Playing Fiio X1 player in car WITHOUT Aux input?

I have a 2016 Ford Fusion which for some reason does NOT have an AUX/Line in. I would like to play my Fiio X1 player in the car though.

When I hook the X1 through the USB, the car's system reads the X1 for files it can play, which are only WAV and MP3 files.

So I bought a Bluetooth dongle (you hook the Bluetooth into the X1 3.5mm input) and was hoping to stream that way, but the Fusion Bluetooth/SYNC doesn't recognize the dongle. Arrgh! Guess I am SOL?

 

You should make sure your Bluetooth dongle is the transmitter (not receiver) type. In this case the car's SYNC system is the receiver. You have to make the X1 a Bluetooth transmitter, but I don't know how well the BT transmitters I see on Amazon work. I recently bought a BT receiver (tiny thing) and it worked as advertised, just not great sound quality. It went into the AUX in of a Bose Wave and received the BT signal from my IPhone.

But what you need is the transmitter.

 

Thanks - this is the one I tried out:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01G8231SQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Looks like a transmitter as you were saying, although for $15, not a top-end model either.

 

Only options I know of (outside of getting an aux-in installed) is either a BT dongle or an FM Transmitter Modulator.

Used to own the latter in the old days and it was spotty, at best. Especially when traveling long distances as the frequency you pick is supposed to be clear of radio signals to work.

 

Yes, that looks like it should have done the job. Does the SYNC see the dongle at all? If you have already paired your phone with the SYNC try to have your phone off when trying to pair the dongle with the car.

But you did buy what I would have bought for the job.

 

The Aux-in on my past Fusion 2014 was down in the bottom of the center console below the USB, but not like next to it.......are you sure there's not one in there ?

 

Yeah, I worked in automotive for quite a while and I'd be totally shocked if you can't get AUX in the 2016. Some others seem to have the same belief, but other seem to say there are RCAs. I'd also think there must be some kind of AUX-to-USB converter (NOT a USB-to-AUX, that is different). I'd call Crutchfield and ask about that, explain your problem, such an animal must exist.

Try posting on a Fusion forum, and asking your Ford dealer, and reading through the manual. In the worst case, if you are persistent you can call and talk to an audio engineer, if you can figure out where their building is. I once did that for a seat belt idiot light issue. The engineer was VERY surprised to find a customer on the other end of his phone, but it did get my problem fixed eventually.