VW phatbox in...

[dvg]

Will the VW phatbox work in a Mazda with the proper firmware loaded?  I know I need to find the proper cable.

Thanks
Dan

[Slartibartfast]

As far as *I* know (which means I might not know what I think I know) the differences are in the comms protocol between the head unit and the PB. There are a few in use in different make cars, common ones being K-Bus, I2C and CAN. What I definitly don't know is wether the PB comms is software driven or hardware determined. If it's hardware, you're stuffed, unless you swap your head unit to match the PB type.
Perhaps Phatnoise will tell you?

[Terry_Kennedy]

What I definitly don't know is wether the PB comms is software driven or hardware determined. If it's hardware, you're stuffed, unless you swap your head unit to match the PB type.

The Ford/Visteon PhatBox isn't compatible with anything else. The others are "mostly" interchangeable - newer units such as the Toyota have additional signal lines to deal with those head units. Also, some PhatBoxes have RCA jacks and/or power connectors on the box in case those aren't supplied by the car harness (for example, the BMW DSP kit needs a box w/ RCA jacks).