Hi guys,
Anyone have a line on a new stereo for my 2010 JSW? Getting wide variety of prices from dealers. My old one stopped working unless I gave it a rap with my hand, eventually that stopped working too.
+1 on all the above. Run don't walk from the dealer. To swap a radio is very easy, trim pops off, some screws, plug in connectors. You need to know what radio you have, likely a Premium 8, called a RCD 510. Get the same radio it is plug and play.
The later model non-Nav RCD 510's have back up camera capability. If you have NAV, then you need RNS 510 (looks like RCD 510) or RNS 315 (small screen).
1) If you buy a factory radio
you MUST get the unlock code pin with the radio or you can't use it. Expect to pay $350-$400 for a good real OEM radio.
2) Don't buy VW factory radios made for the European market. The AM and FM radio station spacing is different. They are cheaper on eBay. If you don't care about radio, then this might be OK.
3) Aftermarket is another option. The best one arguably, Pioneer AVIC-8200NEX. with all the add-ons is going to cost $1500, much more than a used replacement. You will get a lot and it will interface with wheel controls. There are lower priced Pioneer AVIC NEX models around $900 and $600. As stated above Sirius XM may not integrate. You can always buy a Sirius receiver and feed it to the radio, but it's a separate device. Some brands of "2 DIN" sized radios have Sirius receivers that integrate with the radio control head.... It can get complicated making a choice.
4) The bargain aftermarket ones are good, like the Eonon. They seem to have a lot of features and interfaces with steering wheel controls. In their sales stuff it they make it look like it interfaces with an android phones, mirroring phone screen and allowing phone control from radio display. I don't think it can do that from what I read in reviews. I could be wrong. However for the price, it still has a lot of features for under $300; it's an attractive option. The NAV data base I think is open source. Many have bought report they were happy.
5) Then there are the VW clones, look factory but are not, generic clones. I would stay away from those. They may also have odd AM/FM station spacing. May be someone has had good luck with them, but I'd stay clear. They are cheap however, tempting. There are some on ebay shipping from California saying genuine VW for $99, then brand generic, and it says moved from new VW's in China. $99 free shipping might be worth a shot.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Volkswagen-Genuine-RCD510-Auto-Bluetooth-USB-CD-Code-MP3-iPod-Radio-for-VW-Cars-/371199089254?hash=item566d309a66:g:ljIAAOSwKtlWsXEn&vxp=mtr
6) If you don't have a factory NAV radio you can upgrade with some extra work.
http://www.myturbodiesel.com/wiki/rns-510-vw-radio-navigation-system-faq-and-comparison/
I like my factory RCD-510 radio... it sounds good, has more bells and whistles than I can use, 5 CD changer, SD card, iPod integration, Sirius XM, AM, FM and most used Bluetooth from my cell. My NAV duties are with Garmin mounted off the left air vent, with weather, traffic and BU camera. Speaking of NAV I use WAZE a lot... it's better than Garmin in many ways with real time info on accidents, police and road hazards.