xcaliber501

Hey all.

I bought my '07 convertible a couple years ago. Whomever had the car before me up graded the stereo headunit to a Pioneer AVIC 8100 NEC. It's a few models out of date but it is still a nice stereo. Definitely something I can work with. One thing though is when ever I drive with the top down, which is basically every time I drive the car there is so much natural light that the display get washed out to where I can't read anything on it. Is there anything that can be done about this or is this just par for the course when driving a convertible?

Icecap

It's par for the course. I have the factory Denso NAV unit and even though you can dim or brighten the display you can hardly read the screen on a bright sunny day with the top down. I've had instances of wanting to enter a destination and had to choose between putting the top up, finding a tree or a gas station canopy to park under.

Oldguychuck

I would think that someone would make a sunshade that will attach to the head unit. I have a Polaris Slingshot for a toy and there are makers that make a sunshade that snaps on around the top of the Nav unit. It works very well as living in Florida you seldom are without direct sunlight. It does not take much to shield the direct sunlight to enhance the lighting on the Nav. Do not know if one of these will fit but would depend on the dimensions of your unit however I would think most are close to the same width.
The Slingshot sunshade can be found on line or at Slingmods.com. I would also wonder if someone in the Vette world does not also make them as they are well worth the few bucks when backing in sunlight...

marinablu67

You shouldn't be entering a new destination while driving anyway, unless you have a passenger to do it for you! The OEM unit isn't user friendly, even when it's working properly.
But what I do like, is once you're moving is the audible directions, and on the HUD.

marinablu67

A while back, I seem to remember some kind of non-glare membrane that went on the touch screen, but hindered the responsiveness. I've had many convertibles over the years with aftermarket stereos, and you could never see the displays. Besides, sunshine and fresh air, trumps the slight inconvenience!

Icecap

That is why I resisted the temptation to upgrade to a different head unit so that I could have an attached backup camera. I too like the audible directions and guidance display in the HUD. During my investigation into alternatives I did notice that one brand of aftermarket head unit had a feature that provides for tilting of the viewing screen for optimum viewing. The position of the screen on most units when installed in the dash has a slight upward tilt which makes the glare worse.

danzio56

I use glare deflectors from these guys and they work. It won't completely remove the glare but it does help considerably. I've used them on many devices with fair to good success. I currently have one on my Pioneer HU and it helps from about 30% to 75% improvement depending on the position of the sun and how bad the washout.

https://www.nushield.com/blog/anti-g...en-for-laptop/


My screen does have a 5 step tilt function which helps also.

marinablu67

I had read that some of the units that have a tilt screen, also interfere with the dash bezel, but I can't remember what brand and model. I really, at this point, don't want to give up on the OEM unit, but maybe forced to, if the clock and other problems aren't rectified soon.

Vettedream53

I'm just picking up my first Vette next week. I'm learning so much on this forum. I have an '05 vert. Am I hearing right that the HUD also shows the GPS?? Mine has the navigation but I heard it's horrible. Is this GPS voice activated? Thanks!!

Gary

Icecap

Yes the original Denso head unit has a voice recognition feature although the technology of it is crude by todays standards, When using the NAV audible directions come over the sound system so you can be blaring your tunes and when a direction is given by the NAV the music volume is temporarily reduced so you can clearly hear the directions. The HUD display changes when nearing a turn and displays a bar graph on the bottom that shortens as you approach the turn to give you an idea of how close you are to it.