Rocket Man's 02 Denali Build Thread AKA "THE BEAST"

[Chrismnj]

I suggest trying the Accel ones mentioned above... I had bad luck with my Taylor wires. They didn't have a positive lock on either end and I had random misfires. No issues since I went with the Accel ceramic boot wires. I made mine to a custom length, very very short.

Thanks to Matt I didn’t have to go through few sets to find the good one

 

[Rocket Man]

I looked up the Taylor set for a GTO and they're $150. And I don't care for the Accel brand, I've heard some bad stuff about their stuff, it might be hit or miss. So I decided on some I'd heard about on EBay, and I'll give them a try. I cancelled the order for the heat socks, so that saves me $60. These are 7 1/4" from end to end and will fit an LS with my coils. Better than the 11 3/4" that the Taylors are.

 

[Chrismnj]

I looked up the Taylor set for a GTO and they're $150. And I don't care for the Accel brand, I've heard some bad stuff about their stuff, it might be hit or miss. So I decided on some I'd heard about on EBay, and I'll give them a try. I cancelled the order for the heat socks, so that saves me $60. These are 7 1/4" from end to end and will fit an LS with my coils. Better than the 11 3/4" that the Taylors are.

Don’t you think that shrink tubing will melt next to headers?

 

[Rocket Man]

Don’t you think that shrink tubing will melt next to headers?

No. I’ve tried to melt high temp heat shrink by holding a heat gun on it for a long time and it doesn’t melt. They put heat shielding on the wires so Im pretty sure they didn’t hold it in place with something that melts. They’re made for headers. Supposedly good up to 1800 direct or 2500 radiant. I guess I’ll see though. I’ll be the TYF guinea pig lol.

 

[Tonyrodz]

No. I’ve tried to melt high temp heat shrink by holding a heat gun on it for a long time and it doesn’t melt. They put heat shielding on the wires so Im pretty sure they didn’t hold it in place with something that melts. They’re made for headers. Supposedly good up to 1800 direct or 2500 radiant. I guess I’ll see though. I’ll be the TYF guinea pig lol.

What brand are they and what did they run you? Thankfully I haven't had an issue with mine yet.

 

[Jeff Groves]

I’ll be the TYF guinea pig lol.

But are you healthy? Don't want to see the data skewed over a dirty bottom!

 

[Rocket Man]

What brand are they and what did they run you? Thankfully I haven't had an issue with mine yet.

They're custom made by the company I bought them from, no name brand. Not sure whose parts they use. 10 mm wire like the Taylors. $118. Fingers crossed.

 

[Rocket Man]

But are you healthy? Don't want to see the data skewed over a dirty bottom!

Oh hell I have EVERY ONE of those health problems. I'm old AF.

 

[Rocket Man]

I’ve been thinking of a new HU after using the new Pioneer I installed in the Silverado and the new Kenwood in the Tahoe. I considered just swapping the Sony in The Beast with the one in the Tahoe until I pulled the dash and checked on the wiring. Whoever installed that one hacked the shit out of the wiring, it’s a scary mess. I stuffed it back in. Then the other day Crutchfield sent me another catalog and I saw an article on wireless CarPlay. Car mfrs. are lagging in this Tech but some aftermarket units have it. I always hated having to plug my phone in before CarPlay worked. Now I won’t have to.

Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX

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[Sam Harris]

I’ve been thinking of a new HU after using the new Pioneer I installed in the Silverado and the new Kenwood in the Tahoe. I considered just swapping the Sony in The Beast with the one in the Tahoe until I pulled the dash and checked on the wiring. Whoever installed that one hacked the shit out of the wiring, it’s a scary mess. I stuffed it back in. Then the other day Crutchfield sent me another catalog and I saw an article on wireless CarPlay. Car mfrs. are lagging in this Tech but some aftermarket units have it. I always hated having to plug my phone in before CarPlay worked. Now I won’t have to.

Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX

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Very nice! I may have to do this as well.. really want a b/u camera..

 

[Sam Harris]

I’ve been thinking of a new HU after using the new Pioneer I installed in the Silverado and the new Kenwood in the Tahoe. I considered just swapping the Sony in The Beast with the one in the Tahoe until I pulled the dash and checked on the wiring. Whoever installed that one hacked the shit out of the wiring, it’s a scary mess. I stuffed it back in. Then the other day Crutchfield sent me another catalog and I saw an article on wireless CarPlay. Car mfrs. are lagging in this Tech but some aftermarket units have it. I always hated having to plug my phone in before CarPlay worked. Now I won’t have to.

