Mobile phone carkits

Mobile Phone Carkits: everything you need to know

We can safely say that if you use your mobile phone a great deal and drive a lot then a full handsfree carkit will be the best investment you will ever make.

improves safety
better sound quality than other simple or portable solutions
dedicated phone holder designed for your model of phone
avoid being prosecuted for holding a mobile phone whilst driving

From 1st December 2003 it will be an offence to hold a mobile phone and drive, with an immediate fine of £30, 3 points of your licence and, if taken to court a fine of up to £1000.

Nokia 7110 in CARK-91 kit with Audi TT

This guide aims to convince people of the worth of handsfree carkits and explain everything you ever wanted to know about them, not simple handsfree kits or portable types but the "top of the range" or "professional" kits from the phone manufacturers.

Contents:

Types of handsfree kits - Aerials - Installation - Installers - Safety Tips

Types of Kits:

personal handsfree headsets:
a simple earpiece with microphone built in to the cord and can be used anywhere. Plugs straight in the bottom of your handset usually, sometimes with a jackplug or with a dedicated phone specific connection.

portable simple handsfree carkits:
an integrated unit with connection to the phone, and plugs into the cigarrette lighter socket of the car. Microphone is either integrated with the connecting cord or plugs in seperately. Universal phone holders are sometimes included with such a kit.

full handsfree carkit:
a professional kit comprising of a dedicated patented phone holder, speaker, microphone and junction box. An external antenna must always be used and this requires to be bought seperately. Optional extras include a passenger audio handset and audio mute connections to route sound through cars own loudspeakers.

Aerials:

The most crucial element of the mobile phone is the input it receives through its own aerial or an external one. When in a carkit the handset's own antenna is disabled, and the signal is received from an antenna mounted on the car and connected via cable to the carkit cradle. No matter what type of antenna you choose keep the length of cable as short as possible, to minimise signal losses in the cable. The positioning of antenna is crucial, the centre of the roof is the optimum position as there is nothing to obstruct the antenna's "view" of the network's transmitters, and reflections from all over roof will enhance the signal by providing a sizable "ground plane".

Allgon Dualband body mount with Base 2000 Body Mount Antenna:
Give best results as antenna is directly connected via cable straight to carkit. Requires a hole to be drilled in the roof of the car.

Allgon Twin Dualband Glass Mount Glass Mount Antenna:
Popular as does not require any holes to be drilled either on the roof or glass. Antenna affixes to window surface, with a small "receiver" positioned on the inside of the car opposite the antenna.

Allgon Sportflex Dualband Dual Purpose Antenna:
A new breed of antenna becoming more popular, as just one antenna can cater for the car's radio and mobile phone, this means only one hole needs drilled in the roof, and can often just replace an existing roof mounted radio antenna.

Location of components, in order of importance:

Phone Cradle
Must be located as close as possible to eye level and must be within arm's reach, as you need to look at phone when dialling and still remain in safe control of the vehicle. Position should avoid the need to stretch over or glance too far away from the road. In practice the number of places you can fit a cradle are quite limited, but awkward locations such as next to the gear lever and/or handbrake, which used to be popular in the day's of fixed carphones should be avoided with mobile phones and carkits as you will normally leave the phone in place whilst dialling. Phone Holder

Microphone:
This should be located as closely as possible to the mouth of the person who will be using the carkit most (usually the driver). The best position is next to the rear-view mirror, which is central to the passenger compartment, and is the least affected by road noise. The next best position is on the pillar beside the driver. Carkit microphone

"Dummy" Audio Handset:
An optional component on some carkits allowing passengers to use a seperate "Dumb" handset for having private calls whilst using the mobile phone in the cradle for dialling, charging and external antenna. For Nokia carkits: £49.99

Speaker:
Resist the urge to hide this away, doing so will only quieten and muffle the sound, making conversations impossible at higher speeds when road noise is greatest. In clear view of the driver is best, usually in the footwell, but not in the way of the driver's feet or the car's pedals. Carkit speaker

Junction box:
Location of this important component will be dictated by the length of your connecting wires to all the above pieces, usually the junction box is hidden underneath, or behind the glovebox or central column of the car. Carkit junction box

DIY or professional installers?

