Adding CarPlay to 981 Cayman - options

4492 Views 64 Replies 17 Participants Last post by bob_5045, 7 d ago

Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · 3 mo ago

Hi all,

I've been looking at the various options for adding Carplay to my Cayman to replace the CDR-31 base unit.
I've considered the various add-on boxes from JoyeAuto, NMAutomotive and the various similar units on Alibaba and have nearly purchased a JoyeAuto unit several times, but whilst I like the idea of preserving the OEM look, I'm also now drawn to some of the Android head units out there.

I've looked at Xtrons and checked with them, but unfortunately they don't have a unit which will fit the 981 and have no plans to make one. Same goes for Dynavin.

Have also seen other options like this pricey one from Belsee but not convinced it will fit the 981:
Belsee Carplay unit for Cayman

This one caught my eye recently as it also has physical knobs which I like, better screen and supposedly much more modern internals. Of course there's always the chance that this will turn out to be a piece of **** with zero support from the manufacturer, and set fire to my car, but at only about £180 on eBay I figured it might be worth a shot :
Erisin Carplay unit for Porsche Cayman 981

Not being a car audio expert I'm not sure what wiring adapters or other splicing work might be required to fit this unit - here's an image of the rear showing all connections - can anyone tell me how easy difficult fitting might be in terms of wiring?.

Any other options that I've missed for adding Carplay to the 981?

Thanks!

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Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #41 · 2 mo ago (Edited)

2

Quick update - I managed to install my Erisin unit last night (replacing CDR-31 without SPP) and IT WORKS!!
Still need to finesse the installation a bit and route the USB cables and GPS antenna properly, but basically took out old unit, plugged in the Erisin and it just fired up.
Steering wheel controls seem to work straight away.
Only thing seems to be that the small display screen to the right of the tacho displays the audio source as something Chinese!
I need to play around with it a lot more but Carplay works, and does split screen display so you can have Spotify on one half and Waze on the other half, for example.
For the price I'm very impressed: screen resolution is so much better than the old CDR-31 and sound quality seems better too, the FM radio even works properly now which was always terrible on the old unit. Even the surround of the screen matches the interior plastics well - see pics below. All in all I recommend it as a great cheap alternative to the Joyeauto & similar route. Will update further when I've had a chance to play around some more.

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westcoastboxster

· #42 · 2 mo ago

Looks awesome, and it's on sale right now with AliExpress in the USA, maybe UK as well. use code HBD40 to get $45 off order here in the USA, Just did it. Here we go!
By the way, the replacement unit looks awesome Aqua981C. Just need to Plasti Dip the knobs black color and it will look quite the part!! Thanks for sharing.

Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #43 · 2 mo ago

Thanks westcoastboxster! Yes, of course it's now on sale now I've bought it!

I decided to get it through Erisin themselves as they have a UK warehouse and it seemed cheaper and more reliable than using AliExpress. Weirdly I almost bought the same unit on eBay for £170 last month but waited too long and then the seller put the price up to £500! When I enquired about it he dropped price to £270, but still cheaper to get it from Erisin and at least there's half a chance of support, though I'm not holding my breath for that.

I had thought about swapping the knobs for the CDR-31 ones, I think they will just swap over, but will see. Otherwise yes, plastidip might work, though they are illuminated so would have to be careful.

I'm hopeful that more people will be encouraged to give this a go now seeing as it seems to be the best & cheapest option out there to replace the crappy old Porsche units.
Still some tweaking to do, the park assist seems a bit over sensitive and there's no way I can see to change any car settings which you might have changed on the CDR/PCM before, but I don't think there's anything too important missing. It's an encouraging start anyway!

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westcoastboxster

· #44 · 2 mo ago

Hope the Bose Decoder will work, as I just ordered mine from Ali. I've had good luck with them so far. I decided to forgo the Joeyeauto route as it's just too complicated for me, but we'll see. The biggest thing is the screen resolution and now the option to add the parking camera. That will be nice. Oh, the second Big Reason is the optics of the touchscreen too. The examples on YouTube using Joy OEM make it seem like the screen was going out with all the fuzziness, and that sucks. I hope the sound quality is better since you have the equalizer option. Is this how you got better sound? Hmm. We'll see how this all plays out, but it's a real nice option without breaking the bank. My god, my neighbor just traded out his OEM head unit locally here the bay area on his 2012 911 for over 4k. Nice option for ridiculously expensive, and I HATE the way and aftermarket looks til this one. Thanks and wish me luck. Oh, the knobs. Yes, hope they do pass over from OEM to this Unit, let us know, and keep us updated on the findings of how it works and your opinion. Thanks mate.

