Honda Odyssey RB1 Chinese Android Head Unit Part 2

[@adrian4jc]

Hi Gary. I hope you had a god break. Where is the wire of the camera to the front. All I can see from the old unit is the wire for front camera(optional)?

[@sanitater3271]

Once again, super helpful. I now realise that NZ gets a different version of the RB1 than Australia. In Australia, instead of the factory screen at the top, it's just another bin to put stuff into.

[@garyrussell5559]

The NZ versions are all directly from Japan. Do you still have the steering wheel controls for the Head unit on yours? You may still have the same wiring loom installed.

[@Grumpy-sy7wr]

@@garyrussell5559 Our Australian spec cars are very similar, also full Japanese imports. Yes, we do have the steering wheel controls, and as mentioned, another bin up top. Just above that bin, we get a small, backlit LCD screen, showing clock, radio station or CD track info.

[@fayyingleung6314]

Love the videos

[@rtworksmedia9562]

Thanks a lot for your sharing

[@tomjerry4240]

Nice video bro.

[@TheAdvisor6440]

Hey man i just need to say i have no idea what im doing do any over the wires from the heavy ass box need to be cut or repinned or anything? Is it just that top plug for the screen? Why is it a 30pin and the new one is 16pin? Ive looked through all the diagrams but i truely have no idea what im doing

[@garyrussell5559]

Oh no. 🙂This will be a tough job if you are not confident with Car wiring.. First up, did you see the part one video? It will help. That large Green plug at the top wont be much use to you as the only 2 wires you use on that is for the steering wheel controls. The plugs you need access to are in the navigation CD unit at the bottom of the console. (Assuming you have the same model of Odyssey as the video) The good news is that quite a few people have been able to use the same info for Elysions and some other vehicles with the same Nav unit. Can you confirm what mdel vehicle you have?

[@TheAdvisor6440]

​@@garyrussell5559 so I did end up watching the first vid and tbh it made me less confident haha. Happy to hear top wires are unneeded though. I saw you jump some wired and terminate some plugs in not too sure what you meant by terminate. From what I gathered jumping them is not mandatory and you were doing something else? I think we ended up with the same harness aswell

[@garyrussell5559]

@@TheAdvisor6440 Sorry I forget Im using terminology that I use every day. Terminating just means connecting the wires permanently and Jumpering wires is just a way of temporarily connecting wires until you have worked out what they do . Then once you have everything in the right place you terminate them permanently. I had to do quite a bit of jumpering wires as I needed to be sure the wiring diagram I was using was correct. The Harness provided with the head unit was pretty useless and even the plug in the back of the head unit was missing a couple of critical wires. One being power which meant it would never have turned on. I have to say, that it still works very well and Im quite happy with it so worth the perseverance to get it installed. Is your model the same as mine (Car and head unit)?

[@TheAdvisor6440]

​@@garyrussell5559 mine is an absolute so I'm not sure how much that changes, different unit same plugs and harness although it does look like my power wires are connected. So I shouldn't have to do any jumping then? And terminating its bassiaclly saying fuck a harness and just splicing them together and shrink wrapping it?

[@TheAdvisor6440]

​@@garyrussell5559 you did have to repin stuff off r main black harness for the headunit though right? All the lower shit is what ends up terminated?

[@adrian4jc]

Hi Gary. Thank you so much for your video. I am your new subscriber. My Ody will arrive in a few weeks time from Japan and I bought head unit with SPDIF out and fiber optic. I am not sure how I can use those connections to the amp. Do you think it is better to buy a new amplifier?

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi Jose. Yes the current amp in that year Odysseys has no SPDIF (Fibre) access. So a new amp will be required. However I wouldn't do anything until I get the car as you never know what the previous owner may have already done. A fibre connection should make your wiring much easier though. I'm interested to know what head unit you purchased as there isn't a lot of room up the top for a deep head unit. I know some models of Odysseys have a Head unit that projects a little further out and has a deeper surround than my version. This means your choices are a lot less limited than my model.

[@adrian4jc]

@@garyrussell5559 Hi Gary. Thank you for your reply. I bough the unit from Aliexpress. It has SPDIF fibre optic/HDMI output and the screen is not deep, it is further out and within your reach. The amp with SPDIF is expensive and I am still searching for a cheaper one. Thank you for your advise. I will wait unitl I see it physically. 🙂

[@amcoppens76]

Hi Gary, I am doing a similar install, but my Aus version RB1 has no nav - much less plugs on the back of the cd unit (only four). It does have the amp under the passenger seat.

