Stereo Upgrade: New deck, DIN bracket, speakers

[Jonathan]

I wanted to start a thread to detail my stereo upgrade work. When it is all finished, I'll rewrite the thread into a How-To. For now though, I still have some questions on how to do a few things.

What will be upgraded?

- Alpine CDE-126BT head unit (single DIN sized)
- DIN bracket from DMCH (106639D)
- Front speakers, Kicker 3.5
- Rear speakers, Kicker 4x10
- While access to rear interior panels is available, both seat belt assemblies from DMCH (100701, 100702 and 106615)
- Weather striping and seals at job completion to seal things back up

Some pictures before I began:

1505915060150611506215063

Here are a couple pictures after taking out the centre console and the original console bracket:

1506615067150681506915070

One of the questions I had at this point was on hooking up the wiring to the new deck to the car. I have the car's original speaker wiring still in place as well as the connector. I believe that connector is labelled here:

15071

Which I had found here: http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=9229&d=1332672820

Picture in my car is here:

15072

I also have the opposite end of that connector still attached to the Craig radio. On a side note, is that circuit board/capacitor contraption standard? Rather unusual and was wrapped all up in electrical tape initially.

15074

And lastly, I have the connector that came with the new Alpine deck:

15075

So the question is, what is the recommended way of connecting the wiring from the new Alpine deck to the existing speaker wire connector currently in the car?

I will have the Alpine connector on the rear of the new deck with the bare wires available. On the car side, I have the original connector still mated to the speak wires. In the middle, I am assuming I make use of the connector which is currently attached to the Craig deck? Is it recommended to cut the wires in between the connector and the Craig deck and then neatly connect wire to corresponding wire to the Alpine connector wires? That way I have the ability to disconnect right at the Alpine deck, as well as in the middle between the original stereo connector and the car's speaker wires.

Or, is it possible to pull the wires out of the original Craig connector and reuse the connector without cutting the Craig wires at all? They seem to be nicely wedged in there pretty snugly at the moment.

[Morpheus]

VideoBob sells a wiring harness that mates up with the stock connector. Search the forum or PM him for details.

I would personally run new speaker cable instead of using what's already there, since the stock HU used a common ground for right/left speakers and modern HUs usually don't.

[Jonathan]

New speaker wiring might not be a bad idea as I already found at least one spot going back to one of the rear speakers where a PO obviously snipped it and then tried to twist it back together. He at least used some solder but with the electrical tape over it, it still looks sloppy.

I think I can handle the four sets of speaker wires, and I already had it suggested to me to run another ground wire back to the rear of the car in addition to the one already there.

If I had all new wiring in the car for the speakers, would I still go the route of terminating it into a connector? And then have that connector be something that on the opposite end mates up with the Alpine wires? I'd imagine it is a good idea to be able to just disconnect a head unit instead of having to get in there and untwist wire pairs.

I'm betting I could walk into Future Shop/Best Buy and pick up a generic wiring harness/connector that would work...

[Chris4099]

As already mentioned, you can't use the stock connector for speakers due to the shared ground wires for the speakers which can damage many modern stereos. Instead running dedicated new speaker wire is a very good idea or you can cut out the original speaker wire from the factory harness and connect directly to the new stereo hardness (less desirable). Also a couple of other notes, the old method of power wiring was to have a low amperage constant 12v to power the clock and memory settings while the switched power drove the high current features. New stereos use the constant 12v to power everything and the switched 12v only triggers the system to turn on/off. Therefore I would not use the constant 12v from the original harness. I ran a dedicated power wire from the 12v post in the rear deck with an inline fuse. I also ran a new ground wire from the radio back to the rear deck ground post since the ground wires in that area looked a little small for a modern system. I used 16 gauge wire, but 14 wouldn't be a bad idea either depending on the deck.

So with new speaker and power wires, the only thing left on the factory harness you can use is the switched 12v power. Since it's only driving a on/off switch inside the stereo, I used a power tap and left the factory harness unplugged and unused.

[DMCMW Dave]

VideoBob sells a wiring harness that mates up with the stock connector. Search the forum or PM him for details.

I would personally run new speaker cable instead of using what's already there, since the stock HU used a common ground for right/left speakers and modern HUs usually don't.

