Prestigious Society NAV Override Install

[brussum]

I've been annoyed by the nanny protections integrated into the navigation system ever since I bought my 2008 200 series LC. When I joined Mud, I saw the following thread and thought it was pretty cool: https://forum.ih8mud.com/200-series-cruisers/297819-nav-override-faq.html. It took me a while to decide it was worth the couple hundred dollars to rid myself of this Toyota annoyance. Well, I finally broke down and spent the money.

I ordered the override system for my LC at the Prestigious Society website: Prestigious Society. The payment was easy and the delivery was fast from their office in California. It arrived well packaged and with exceptionally clear installation instructions. Those instructions were a breath of fresh air after the numerous poorly written instructions I've seen lately. The install did require a pretty good disassembly of the interior, so I was a little nervous (I think my wife was even more nervous). Nonetheless, I felt up to the challenge and wanted to see if I could actually complete it within the two hours stated in the instructions...so here it goes...

The first step was to remove the dash speaker grill and this actually turned out to be the toughest part. You definitely want to put tape down on the plastic trip to protect it as you pry the clips loose. Once you get a few of them loose, it comes off pretty easy.

Next was removal of the vents. I was suprised how easy these things came out. Again, protect the plastic from scratches as you pry them out. The instructions recommended a screwdriver or a trim removal tool. Since a screwdriver is a little thick and I don't own the right trim removal tool, I opted to use a paint scraper. The thin metal worked like a charm. Both vent units slid right own and I simply had to unplug the temperature buttons.

And on to part two...

 

[brussum]

Prestigious Install (part two)

Next up was removal of the knee pad, which simply pried off with my fingers. Just be careful to work your way around the pad once you have it started...you know, start each of the clips loosening before prying the whole pad off. It's a simple interior part, but I'm sure Toyota charges a nice price for a replacement. Better safe than sorry.

Once the knee pad was off, I had to remove the right side trim piece. Surprisingly, there's only a single screw and a little plastic clip holding this piece on. Undo both of them and then pull out at a 45 deg angle (i.e., towards the B-pillar behind the passenger seat). It popped right out.

The next piece was the trim cover at the end of the dashboard. Start at the bottom and, again, work your way around the trim piece and loosen each clip. On my LC, it was probably one of the hardest pieces to get off, so take your time and avoid breaking it.

Next comes part three...

 

[brussum]

Prestigious Install (part three)

Once you have the end cap off the dash, you have to remove that little "wood" trim piece. Start at the right end and work your way slowly across. Despite its top-quality appearance, this is a flimsy piece of plastic. Be gentle, although it does come off pretty easy.

The next pieces to come off were the door sill and kick panel. Just work your fingertips under the door sill and it will pop loose easily. Tilt it up from the rear and remove it. By the way, you'll probably never have to run wires under your LC chassis as there are huge cable channels running the full length of the vehicle on both sides. There are also several holes sealed with plastic caps that, once removed, provide excellent access to the undercarriage.

The kick panel is secured with a cheap-o threaded plastic piece at the front. It looks like a nut and simply unscrews from the threaded stud protruding from the floor. Once that's off, the panel is secured by two blue plastic fasteners (you can see one still in the hole in the third picture, towards the bottom of the door opening). Just pull the top of the kick panel firmly and the top fastener will come out; then, just slide the panel up and it will come off of the bottom blue plastic fastener.

More to follow...

 

[brussum]

Prestigious Install (part four)

The next portion to come out was the knee airbag cover and the airbag itself. Nothing makes you more nervous than fidgeting with airbag components, it was pretty easy. There are two bolts on each end of the airbag unit that hold the cover and airbag in place. Undo all four bolts (by the way, everything is 10mm) and then work your fingers along the top of the airbag cover. There are about three clips that hold the cover closed and they are naturally designed to come off easily. Once that's done, just hold onto the metal bolt brackets (shown at the far right of the first photo) on each end and slide the airbag unit straight out like a drawer. I used a heavy towel to build a soft platform on the floor for the airbag to rest on so as to keep tension off the yellow cable. Don't unplug the airbag...just keep it safe and padded.

The glove box has to come out next and it was almost disturbingly easy. There are two plastic snap-on covers on at the top of the glove compartment. They pop off easily with a screwdriver. Then, just undo the two bolts at the top and the two at the bottom. The glove box unit slides out as a single unit.

You can now see the ventilation filter, blower, and navigation system (where your nav DVD goes). The hard part is over...

 

[brussum]

Prestigious Install (part five)

Now that the dashboard is in fifteen separate pieces (causing my wife to cringe when she came out to the garage to inspect my progress), you can begin installing the override unit. It's all pre-wired and really is plug and play. There is a larger wiring harness that is plugged into the back of the screen display in the dashboard and there is a small pair of gray wires that plug into the back of the nav unit in the glove compartment.

The gray wires connect to the nav unit. Simply unplug the OEM plug closest to the door. It should look just like the male plug on the gray cables. Insert the male plug from the override unit into the back of the nav unit and then plug the OEM connector into the female plug from the override unit.

To install the plugs in the back of the Toyota display unit, you need to slide the entire unit forward a few inches. Simply undo the two bolts at the top of the display and the one bolt located in each of the vent opening. Grasp the side of the display unit firmly and pull straight out. Mine was a struggle and came loose rather suddenly. Just be careful not to scratch it or the plastic trim around it. Once you have enough room to get your hands behind the unit, simply unplug the correct cable, connect the OEM plug into the override unit's female wiring harness, and then plug the male portion of the wiring harness into the back of the display unit.

