Hi All,

If you've got a 1st gen MINI with factory nav and you're looking for an iPod adapter then you HAVE to checkout the Intravee II. I just installed one in my 2005 MCS with factory nav and it's absolutely AMAZING!!!

It gives you full control of the iPod from your MFSW buttons (including user customization of the phone button if you don't have a phone kit) and it displays song titles, album, and artist info directly on the factory nav screen. You can even do Playlist, Artist, Album, and Song searches via the navigation control **** on the factory nav. This thing is just killer!

Best of all, the Intravee setup is 100% plug-n-play. You don't have to cut a single wire (or run a power/ground connection) to install it. All you do is plug it into the two small CD changer cable plugs that are located in the boot of your MINI. That's it!

If you're okay with having your iPod in the trunk, then that's all there is to it. If you want it located elsewhere in your car (like in the glove box or in the center console, etc.), then you'll have to route the included cables to that location (see my install below).

You can check the Intravee II unit out and see videos of what it looks like on the nav display here (note that the videos are from a BMW, but it looks EXACTLY the same on the MINI):

Intravention - Home

And the Intravee II units are available for order/purchase from here:

Bimmernav.com Online Store

Besides purchasing the Intravee II unit, you'll also need to purchase an Alpine KCA-420i iPod Control Interface as well in order to make it work (since the Intravee is a device that allows the KCA-420i to understand/talk to the K-bus in the MINI). Here's a link to it on Crutchfield:

Alpine KCA-420i iPod Control Interface

Note that the Intravee II even offers a HD radio interface setup as well (and they are working on a Sirius/XM satellite interface setup too). In order to make that work you need an Alpine TUA-T500HD unit. Again, it's 100% plug and play and works along with the iPod controller.

If you have any questions about the Intravee II or KCA420i units, how they interface with the MINI, how they get installed, etc. please feel free to ask. I'll do my best to help you out. Also, there's LOTS of information about the Intravee II unit over on the Intravention web site. They even have a public forum and they are VERY good at answering all of your questions.

Anyway... Here's what the install looks like in my own MINI (sorry for the poor quality pictures)...

I installed the Intravee II unit in the little cubbie in my boot. I simply strapped it in with a velcro strap so that I can easily remove it for firmware updates, etc. (note that Intravention is very active with their Intravee unit and provide regular firmware updates which are easily installed using a PC/laptop connected to a serial port which is located on the Intravee unit).



Here's the Alpine KCA-420i installed underneath my passenger's seat (velcro strapped to the top of the nav computer box).





Here's the iPod dock cable installed in my glove box (hooked up to my iPod Classic 80 GB).



And here's (a really bad) picture showing what the Intravee's Now Playing screen looks like on the MINI's nav display. The diaplay works in either full screen or split screen view.



You can easily toggle between the normal nav map view and the Intravee's display by simply pressing the RND button on your MINI's factory radio (and I'm trying to get Simon to make it so that the map view toggle can be done via the MFSW buttons as well).

The sound quality is terrific too. I have another iPod interface installed in my MINI (i.e. the white cable that's shown in the above glove box picture) that I use in order to display iPod movies on my nav screen. That interface connects the dock port of the iPod to the AUX input port on my MINI. There's a definite sound quality difference between the two with the Intravee connection being much better sounding (i.e. much more clear and crisp). This is probably due to the direct connection of the Intravee unit to the MINI's k-bus via the CD changer audio cable plug, but it could also have something to do with the sound enhancing circuitry in the KCA-420i unit (i.e. Alpine's "MediaXpander" feature). Either way, it sounds great.

As you can tell, I TOTALLY LOVE this thing!!! It's by far the best money I've ever spent on my MINI.

 

It appears that the Intravention web site is down at the moment. Hopefully it will be back up soon. Sorry about that.

You can view the videos I mentioned over on the Bimmernav site as well though.

 

I can second TheOfficeMaven's recommendation. I bought the Intravee too, and the preliminary testing I have done with it in MININurse's car, Cecilia (hey - my car is still in the shop! Hehe) has proven that it is far-and-away the best iPod implementation for 1st Gen MINIs with the factory Nav.

 

A third.... I have been using the Intravee for about 2 months now and love it.

 

BTW, there's great info about the Intravee II in the User's Guide which can be downloaded from here:

http://www.intravention.co.uk/files/...User_Guide.pdf

EDIT: Note that the PDF may not be available until the Intravention web site comes back up. Remember that they're in the UK and so they're probably all sleeping right now.

 

Now I wish I had waited for the Intravee!

I'm still holding my breath for Tom to fix the Dice/Nav bug. Word is he will be working on it after SEMA. :impatient

I don't want to give up on my investment, but the intravee sure is tempting....

 

My MC came with, I think an Ice-Link. Is this a totally different interface?

 

@101dals,

I completely understand... I was actually holding off on purchasing a DICE because of the flaw it has with the factory nav. I too was hoping that they would fix it, but it's been months and months (if not years) now and there still doesn't appear to be a fix in site.