Pioneer AVH-W4400NEX

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Double tap

 

[iamdub]

I'm a fan of the AVH series. My only complaint about mine is that it has a (known) software glitch where the album art and song/artist/album info doesn't advance with each song unless you open another function then close it to come back to the "currently playing" screen. Pioneer may have a software update for this by now and it may only be when playing through USB. I haven't used Bluetooth much with it other than for phone calls. It's a lower end model without nav or CarPlay. But, for the price and everything else it has and how cleanly it fits the dash in, I really like it.

 

[Punisher Edition]

I currently have the avh3800 for the last few years, have been looking at the the new kenwoods with HD double din screens. DDX9905S is really a nice unit but expensive take a look at there line as well

 

[Rocket Man]

Yep, I did. Way more money tha

I currently have the avh3800 for the last few years, have been looking at the the new kenwoods with HD double din screens. DDX9905S is really a nice unit but expensive take a look at there line as well

Yep, I did. Way more than I wanted to spend for their least expensive unit with wireless CarPlay. I’ve already ordered the Pioneer, it will be here tomorrow.

 

[Jeff Groves]

Do you have the double DIN or is that a single DIN?
I HATE the Pioneer DEH-P6700MP I have now.

 

[Rocket Man]

Do you have the double DIN or is that a single DIN?
I HATE the Pioneer DEH-P6700MP I have now.

You can’t tell from the pictures I posted? It’s DD. I love the Pioneer AVH1330 NEX I installed in my Silverado, it’s DD but they didn’t have wireless CarPlay available when I bought it. It’s a brand new feature I believe. I believe yours is an older single DIN model, isn’t it? This new ones have a full screen display too, 7”. My Sony DD which is only a few years old isn’t full screen, it’s display is probably only 5 1/2”.

 

[Jeff Groves]

Wasn't sure if that was one of the pop out screens for a single DIN. My bad for not checking the model further.
Yes. This Pioneer is a single DIN. Nice Unit if you want to remember the combination of buttons to hit to just dim the display and other simple functions.

 

[Rocket Man]

Wasn't sure if that was one of the pop out screens for a single DIN. My bad for not checking the model further.
Yes. This Pioneer is a single DIN. Nice Unit if you want to remember the combination of buttons to hit to just dim the display and other simple functions.

The display dims with the dash lights which I never do anyway, doesn’t it do that on yours? The only other thing I ever use on the HU themselves is the volume button, in case my steering wheel is turned at the time. Everything else on these units is available by using the touch screen. Thus the wireless Apple CarPlay. It turns the display into a huge iPhone. The days of using buttons is long gone. Every different screen brings up its own set of touch-screen controls so there’s no searching for combinations of any buttons. These new units are extremely user-friendly. I’ve had touch screens in all my rigs for years. That combined with voice control via Siri or Android Auto and you’re set. I love being able to use my voice to find the nearest restaurant or store or whatever and then have it map it out via Google Maps. Or just ask a question or text or call someone. And now it will automatically connect to CarPlay without plugging in the phone, so my phone can stay in my pocket. It will be mirrored on the Pioneer.
BTW, I did the conversion to DD. There’s write-ups on it here if you’re interested.

 

[Tonyrodz]

The display dims with the dash lights which I never do anyway, doesn’t it do that on yours? The only other thing I ever use on the HU themselves is the volume button, in case my steering wheel is turned at the time. Everything else on these units is available by using the touch screen. Thus the wireless Apple CarPlay. It turns the display into a huge iPhone. The days of using buttons is long gone. Every different screen brings up its own set of touch-screen controls so there’s no searching for combinations of any buttons. These new units are extremely user-friendly. I’ve had touch screens in all my rigs for years. That combined with voice control via Siri or Android Auto and you’re set. I love being able to use my voice to find the nearest restaurant or store or whatever and then have it map it out via Google Maps. Or just ask a question or text or call someone. And now it will automatically connect to CarPlay without plugging in the phone, so my phone can stay in my pocket. It will be mirrored on the Pioneer.
BTW, I did the conversion to DD. There’s write-ups on it here if you’re interested.

Do you have any kind of remote for it?

 

[Chrismnj]

Will you be using maestro to retain vehicle functions? I installed Pioneer AVIC-7201 nex with maestro it adds options like gauges, tpms monitor, and reads check engine codes