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi back. Im sure I came accross some info for your model while trying to find the info for my Nav unit, but Im struggling to locate it again. The good news is that it should work for you just the same as mine. The key is tracing back the 14pin plug on the amp to the back of your existing stereo unit. Once you have that you will be able to wire the RCA output and the amp control line from the head unit straight to the amp. You will also need to find an ACC point for power. The cigarette lighter will be a good point to access that. You will also need a permanent power line which you should be able to find on one of the existing plugs with a multi meter. Look for 12volts on one of the plugs when the key is out of the ignition. If you have the same display as in my video, you will be able to access the steering wheel controls the same way. If not, it will be a slightly longer process of metering out all the plug pin outs but all very possible. I found the existing Pioneer head units did not have a lot of info available.

[@amcoppens76]

@@garyrussell5559 thanks mate that's very helpful, I'll let you know how I go 🙂

[@megsr1089]

Hey Gary, love your videos. It has helped tremendously. Just stuck on one part which I hope you can assist. My headunit came with a canbus box (HIWORLD) and it has 2 wires. According to the headunit manual it's for CAN_TXD(CANBUS) for both wires. Assuming these connect to pin 8 and 24. Do I need to ground it off? Appreciate your help and apologies 1 year later from your informative video

[@garyrussell5559]

Ah yes the Canbus. Mine came with the Hiworld Canbus as well. It is still sitting in a box somewhere. At the time I thought, great I will be able to use the head unit to control all sorts of things on the Honda. Alas no. I never managed to find sufficient information to make me feel confident that if I connected to my Hondas Canbus (probably via the OBD2 port under the steering column) that I wouldnt damage something in the process. Your ECU and lots of other things are connected to those lines. With Zero information coming with the head unit and a wiring harness that didnt even include a power line, & zero information on the Honda Canbus, I took the cowards route and decided to leave it in the box. I did do a google a couple of weeks ago to see if I could find any more info, but still couldnt find anything. Information on the Hiworld canbus connector seems to be readily available but I have serious doubts that this fits in our Odysseys at all. I never found a matching plug which Hiworld says exists. Luckily you dont need it for the steering wheel controls for volume etc. My thought was it may have been for the Steering wheel controls for your phone connectivity. Something I dont use, so never followed up on that.

[@megsr1089]

@Gary Russell I watched your video several times and your unit comes with a swc cable. Assuming swc and can_txd are 2 different things?

[@garyrussell5559]

@@megsr1089 Hi. Yes, quite different. The SWC, just stands for "Steering Wheel Control" and there is no connection to the Canbus. That wire is just looking for the resistor pack in your steering wheel that controls the volume, channel and Mode buttons. Its been a while so I may need to have a look at my own car again, (or the videos). I suggest you just put aside the Canbus unit at the moment which isn't needed for those steering wheel controls. You have got me interested again at looking at the Canbus so I will dig mine out and see what I can do with it. I may even pull it apart to see if its legitimate :-)

[@CodeMorseMusic]

I’ve got a Japanese import 2009 RB3 with an Internavi unit that is built in and has air con running through it, car audio places in NZ won’t touch it. Found a sparkie out in Malaysia who makes a custom harness that supports all factory functions, plug n play for an android head unit. Do you reckon it’s worth it?

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi Morseman. Tricky one to say definitively without seeing it, but specific harnesses can be a bit of a pain. I may be completely wrong but I think there is a Honda manufacturing site in Malaysia so there may be very subtle differences between a Malaysia model and a Japanese model. The Japanese models tend to be made for the home market and can be quite a bit different when it comes to the Nav unit with multiple antenna connections for toll roads and really weird stuff. If the Malaysian manufacturer reckons it will fit a Japanese version it may be worth a go though and and save a bit of work.

[@CodeMorseMusic]

@@garyrussell5559 it is a bit of an involved one aye… Yeah the good old ETC unit, got one of those, really keen to get rid of it, and the the B CAS unit in the back lol The garage is called Smart Car JDM Garage, looks pretty legit, definitely worth a punt I reckon, seems like it’ll work well, failing that I can always go back to the old setup. My only cause for pause are the specs for the head unit I think it maxes out at 2GB RAM which isn’t ideal. I’ll probably need a CarPlay adapter dongle to make it all work the way I want it to, I really love the ingenuity people like you show to get around issues like these!

[@adamstewart4157]

Gary, I'm in real trouble here ... I've watched your 3 videos on this a few times ... I've possibly cooked the Throttle Actuator Control Module or Relay during a spark short while faffing around connecting the speakers. Basically the car is undrivable. I have a "limp mode" with a max throttle of 3000 revs and very high idling revs. My OBD2 adapter pulls up a code of U0107 "no communication with Throttle Control Actuator". Here's the issue. I can find the fuses on the RIGHT inside panel, but all the fuse diagrams on the net for the LEFT fuse box (where the throttle actuator relay and DBW fuse are located) are NOT THERE. I actually can't find any fuses in the left inside compartment at all. I think the issue is that I have a Japanese imported model into NZ and it's different to the US models. Please help!! Edit: I have the RB1 2006 Absolute Wagon

