Eurovan Camper mods

Install a Boss BCPA8W into a 2000 VW Eurovan (Winnebago Camper Model)

Updated 2024-05-24 : First version.

Introduction

The 2000 Eurovan Camper came stock with a single-DIN radio. As of this writing (twenty-four years later) technology has improved quite a bit. I have another car with Apple CarPlay and thought it would be nice if my two vehicles had similar user interfaces, but until now I hadn't found a single-DIN CarPlay unit that I liked.

My Wish List

• CarPlay. Wired or (better) Wireless
• an 8" or larger floating screen, that mounts in a single DIN spot. While others have installed double-DIN radios in their Eurovan Campers, it requires cutting the dashboard and/or permanently removing the rear heater controls. I did not want to cut anything out of the dashboard.
• Adjustable floating screen: The EVC (Eurovan Camper) has a single DIN space, with HVAC vents immediately above, and HVAC controls (for the rear heater) immediately below. I wanted a unit which was height adjustable.
• support for a backup camera
• a multi-band Equalizer (EQ). The Eurovan Campers are notoriously for having bad audio: the two front door speaker woofers are mounted low in the doors, the dash tweeters are weak, and the two stock back speakers are not the same size or model (because the Camper layout is asymmetrical). My previous stereo had a 3 band EQ which just wasn't good enough.
• removable screen for theft prevention.
• a physical volume knob

Benefits / Features of the Boss BCPA8W

It's not perfect, but it comes very close to meeting all my needs desires:

• Single DIN installation
• 8" floating screen with height and angle adjustment
• Wired and wireless CarPlay and Android Auto
• 10 band EQ
• backup camera support

See the PDF Installation and User Manual for more details.

Limitations of the Boss BCPA8W

Things to consider before purchasing this model:

• No support for dimming illumination. In VWs, the radio harness dimmer wire sends a variable voltage (0-12V) based on the dimmer setting for the dashboard illumination. The Boss does not handle this, and anything less than full brightness will cause the screen to flicker. (This really seems like a Boss software bug - I wonder if a later firmware update could fix it?) In any case, I was able to solve this by tapping a non-dimming illumination circuit from the headlight switch, which was bit of extra work.
• The backup camera is Composite Video (about 640x480 resolution) which is good (but not great) quality.
• The backup camera wire is only 20 feet long. About 40' is needed.
• the GPS antenna wire is only 6 feet long. I would have preferred to mount it outside the van, but mounted it on the dash instead.

Parts:

• Boss BCPA8W From Amazon | From Boss
  Note: Boss offers similar models with 9 or 10 inch screen sizes. I think 8 inches is perfect, but you have options. Model comparison: BVCPA10W, BVCPA9W, BCPA8W
• (optional) Backup Camera From Amazon
  Note: there are bundles which include both the head unit and backup camera.
• (optional) Backup Camera Extension (20 feet) From Amazon
  Note: you need about 40' total, so a 20' extension was sufficient if you are OK connecting two cables. If I were to do this again, I would purchase a single 40' extension cable instead of joining two 20' ones.
• Hookup wire: to connect the backup-light and non-dimming illumination circuits, you will need about 50 feet of 18 gauge wire. Amazon 18 gauge wire search
• Wire Taps: to connect the backup-light and/or non-dimming illumination circuits, you will need 2 of these. From Amazon
• (optional) Wiring Harness - if you are replacing a stock (OEM) radio, you probably need a new wiring harness. The Metra 70-1784 is what you need: From Crutchfield
• (optional) Rear Hatch Trim Panel Lining Clips: if you are installing a backup camera, you will probably ruin about 1/2 of your existing clips. Buy new ones: From Amazon Note: unlike the OEM parts which use a 3mm hex bit, these require a slightly larger bit (I found a Torx T20 to work OK).

Tools

Unusual tools:

• (highly recommended) Pulling the backup camera wire is extremely difficult, and even if you skip this step, you have to route wires for various other circuits such as non-dimming illumnation, GPS, microphone, etc. Fishing the wires is much easier easier with a lighted video borescope/endoscope. I didn't actually use the video feature, but simply having a stiff but bendable cable with a bright LED on the end was invaluable for fishing the wires. Example: DEPSTECH Wireless Endoscope
• 3mm hex drill bit. If you are installing a backup camera, there are 20 panel clips to remove on the rear hatch, which are much easier to remove with the right drill bit. Example: From Amazon
• Screw Extractor. Even with the 3mm hex bit, about half of the panel clips were stripped. It's very easy to remove these with an extractor bit From Amazon
• (optional) Torx T20 drill bit - See above about the replacement lining clips having a different size.

Common tools:

• soldering iron, solder, and heat-shrink tubing (or crimping tool and crimps)

Before you start

• Non-dimming illumination wire: See notes above.
• Backup Camera: A backup camera is a wonderful feature, but it's not easy, probably doubling the installation time. Please read this entire page before committing to it.
• Parking Brake Wire: I did not install this, and so far it's been OK. See below.

Step-by-Step:

(click each picture for full size)

1. Remove the old radio
   Here is my radio, the "before" picture:
   



2. Old radio, removed
   Here is my radio, the "after" picture.
   
   
   
   Note: my van has been heavily modified: speaker wires have been cut, and RCA cables have been routed to a 4 channel amp and a separate subwoofer (6 RCA cables total). Your van's wiring will probably look different (and simpler).



3. Parking Brake Signal?
   I did not install the parking brake signal wire; without it, some features (such as watching videos and Android Auto setup) are not available, but I don't plan to use those features. If you plan to use the features that require the parking brake signal, you may want to install it?
   