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Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #45 · 2 mo ago

Yeah, the equalizer is nice to have, and just having had a little play it certainly sounds better! I might have to look into adding some more/better speakers now, it's a slippery slope!
The screen resolution and much more responsive touchscreen was one of the main reasons for not going down the Joyeauto (or similar) route for me too.
But yeah, all other upgrade options I'd seen until this came along looked terrible, or need a bezel thing which may or may not match the interior, and/or were stupidly expensive. This unit really does tick a lot of boxes...
Will keep you all updated on any more progress - so annoying that I don't have much free time to play around with it this week!
Good luck to all trying this out and I'll help out where I can, if need be.

Reactions: 2

Cayman Ed

· #46 · 2 mo ago

I will share my review once I receive from Alliexpress (C$410 incl. deliv. to Canada) and install mine. My expectation is the TDA7851A MOSFET amp in the Erisin + DSP & Equalizer should give better clarity & dimensional sound quality than the CDR31. We'll see...
I'd love to swap the knobs of the CDR31 to this unit. Keep us posted Rich!

westcoastboxster

· #47 · 2 mo ago

Cayman Ed, are you installing to a CDR31 with Bose? The more research I do, the more I believe the MOST Adapter for the Bose equipped sound systems will not work. Hmmm.

Cayman Ed

· #48 · 2 mo ago (Edited)

Mine is CDR31 Basic, No BOSE, no external OEM ASK amp, no NAV. This (should) makes mine easy plug and play with Erisin but the Erisin come with all the option cables for input to Bose units. You can do it.

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Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #49 · 2 mo ago

Well, last night I tried swapping the knobs over from the CDR31 to the Erisin, but annoyingly the spindles on the Erisin are narrower than on the CDR, so that's not going to work unfortunately. You could probably bodge it somehow, but it doesn't seem worth it really.

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westcoastboxster

· #50 · 2 mo ago

Wondering if you can shoot a video of your stereo in action so we can see more of the function, quality of output, and more. As for the knobs, would be nice in Black but what the heck.

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Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #51 · 2 mo ago

Sure, unfortunately it's already getting dark here in the UK

rolleyes

so not sure how good it would be tonight, but I'll see if I can!

T-Design

· #52 · 2 mo ago

Aqua981C said:
Well, last night I tried swapping the knobs over from the CDR31 to the Erisin, but annoyingly the spindles on the Erisin are narrower than on the CDR, so that's not going to work unfortunately. You could probably bodge it somehow, but it doesn't seem worth it really.

How did you pulled the knobs? Just pull?

T-Design

· #53 · 2 mo ago

westcoastboxster said:
... I hope the sound quality is better since you have the equalizer option...

Just installed the unit instead of my basic CDR, and the sound is significantly better rigth out of the box!

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Aqua981C

Discussion Starter · #54 · 2 mo ago

T-Design said:
How did you pulled the knobs? Just pull?

Yep!

Cayman Ed

· #55 · 2 mo ago

How about using Sugru mouldable glue on OEM knob to marry with the narrower spindle of Erisin? It's something to explore... good or bad idea?

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westcoastboxster

· #56 · 2 mo ago

Plenty of options available..

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Cayman Ed

· #57 · 2 mo ago

If your goal is to make it look as oem as possible, you'll explore fitment of the oem knob. I think it's doable either by using moldable glue or even teflon tape as long as it's snug.

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Cayman Ed

· #58 · 2 mo ago (Edited)

5

Installed mine today. I like it. Audio is clean, wider frequency, more dimensional, low distortion on higher volumes and more powerful than the CDR31 base. Bezel matches color/sheen of OEM and fit is very good. Very easy connectivity with Apple CarPlay, just pair via Bluetooth and it's ready for action. Thanks Rich (Aqua981C), Vlad (T-Design), Peterfrans, & Hesenet.

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westcoastboxster

· #59 · 2 mo ago

Nice! I'm going to task this weekend on this with my CDR31 Bose. Wish me luck!!
Oh, anyone with comments about Porsche logo screensaver??

Reactions: 1

Cayman Ed

· #60 · 2 mo ago

Lots to learn but I am sure we will discover how to do it soon. Have not even adjusted time & date yet, display control color to white, etc. Good luck, I broke one plastic tab on side panel but did not inflict any cosmetic difference to my car. Tape the surroundings as the OEM quad lock wire harness is short.

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