Hi all,
Long time reader, first time poster. Just traded in my Protege5 after 10 years of faithful service (rust notwithstanding) and bought a 2012 Mazda3 Skyactiv in September. One of the key requirements my partner had as we were car shopping was that the car have an in-dash satellite radio (in fact, she wouldnt consider a car without one).
However, when we picked the car up, I found out that the radio had not been installed (the dealership didnt tell me I was lucky enough to press the SAT button upon the initial inspection, only to have nothing happen). They forgot, apparently. However, I was assured that they would have the necessary components in a month.
Two month later (and lots of unreturned phone calls), I was told that the parts had arrived and I could bring the car in to have it installed. As a bonus, by dash would look a lot cooler.
Huh? (scratch)
So I enquired further turns out what they are actually going to do is remove the stock radio and replace it with a Clarion CX501 unit like this:
http://www.clarion.com/ca/en/produc...din/CX501/ca-en-product-pf_1259567987671.html
Im torn about how I should deal with this. On one hand, its a better radio, it would be integrated into my steering wheels audio controls, and it comes with a USB input. But on the negative side, it will destroy the integrated look of the dash, I may lose some functions (the input knot to the right of the giant control knob would be lost), and I wonder if the blue screen on top of the dash will become useless. In the end, I guess Im not keen on my dash looking aftermarket two months after taking possession.
Thoughts? Would you replace the stock radio if you were in my shoes? I think this might come down to the dealership not wanting to tear out the dash to install the OME satellite receiver. I know the Clarion unit does not come with a free satellite radio subscription, so I will have to push Mazda to fulfill that end of the bargain
Long time reader, first time poster. Just traded in my Protege5 after 10 years of faithful service (rust notwithstanding) and bought a 2012 Mazda3 Skyactiv in September. One of the key requirements my partner had as we were car shopping was that the car have an in-dash satellite radio (in fact, she wouldnt consider a car without one).
However, when we picked the car up, I found out that the radio had not been installed (the dealership didnt tell me I was lucky enough to press the SAT button upon the initial inspection, only to have nothing happen). They forgot, apparently. However, I was assured that they would have the necessary components in a month.
Two month later (and lots of unreturned phone calls), I was told that the parts had arrived and I could bring the car in to have it installed. As a bonus, by dash would look a lot cooler.
Huh? (scratch)
So I enquired further turns out what they are actually going to do is remove the stock radio and replace it with a Clarion CX501 unit like this:
http://www.clarion.com/ca/en/produc...din/CX501/ca-en-product-pf_1259567987671.html
Im torn about how I should deal with this. On one hand, its a better radio, it would be integrated into my steering wheels audio controls, and it comes with a USB input. But on the negative side, it will destroy the integrated look of the dash, I may lose some functions (the input knot to the right of the giant control knob would be lost), and I wonder if the blue screen on top of the dash will become useless. In the end, I guess Im not keen on my dash looking aftermarket two months after taking possession.
Thoughts? Would you replace the stock radio if you were in my shoes? I think this might come down to the dealership not wanting to tear out the dash to install the OME satellite receiver. I know the Clarion unit does not come with a free satellite radio subscription, so I will have to push Mazda to fulfill that end of the bargain