I even went as far as getting a whole new radio for my 01/05 built MCS so that it would be able to support the display of song ID tags (i.e. I purchased a radio out of an 06 instead). However, I finally gave up waiting and when it was announced that the Intravee was finally going commercial, I jumped on it. I couldn't be happier. I LOVE it!

@FPM,

Yes, it's a totally different interface. The Intravee is a big step forward over the Ice-Link/DICE IMHO if you have the factory nav. If you don't have a factory nav, then the DICE is the way to go for sure.

 

And we are working on it - if there was a solution, we'd have announced it by now, but your patience is greatly appreciated.

The DICE is completely different as the icelinks were discontinued over 2 years ago. the DICE is much more stable and offers more features.

 

thanks to all in this thread, I have just ordered the Intravee II from Bimmernav and am getting ready to order the Alpine adapter.

 

Oh man... You're going to LOVE it!!!

 

So, how much can I expect to pay for the Intravee solution?

 

Looks like $250 for the intravee + $100 for the Alpine interface = $350 + shipping (and/or tax)

VERY tempting - it would be nice to use the MFSW to control the IPOD and see the info on screen.

Michael, do playlists show up on the NAV screen as well?
How hard was it to run the cables up front?
Does this automatically turn off the ipod when the ignition is off, or will it play in '20 minute convenience mode'?
TIA!

 

Yes, the playlists do indeed show up on the nav screen and they are full searchable.

Running the cables up to the front of the car isn't all that difficult if you know how to take some of your MINI's interior bits apart. All I did was remove the passenger's seat (be careful NOT to turn on the ignition while you have your seat out or else you'll trigger the air bag warning lite and that will have to be reset by the dealer), popped off the door sill trim, took out my back seat, and then ran the cables. I didn't bother pulling the quarter panel interior trim as that's a pain. I simply lifted it up a bit and slipped the AInet cable (i.e. the blue cable running from the Intravee to the KCA-420i) underneath it. Took me about 45 minutes to get it all done.

Yes, the iPod is indeed shut off when the ignition goes off. Well, not right away, but after a few minutes when the k-bus is shut down by the car. Also, if you power on your radio with the ignition switched off, it will indeed play the iPod too. The only thing is that you won't see the nav display as that shuts off when you switch off the ignition. This is great though when you're washing your car, etc. and don't need the song info display.

I hope that helps some.

 

Hint to all curious...

Do a quick search for "Intravee" on YouTube. Several really good videos - most of them are in BMWs, but we share the same Nav system, so it's still relevant.

 

Just picked up the Alpine adapter from a BMW forum for about $60. If your looking for an Alpine unit for intravee check out ebay, I have been watching there for about a week and they usually go for around $50. Now, I'm searching for another ipod because mine stays in the e90. I might get one with a cracked screen since it will just stay in the car anyway and I can use the nav screen.

 

I have the OEM head unit. Do I still need the Alpine interface?

 

Yes you do...

The Alpine KCA-420i component is what does the actual interfacing with your iPod. The Intravee component is merely a language translator that allows the MINI's k-bus (i.e. your car's computer) to understand the KCA-420i's language.

 

Thanks, I'm not the audio tech guy I use to be.............

 

Good info, chicagolab, thanks. Takes a bit of the sting out of the solution, anyway.

Thanks for the clarification, Mike!

 

My complaint early on was cost of the entire solution but people seem willing to pay. To be honest, I love mine and even though I am having some issues (some bus noise bleeding through and the Ipod battery dying due to the Alpine unit not shutting it off). I am still pleased with it.

The noise issue is going to be resolved and I think that it is due to a bluetooth unit that I have installed.

 

It's definitely pricey, but it sure would be nice to:

1) see the ipod info on the Nav screen
and
2) control the ipod via a the MFSW with more than a few specific playlists
and
3) have the ipod out of sight and not have to shut it off

if I could toggle it with the 'dead' third button behind the left spoke it would be even better!!

I'm pretty cheap, but love my gadgets, and have spent enough time pulling the ipod out of its Belkin dock to put this solution high on the wish list items...

 

Here is an interesting youtube demo of DICE vs Intravee


And here is another showing the Intravee I/F

 

As you can see above, I took the liberty of converting Eric's YouTube links to embedded ones, using the new feature that Mark just added recently. I'll go ahead and add one more Intravee link...


Here's a demo in an actual MINI - not the best quality, but you still get the idea.

 

As for price... The Intravee II (plus the KCA-420i) is going for about the same price as the new OEM iPod adapter that's made for the 2nd gen MINIs. However, the Intravee is VERY easy to install and so you're not getting taken on installation costs by the dealer. We paid $500 to have the OEM iPod adapter installed in our new 2nd gen MINI at the VDC. Some dealers are charging up to $700 or $800 for it!

Also, the Intravee works just like the 2nd gen OEM iPod adapter does except that it gives you search capabilities (which the OEM version does not). Personally, I think it's worth every penny and then some.