In order to pair a phone with another device like a GPS or a car stereo through Bluetooth, which of the following steps need to be taken?

While legacy Bluetooth pairing sometimes required entering a PIN on both devices, modern simple pairing typically only requires confirmation on one side - entering it into both devices is not the standard requirement.

Bluetooth pairing is a mutual process: both devices must be in discovery (pairable) mode so that each can broadcast its presence and detect the other. A PIN or passkey is then generated and must be confirmed on one or both devices to authenticate and establish the encrypted link. This two-device discovery requirement ensures the correct devices are paired.

Only putting the second device in discovery mode is insufficient because the initiating phone also needs to be discoverable for the other device to recognize and list it.

Putting only the phone in discovery mode means the target device (GPS or car stereo) cannot be found unless it is also in discovery/pairing mode.