mRoadster06
Newbie
- Joined
- Sep 23, 2024
- Points
- 3
For those that may have seen my “introduce yourself” thread (here), you’ll know that I replaced my c7 corvette with my new-to-me 2006 M Roadster. I absolutely love this thing so far, but if there’s one area that it was well behind the much newer vette, it’s interior amenities. Had I never experienced such things in the vette, I probably wouldn’t have cared that the M Roadster didn’t have them, but once I did a little research, I was surprised how easy it was to was to add them, so thought I’d share some info:
Before we get started - to be clear - the “real” mods are in process also haha - mine came with Super Sprint exhaust and CSL-style wheels, so nothing to do there. Currently working on an intake and strut bar, but I figure there are plenty of threads on those already and I wouldn’t have much to add. Instead thought I’d focus on interior stuff…
1) Apple CarPlay / Android Auto … if you haven’t lived with this, it makes life so much easier. It’s more important in a daily than in a weekend toy, but why not have it in both if it’s easy enough. I went with this one because a) it doesn’t interfere with sound quality, instead Bluetooth audio is direct from your phone to your regular head unit without passing through the CarPlay device first and b) because it auto-dims at night, which is absolutely critical in a convertible so you can have max brightness during the day and not be blinded at night and c) it attaches to the rear view mirror, so it doesn’t look tacked onto the dash like others do and d) it has front and rear dash cams that are always recording if turned on and could come in handy if there’s an accident or something
- note that this setup works best if your existing head unit supports Bluetooth streaming audio. If not, you’ll have to use an aux cable and you’ll lose steering wheel controls for previous / next track
- note2 that the auto dimming feature is based on a preset time of day, not actual brightness like your iPhone … but still way better than no auto brightness at all
2) backup camera … in this case, it’s built into the CarPlay rear view mirror unit linked above so no separate purchase needed. The nice thing about this one is, because it replaces your rear view mirror and is always on, you don’t need to tap into the reverse light wiring. A backup camera certainly isn’t critical on such a small car, but nice to have as visibility isn’t great when top is closed. Wiring was fairly easy … you just run it along the windshield, down the door jamb, underneath the panels by the door, under the roll hoop, into the trunk, under the trunk lining, through the drain plug, out from the rear diffuser, and behind the license plate.
- note - some people won’t like a full-time rear view camera in place of a traditional mirror. If that’s the case, you can buy something like this, and then you can have both, along with CarPlay / Android auto
3) cup holders … for those of you whose cars weren’t optioned with them like mine, this was an extremely easy install, got mine from here.
4) ventilated seats … this is going to be controversial, I know. You paid for nice BMW leather and instead you’re sitting on super cheap pleather, I get it. But … here in DC, it gets super hot in summer, and I’m one of those people that always has the top down no matter the heat, and the AC blasting. The ventilated seats in the vette were a game changer, so I needed something similar here. Went with these and they actually work pretty well. They actually get colder and hotter than the OEM heated and cooled seats in my vette, and because the center is mesh and its design mostly retains / enlarges the side bolsters, you don’t slide around much at all when cornering. They have a “massaging” function which is terrible and they’re not quite as softly padded as the BMW seats, but overall not bad and a great solution for swamp a$$ in the summer.
5) better accessory power - as most of you know, the 12v cigarette lighter plug in these cars is always on (not switched with the ignition, so you have to manually turn everything off), and it’s in the front of the car - so if you plug in accessories it ruins the look of the interior. So, I bought a fuse tap and an aftermarket 12v cigarette lighter outlet and a 3way splitter. Using these, I tapped into a “switched” (by the ignition) fuse in the fuse box, installed the new 12v plug in the pocket behind the passenger seat, and used the 3way splitter to be able to plug in 3 accessories (2 ventilated seats and the CarPlay / rear view camera device) - and it all looks clean and out of site in the cabin.
… if this install sounds complicated, believe me it isn’t. Tons of YouTube videos showing how to use a fuse tap, and I did it in 30 minutes zero electrical experience. There are even a couple bolts at the top of the fuse box that provide the ground so you don’t have to go far, and you just hide the cables underneath the center console plastic.
Now, I’m getting close to the best of both worlds I think - I’ve recreated most of the conveniences from the c7, in a much smaller, higher revving, more exciting package! Almost there, the cold air intake and the strut bar will be the icing on the cake!
