How to Professionally Choose the Most Suitable Chinese Car Radio manufacturer

This article primarily targets global automakers or large car stereo product distributors. Before launching a specific car radio product project, conducting a comprehensive, systematic, and quick analysis of Chinese car radio manufacturers is essential to make the right partnership choice.

1、Clarify the Product Positioning of the car navigation Project

l  Functional Requirements

Before starting a specific car radio product project, car stereo manufacturers or suppliers need to define the product's functional requirements clearly. In addition to essential functions such as radio, Bluetooth, and multimedia playback, it's important to consider whether the product needs to support Wireless CarPlay and Wireless Android Auto for smartphone navigation and whether it requires WiFi or a 4G SIM for internet access and downloading apps from Google Play. The selection of these standard features will determine the system choice for the car multimedia product.

Additionally, you may opt for some personalized features, such as DSP sound effects, DAB+ digital radio, digital TV, tire pressure monitoring, dashcam integration, HUD display, HDMI video output, and more.

l  Solution Selection

Based on the confirmation of the standard and personalized features of the car radio project, the next step is to choose whether the project should use an Android or a non-Android system. Android systems, depending on the CPU, can be categorized into quad-core or octa-core Android systems. Non-Android systems mainly include Linux and MP5 systems.

The Android system is highly expandable, offering flexible choices of different processors and memory options. It also allows the Android software to be customized into a non-open system, where app download functionalities can be hidden or disabled, ensuring the device operates stably. The biggest advantage of the Linux system lies in its inherent stability. Although it doesn't offer the same level of customization for car stereo features as Android, its built-in support for Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto meets the main needs for navigation and network audio playback.

l  Structural Design

For a car radio product by a car stereo manufacturer, each project is developed independently for a specific vehicle model. After confirming the product's functions and system, the next step is to clarify the design of the car stereo's appearance and structure. This includes selecting the screen size, whether it be 7-inch, 8-inch, 9-inch, or even a larger 10.1-inch display, as well as deciding on the style of the panel, such as whether it will include physical buttons, knobs, or touch buttons. Additionally, the casing design needs to be determined—whether a double-DIN, single-DIN, or ultra-thin structure is required, and in some cases, specific vehicles may need special mounting brackets for the center console.

Once the basic structural design is confirmed, Chinese car radio factories, like Dinpei, can more accurately assess the costs of mold development, including plastic molds, metal molds, and touch screen molds.

l  Budget Evaluation

A well-developed car multimedia project must have a clear product cost budget, along with key requirements for this budget. The car radio supplier can then provide 2-3 proposals based on the client’s budget and project outline. This approach helps save communication costs for both parties, enabling them to quickly and effectively reach a consensus. It also prevents multiple modifications after the project has started, which could negatively impact the car radio's stability and reliability.

2、Multi-Dimensional Preliminary Screening of Suitable Car Radio manufacturer Suppliers

l  Operating History

Car multimedia products have undergone over 30 years of iteration and development, reaching a mature and stable phase. This progress has also led to the establishment of several experienced and well-established manufacturing companies. While the scale of each factory may differ for various reasons, the primary consideration for a car stereo supplier is to choose a factory with a long history and deep technical expertise. The complexity of car radio products sets them apart from other consumer electronics, requiring a high level of engineering skill and a robust quality system within the factory. Such expertise and systems are honed and validated through the development of premium product projects, driving continuous improvement and advancement.

l  Factory Scale

For car stereo projects in car radio manufacturers, it is essential to find a factory with a well-established system and independent production capabilities. The factory should have a professional engineering department, including industrial designers, structural engineers, electronic engineers, software engineers, and protocol engineers. Additionally, it should be equipped with specialized laboratory equipment such as vibration testers, thermal shock chambers, high and low-temperature test chambers, static testers, and drop-test platforms. The factory should also have a dust-free SMT production workshop and a DIP soldering workshop. Most importantly, a comprehensive quality inspection process and professional quality testing personnel are crucial to ensure the reliability and stability of the delivered products.