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi Adam. That doesnt sound very good. Yes the fuse panel they are referring too will be our right hand side one. Also another fuse panel in the engine bay which may have a fuse for the ECM. Its midnight here and too late to check for you right now but I will have a look in the morning. Im not aware of anything on the either the Amp or Headunit that could affect the throttle control actuator unless it is a common fuse that has blown which is probably what you are thinking. Or it could be a really unlucky coincidence and the actuator has just gone faulty. Can you reset the fault code and see if it goes out of limp mode. What condition is your battery? I know I managed to flatten mine the first time I attempted to install the head unit and found it was on its way out. It caused me a few other little issues. Worth checking that the battery is charging while you are at it just in case.

[@garyrussell5559]

Just checked mine. The ECM, PCM, ECU (Whatever abbreviation you prefer) is located in the engine bay fuse box. On mine it is Fuse 8 and is 15amp. The Throttle control wiring is on its own seperate Bus so you shouldnt have been able to damage that unles you have crimped or crushed a cable by accident. I beleive the actual Throttle control is located behind the glovebox. I had a quick look at mine and I am pretty sure I located it. You may be able to trace the wiring back from there to make sure you didnt crush or break a wire along the way. let me know how you get on.

[@adamstewart4157]

@@garyrussell5559 many thanks Gary ... sounds like we have a similar model. I also found out that code U0107 can be a throttle communication error via the canbus and maybe the wires on the upper green loom to the old screen (wires 8 and 24 on your video) may somehow be involved? I never got the steering wheel buttons to work anyway. I'll check the bonnet fusebox engine bay fuses and report back.

[@adamstewart4157]

Fuse 8 (15A) in the engine bay is intact ... any other ideas? I unplugged everything from the upper green loom ... still get U0107 code and limp mode ... clear codes with OBD2 app and engine warning light goes off for a millisecond then comes on again

[@garyrussell5559]

@@adamstewart4157 Hi Adam. I expected the fuse to be intact as you are getting codes but you may want to pull it to help reset the ECU. Did you check your voltages? What do you mean by, "I unplugged everything from the upper green loom" as there is only the 2 plugs that connect into the upper display unit. Just checking you havent unplugged something else?

[@adrian4jc]

Hi Gary. Thank you for the video. I manage to power up the AFTER MARKET head unit. If I would like to retain the CD DVD function. Do you know which cable should I splice with so that I can watch the dvd video on the screen? Kind regards.

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi Adrian. An interesting question. In New Zealand there is no point retaining the CD DVD portion as we are in a different licensing zone from Japan so DVDS wont play at all and only about half of your CDs play. (Probably dodgy pirated ones) So the unit is just a boat anchor here. I have had a look at all the plug descriptions for the old unit but cant find a video out or S video. It appears to use composite Video which is no good for what you want to do. So unfortunately the old unit is a boat anchor for you as well now. Probably time to start transferring all your Videos and music to Memory sticks.

[@blaketrickey4659]

Hey Gary, What are the chances I can send you my wiring and you build a harness for install? I'm not handy

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi Blake. I would love to help you out but the reality with this head unit is you are still going to need to be a bit handy as even with a harness you are still going to need to cut wires and reconnect them. If you have a friend or neighbour who is handy I will be happy to help out. Sorry for being slow getting back to you. My internet is almost non existant at the moment. Just ordered a Starlink connection to see if I can get up and running again.

[@jamesopenshaw2434]

Hey mate how on earth does the heater temp dial get removed from the plastic fitting? I really dont want to break it ha 😅

[@garyrussell5559]

Hi James. Yeah they hold on really well. You can lever it off with one of your wide plastic trim removal tools. The control has multiple clips holding it on. Only the surrounding bit of plastic pops off which is all you need to remove to get at it. You will here it audibly unclip when you lever it up gently. Be carful when you put it back on that all the grooves line up in the right place. If still having a problem I will post a quick video.

[@jamesopenshaw2434]

Thanks for that mate. I got it off. Another question mate? The power plug that plugs in my new unit doesn’t seem to have a lead i can connect to the steering control with. I have my power leads the back light lead and auto ant coming out of it but thats all. Thanks again for your help mate ☺️

[@garyrussell5559]

@@jamesopenshaw2434 I just had this happen to Brian McPhail. He also didnt receive that plug. He identified it as a Pre 2010 JVC plug and got one from the local car audio store. Hopefully thats the comment you found. Good luck. All the pin outs loaded onto Pintrest should really help.

[@jamesopenshaw2434]

Im struggling to find the pinterest link mate or is it right in front of me? Thanks again for all your help ☺️☺️, getting somewhere with it.

[@garyrussell5559]

@@jamesopenshaw2434 www.pinterest.nz/garyr0096/honda-odyssey-rb1-audio/