[ALPO18]

I installed the REC Radio in my Durango along with the Antenna but do not have the DVD yet (but it is coming). It looks as though the DVD is needed for at least the initial use of the Navigation part of the radio (the rest is working fine - Sirius, CD, Rear Ent Sys, Steering Wheel controls, and even the Hands Free Phone Sys). Can the Radio menus and setup be accessed if the DVD is removed from the Radio? I can not even get to those screens, as soon as the NAV button is depressed is states the need for DVD insertion. My thoughts are I could borrow another persons DVD to at least get that part of the programming done and then give that DVD back. Has anyone tried removing the DVD and still access the setup screens (see how many Sats are connected, set the screen brightness up, set the clock, etc...). If the DVD is needed I guess I will just have to wait until I get a dedicated DVD. By the way, my extreme thanks to Toneaero for posting the directions and even photos for installing the radio. With his posting (now moved to the "Mobile Audio and Electronics Talk" forum) it was EEEEAAAASSSSYYYY to install. The radio was actually installed right at the house of the seller in roughly 15 minutes, the antenna was installed later in my garage, maybe 20 minutes and I pretty much had to do all the radio install again.

 

[emrobin]

Post some pic's.

 

[JKDubb]

The DVD stays inside of the radio permantly, it installs below the screen, the small tab that says Navigation comes off and you put in the DVD and put the tab back on.

 

[Ironbear]

sirius and rec

I originally had the sirius package (antenna factory installed option) with my normal 6 disc changer w/o nav. I never activated it, but have since installed the nav radio and would like to activate it. The nav works great and the install was a breeze thanks to everyone here but...
Isn't the extra slot on the back of the nav unit supposed to be for the sirius antenna? Or is the sirius antenna wired with the big block of wires, with everything else? What the heck was that extra slot for on the back of the nav?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ALPO18]

My swap was the same as what you are speaking of, from the factory 6-disk "non-Nav" Unit to the Nav unit. There were two sets of wires plus the regular antenna on the original radio that were easily swapped to the Navigation unit. An additional slot on the Navigation unit was for the Navigation antenna. The wires associated with Sirius radio must be inherent in one of the two sets that were already connected. In my case I had already been using Sirius and after swapping radios the sirius continued working seamlessly, as well as the Hands Free Phone system. It appears that the main essence of the Sirius and Hands Free systems exist outside the Radios, much as the Rear Entertainment system. The radio just asks as a host to play them through. By the way, getting the Sirius registered and working is easy, just follow the instructions in the manual. I believe that there was one additional connection left on the back of the radio even after that! It is MUCH smaller than the rest, and I have no idea what it is for. I think I now have all the available options now, but it has had no effect on any of my systems not being connected - as of yet.

 

[Ironbear]

I truly appreciate the response!!!
It was the extra open slot on the back of the nav, that somehow made me think I dropped the ball in some way. If my memory serves me correct it was a white or cream colored slot. It could be for the "U-connect". Any one know for certain?

By the way did your dealer give you a few free months with sirius? I didn't get it, and heard that most dealerships do. Just curious.
Thanks again.

 

[ALPO18]

Its not for the U-Connect. I have the U-Connect and I still had the small light colored slot un-connected. Like I had posted - I have the Sirius Sat Radio functional, the U-Connect functional, the RES (Rear Entertainment System), and now the Navigation System (functional up to the point of loading the DVD). All I have connected is the Two (2) original wire harness connection and the Antenna that were connected to the original Non-Navigation Radio as well as the additional Navigation Antenna wire connection. My thoughts are it might be a test connection of some sort used by techs in a shop.

I did get a free period ( a few months) of Sirius. I had to ask for it from Sirius themselves, no help from Dodge. I had heard of individuals getting six (6) months free but could not get Sirius to go that far. I had stated to friends and family that I would never PAY for radio, but it is really nice - and have been paying for it since. Having the Sirius and the six (6) disk MP3 player is kind of redundant, and now I find it hard to bring myself to use the CD portion at all. The Satillite is that nice, and I had probably said the same about TV before too - and now I pay for that as well (What's next)!