DIY replacement of headunit

It's been a while that the headunit was broken, the DVD doesn't play but the reverse cam still running.  My wife nag me a bit the other day and ask to replace the headunit as it is boring to listen to my singing during long trip outstation.

Hence, I had search online for cheap branded headunit to replace. It must have DVD player and reverse camera enable to be least. I had chosen a Nakamichi player previously, and it cost around RM400 online, prior to purchase I saw this Soundstream player which does the same thing and it cost less than RM300

 It is not the best player, it doesn't support android auto or apply play but it does have bluetooth connection, hence I still can connect the sound to the car.

The specification is pretty basic but it does have HD display and on the label it cost RM 500+, maybe I just got a great deal.

This is the photo after installation, it comes with a IR remote control and have a USB slot at the front.

 The USB will be connected to my Sharp ionizer for now.

The installation took me 2-3 days as I have problem with the reverse cam. I do not know which wire to connect the reverse camera to activate it when reverse gear is engaged.
After flip flopping for a few days, I had discovered that the original wiring of the camera have a red wire but it wasn't connected at the other end. Next since I can't find the trigger wire, I need to email to Soundstream to make sure which wire from the headunit to connect it to. Luckily Soundstream support does reply to me and confirm the colour of wire.
Subsequently, I need to find out which wire send the signal when reverse gear is engage from the car, an online search had found a little yellow wire. Once it connected, reverse gear engaged, the camera automatically activated on the headunit.
 Job done. This headunit also support for front camera which I not sure how it will be triggered or activated. Anyway, that will be leave to DIY project the other day.

DIY front glass and dashboard sound proofing

Continuing from the DIY of the sliding door, bought a rubber strip (Made in Korea) which claimed to be better than (Made in China) to be put between the dashboard and the front glass. Just a simple DIY that stuck the rubber at the end of the dashboard and done.
Result is good, less rattling of the dashboard and some differences in sound. Worth the upgrade DIY on this price.

DIY sound proofing sliding door and rear door

It's a boring weekend, hence internet surfing online shopping portal, saw some DIY rubber sealer so decided to have a try on it. Bought a small length of it together with a bottle of 3M primer to get a better seal.

 The rubber is a B type which seems to be a bit better to keep dust and sound out of the car.

Stick to the lower half of the sliding door and this is after cleaning, the parts with soap and water and alcohol to remove any dirt and put some primer (3M), let it dry a bit before sticking the rubber.

After finishing the door, got some left over of the rubber and use the balance on the rear door. Only stick to the bottom of the door and not the side as I believe it is not usable or pointless to do the side.

Went for a test drive and feel just minor difference in sound, is it worth it ? Not sure but it does fun.

Brochure repost

I had lost my record and found a website having this. All credits to the owner. Just sharing. A little bit of memory of this great car after discontinue recently.

Links to original post :-
http://www.en.japanclassic.ru/booklets/467-toyota-isis-2004-znm10-anm10.html

Broken drive shaft boots again

During the recent routine service, the mechanic had spotted that the drive shaft boots had broken again. The last repair was done at 2014 and now it comes back as the rubber boots had cracked and leaking grease.
Anyway, I think I might just get an OEM drive shaft replacement for the car as it might not worth the money to just repair the rubber boots and the CV joint might damage due to dirt running into it.
I will find some supplier and get some quotation on the drive shaft replacement together with the suspension too. I think it's time to replace the suspension as someone had complain of noise while going through bumps.
I will further update the cost and repair done once I get all this sorted.

Link to my previous post on the drive shaft boot repair :-
https://toyotaisis.blogspot.com/search/label/Drive%20shaft%20boot

Michelin Primacy 4

Some months ago, my wife complain that the car are not comfortable for long distance driving. She don't have the same comfort as before so I told her that the car is almost 10 years old, noise and suspension, wheel, tire does age and not so good.
I know back in my mind that the current tire I am using is a affordable type which sound a bit loud in the highway, the rims also are bent due to harsh driving for the past few years. So I told her that I will change the tire to a premium one, get the wheel fix and let's try on next long drive on the feeling in the back.

I bought 4 Michelin Primacy which claimed to have better comfort and noise level and fix the bent wheel. Put in nitrogen, balance the wheel, done the alignment and bring my wife for a trip back hometown. I purposely didn't tell her the changes during the trip to gauge her response.
After that, I asked her on what her feeling on the changes of the car after I done up the tire and wheel. She claimed not much differences. Oh dear, she didn't notice much differences. A bit disappointed on my part, but I feel great driving new tire. The new tire brake well, good cornering as it doesn't flex much. Sound is a bit better from previous, but maybe it is due to the wheel balancing and alignment done.
I bought the tire online and went to a local store to install, the tire are delivered there from the online seller, the price include basic alignment and balancing, so I think this way is more comfortable than running around town asking for price from shop to shop. The price are stated clearly including the term and conditions.
If you can see from the photo, there are some hairline cracks on the wheels, is it still safe to drive with it ? Drop me a comments.

B pillar door insulation

Have you seen one of these ? I saw them once before and it doesn't come cheap many years ago. Previously it was advertise manufacture by Korean but now the chinese produce them too, and it is cheap.
Hence I decided to buy one to try it on the car. Price is so affordable, but when I received it, it was a bit shorter than I think. 80cm for both strips instead of 80cm for 1 strip. However it is adequate for Isis. The sliding door on the Isis have good insulation on the left hand side panoramic door so the strips are good for 1 door.
I had install it on the car, 1 strip for the top and 2nd on the bottom, the curve on the middle part of the door seems trick to install as the strip doesn't bend well. After installing, there are a small gap of 1cm between both, but I am ok with it.

The cross section of the strip are as below. Inside is a metal clip to keep it in place on the door position. No glue or sticker are required, I prefer it that way.

Now what left is the road test to see will it block some wind noise. I will update soon on the result.
If you wanted to buy one, just search for B pillar insulation from any online store. Small sum for some easy DIY.

Isis stop production

It's been a while that I follow up on the news of Toyota Isis, it is sad to discover that the car had stop production back 2017, where Toyota officially announced the end of production for Isis without a successor on the same car.
Isis is truely a JDM, as it is kept for the local market so such a long time. Interesting design and concept, typical of Japanese mindset. Hope that there are something great in the future that carry the legacy of Toyota Isis. Now I hope the parts still available and getting cheaper.