'10 TRD Off-Road Dbl Cab audio options

Hey guys,

I'm a first time Toyota owner. Just bought a 2010 Tacoma Dbl cab, 4x4 TRD Off-Road and I love it!! What an awesome truck!

Being new to the 'Taco' world, I'm not very well versed in the aftermarket parts/mods that are available or the best place to get them.

As for my stereo question:
I have the OEM 6-disk in-dash changer, but all it has is an AUX out jack. That works great, but it doesn't charge my iPhone on long trips. I know I'm 'pre-wired' for a iPhone interface in the glove box, but Toyota wants $300 for the cable and I don't want to have to keep my phone in my glove box.
What has everyone else done here?

I noticed that there is an empty switch panel next to the AUX plug. Is there a USB connection I could wire in there?

I've done a search for this and most of the other threads talk about getting a new head unit, but then I'd be giving up the in-dash changer, which I paid money for!

I'll keep looking at options, but I'm curious what everyone else has done.

I truly appreciate any advice / experience that you guys could give!

Thanks!!

Chris

 

Nothin'? Really?

 

I'd tell ya just to get a new headunit. Get one with all the things you need like USB and or an iPod cable.

 

OK - I was in the same boat with my iPhone and here is what I did which has worked pretty good for me thus far. I was actually more concerned with the music part than the charging but I've found this works well for both of my needs.

1) First thing I bought was two Belkin Micro Auto Chargers for each of the cigarette lighter plugs on either side of the AUX port to use them as USB inputs (I used these low profile ones because I did not like the look of giant cigarette lighter power cords and wanted a more streamlined feel to it). I then just ran a standard iPhone power cord from one of these and stashed the cord in the little storage area on the right side next to the steering wheel.

2) Next thing I bought was a Blackberry Stereo Music Gateway (http://www.amazon.com/BlackBerry-Remote-Stereo-Bluetooth-Gateway/dp/B00170KUM0). I stashed this in the same storage area and ran the audio cord out and into the truck's AUX input.

3) Hardest part was finding a power cord for the bluetooth gateway that was micro/mini (can't remember) on one end and USB on the other end. I plugged this into the other USB power port.

All you have to do then is sync up your iPhone to the gateway via bluetooth (same as like a headset) and you're good to go. Everytime you turn the key the gateway will power on and connect to your iPhone without you having to do anything. Turn the truck off and it disconnects. Music will come through the stereo in AUX mode and best part is you're not bound to a cord while playing music - works if your inside the truck or outside no problems (i.e. good for tailgating).

Kind of a pain having to use a separate power cord but I find I really don't use it that often - only when the battery gets low. Also - phone calls will not come through the speakers with this but you can still connect to a bluetooth headset with this setup. Wrap the cords up under the dash tight and keep everything in the storage pocket and you can't even tell anything is plugged in really - looks very clean.

Hope that helps someone else in the same boat

 

Awesome! Thank you for the responses, guys!

Is Amazon typically where you guys get stuff?
I wasn't sure if there was a Toyo-specific retailer or anything that I should know about.

Sure wish someone sold a "SAT -> USB" type of adapter plug...
I don't have the SAT enabled, and the extra space next to the 'aux' plug is unused, so it would be awesome to just plug into that with the standard iPhone USB plug.