Official Pioneer Avic F90BT Install Thread

Tru-Blu

Tru-Blu

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The purpose of this thread is to capture any and all data that could be helpful to a Lincoln LS owner in purchasing and installing the necessary components for a Pioneer Avic F90BT audio/navigation unit (moderators, please let me know if this thread title cannot be used)

COMPONENTS
This section is for listing part numbers, price, and source for purchasing the different components that will be needed for installation

Part # / Description / Price / Source
95-5000S / Metra dash kit (silver) / $14.99 / sonicelectronix.com
95-5000 / Metra dash kit (black) / $14.99 / sonicelectronix.com
SWI-PS / PAC Steering Wheel harness / $49.99 / sonicelectronix.com
FDK11B / Scosche factory harness kit (2004+) / $9.99 / sonicelectronix.com



INSTALLATION
This section is for listing any tips, instructions, or pictures to aid in the installation of the F90BT

TIP - Use a butter knife or a jeweler's flat-blade screwdriver to remove the upper a/c vent, and ash tray assemblies when removing the factory radio

TIP - If using a dash bezel from TeamFordParts.com, make your relief cuts from the backside of the bezel. You may need to heat the bezel slightly to allow the radio to slide in.

TIP - If you do not connect a backup camera to the unit, make sure you disable the backup camera functionality in the configuration after it's installed.

TIP - A good place to route the GPS antenna is underneath the plastic venting near the bottom of the windshield. You should find a metal support that you can mount it near or on.

TIP - A good place to mount the PAC Steering Wheel control harness is to the left of the unit's opening under the dash.

TIP - Once you've made and tested your wiring connections, try to bundle the harnesses together as much as possible, as space is very limited behind the head unit after it is in place.


SUPPORT
This section is for listing any websites or links that provide additional support or information on operating and/or modifying the F90BT

www.avic411.com - great site for modification and update instructions, files, and support - including firmware and splashscreen/themes
 
Last edited:
Install results and associated pics

Major thanks to 1LoudLS for providing some much-needed support at various times through the installation process. I've done a fair amount of car audio installs, but none were as involved as this.

Disassembly of the dash/console area went pretty easy, and I used most of the tips that were posted in the thread above. Butter knife worked great at getting the panels off with no clips breaking.

Avic-Install-1.jpg


I strongly recommend covering the ash tray assembly and shift knob to ensure they don't get scratched during the install.

I ended up putting the GPS antenna over on the right side of the dash trim by the smaller vent (pic below). It sits below the trim level with no problems, and I get great sat reception (usually 8 satellites).

Avic-Install-3.jpg


I used the right side access hole by the passenger door to route the gps antenna wire, as well as moving the harness wires around when getting ready to put the head unit in. There's a ton of room in there!

Avic-Install-2.jpg



You have to take the A-pillar trim pieces off to get the dash trim near the windshield off. NOTE - if you have a Gen-II with air bags in your headliner, you will NOT be able to get the upper clips off with the trim pieces, and you will end up cutting the safety tether straps to remove the pillar trim. Additionally, the upper clips will most likely not be cooperative in allowing the upper trim to go back into them. They are designed as a one-time push-in only and aren't designed to come back out. As a result, I will be replacing my A-pillar trim pieces (you can still use your existing A-trim pillars without the upper clips, they just won't be as snug as before up there).

Avic-Install-4.jpg


I put my mic up by the rear-view mirror, tucked the wiring into the headliner, and then ran it down the driver's A-pillar and below the dash from there. Worked out great, and the mic/sound quality is great for phone and voice recognition use.

This next pic shows the harnesses coming together inside the car. Even though I soldered and heat-shrunk the speaker connections from the Avic's harness to the Scosche harness, I wrapped electrical tape around all of them to ensure that they didn't move or got pulled in the head unit installation in the car. Other places I used tie straps to try and thin the harnesses down for easier wire management.