   It's not clear if you can simply ground the parking brake wire to cheat it?
   I've seen differing opinions: Link 1 | Link 2
   
   See also the PDF Installation Manual



4. Non-dimming illumination circuit
   The Boss unit has one serious flaw: For "night mode" (screen brightness dimming) it requires a signal which goes to +12V when the headlights are on. However, the existing Eurovan radio wiring harness provides a dimmable illumination circuit (the voltage varies from +12V down to 0V as you dim the dashboard). The Boss doesn't like it (the screen flickers). So you must run this "non-dimmable" wire. I found it easiest to tap into the headlight switch.
   
   1. Remove the headlight switch. Using a swiss army knife blade, insert as shown and gently push right. You will feel a 'click' when it releases.
      
   2. Tap into circuit #7 (on the bottom left of the connector). Route this new wire to the radio.
      
   3. Connect the non-dimmable wire to the orange wire on the harness. (Cap off the pre-existing orange dimmable wire).
   
   
   
5. (Optional) Mount the Backup Camera
   If you are not installing a backup camera, you can skip these steps.
   
   This was by far the hardest part of the installation. I think it's worth it, but it's quite a slog, as you have to remove the rear hatch panel, the left shroud around the furnace, the kitchen shelves and cabinet backing, (possibly) the refrigerator, and the left side B pillar and entry step.
   
   
   Click here to hide the instructions for mounting and wiring the backup camera.

   
   

   • I located the backup camera under the license plate, since mounting at the top would interfere with the rear hatch handle.
     
   
   
   
   • Wire under the right-side license-plate light.
     Remove the rear hatch fascia: there are 20 3mm hex fasteners and 2 Philips head screws which hold the pull strap in place. Unscrew the license plate light, fish the wire under, then (gently) tighten it back:
     
   
   
   
   • Secure the backup camera connectors
     
     
   
   
   
   • Wire backup camera Power and Ground
     Important! The rear hatch metal is not a good electrical ground - when the hatch is open I was seeing about 20-30 Ohm resistance to ground. This was causing the camera to glitch out (but only when the hatch is open). Lesson: don't use the hatch metal as ground. Instead, use the ground tab shown here:
     
   
   
   
   • Fish wires through the rear hatch.
     Follow the existing wires for the rear windshield wiper. In the picture, I'm using my lighted endoscope, which I fished through backwards, so I could then tape the camera wire to it and pull it back out.
     
   
   
   
   • Fish camera wire through the rubber boot
     NOTE this was the most difficult part of the project. The problem is that the RCA connector is quite bulky, and the rubber bellows are a bit sticky inside. I was able to work it through eventually, but it was quite difficult. Go slowly and be patient. Alternatively, it may be smart to find a way to route a video cable without the RCA connector, and add the RCA connector later on?
     
   • Success!
     After fishing the wire into the van body, drop it straight down. It will end up near the rear taillight.
     
   • Tap into the Reverse light circuit
     On the van's right side tail light, remove the 7 pin connector and add a tap in to pin #2 which is the reverse light.
     
     Over on TheSamba, a user says you can tap into the Reverse signal another way:

     Link
     
     For the reverse signal, I tapped pin 7 on connector F on the back of the fuse panel. It is driven high by the PNP relay when the transmission is put into reverse. Alternately, you can tap pin 4 of the PNP relay, which might be easier to get to.

   • Now you have two wires together (reverse light with +12V signal, and the combination RCA Video + 12V power wire). Run both wires to the radio as follows:
     
     In my van (2000 EVC) I chose this route. Note: if your van is not a Winnebago camper, there may be easier routing methods which follow a different path.
     1. From near the right rear tail light, tuck the wire under the rear-most end of the van's flooring. There is a slight gap here and the wire fits nicely. Route it to under the furnace shroud on van left. I was able to do this without removing the battery box shroud on the right, but you will need to remove the furnace shroud on van Left.
        
        
        
        
        
        
     2. from furnace shroud on van left, to behind the under-sink cabinet. You will need to remove the shelves and backing board under the sink. Fish the wires around in front of the fresh water tank to behind the sink.
        
        
        
     3. from behind under-sink cabinet to behind the fridge. You might be able to do this without removing the fridge, but I found it easier to remove it (I have an electric fridge which is much easier to remove than the old Norcold).
     4. from behind fridge to behind the left B pillar. You will need to remove the fascia around the driver's side left seatbelt (B pillar).
     5. from behind the left B pillar to under the left side step. You will need to remove the left side step. You can generally Follow the existing Eurovan Camper wires.
        
        
        
     6. From under the left side step, go behind the carpeting, to in front of the fuse box. then up into the center console.
   
   
   
6. Wire up the new Boss
   
   See the PDF Installation Manual: Connections
   
   
   Notes: see instructions about tapping a non-dimming illumination circuit from the headlight switch rather than using the existing VW dimmer circuit.
   
   My van has been heavily modified: speaker wires have been cut, and RCA cables have been routed to a 4 channel amp and a separate subwoofer (6 RCA cables total). Your van's wiring will probably look different (and simpler).



7. Mount the USB cords
   
   
   Remove an existing blank switchplate, cut a rectangle hole, and then glue the USB connectors in place. It's a nearly perfect fit.



8. Mount the GPS antenna
   
   
   The GPS antenna wire is only 6 feet long, so I had to mount it on the dashboard. I don't necessarily recommend this location, but my speaker grill already had a notch cut in it by the previous owner, so here it went.



9. Mount the microphone
   
   
   I chose to mount it in front of the instrument panel.



10. Install the unit fully
    Test it out first before doing the final installation.
    
    This is how it looks without the screen mounted.
    
    
    Fully mounted with screen.
    
    Note that the screen has a lot of height adjustment - I hardly ever use the rear heater controls, so I push the screen most of the way downwards so that the vents are not obstructed. Even so, there is enough room to reach behind the screen and use the rear heater controls by touch if necessary.