Things were different back then. In naught-Two the world was a simpler place. Fewer iPods, no Zunes (who am I kidding, there still arenât any Zunes) and Bluetooth was more likely to be associated with pirates than wireless communcation. And, apparently, in Germany at least, the cassette tape was still a viable music medium. Thatâs right folks, behind the fancy tilting Nav. screen (which there will be many posts about in the future) is a tape deck.
A tape deck. In a $50K car made in this decade. What life must have been like for those poor souls.
But thats not the real problem. Our Long Term Hyundai Azera had a tape deck, and above it was a CD player. Its no iPod jack, but Ill take it. BMW put the changer in the trunk. I guess back then people liked to walk more than they do today. Or they had a longer attention span. What I do know is that today, in 2008, this is a pain in the bottom, especially in a car that I never, ever, ever want to stop driving.
On the bright side, the Harman/Kardon stereo that the tape deck and trunk mounted CD player connects to is fantastic. Even after 4-years and 50K miles of use, the highs are bright and clear and the bass is deep and crisp. At high volumes (far higher than I would ever use) there is some mild fuzz that could be from wear, or more likely, from improperly shielded wires. But if you listen to it that loudly for any amount of time youll be deaf in days and Voila! Problem solved.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 50,777 miles.
But thats not the real problem. Our Long Term Hyundai Azera had a tape deck, and above it was a CD player. Its no iPod jack, but Ill take it. BMW put the changer in the trunk. I guess back then people liked to walk more than they do today. Or they had a longer attention span. What I do know is that today, in 2008, this is a pain in the bottom, especially in a car that I never, ever, ever want to stop driving.
On the bright side, the Harman/Kardon stereo that the tape deck and trunk mounted CD player connects to is fantastic. Even after 4-years and 50K miles of use, the highs are bright and clear and the bass is deep and crisp. At high volumes (far higher than I would ever use) there is some mild fuzz that could be from wear, or more likely, from improperly shielded wires. But if you listen to it that loudly for any amount of time youll be deaf in days and Voila! Problem solved.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 50,777 miles.
opfreak says:
10:40 AM, 01/ 4/08
shows that even paying for 'luxury' cars does not stop the hands of time or even show you a vision of the future.
still werid theres a tape player,. it was 2002, who had those then?
bimmerjay says:
10:52 AM, 01/ 4/08
It strangely took BMW a looooong time to completely eliminate the tape player. Back then on the E46 it was a choice between tape or in-dash CD, but not on the pre-iDrive nav-equipped cars.
altimadude00 says:
11:04 AM, 01/ 4/08
Where did that piece of plastic come from in the trunk? Part of the changer?
boxermike says:
11:13 AM, 01/ 4/08
That piece of plastic IS the changer. CDs are loaded into it and then that cartridge is pushed into the opening behind that flap.
dougtheeng says:
11:15 AM, 01/ 4/08
I think my mom's 2004 VW Golf TDI has a tape deck....
I think that model only recently changed (2006 Rabbit?) meaning you could get a tape deck in a VW until quite recently.
dragonflight says:
11:15 AM, 01/ 4/08
I remember when the only alternative to a trunk mounted CD changer was....a glovebox mounted CD changer! Lexus used to brag it was more intuitive, but having to actually mess around with the changer (nigh impossible while driving) was enough for me to just deal with a single CD player until in-dash 6CD changers came out.
P.S. My '06 Hyundai Tucson has a tape player. As does my '04 Sienna.
redliner says:
11:35 AM, 01/ 4/08
TAPE player. Trunk mounted CD CHANGER. That is sooo 1990s.
joefrompa says:
11:38 AM, 01/ 4/08
This is a car first released in ~1998-1999 (the e46 generation)...so let's give them some pre-millenial leeway :)
There are STILL cars that come with tape decks standard.
Joe
vvk says:
11:43 AM, 01/ 4/08
This setup makes perfect sense. This way, one has twice as many choices of books on tape/CD at his local library.
Weird, I was fooling around with MP3 and other types of compression in the early 90s, even writing several encoders in Linux just for fun. But to this day I don't have an MP3 player and I hate listening to MP3-encoded music.
carfreak8394 says:
11:45 AM, 01/ 4/08
Apparently the tape player is still "pretty popular".
At least Lexus thinks it is.
http://www.roadfly.com/2007-lexus-gs450h-video.html
greenpony says:
11:48 AM, 01/ 4/08
I know VW offered tape players as late as 2002 as well -- and apparently 2004 according to dougtheeng.