Agreed. Ditch the Craig connector. Very few modern stereos are common ground any more and if you try to use it you will mess things up. I personally don't have a problem with the OE wiring as long as you separate the grounds. Unless you are going really high power, but new wiring won't hurt anything either.

[tgraham]

This is an aside, but since you have that radio panel out, now is a great time to renew the ancient climate control vacuum hoses that are back there (assuming they haven't been replaced in the past 30 or so years).

Travis

[dmc6960]

I already had it suggested to me to run another ground wire back to the rear of the car in addition to the one already there.

This is a stereo, avoid ground loops. How exactly did you plan on running your new ground? Currently the stereo ground comes from a small cable grounded at the right-hand side of the radio bracket. Since your ditching the craig connector (good call BTW, just directly splice all new wires into the new stereo's harness), simply ground the new stereo's ground cable to this same spot (very important actually since the stereo's body will also be grounded here). You'll need an eyebolt connector for that one. Then if your looking to upgrade the rest of the ground path, find out which wire going to the radio bracket is the ground supply (should only be one). Then cut it off or leave it disconnected and covered with tape. Run your new wire from the here to the rear wall. You'll need two eyelet connectors, one for the bracket and one for the main ground lug.

[Morpheus]

This is a stereo, avoid ground loops. How exactly did you plan on running your new ground? Currently the stereo ground comes from a small cable grounded at the right-hand side of the radio bracket. Since your ditching the craig connector (good call BTW, just directly splice all new wires into the new stereo's harness), simply ground the new stereo's ground cable to this same spot (very important actually since the stereo's body will also be grounded here). You'll need an eyebolt connector for that one. Then if your looking to upgrade the rest of the ground path, find out which wire going to the radio bracket is the ground supply (should only be one). Then cut it off or leave it disconnected and covered with tape. Run your new wire from the here to the rear wall. You'll need two eyelet connectors, one for the bracket and one for the main ground lug.

The only thing I would add to this idea would be running a lead from the radio bracket straight down to the body bolt under the carpet. There are a ton of grounds there that would benefit from this improved connection.

[dmc6960]

The only thing I would add to this idea would be running a lead from the radio bracket straight down to the body bolt under the carpet. There are a ton of grounds there that would benefit from this improved connection.

Again, you only want one ground path. If you ground it to the body bolt behind the carpet, then do not run another one to the rear bulkhead. Brandon's idea uses less cable and would be quicker/simpler to rig up. The radio bracket itself though doesn't supply the ground for all of the things implied. The radio bracket's ground comes from the junction for all those other little ones. Do not create a loop by connecting these up as well to the new ground.

Here is Bill Robertson's ground chart to give a good visual of the situation...

http://dmctalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=4546&d=1314480076

[Chris4099]

Looking at that, then you probably just need to find the one wire on the bracket that's grounded and pull it from the group. Then run a new ground from that junction to another point with a heavier gauge. Admittedly, I didn't do this and just ran a direct ground to the stereo (which technically does create a ground loop via the bracket) but I don't have any noise issues, so I'll probably just leave it alone.

[dmc6960]

Looking at that, then you probably just need to find the one wire on the bracket that's grounded and pull it from the group. Then run a new ground from that junction to another point with a heavier gauge. Admittedly, I didn't do this and just ran a direct ground to the stereo (which technically does create a ground loop via the bracket) but I don't have any noise issues, so I'll probably just leave it alone.

Check and check...


This is a stereo, avoid ground loops. How exactly did you plan on running your new ground? Currently the stereo ground comes from a small cable grounded at the right-hand side of the radio bracket. Since your ditching the craig connector (good call BTW, just directly splice all new wires into the new stereo's harness), simply ground the new stereo's ground cable to this same spot (very important actually since the stereo's body will also be grounded here). You'll need an eyebolt connector for that one. Then if your looking to upgrade the rest of the ground path, find out which wire going to the radio bracket is the ground supply (should only be one). Then cut it off or leave it disconnected and covered with tape. Run your new wire from the here to the rear wall. You'll need two eyelet connectors, one for the bracket and one for the main ground lug.

Try turning up the volume really high on some blank noise. If still no whine, you got a well shielded radio.

