I wanted to hook my iPod up to the S2000 and get tight integration with the radio. I have quite a few choices, but I wanted to remain "stock" for the time being. One other thing i wanted was a display to tell me what was playing since my playlists are rather large. The only thing that fit the bill was the Monster iCruze.

In an earlier post I noted problems with the iCruze and lack of compatibility with some features and the stock radio. It turns out that a new firmware revision is available from Monster that makes the iCruze work better with our radio. If you get an old version where the skip track does not work in shuffle mode, you can contact Monster Support to get an updated version.

So far the iCruze is compatible with 2000-2003MY radios ONLY.

The iCruze is a very costly product. Many words can describe Monster products, but "cheap" isn't one of them. The main unit costs $249, the adaptor cable $30, and the LCD display is $99. That'a about $378 + tax for the whole deal. That would buy a pretty nice head unit.

There are ways to get it cheaper. I would recommend getting one either via eBay or by a Froogle or Fatwallet price search. I managed to get my iCruze for $149. The cable and display are hard to get discounted, so I went to Fry's to pick those up. My total price for the iCruze was about $280+ tax.

Here's a list of features it will give using the stock radio (2003 model, in my case):
1. Up to 6 folders/playlists (this is a radio limitation) Disc+/Disc- on the radio change the playlists.
2. Repeat and shuffle work for each playlist
3. "CH" button on dash will skip tracks in either normal or shuffle modes
4. FF/>>| will skip one track if pushed momentarily, or if held down till "CUE" is displayed, will skip 10 tracks.
5. While the radio has a 99-song limit on the display, the iCruze will play folders/playlists with more than 100 songs in it.
6. The iCruze keeps the iPod charged at all times. It will even charge it with the car off.
7. All power, ground and other signals required by the iCruze come from the CD changer port on the stock radio. No additional wiring or grounding necessary. No buzzing, whining or other noises - sound quality is superb.

The iCruze is ridiculously simple to install. To do the installation you really only need a Philips head screwdriver to remove the radio and nothing else. To do it as I did below, a couple of zip ties, some electrical tape, and some padding are required.

You will also probably want write down the activation code for the radio before you begin.

Step 1:
Put the car in reverse and slowly pull off the radio trim towards you. The top vent part is in really tight and is rather difficult to work it out.



Step 2:
Cover the shift knob with something that will protect it from scratches. Remove the 4 philips head screws from the radio and gently pull it out of the DIN cavity.



Step 3:
Disconnect the connectors from the back of the radio and remove the radio.



Step4:
The below picture shows the Honda adaptor cable plugged into the stock headunit. The blue end plugs into the factory headunit's CD changer port and the other end will plug into the iCruze. Do not plug any cables into the radio yet.

You will need to route the wire first. Remove the panel located in front of the passenger's knees. This panel is very difficult to pop off without damaging it. In fact, I broke two pins removing it the first time. Replacements are cheap, about $12.00 at the dealer in case you mess it up. Route the Honda adaptor cable through the right side of the DIN cavity into the passenger footwell, leaving the blue connector in the DIN cavity and the white connector coming out of the right of the DIN cavity.



Step 5:
If you have the optional LCD screen, here's where you decide where you want to put it. I like mine out of the way, so I decided to place it near the windshield between the two AC vents. Clean the area well, peel the label off the bottom of the "foot" and stick it to the dash.



Step 6:
The cable is easy enough to hide. Remove the A pillar trim and route the cable between the dashboard and the windshield. Do not use any sharp objects to do this! Instead fold a piece of paper several times and make a nice fat wedge. Use this wedge to shove the cable into the gap between the dash and the windshield. Drop the cable down the hole near the lower right corner of the windshield and reach up from under the dash and fish out the cable. After you finish you can replace the A-pillar trim. Make sure you fix any pinched rubber trim around the A-pillar.



Step 7:
Route the cable to where the Honda cable is located. Tuck the coil of iPod cable in the net and run end with the 9-pin D connector back into the DIN cavity (remove the "D" shaped piece of trim by removing the screw and gently pull it off) following the same route of the Honda adaptor cable.



Step 8:
Connect all the cables to the iCruze.




Step 9:
Connect the cables to the back of the radio (don't forget the antenna). Stuff the radio back into the DIN cavity. Power up and enter in your activation code.



Step 10:
A blue LED should appear on the iCruze. Connect the iPod and the iCruze logo should appear in 15 seconds or less. Some diagnostic info should also appear on the iCruze display.



Step 11:
Switch to the CD changer and see if it plays some tunes. If it does, then you can button up everything. NOTE: my iCruze requires the Honda adaptor be very tightly shoved into the socket in the iCruze, or it won't work.



Step 12:
Tighten the screws into the radio and put the trim back on. Take a zip tie and pass it through the two holes on one side of the iCruze. Loop it through one of the connectors on the reverse side of the panel you removed earlier. Do the same with the two holes and the panel on the other side of the iCruze.



Step 13:
Get some padding and wrap it around the iCruze. Secure it with electrical tape. I just did this as "rattle prevention". Cinch the zip ties down as tight as you can get them. Replace the panel, fitting the iCruse into the opening.



Step 14:
Put the iPod in its carrying case and put it in the net. Alternately, you can route the cable elsewhere, like the cupholder or the glovebox.



Here's the completed install. Everything looks stock except for the LCD in the center of the dash.



The display looks good (readable) in sunlight, and looks great when in the dark or just out of the sun:



Additional notes:
The huge silver metal piece (or bling) on the iCruze is removable. On the underside there are two screws, remove them and the metal shroud comes off leaving a small black plastic box. This box is sealed, so there are no exposed components. I would assume you may be able to shove this much smaller configuration behind the radio or elsewhere if you want to install it that way.

 

Great write up.

these write ups are a great way to show of our handy work and also add so much to the S2000 comunity.

well done Rworne.

 

nicely done
good job

 

good job.

i'll add this link to the FAQ.

 

Nice Job. I would reword Step 4 myself, just because it sounds kinda weird but I understood it the second time I read it. But regardless nice write up. I'm sure this will get added to the How-To section... Because I'm going to add it

 

I rewrote section 4 and made some minor updates to the rest of the procedure.

It's hard to describe step 4. I didn't take too many pictures at that point and I wanted to show the adapter cable.

 

Perfect and it looks like Phil beat me to adding it to the Faq section

 

Great post. I was interested in the Dension Ice-link and was dis-appointed that they only support 04-05's.

I currently have the Monster FM transmitter and at best it is FM quality and subject to interferrence. Up in the NYC Metro area it is useless as there are so many FM stations.

Thank you for taking the time to create this thread.

 

dude, i'm trying to stay on top of that thing.... i've got a txt file (to preserve the forum formatting) on my USB pocket drive. that FAQ goes w/ me everywhere.

 

and your doing a great job it looks awesome!