Okay yall, i'm in need of some help. My cd player has gone out in my 05 nox and I would like to upgrade to a newer model because I like how clean they look more so than an aftermarket radio. Now my question would be how can I make a newer touch screen model or blue tooth with aux cable radio work in the car?

 

GM used the Class II Serial data communication protocol for the radio in the 2005-2006 Equinox/Torrent. The GM radios you would be interested all use the newer GMLAN protocol and would not be able to communicate with your BCM. Since the BCM turns all of these radios on/off this is a big problem.

The only radios that might work would be those used in the 2006-2007 Saturn Ion and Vue. You'll want to use the US8 (MP3 disc capable, single disc) or US9 (MP3 disc capable, six-disc changer) option radio. The only thing you gain with these is the front aux input port. So you'd need to decide if it's worth it. I have a 2007 Ion with the US8 radio and can tell you the radio sounds good, but doesn't get very loud. If you have the premium audio option in your Equinox the latter is a moot point. The other thing to consider is that these Saturn radios only came with an orange display instead of blue/green/aqua color used in the Equinox.

The 2006-2007 Saturn radios should be a direct fit, and you should be able to use it without a connection to your BCM. The wiring would need to be custom since they use different plugs and you'll need an antenna adapter. The 2006-2007 Saturn radios are different in that they still use a traditional switched circuit (like an aftermarket radio would) to turn them on/off unlike all the other newer GM radios (including the 2005-2006 Equinox) which are commanded on/off via a data connection from the BCM.

If your Equinox has the premium system w/factory sub it should still work, but keeping OnStar and/or XM radio functional will be a challenge. If your chime warnings come from the front left speaker those will be lost.