[jawn101]

Since your ditching the craig connector (good call BTW, just directly splice all new wires into the new stereo's harness)

When I did mine, I purchased both the male and female harnesses from a late-model Honda. I spliced the female one into the factory wiring and built a harness from the male end and the wiring provided with the head unit. This means I will be able to replace the head unit with very little difficulty later, since there is now a modern receptacle behind the dashboard. $5 well spent, if you ask me. :)

[refugeefromcalif]

I'm definitely going to keep an eye on this thread. :)
I'm going to be doing a stereo, and speaker upgrade as soon as my 1 Din plate ships from DMCH.
I have Everything but the plate...

George

[Jonathan]

Cool. Good feedback.

So I like the idea of replacing the wiring going to each speaker. Likely use something slightly higher gauge, but we'll see what is available when I pop into the audio-video place near me in the next little bit.

Same goes for the connectors. Jon... what you've described with the Honda male and female connectors is pretty much what I was envisioning. Just something to neatly connect the bare wire ends, but still have the ability to cleanly and quickly disconnect it if the need arises to get back in there. I'll look for a connector that'll work... I'm assuming Honda or otherwise is fine so long as you have one with enough spots for all your terminations?

For the ground, I can definitely see where each of the grounds go that were terminated on the bolt on the passenger side of the radio bracket. If I remember correctly, I think a couple of them even come from a couple of the HVAC panel switches, like the blower speed switch, etc. I can separate the one that is the "source" ground as I can follow it back into the wiring harness going towards the rear.

Is the consensus that this OE grounding wire is too thin/small? I don't believe it is compromised in any way to my knowledge. I think it was Jim that asked, I actually didn't have a particular plan on how I would run a new ground, that was something still to be determined. Maybe I'll have a few more specific questions once I get down to actually looking at where the connections need to be made?

Would a thicker gauge ground wire, freshly run directly back to the grounding lug in the engine bay be a better option than running a dedicated ground from the radio bracket bolt down to the bolt down through the carpet? I guess I'm not clear where the one down under the carpet goes, or if it is already being grounded. If I went to the carpet bolt, would I still need the OE grounding wire that was on that radio bracket bolt? Or would I disconnect it, fold it back and tape it off? It could be separated pretty easily.

For the suggestion on the vacuum hoses, good one, thanks. I was looking at them and while they don't look brittle or cracked, I did see that there is a connector on the main line coming along the side of the transmission shifter that wasn't very tightly connected. Almost like if it were pulled just a little more it might pop out. I'll at least go over the connections behind there and see about ensuring they are all snug.

Ok, one new question that I needed to get to anyway, and considering new speaker wire looks imminent, so is my need to get this answered...

What is the best way to remove the rear interior panels to gain access to the rear speakers? I have heard of the trim seal piece being heated up and then peeled back, but I wasn't sure about that part. My drivers side one was opened at some point by a PO and remains unsealed. It isn't falling away, for the opening is along the door edge, so I'm wondering what other clips or fasteners are holding it in place other than the rubbery seal?

Are there any screws or fir trees holding it in place? Does the arm rest/bolster need to come off first? Can it be left alone and taken out with the interior panel? Any other tricks or tips? I get the impression these panels are NLA, so I'm not aiming to snap anything that isn't broken already.

[Cory W]

Ok, one new question that I needed to get to anyway, and considering new speaker wire looks imminent, so is my need to get this answered...

What is the best way to remove the rear interior panels to gain access to the rear speakers? I have heard of the trim seal piece being heated up and then peeled back, but I wasn't sure about that part. My drivers side one was opened at some point by a PO and remains unsealed. It isn't falling away, for the opening is along the door edge, so I'm wondering what other clips or fasteners are holding it in place other than the rubbery seal?

Are there any screws or fir trees holding it in place? Does the arm rest/bolster need to come off first? Can it be left alone and taken out with the interior panel? Any other tricks or tips? I get the impression these panels are NLA, so I'm not aiming to snap anything that isn't broken already.

I'm for heating and carefully peeling back the vinyl.

I had one small trim screw near the back of each panel, under the rear window. There is also a bolt at the top seatbelt mount that has to come out. For total removal, you also want to remove the bottom seatbelt bolt to clear the belt, but I didn't find it necessary. The armrests are attached to the interior panel, and come along for the ride regardless of build date.

