitzsafe, but for only 50 bucks. The caveat is that I would need to figure out how to supply the ACC/power/ground to the XM radio tuner wheras the Blitzsafe conviently gives you the outputs to connect to. As a side note, after I purchased the PIE adapter, I found out that PIE is made in China and Blitzsafe is made in the US of A. If I would have known that, I would have bought the Blitzsafe. Although, you wouldn’t have the benefit of me showing exactly how to tap in the stock radio harness….

In order to feed power to the XM tuner, I could either 1) Buy a Metra part # 60-1721 or 2) figure out the leads to tap into. Since I was planning on installing it on the weekend and I didn’t order the Metra harness, I had to find out where to tap power from. Luckily, someone at hp.org posted the wires to tap into. My new dilemna was whether or not the post was correct. I really didn’t feel like blowing out the brand new XM radio or even worse, the Pilot itself based on one forum post.

After a bunch of googling, I found an article on how to locate the power leads on your radio. I whipped out my Multi-meter and quickly verified that the post was correct. It’s actually very easy to do and gives you a sense of accomplishment that only stamping on snow could beat.

Installation

Following Along I first started with removing the Not an Ashtray and surrounding plastic. I actually couldn’t get the lower bezel to come out, which didn’t turn into a problem. As you can see, I was following this thread. I had my laptop in my car which wirelessly connects to my home network as well using my AC inverter for power. The changer installation instructions helped somewhat too.

The front bezel was a bitch to get off to be blunt. The instructions say to wrap a towel around a screwdriver and pry it off, but unless you want to ruin your dash, you’ll have to really persuade it to come out. Here are a few pics that may help you understand better what you’re trying to unclip. When you’re pulling, be careful not to pull to hard that you bend the plastic and cause a crease [thankfully, I didn't do this]

Screwdriver behind to help
Clip closeup
Another closeup of the clip

Time to whip out the Multi-Meter to find those power leads.

Since I didn’t want to cut the wires, I bought some squeeze connectors from Radio Shack. The squeeze connectors are great because it involves no cutting, soldering or shrink wrapping I also got the male to male plugs needed to connect the PIE adapter to the XM Tuner.

Here is a picture of the wires tapped. +BAT = White w/ red striped wire, ACC = White wire, Ground = Black wire

After I squeezed down on the hot leads and nothing sparked or started smoking, I decided to hook everything up to make sure it worked.

Notice I put some blue painter’s tape under the radio so I didn’t marr the plastic moving the radio in and out.

I didn’t disconnect the battery during the installation. I weighed the risk of blowing a fuse vs having to reidle the engine, do the security code in the radio, fix the auto-up on the windows. Needless to say, it worked out and I didn’t fry anything. Your mileage may vary. One note, when you squeeze the connector to make the connection, wrap some electrical tap around your pliers so that if does make contact with the radio chasis, you don’t spark something.

New Antenna mount 8.101.2004 Mounting the antenna on the inside dash is horrible for reception. Don’t do it! I had to move it to roof and since doing so, I haven’t had any reception problems. I didn’t think it would make a big difference, but it does. The next project was the mounting of the antenna. Someone on hp.org mounted the antenna by the center dashboard temperature sensor and really liked the look. Using two screw drivers, I was able to pop off the cover. I then put a notch in the cover and ran the wire down the hole. You’ll need to slide the temp sensor towards the front of car and nudge the connector through. As fate would have it, there is just enough room to squeeze it by the temp sensor and down into the dash. Also watch out for the radio mounts. They’re pretty sharp and I have two nice cuts on my forearms. Ok, now for the pain in the butt part. After you pop the cover off the sensor, you can’t just pop it back on. That’s because the sensor floats about a 1/4 inch off so if you try to push the cover back down, it will never click. Since there is no room in there for your hands, you’ll need to jam something underneath it to wedge it up, so you’ll be able to snap the cover down again. I used an extra child safety lock.

The antenna placement doesn’t seem to be a problem [yet]. I get threebars of strength everywhere I go and only get static when going under overpasses. I think it looks pretty slick on the dash.

To keep it from sliding back and forth, I used a tab of double stick tape that came with the radio.

I decided to install the tuner right above where the stock radio sits. It’s a little tricky getting everything in there, but it fits just fine. I was going to mount it by the floor, but it was just too cold to be kneeling outside

New face place mount updated 4.18.2004
My original mount of the face plate by the “Not an Ashtray” was just too low and dangerous! I found myself looking down too often, which put my peripheral vision below the dashboard, not allowing me to see what was happening in front of me. I needed to mount it higher so I decided right underneath the radio, partially covering the vents, would be the best place.

The problem is how to mount the bezel so the wire isn’t dangling over the dashboard. I was thinking of making a hole in the knockout and then puting the wire into there, but I thought I could do better.

What would really be slick if I could feed the wire directly into the vents. The problem is that the connector is so damn thick, it won’t fit through the vent holes. I then got an idea of popping one of the vent fins off and then slipping it. Using some persuation, I was able to pop the fin off giving me just enough clearance to slide the connector through. When popping off the fin, you’ll need to pry inbetween and back. I made the mistake of first trying to go forward, but it’s much easier push back towards the front of the car. Just take your time and try not to mar the plastic too much.

Next, I had to feed the wire through the vent and back out in back of the radio. I was going to drill a hole in the vent on the inside of the dash, but then I noticed that vent duct is loosely connected to the dash mounted vent controls.

First I got a scrap piece of wire and snaked it through the gap in the vent duct and out the front.

Then, using electrical tape, I taped the bezel connector to the wire

Then, using a screwdriver, gently pry up the vent duct so that you have enough room to pull the wires through.

Then, using some double sided 3M tape, simply stick the bezel to the front and pop the fin back in.

I tested the vents with them on full blast and there was no hiss or whine from the bezel or the wire. I also checked the seal where the vent duct meets the dash and there was no leakage due to the built in insulation around the vent duct rim. I really like the placement and I feel a lot safer about having it mounted higher where I can keep an eye on the guy in front of me while I channel surf.

Old mounting method
The last item is the mounting of the actual face. Once again, taking an idea from hp.org, I fabricated my own bracket out of some scrap stuff I had laying around.

Here is the bracket mounted to the not an ashtray. Yes, I did trim down those bolts.

I even used a magic marker to darken the silver screw heads.

And finally! Everything back together and purty. Notice no gashes or scratches! Well, none you could see

Total time: ~4-5 hours with no post installation rattles, whines, hisses what so ever.

I have only been listening to XM for about a day now and I already love it. There are so many stations, it’s a little overwhelming. Good luck with your install!