Avic-Install-5.jpg


Things went together really easy from there. I pushed as much of the aftermarket harnesses and the PAC steering wheel adapter to the right side of the stereo cavity, and then moved/secured most of the wires to where I wanted them using the right side access hole near the passenger door.

Avic-Install-6.jpg


In doing this, I was able to push the radio in and secure it in the car the first time with no problems with the wiring.

All in all, the install went great with no major problems (albeit I was very slow) again thanks to some help from 1LoudLS. I did the 3.0 update after I tested all features/functions, and I'm totally satisfied with how the Avic sounds and performs. The 3.0 boot-up and response times are great, and with a 120 Gb Ipod Classic in the locked dash, I am set for a while.

Avic-Install-7.jpg


Avic-Install-8.jpg


While the factory 6x9 subs sound pretty good, I think I'll be upgrading the amp/subs in the near future.

I hope this helps any other LS owners out there that are considering a Nav-unit upgrade to their baby!

TRU
 
Hey Tru, Looks great. Sorry I never got those pics over. I took them but it was difficult to really try to get the harnesses laid where it would be useful.

Where did you end up fastening the grounds to the chassis?

My unit should be back from warranty service in the next couple of weeks so I will begin again then. Keep us posted on the performance.

Thanks for posting this out there.
 
I put them on a 7mm bolt that was at the bottom corner of the console on the driver's side - very easy to get to.

TRU
 
looks amazing, wouldnt mind getting that at all
 
congrats bro, i glad you got everything done up good, it looks great

check your email, i'm sending you somthing to check out

is that dash kit a perfect match? when i got mine they only made black and i had to paint it, the paint is close but not perfect and you can tell when its really sunny, and i would be interested in getting a silver one if it matches perfectly, other wise im just going to repaint it (a friend of mine works at a body shop and says he can mix it way closer )
 
Did you do the hardware bypass or did you leave it factory?

Also, did you hookup the VSS and the reverse wire?

Thanks,

OP
 
Loud, the Metra panel kit matches the factory panels perfectly. I cannot tell a difference at all no matter how much and what angle I look at it. Well worth the price (which was pretty low to begin with). The first post has the part number and web site to grab it from.

Opie, I did the bypass but haven't hooked up the VSS wire yet. I did connect it in the radio's harness, and it's just tie-strapped up above the driver side for now. Once I confirm where it is in the kick panel, I'll finish running it. I have no plans on putting a backup camera in the car, so I didn't connect the Reverse wire.

TRU
 
Opies_LS said:
Did you do the hardware bypass or did you leave it factory?

Also, did you hookup the VSS and the reverse wire?

Thanks,

OP
Click to expand...

Opies,
Since you have a gen II, you don't have much choice about doing the bypass. The gen II doesn't have any easy to access signal for parking-brake-applied. VSS, however, is easy to get to on the gen II.
 
Joe,

The VSS is what I'm still looking for (admittedly, I haven't looked too hard yet). I've heard that it's on a 12 wire connector and is white with a green stripe at the driver's kick panel, but I haven't taken the panel completely off yet to find it.

TRU
 
Opie,

The hardware bypass is super easy to do! Go to avic411.com and into the F-series forum, and then search on Bypass. You'll find the thread that explains it, as well as another thread that actually shows step-by-step pics.

TRU
 
Nice install! Just out of curiousity, what is the VSS that everyone talks about when installing the pioneer decks? I have an Alpine IVA-D300 that hooks into the foot brake and the parking brake to get the video. I did the brake hook up, and just ran a jumper for the e-brake wire to a switch I put under the dash and ran it to a wire that is grounded on the chassis.

The hardest part is getting to the wire for the brake, but I think that I may be hooked into the wrong wire of the two (I connected to the same wire as my Taurus, but it still doesn't work right. The wires maybe reversed as this is a common problem that I have been hearing about with wires being hooked up backwards just to piss people off.)
 
Tru-Blu said:
Joe,

The VSS is what I'm still looking for (admittedly, I haven't looked too hard yet). I've heard that it's on a 12 wire connector and is white with a green stripe at the driver's kick panel, but I haven't taken the panel completely off yet to find it.

