So, I finally managed to get the Joying android head unit installed. I didn't't trust myself to install it right, so I needed to hire an installer.
The first guy I went to was very competent and high end, but he was really resistant to installing anything that was not Alpine, Pioneer or Kenwood. He offered to hack my dash up and force a 2-DIN unit into it. He advised against the Joying, but agreed to do the install then scheduled me for two weeks later. I asked him if he had the right fascia and harness and he said no problem. Two weeks later, he waits until 5 p.m. to open my car up, and lo and behold, he says he cannot do it because he doesn't have the right fascia and harness. He recommends hacking a 2-DIN unit into the dash again. I leave upset.
I find the fascia on ebay from London and the harness/CANBUS adaptor on ebay from Germany. I order the parts and wait another week and a half. I go to another installer. Probably less skilled, but more enthusiastic. He too was doubtful it would work, but he was game to try.
It worked! The harness/CANBUS adaptor kept the parking sensor beeps and 6 out of the 8 steering wheel controls (volume up, volume down, phone and source). That is good enough for me.
I think my installer did a sloppy job, and I think I'll need to go back. He left a gap between the dash and the fascia and the microphone and GPS antenna were placed sloppily.
However, this head unit really does have all the power of a full fledged android tablet. You can surf the web, watch videos, download and run apps like Torque Pro. Lots of cool stuff. The settings menu is absolutely dizzying.
CarPlay works flawlessly (except the issue described below).
Right now the only problem that I have encountered is that the audio from my phone (both calls and iTunes music) does not seem to work when the car is in Accessories mode. It works fine when the motor is running, but no sound once I stop the motor. The radio works however. So, it is baffling. I suspect it might be a setting somewhere, but it may be hours before I find the right setting.
The Joying customer support is not bad. It is not instantaneous, but they follow through. On several issues, I would email them a description of the problem. The next day they would email back a solution, or they would ask me to post a video of the problem. Then the next day they would post a solution.
An MCU firmware update fixed the CarPlay audio in ACC mode. Now that that works, I am a happy camper. CarPlay was the reason I got this unit. However, I have been temped by the Android goodies. I bought an ODB2 adaptor and get Torque Pro diagnostics and driving data. I bought Joying's TPMS adaptors. Initially the TPMS software didn't work with the 8.8" horizontal screen (buttons were lost), but after a few days and a few emails, they produced another version of the software for me. So, now I can keep an eye on my non-run flat Michelin Pilot Sport 4s's.
The final touch was to add Web Car Guru's launcher for a more OEM look.