The only thing that annoyed me was that the wiring harnesses are the absolute shortest possible length to span the distance between the nav unit and the display unit. This means you need to play around with the wire routing to find the best solution before you secure the override module. Prestigious recommends securing the module to the round tube in the dashboard and that's what I did using cable ties. Prestigious did provide some double-sided adhesive tape, but there's really no flat surfaces to attach the unit.

Finally, there is a push-button control unit. It comes with a really long cable and is disconnected from the override unit so you can run the cable easily throughout the dashboard. I decided to put mine down by the ashtray. I used my little Dremel tool to notch the edge of the console where it wasn't readily visible. Then, I just routed the cable through the notch and back up to the module within the dashboard. I ended up with about two feet of slack, so there's plenty of cable if you want to put the switch elsewhere.

Once everything was in and all the connections were secure, the reassembly just followed the reverse of disassembly. Just be careful when you're reassembling the plastic panels so you don't bend any of the plastic clips. Most everything lines up nicely and snaps together, but I did apply a little pressure to one panel before ensuring the clip was lined up in the slot...this led to me bending the clip and nearly breaking it off. I realized my mistake and fixed it though.

I know this thread is a little long, but I wanted to show exactly what was involved to install the module in case you were considering doing so. I was a little nervous about tearing apart the dashboard and that delayed me spending the money to buy the Prestigious unit. Again, the instructions were amazingly clear with tons of pictures (much better than mine). Overall, the install did take me less than two hours and it works like a charm. Goodbye Toyota nanny...I'll be using my GPS controls whenever I darn well please!!!

 

[mreedbmwm3]

This is one heck of a write up, how did it turn out? Pictures of the unit installed and working with your iPhone, etc?

 

[mark71]

I think I'd rather do my own root canal.

I hate working on interior pieces with all those fragile little plastic tabs and the inevitable dash rattle when you get it all back together.

 

[T4Runner]

There's no external switch to install now (-- ++ on the steering wheel volume control instead), so it's just installing the aftermarket unit behind the head unit. Toyota console panels are pretty well designed to pop out and back in relatively easily. The trick is removing the vents on either side of the head unit without scratching them or marring the dash underneath.

 

[Markuson]

Prestigious Install (part five)

Now that the dashboard is in fifteen separate pieces (causing my wife to cringe when she came out to the garage to inspect my progress), you can begin installing the override unit. It's all pre-wired and really is plug and play. There is a larger wiring harness that is plugged into the back of the screen display in the dashboard and there is a small pair of gray wires that plug into the back of the nav unit in the glove compartment.

The gray wires connect to the nav unit. Simply unplug the OEM plug closest to the door. It should look just like the male plug on the gray cables. Insert the male plug from the override unit into the back of the nav unit and then plug the OEM connector into the female plug from the override unit.

To install the plugs in the back of the Toyota display unit, you need to slide the entire unit forward a few inches. Simply undo the two bolts at the top of the display and the one bolt located in each of the vent opening. Grasp the side of the display unit firmly and pull straight out. Mine was a struggle and came loose rather suddenly. Just be careful not to scratch it or the plastic trim around it. Once you have enough room to get your hands behind the unit, simply unplug the correct cable, connect the OEM plug into the override unit's female wiring harness, and then plug the male portion of the wiring harness into the back of the display unit.

The only thing that annoyed me was that the wiring harnesses are the absolute shortest possible length to span the distance between the nav unit and the display unit. This means you need to play around with the wire routing to find the best solution before you secure the override module. Prestigious recommends securing the module to the round tube in the dashboard and that's what I did using cable ties. Prestigious did provide some double-sided adhesive tape, but there's really no flat surfaces to attach the unit.

Finally, there is a push-button control unit. It comes with a really long cable and is disconnected from the override unit so you can run the cable easily throughout the dashboard. I decided to put mine down by the ashtray. I used my little Dremel tool to notch the edge of the console where it wasn't readily visible. Then, I just routed the cable through the notch and back up to the module within the dashboard. I ended up with about two feet of slack, so there's plenty of cable if you want to put the switch elsewhere.

Once everything was in and all the connections were secure, the reassembly just followed the reverse of disassembly. Just be careful when you're reassembling the plastic panels so you don't bend any of the plastic clips. Most everything lines up nicely and snaps together, but I did apply a little pressure to one panel before ensuring the clip was lined up in the slot...this led to me bending the clip and nearly breaking it off. I realized my mistake and fixed it though.

I know this thread is a little long, but I wanted to show exactly what was involved to install the module in case you were considering doing so. I was a little nervous about tearing apart the dashboard and that delayed me spending the money to buy the Prestigious unit. Again, the instructions were amazingly clear with tons of pictures (much better than mine). Overall, the install did take me less than two hours and it works like a charm. Goodbye Toyota nanny...I'll be using my GPS controls whenever I darn well please!!!
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Holy smokes!!! After seeing your write up, I've decided to skip the cardiologist, and just do my own open-heart surgery...

That looks complicated...

 

[NLScooby]

Great write-up! Our forefathers are saluting you now for taking a stand....A STAND FOR FREEDOM!!

 

[thzpcs]

Quite a lot of work for something like that. I didn't think the lockouts were that bad...

 

[Island1064]

I use the entune app on my phone then sync to the car. You can do that anytime dream driving or not.

 

[Island1064]

Sorry typo I meant driving not dream driving

 

[str8nm]

Do you still have a copy of the installation structure s you could scan and email me?