Fitting a carkit is usually a daunting task, connecting the components is simple enough but how do you go about hiding wires, etc and make sure you do not damage anything in the process?

You should be aware that:

car kit warranties will only apply if fitted by professional installers
running cables and hiding the junction box will be best done by professionals

The skill of a good carkit installation is flawlessly drilling holes, running cables, finding car power supplies and putting everything back together properly when finished. It is best left to experts who, with time and practice can spot the best way to install a kit within a few minutes, and will often have installed carkits on other cars of your make and model. Safety is of utmost importance and reputable fitters will be able to ensure no interference with a car's electronics takes place. Professionals are normally fully insured and should the worst happen will be covered for any mistakes and not leave your car in a mess.

Professional installtion will normally take 2 or 3 hours and costs anywhere between £50 and £100 including VAT. Shop around for quotes and ask about the experience of fitters, and what guarantee the installation will have. You may pay slightly more for installation on your premises, it is often cheaper and better to visit an installers own garage facilities. Amazingly most car dealers shy away from fitting carkits, but thankfully there are alternatives.

Installers:

We do not recommend any group of installers in particular but all of the following offer nationwide services and should be capable of a good job, if you know of others we are happy to list them here, and feedback is welcome.

RTS Mobilefit: 0800 834 715
JWE Telecom: 01759 322 692
Carphone Warehouse: 020 8566 6626
Comsnet: 01483 306633

Safety:

The safest way to make a call from the car is to pull over, and use the handset! Talking whilst driving reduces your concentration. You should therefore make efforts to make it as stress-free as possible whilst calling handsfree from your car:

make use of voice dialling on handsets, services like Wildfire on Orange, or one touch quickdials
slow down if necessary
stop talking while negotiating complex driving situations
end the call if necessary
do not make or take a call which you think is likely to be long, complex, or argumentative
above all: always make it clear to your caller that you are in the car and may need to concentrate fully on driving should conditions dictate

	Body Mount Antenna: Give best results as antenna is directly connected via cable straight to carkit. Requires a hole to be drilled in the roof of the car.
	Glass Mount Antenna: Popular as does not require any holes to be drilled either on the roof or glass. Antenna affixes to window surface, with a small "receiver" positioned on the inside of the car opposite the antenna.
	Dual Purpose Antenna: A new breed of antenna becoming more popular, as just one antenna can cater for the car's radio and mobile phone, this means only one hole needs drilled in the roof, and can often just replace an existing roof mounted radio antenna.

Phone Cradle Must be located as close as possible to eye level and must be within arm's reach, as you need to look at phone when dialling and still remain in safe control of the vehicle. Position should avoid the need to stretch over or glance too far away from the road. In practice the number of places you can fit a cradle are quite limited, but awkward locations such as next to the gear lever and/or handbrake, which used to be popular in the day's of fixed carphones should be avoided with mobile phones and carkits as you will normally leave the phone in place whilst dialling.
Microphone: This should be located as closely as possible to the mouth of the person who will be using the carkit most (usually the driver). The best position is next to the rear-view mirror, which is central to the passenger compartment, and is the least affected by road noise. The next best position is on the pillar beside the driver.
"Dummy" Audio Handset: An optional component on some carkits allowing passengers to use a seperate "Dumb" handset for having private calls whilst using the mobile phone in the cradle for dialling, charging and external antenna. For Nokia carkits: £49.99
Speaker: Resist the urge to hide this away, doing so will only quieten and muffle the sound, making conversations impossible at higher speeds when road noise is greatest. In clear view of the driver is best, usually in the footwell, but not in the way of the driver's feet or the car's pedals.
Junction box: Location of this important component will be dictated by the length of your connecting wires to all the above pieces, usually the junction box is hidden underneath, or behind the glovebox or central column of the car.