[Harvey]

Has anyone had trouble getting their iPod to work with their car radio. Mine will work . . . shows device connected . . . and allows me to use the folder or seek buttons on my radio. Good,but not ideal. I would rather the iPod allow me to change playlist from its menu. Anyone find a solution?

[polendo]

the only one i can think of is to connect it to the auxiliary of the stereo and control everything on the iPod. Curiously that´s the way I have it on my Jetta. The stereo is OEM. Nevertheless you wouldn't use the stereo´s capability of displaying the iPods info on the screen.

[zacharace]

What type of radio do you have (ie, did VW install it or is it custom)? If it's not specifically made for the iPod, it may be kinda funky. Personally I always use a cassette-line in adapter and just do everything from my iPod.

[-Q-]

VW had a connector that plugged into the CD-changer port on the back of their OEM stereo that would then let you have basic control of the iPod (shown here: YouTube - VW iPod Adapter) but I don't know if they still make it or updated it to work with later iPod versions. It worked decently with my iPod classic, although it had some built-in limitations (only access to six playlists, no info on the screen, etc). But it did work.

In the end, I got an aftermarket stereo that had iPod integration (you just plugged the iPod cable into a USB port on the back. I ended up running the cable into the glove box and leave the iPod there) but I haven't tried it with a iPod Touch or an iPhone so I don't know of a specific brand that supports it.

[Doc Juansinn]

I can't say anything about your specific setup, but I can tell you about an iPod adaptor that was installed in my Toyota (by Toyota).

It had modes that were selectable by DIP switches. The mode selected by default was one that gave all control to the radio unit and allowed only (I believe) playlists to be selected. It was possible to move around within a playlist but nothing else.

I changed the DIP settings to allow my to do all the selecting on the iPod. In that mode it functioned just as if I were using the iPod with headphones, and it was also possible to use the radio controls to skip to the next song or go back to an earlier track.

I don't know if your unit has this type of mode switching available, but it's worth checking out.

[imitchellg5]

Yeah, the only way to do what you want is by using AUX, but then you're gonna get lower quality audio and it won't charge. I read that iOS 4 changes this for iPod touches and iPhones, but with my Pioneer deck I see no change.