TRU
Click to expand...

That's it. You'll need to pull the carpet up a little bit to get to the connector, it's just below or at carpet level, behind the kick panel.
 
The VSS is the LS's speed sensing wire (it may stand for vehicle speed sensor or something similar). Hooking that up allows the Pioneer deck to get the speed from the car instead of the GPS. It's supposed to be more accurate than the GPS - especially if you're in a tunnel, heavily wooded area, or around a lot of tall buildings. But a lot of guys that have the Pioneer decks have said that the GPS does pretty good all on it's own.

I'm still going to connect it, once I find out where exactly to connect it to in the driver's kick panel.

TRU
 
Tru-Blu said:
The VSS is the LS's speed sensing wire
TRU
Click to expand...

Thanks, I was just curious. I have a separate Alpine DVD nav setup that I have installed yet (still in the old car), and the GPS on my Phone is pretty good as far as screen size goes. Plus I have the phone holder mounted right by the climate controls so it is just under the screen anyways, and with the bluetooth it speaks right through the stereo.
 
so I think I am going to do this for my 02

question how do I get the service for the nav to work?

What exactly is all intailed on getting all of the services?
 
The Nav maps get installed onto the radio directly. There's some flash memory inside the radio that contains/runs a version of Windows CE and all the navigation stuff. There's no monthly or service fee for using the radio's core navigation.

However, there is an MSN Direct feature that is included in the radio's software that DOES require an activation (and eventual subscription) to use. This software will check gas prices, movie times, traffic updates, etc. When you activate it, it gives you the first 90 days for free, but you have to pay after that. I've read on the avic411.com forums that you can pay a 1-time fee of $99.00 and you're set to use it for life (or as long as it's running). You have to do this at the MSN Direct site, though, and not through someone else.

TRU
 
thanks Tru, is there any other fees I need to be aware of?
 
Only if you decide to get an HD-Radio, Sirius, or XM Radio add-on. Any of those require a separate tuner box/antenna and then a monthly fee for their service. I know that 1LoudLS has one or two of these services that he uses, and there might be a couple of others that can give you more info on them.

I pretty much listen to my 120 Gb ipod, and don't ever see myself getting any of the sat-radio add-ons in the future.

TRU
 
I am with ya, just wanted to know all costs before I started
 
the GPS service is free (thank you federal government) all you need to pay for is the GPS device that has the maps already installed on it and the GPS receiver which (for free) figures out your location based on how far you are from each sat and places that location on a map. now some units will offer a subscribtion service for extra info like traffic updates, gas prices, movie times and more(either by MSN direct or XM Navtraffic depending on which system you have), you only have to pay for map updates if you want/need them as they usually come out every year but are not needed as most roads do not move but new ones are added
Then there are the audio upgrades, such as XM (which i have and love), Sirius (XM and Sirius have merged but the subscriptions are still ran independly), and HD Radio. XM and Sirius have a monthly fee and work nation wide, while HD Radio is free (after you purchace the equiptment) but is limited to what stations are in your area, and when your out of range, well, your out of range
 
1LoudLS said:
Then there are the audio upgrades, such as XM (which i have and love), Sirius (XM and Sirius have merged but the subscriptions are still ran independently), and HD Radio. XM and Sirius have a monthly fee and work nation wide
Click to expand...

Actually you can get a subscription from Sirius/XM and get both of the services. They have it set up now kind of like a cable company where you can pay for what you want. I have had Sirius for almost 5 years now, and I think that it blows the content on XM away (my opinion). But, my subscription is a lifetime one, and I have no monthly fees. When the merger of the two satellite companies was approved by the FCC, Sirius said that I cold add the available XM channels to my line up for a cost of $6.99 a month. I didn't think it was worth the money to pay for 15 channels when I already have over 150 Sirius channels.
 
maybe this was covered but did you get an amp for your speakers or does the pioneer push out enough watts for the current set up
 
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