This is was an interesting project. The customer came to us because the factory OEM Head-unit gave up on him. After discussing the various options we came to the conclusion that the VW dealership could not help us with a replacement without breaking the 3000 Euro barrier. Thankfully! Because that opened the door to much better solution that would broaden our horizons. The mighty Alpine i902D-G7 9″ Multimedia Unit specially designed for the GOLV VII!
The OEM Unit.
Unfortunately, the customer brought us the car without the OEM Unit. So we will use a generic photo off the web to try and depict the “before” situation. As you can see the GOLF VII does come with a pretty big screen but the Navigation would not work correctly in Cyprus, the resolution was not that great, the sound quality not as it should and the features we and customer wanted were not anywhere to be seen. But it does look quite at home looks-wise. So hopefully we can keep the same look and upgrade all the weaknesses the original unit had.
The i902D-G7 feels right at home!
Alpine did a find job with this one. As usual. A gorgeous looking unit that fits excellently at the OEM position, making it its own. Not only it features a gigantic 9″ screen but it also features hard-press buttons on each of the sides for easy accessibility while looking amazing.
The factory settings.
Every time we replace a headunit, the most frequently asked question is whether or not the factory settings that used to be handled by the OEM radio will still be usable. Depending on the car model, sometimes the answer is yes, sometimes it’s a no and some other times the answer is “not all”. This time, the answer was not only “YES” but also we had the pleasure to welcome even more settings being introduced with the Alpine unit, like these beautiful graphics when the climate control is being used!
Android Auto & Apple CarPlay.
The world has been made simple with the introduction of Apps. There is an App for almost everything you can imagine. So having an Android Auto & Apple CarPlay compatible Head-Unit makes a lot of sense. The i902D-G7 handles both flawlessly. Google Maps, Spotify, Tidal, Waze, Hands-Free Telephony, Messages (Voice Only) and more, are now available at your fingertips or even with the help of SIRI and Google Assistant.
Always up to date.
Using Google Maps or Waze or any other compatible Navigation Software, is now easy and reliable because of the frequent over-the-air updates they receive. You will never need to worry about performing updates again!
Music Apps.
Control your favorite Music Streaming Services with the same ease you do on your phone. Only now, you can do it much easier on a 9″ screen and on the go. Access all your favorite music, playlists, podcasts and libraries with unparalleled ease!
The results
Exquisite. We wanted to retain the factory look just like the customer asked, so the Alpine i902D-G7 was the go to option without a second thought. The end result had us in awe since the installation was pretty straight forward and the finished product was even better than what Alpine promised us. Kudos to them!
Owner’s reaction
The owner had his doubts that the result will be so close to the OEM as we claimed, even after we showed him the photos beforehand. Once he saw the real thing, live in his own car, any doubts he previously had vanished in seconds. It took us 10 minutes to guide him through all the Menus and Features of the i902D-G7 and we could tell that he was getting more and more excited by all the new toys he now has at his disposal.
When VW told me that the only solution was to replace my faulty OEM unit, I knew I had to look at other options as well. I am now happy to say that I am lucky I did so, since the Alpine unit is a huge upgrade to what I had before. Thank you! – Owner of the Golf VII GTI.