So, due to the insane heat, I finally got around to it. I bought an alpine INE-W960A, which is alright but I would probably lean towards something else. Nothing major, just small annoyances here and there. But that is not the point of this thread.
Install itself was easy in regards to wiring, I had an adaptor that did most of the work for me including amplifier wiring. The only thing I needed to do was the handbrake signal which was luckily easily bypassed by grounding the wire from the stereo. GPS and Bluetooth install were easy too, both are nicely secured under the steering wheel area. The dash itself was a bit of a pain. As I mentioned earlier its not the best fit and it was very very tight trying to get things lined up.
I did not receive a new mounting bracket from the seller I bought it from years ago, so i recycled the factory bracket. If i used it the right way up (i.e. left on left and right on right) the stereo sat too low and I couldn't get the trim piece back on at all. If I swapped the left and right brackets and made them upside down (you'll see what I mean when you go to do it) then it fit in terms of orientation and I could get the dash back on but the stereo sticks out a bit. So, try and get the mounting brackets as they will make the install look so much clearer.
You can see how it sticks out at the top a bit. In my opinion, go with the cutting option and if anything, you should be able to pick up a spare trim piece from a wreckers or something.