During the move to the new house last year, I came across a (small) box of cassette tapes. I found things like The Police, Phil Collins, and Fine Young Cannibals, as well as a couple "mix" tapes that I had made back in the days of two-deck tape players. After reminiscing for a moment, I promptly discarded them. Maybe you guys should move on too, and a get a good aftermarket in-dash CD changer, maybe one with an aux jack as many of you seem to like.
mr215 says:
12:03 PM, 01/ 4/08
I have been wondering for a while why Lexus still offers tape players. I just dont get that.
A $30k used car with no in dash CD player isnt my idea of a good time, but hey it is a BMW so all is forgiven. Also, not sure why a 4 year old car has to be praised for having a stereo that still sounds "new". Isn't that the case for nearly all car stereos?
louiswei says:
12:07 PM, 01/ 4/08
The 2008 Acura TL also still has a tape player.
jriz says:
12:43 PM, 01/ 4/08
I'm thrilled our "new" M3 has a tape deck. Since it obviously doesn't have an auxiliary audio jack, it allows me to plug in an iPod or even better, my portable XM satellite radio.
benson2175 says:
01:45 PM, 01/ 4/08
There's a new Source deck by Clarion that doesn't even have a CD player, you just insert a SD Card. How long till the car companies do away with CDs?
roomwithaview says:
02:41 PM, 01/ 4/08
Our 2007 Lexus RX400h has a in-dash tape deck, but no aux input. Personally I'm glad to have at least the former when the latter isn't a feature. A iPod cassette adapter is better than no iPod at all.
jr1m90 says:
04:17 PM, 01/ 4/08
There is always the FM transmitter option, but I agree that the cassette adapter often sounds better.
Honda introduced the Pilot in 2003, and our 05 has a CD player and cassette player in the main headunit and a 6 disc cartridge less-changer below it. No aux port, though. They still hang around, but I'm not sure who uses them (besides the aforementioned iPod users, who probably aren't the target users).
stovt001 says:
02:12 AM, 01/ 5/08
I use an FM transmitter for my Cobalt (the aux input was added for the model year after mine) and it generally works OK, but in LA it is really hard to drive for more than 10 miles and have one clear station the entire time. I'm about to install an XM system, so we'll see how that goes.
We used a cassette ipod adapter in my fiance's Corolla, and it did not work well at all. The volume, even when turned all the way up was just barely audible above the road noise. I'm not sure if it was the fault of the adapter, the ipod, or the car's sound system. Given Toyota and Apple's quality, I'd be willing to bet that the sound system, the ipod, or both were most likely the problem.
hola_dan says:
08:45 AM, 01/ 5/08
All I have in my car at the moment is a cassette player.
For me, this is fine, since I can get to hear my MP3's at a better quality than just an FM Transmitter...
ultimgrocgettr says:
03:45 PM, 01/ 5/08
This is going to be a fun long term road test for me to follow. After buying new "average market" cars, we have decided to buy a late model used "premium" car. Two years ago, I purchased a 2003 BMW 325xiT with 24000 miles on it. It has every option but the sport package. I intend to keep the car for a long time. Right now it has 52000 miles on it. So far, it has required tires, thermostat, an O2 sensor and is about 2400 miles away from its inspection II service.
I've wanted to buy a new Bimmer but this is a better way to go about it. I will be interested in reading the blogs and updates to see how this M3 will hold up. BTW, my 3er has the Harmon/Kardon stereo but with no tape deck. I have a slot for the CD player on the dash and the changer in the cargo area.
irfan114 says:
04:45 PM, 01/ 5/08
Hey all!
Quite a bit off topic....
The second generation Zune may not be very popular, but it's a fantastic mp3 player. I would recommend anyone who is in the market for a new player or a replacement to check it out.
I hope I don't sound like I work for Microsoft....or like some....Zune...vender?
m_thrizzle says:
02:02 PM, 01/11/08
I own a 2001 M3 and I love it. If the staffers at Edmunds want to add an MP3 player line-in to the stereo, you can add an Aux input.
Pre-2003 stereos require you to buy an Aux-in adapter that you connect in the trunk at the CD Changer. You will then need to run a cable from the trunk through the side of the rear seat and up to the front. You select the Aux-in by pressing the CD changer button. This is what I had to do; however, I just realized you have a Nav screen! I'm not sure if this will work now. Doh!