Best Apple CarPlay Head Unit Car Stereos for 2025
Depending on where you buy Apple Car Stereo, it may come with a free installation. In case of failure, Best Buy costs $100 for installation and promises to use the factory-installed appearance without factory functionality. You must pay for any other parts that exceed the flat labor fee.
You have some options when it comes to automatic installation of the host, but both involve prefabricated harness adapters. Scosche Amazon sells a variety of connectors to eliminate the need to cut and solder to factory wiring harnesses. You can also choose an adapter so you don’t lose anything like onstarsteering wheel control or doorbell. These prices range from a few dollars to over a few hundred dollars, depending on the complexity. You can also buy trim and mounting kits, and it’s very likely that you’ll find YouTube operation videos for your stereo model without the vehicle being too difficult.
Use the available installation kit to enable yourself to install an Apple Carplay header unit.
If you don’t have the time or energy to track everything yourself, consider buying an Apple Carplay stereo head unit from Crutchfield. The Crutchfield trademark makes it easy to install by yourself. By including prefabricated wiring harnesses, connectors, trims and vehicle-specific installation instructions in each head unit and speaker, Crutchfield can upgrade your stereo on its own.
Most importantly, DIYing doesn’t mean you lose steering wheel audio control, backup cameras, or other factory biocomfort. However, this comes at a price. When you draft your upgrade budget, you also want to reserve a reservation between $300 and $500 in addition to the head unit cost of the necessary seat belt and data controller. However, older vehicles can make installation cheaper. For example, the Pioneer AVH-W4500NEX’s installation kit is $56 for the 2008 Ford Ranger list, but currently has a discount of $50.
“You get a very modern (smartphone-connected) broadcast experience 100% in the car,” said Adam “Jr” Stoffel, training manager who has worked at Crutchfield since 1996.
Timothy Seppala wrote for CNET Automobile.
