Making Japanese double DIN fit US Insight

[TheForce]

I had a double DIN trim piece imported from Japan and I received it today. The good news is that I have it. The bad news is that its going to take some creative cutting and attaching to make it fit.


If you want to try to install the trim piece in your Insight here are the part numbers.

This is the double DIN for the the 2000-2003 Insight
77330-S3Y-003ZA

This is the double DIN for the 2004-2006 Insight
77330S3Y003ZB

These are the left and right side double DIN radio brackets.
77255-S3Y-000
77256-S3Y-000

To order go here Sigma Automotive – Accessories that make your car go cleaner, meaner & greener and contact them to get a price quote.


Here are some pictures so you can see what needs to be done.

Here is the front. The double DIN is on the left and the original is on the right.


Here is the back side.


Here is the radio view.



The top 2 tabs will be OK since they are in the same location as the original. Everything else looks like it needs to be modified.

I think I can cut the passenger sides off of each and JB weld them back to the right spots. Then remove all the tabs that wont fit and finally just cut the bottom out a little where the bottom meets the cup holder area since the Japanese and US cars are not symmetric.

The radio area will have to be cut out and I think I will have to cut a new hole for the 12v outlet.


If anyone has any ideas on how to make this look stock I'm open to suggestions. I wont be cutting this thing up until I do a lot of thinking.

[TheForce]

Looks like the radio bracket might need to be slightly modified.



I think all that needs to be done is to drill out another hole for screw to go through.



Also I might need to fabricate a bracket for the bottom of the bracket to mount to that way it has full support.

[TheForce]

OK so I though about it and started cutting. To make a long story short you can make it work and look OK.

Here is the long story.

To start out you need to remove some tabs. The ones circled in green need to be taken out. The one in the rectangle could be cut a little less but I cut it the same size as the US trim piece. The one circled in blue can just be trimmed down.



Next on the list to remove is the passenger side ( Left side since this is from Japan ) plastic edge that extends to the glove compartment area. What I did was mirror what was on the driver side. It has a small lip just like the driver side should have. It was pretty easy to do. Just draw a line and start cutting.

Outside picture.


Inside picture.

[TheForce]

Next I had to cut out the dash to make sure a double DIN unit will fit. The green line is where I cut to make room. I also cut out two slots for the new tabs and I also had to cut out a hole for the 12v outlet. The arrow in blue points to a metal bar. There is a small lip that prevents the outlet from easily going in so I used an old screw driver and a hammer to bend it up a little. After that the outlet slid in just fine. The red circle is where I thought I might try to use a tab but that did not work out. So that hole is not needed but you will need to trim down the tab that is in that location on the trim piece.



Here it is all complete and the radio installed. As you can see on the lower left and right sides it does not match up but you really dont notice it when your in the car.




There is a small gap on the passenger side next to the glove box. This might be fixable but I have not thought of a good solution yet.



Here is what it looks like with the glove box opened.





The brackets did not really need to be modified but the radio does not sit flush with the trim. It sits about 5mm back. This can be fixed by drilling some new holes in the brackets. I thought the brackets may need a bottom support but I think the top screws will be just fine.


You do lose the ability to put a big gulp drink in the cup holders but I never carry anything that big anyway. All I need now is a double DIN VGA, bluetooth, radio, reverse camera unit so I can Install a computer.

[JohnHeller]

This was discussed a long time ago in this forum. That OP was going to buy the JDM part that you did, but as I recall he discovered a European country with left hand drive that offered the double DIN and ended up buying the part there. (Germany, Holland? Sorry I really can't recall) Anyway, that part just goes right in. And he couldn't use the cup holder after that either.

[TheForce]

I could not find a country that had a double DIN left hand drive Insight. If one is out there I would like to have the part number.

[JohnHeller]

Sorry, I can't find the original post. I joined in 2007 so its been since then. Another post I can't find was a guy local to me (Los Angeles area) who posted photos of a double din mod that a local car audio shop did for him. They started with the stock panel and fiberglassed in a double pocket. It looked great in the photos, seemed to have the stock gray color and texture.

[TheForce]

I seen the custom double DIN post but I dont recall seeing the left hand drive OEM version post when I was searching about it.

[Titan]

Thanks for the info. I have contacted your link above asking to order one also. I need to get my Avic-Pioneer installed asap...the little stock one just doesnt cut it when Im used to having so much from the Avic.

[Titan]

I got a response from the link you left above...

Just double checking, is this what you ordered?

This is ZE1 Insight Center Lower Cover, Titanium color