Hi

 

I have searched but sorry I'm a bit clueless.

 

I'm looking for a cheap ish head unit that'll fit my 2006 PFL VRS Mk2 Petrol. Obviously there's loads of double din options but I don't understand how you know if it will actually fit in the octavia and be compatible.

 

I believe it needs to be double din (?).

 

I'd like USB as a minimum - that's my main requirement.

 

Reverse cam and bluetooth would be nice.

 

Can anyone advise what I need to look for/ offer any recommendations? cheers 

 

 

The "good" ones are the same shape as the Columbus Skoda radio, so if your current radio isn't that shape you'll want to get a new fascia. 3rd party ones are cheap. Double Din is an option, but you'll need extra bits to convert.

 

It can be a bit of a minefield choosing a decent android head unit, there are many under powered and old ones around which are tricky to identify. If you want one that performs well, try to get a PX6 chipset with 4GB of RAM, that's a modern CPU and enough RAM to run google maps and stuff without any bother.

 

As a starting point I bought an Xtrons PQ89UNVIP 9 months ago and fitted a reversing camera, I'm very pleased with it. https://xtrons.com/vw-seat-skoda-various-android-9-0-hexa-core-4gb-ram-64gb-rom-pq89unvip

Hey, many thanks for your reply. So are you saying that a single din is generally straight fit, and double din is the one to avoid unless I'm happy to faff about?

 

Cheers

Single and double din will need adaptors to fit, what you probably want is something that uses the same shape as the VW/Skoda nav  unit, which is neither double or single din.

What they sell as dedicated units are a double din unit with a faceplate shaped to fit but £300 is a lot to pay for the neatness.

 

Both my Octavia & the Yeti both turned out to have the wider more oblong stereos which leave a gap at both sides if using 9 out of 10 of the dedicated VAG facia units, you cant buy an adaptor and a new VAG fascia can be very expensive, also the couple of units that do fit are very low spec WinCE units at silly money.

 

However a square double DIN unit can be had for a very good price and there are lots of cheap adaptors for double DIN to VAG fascias, I made my own adaptors for mine but you need a steady hand and lots of patience to make anything but a dogs dinner.

Edited 18 March, 20206 yr by J.R.

Hi guys.

 

Rather than opening a new thread I thought I'd ask here.

 

I have a 2012 FL Octavia that current has the "Swing" radio in. Is this a direct swap for something like the PX6? Or I need a new facia?

 

The Columbus looks smaller but then I think the Pumpkin is bigger than a Columbus and the Swing looks bigger too.

Welcome back to the forum Phil!

 

I think the Swing in the Octavia is the same shape as the Bolero looking at pictures?  It's a specific shape to to the Octavia and Yeti.

 

The Columbus is smaller, and is the same as the VW RNS-510 and all the VW spec units.

 

I've found that almost all aftermarket "VW/Skoda" radios, whether pumpkin, generic android etc, are shaped the same as the columbus.

To change between the "bolero" shape and the "Columbus" shape, you just need a new fascia. I got an aftermarket one for £15 which looks absolutely fine, the genuine piano black one for my l&k was about £130!

I have replaced the Swing unit in both my Octavia 2 and the Yeti with aftermarket WinCE units and they both were the smaller Bolero size, only ever saw one listed the correct size and it was a silly price.

 

I could never fnd a facia either so had to make adaptors each time, they are OK but if anyone can point me in the direction of a £15ish facia for the pre F/L Octavia with Climatronic and also one for the Yeti with cheap spec heater then I would happily replace the bodged adaptors.

Thanks guys. That's helpful. Yes I think you're right. Looking at the picture it certainly looks more like the Columbus picture.

 

I think I remember buying a new facia for my previous octy. I bought it from the dealer I'm sure and only cost about 12 pounds.

 

Will have to have a look on eBay and see what I can find. Obviously I need one that fits the FL climate too as they're a different shape I believe.

If you can wait for it to arrive, you can get the trim for less than £10 on AliExpress

 

https://a.aliexpress.com/_BP0koq

 

Awesome. Thanks for the tip.

 

Yeah I'm in no rush as I've ordered a Bluetooth handsfree to plug into the aux for the meantime and I need to sell my Pioneer sat-nav first too to have the funds.

Mine is pre FL, 2007 and all the models say px6 with 4gb of ram and 64gb ROM all say 2007 onwards, how do I get around the battery drain issue many say on the 2007 model as they changed them late 2007 or if someone can point me to one that won't drain the battery