Maserati is the epitome of class and luxury with sports sedan handling and... a semi-standard stereo system? Enthused to work on a new Maserati Quattroporte, I was taken aback when I didn't find a source selection for satellite radio or an interface for a portable media device such as an iPod. Surely a $130,000 vehicle should have such essential features.
My standard workday at Advanced Auto Design turned into a problem-solving dilemma with limited install space and time. I wanted the stereo install to stand among all the other great features that a Maserati has to offer. That meant it was time to change a few things. But this wasn't going to be easy. I had to find a way to alter the head unit without replacing it since very few aftermarket parts exist for this vehicle.
The Gear
The Blaupunkt head unit, which comes standard with the Maserati, controls many of the vehicle's essential functions; removing it would render the vehicle inoperable. Using a Nav-TV MAS interface module and a Kenwood KOS-V500 would allow me to upgrade the Maserati's A/V system without removing the factory source.
The KOS-V500 is basically a Kenwood head unit in a hideaway package with a video output. This output enables a Kenwood touchscreen monitor (or supplemental unit) to be interfaced with a factory head unit. However, the KOS-V500's video signal output isn't compatible with the Maserati's source unit. To rectify this problem, Nav-TV has devised the MAS interface model for the Quattroporte, which turns a composite signal into an RGB signal that's used by the factory head unit. The Nav-TV also features a CAN bus interface adapter, which allows video in motion to work correctly.
The main reason for using the Kenwood system is that its user interface is easy to navigate and allows for multiple applications. Many options are available, such as an iPod adapter, Bluetooth connection, CD changer, satellite radio, HD Radio and aftermarket amplifiers. But after installing the Kenwood system on a previous Maserati, both the owner and I found it frustrating to navigate through the system's menus using the supplied Kenwood remote. This time around we wanted to be able to select through the menus with our fingertips instead of hassling with the remote.