l  Quality System

IATF16949 certification is the basic quality standard for car radio factories working with major global car stereo manufacturers. It also serves as proof of the factory's ability to meet production demands for original equipment manufacturer (OEM) projects. If an important car navigation project is entrusted to a factory that only has capabilities for aftermarket product production, the consequences could include project delays, failed mold development, functional defects in the car radio, and poor final product delivery. Due to geographical distance, any issues arising from such a collaboration could be difficult to communicate and resolve effectively.

l  Corporate Culture

You might wonder why the corporate culture of a potential partner is emphasized. In China, the growth and direction of a car radio manufacturer supplier are typically guided by the decisions of its founder or professional managers. This influence extends to how salespeople treat customers, the rigor engineers apply to products, the commitment of production staff to fulfilling delivery promises, and even the support provided by the finance department for customer after-sales needs. All of these aspects are closely tied to the company’s culture and are crucial in determining whether you can establish a long-term, cooperative relationship. So, how can you quickly understand the corporate culture of a prospective car radio factory? The answer is simple: have a face-to-face conversation with the company's leadership and gather insights from your communication, or listen to the reputation of the company within the industry.

l  Collaboration Testing

Before formally partnering with a Chinese car stereo supplier, you can intentionally omit some key details from your project brief to test whether they can identify the technical requirements that are missing through the APQP (Advanced Product Quality Planning) and PPAP (Production Part Approval Process) meetings. Their ability to provide professional feedback in such a scenario will help you assess whether the factory has the necessary experience and project planning processes to develop your project successfully. This approach will help you avoid regretting your decision after entering into a collaboration.

3、On-Site Review and Final Confirmation of the Car Radio Manufacturer Factory

l  Hospitality

China is known as a land of etiquette, and the level of hospitality you receive can generally reflect your role and importance as a partner to the target car stereo manufacturer. If you are unable to meet with the general manager of the factory for a face-to-face discussion, it might be wise to reconsider and choose a partner that is more aligned with you in terms of scale and capability.

l  Communication Impressions

During friendly discussions with the car radio company's leadership and sales personnel, you should assess the business philosophy and quality standards of the leader. Determine whether they are an experienced industrialist with knowledge from both the ground level and management and whether they adhere to a customer-first value system. It's important to avoid working with a leader who is detached and unapproachable. Additionally, the sales personnel should have proficient English communication skills, which will significantly help in avoiding technical and business issues caused by communication barriers.

l  Workshop Environment

It's important to recognize that a factory will likely conduct a special 5S cleaning process before your on-site visit to inspect the car stereo manufacturer workshop. During your visit, observe whether the production workers are wearing anti-static wristbands and whether they are dressed in tidy uniforms and hats. Check if the material warehouse is reasonably zoned, if the SMT workshop has dust removal rooms, and if it maintains a constant temperature and humidity. Also, verify whether the soldering tools for PCBA have clear temperature controls in place.

l  Staff Appearance

The spirit and work attitude of the workshop staff are strong indicators of their recognition of the car stereo manufacturer factory. Their work enthusiasm often stems from good meal provisions, fair compensation, and humanistic care provided by the factory. For an automaker, partnering with a car radio supplier that values its employees is an ideal choice.

l  Material Control Documentation

The prerequisite for ensuring the quality of finished car audio and video products is the 100% accuracy of the production BOM and material usage. Even a single incorrect resistor can lead to quality risks, and such reliability issues may be difficult to detect during pre-shipment quality inspections. Therefore, the car stereo manufacturer needs to have a comprehensive ERP management system, with corresponding documentation for material inflow and outflow, as well as strict zoning in the incoming inspection area and the defective product return area. This ensures that no errors occur during the processes of receiving, issuing, and returning materials.

l  Quality Control Records

Since it is impossible to achieve 100% yield in the production process, it is crucial to have a full-function test by the finished car radio product quality inspection department. This involves QC personnel, IPQC personnel, and QA personnel conducting layer-by-layer testing. Good products are placed in the warehouse, while defective products are returned to the repair department for rework, followed by a second round of QC and QA testing until the good products are stored in the warehouse.