The only remaining feature from the vette that I wish I could recreate is auto rev matching. Again, controversial I know, but it made some magical noises dropping down into 2nd gear as you approach every red light haha. Guess I’ll have to get better at that heel and toe thing…
anyway, just thought some might find this info helpful.
if anyone else has suggestions along these lines, I’d love to hear them!
Happy driving!
Before we get started - to be clear - the “real” mods are in process also haha - mine came with Super Sprint exhaust and CSL-style wheels, so nothing to do there. Currently working on an intake and strut bar, but I figure there are plenty of threads on those already and I wouldn’t have much to add. Instead thought I’d focus on interior stuff…
1) Apple CarPlay / Android Auto … if you haven’t lived with this, it makes life so much easier. It’s more important in a daily than in a weekend toy, but why not have it in both if it’s easy enough. I went with this one because a) it doesn’t interfere with sound quality, instead Bluetooth audio is direct from your phone to your regular head unit without passing through the CarPlay device first and b) because it auto-dims at night, which is absolutely critical in a convertible so you can have max brightness during the day and not be blinded at night and c) it attaches to the rear view mirror, so it doesn’t look tacked onto the dash like others do and d) it has front and rear dash cams that are always recording if turned on and could come in handy if there’s an accident or something
- note that this setup works best if your existing head unit supports Bluetooth streaming audio. If not, you’ll have to use an aux cable and you’ll lose steering wheel controls for previous / next track
- note2 that the auto dimming feature is based on a preset time of day, not actual brightness like your iPhone … but still way better than no auto brightness at all
2) backup camera … in this case, it’s built into the CarPlay rear view mirror unit linked above so no separate purchase needed. The nice thing about this one is, because it replaces your rear view mirror and is always on, you don’t need to tap into the reverse light wiring. A backup camera certainly isn’t critical on such a small car, but nice to have as visibility isn’t great when top is closed. Wiring was fairly easy … you just run it along the windshield, down the door jamb, underneath the panels by the door, under the roll hoop, into the trunk, under the trunk lining, through the drain plug, out from the rear diffuser, and behind the license plate.
- note - some people won’t like a full-time rear view camera in place of a traditional mirror. If that’s the case, you can buy something like this, and then you can have both, along with CarPlay / Android auto
3) cup holders … for those of you whose cars weren’t optioned with them like mine, this was an extremely easy install, got mine from here.
4) ventilated seats … this is going to be controversial, I know. You paid for nice BMW leather and instead you’re sitting on super cheap pleather, I get it. But … here in DC, it gets super hot in summer, and I’m one of those people that always has the top down no matter the heat, and the AC blasting. The ventilated seats in the vette were a game changer, so I needed something similar here. Went with these and they actually work pretty well. They actually get colder and hotter than the OEM heated and cooled seats in my vette, and because the center is mesh and its design mostly retains / enlarges the side bolsters, you don’t slide around much at all when cornering. They have a “massaging” function which is terrible and they’re not quite as softly padded as the BMW seats, but overall not bad and a great solution for swamp a$$ in the summer.
5) better accessory power - as most of you know, the 12v cigarette lighter plug in these cars is always on (not switched with the ignition, so you have to manually turn everything off), and it’s in the front of the car - so if you plug in accessories it ruins the look of the interior. So, I bought a fuse tap and an aftermarket 12v cigarette lighter outlet and a 3way splitter. Using these, I tapped into a “switched” (by the ignition) fuse in the fuse box, installed the new 12v plug in the pocket behind the passenger seat, and used the 3way splitter to be able to plug in 3 accessories (2 ventilated seats and the CarPlay / rear view camera device) - and it all looks clean and out of site in the cabin.
… if this install sounds complicated, believe me it isn’t. Tons of YouTube videos showing how to use a fuse tap, and I did it in 30 minutes zero electrical experience. There are even a couple bolts at the top of the fuse box that provide the ground so you don’t have to go far, and you just hide the cables underneath the center console plastic.
Now, I’m getting close to the best of both worlds I think - I’ve recreated most of the conveniences from the c7, in a much smaller, higher revving, more exciting package! Almost there, the cold air intake and the strut bar will be the icing on the cake!
The only remaining feature from the vette that I wish I could recreate is auto rev matching. Again, controversial I know, but it made some magical noises dropping down into 2nd gear as you approach every red light haha. Guess I’ll have to get better at that heel and toe thing…
anyway, just thought some might find this info helpful.
if anyone else has suggestions along these lines, I’d love to hear them!
Happy driving!
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