[sdg3205]

Jonathan,

All you need is your wifes hair dryer to warm the adhesive and GENTLY peel them back. Not a bad job at all.

Remove the screws and weather seal and it's very straight forward. Just dont rush it!

[Silverbullet]

More pics?

[jawn101]

Same goes for the connectors. Jon... what you've described with the Honda male and female connectors is pretty much what I was envisioning. Just something to neatly connect the bare wire ends, but still have the ability to cleanly and quickly disconnect it if the need arises to get back in there. I'll look for a connector that'll work... I'm assuming Honda or otherwise is fine so long as you have one with enough spots for all your terminations?


Yep! I went with Honda because I am a Honda guy outside my DeLorean. No other reason. Just don't get a fancy harness that's made for a a unit with a whole bunch of whizzy bells and whistles. You should only need 8 for the speakers (+/- pairs for 4 drivers), an always hot +, a - ground, a "key-on" +, and a remote turn-on wire for your amp/power antenna. The harness I got had one extra wire that I think was for steering wheel controls, but I just clipped it off - no big deal. See attached!

[tgraham]

...as soon as my 1 Din plate ships from DMCH.

It's nice to see people not hacking up the original radio bracket, despite the fact that doing so would be a free option. I hacked one many years ago because that was the only option, now have "reinstall the Craig" on my to do list, and had to source an original bracket.

Travis

[Jonathan]

More pics?

No, sorry. Maybe I'll update this thread in the Spring. See ya.




I don't believe there is anything you shouldn't joke about.

And this is why I felt Chris was never a good choice to be a moderator from day one.

This sort of logic contributes to why people are still mocked, teased and bullied for things out of their control. If you read in the newspaper about young people commiting suicide for being outed for being gay, or different in terms of race or religion or disability, it is because society is still cruel enough that it allows these jokes to continue. It has nothing to do with whether you yourself have a personal connection to such a joke, or whether you think people should just "lighten up" or have tougher skin. It has more to do with trying to be a better person, of yourself and to others. Most people figure it out at a certain point in time or age. Obviously some of the people here have not.

I would be offended too if I were DunmurryDan. And not just because of a personal connection to the atrocities in the war, but also because if that was his first welcome to this "DeLorean Support Forum", I would be turning around and not coming back.

[kings1527]

So I'm getting ready to wire in a new Alpine CDE-HD138BT and I need to marry up the new wiring to the existing wiring. I'm putting in an amp, too, so that makes my speaker wiring real easy and not have anything to do with the original harness. Most of the wiring in the instruction manual for the Alpine is straight forward, with the exception of the new orange ILLUMINATION wire on the head unit. It says it's to go to "the instrument cluster illumination lead". According to the DeLorean wiring harness diagram I attached, I'm thinking that'll go to the green/white "power when IGN is on". I can't think of any other place that should go.

Am I on the right track?

Thanks in advance!

16995

[kings1527]

And one other question: if I run a dedicated +12V wire from the new head unit to the post behind the bulkhead connectors and I fuse that connection, what size fuse should I use?

Thanks again

[DMC5180]

So I'm getting ready to wire in a new Alpine CDE-HD138BT and I need to marry up the new wiring to the existing wiring. I'm putting in an amp, too, so that makes my speaker wiring real easy and not have anything to do with the original harness. Most of the wiring in the instruction manual for the Alpine is straight forward, with the exception of the new orange ILLUMINATION wire on the head unit. It says it's to go to "the instrument cluster illumination lead". According to the DeLorean wiring harness diagram I attached, I'm thinking that'll go to the green/white "power when IGN is on". I can't think of any other place that should go.

Am I on the right track?

Thanks in advance!

16995

I'm guessing the Daylight illumination is Defaulted FULL Bright with lights OFF. Then when the lights are ON night-time the levels are reduced and controllable with the Dimmer-rheostat. The purpose of connecting the Orange wire to the instrument panel lights is so the background illumination of the head unit is in SYNC with the instrument lighting levels and a signal too dim the lights with lights ON. If you connect the Orange wire to the always ON with the key ON wire. You likely will always be at a FIXED muted level in daylight conditions.

To do it as stated in the instructions, you connect your wire to the (RED/white) Instrument lighting Output wire connected to the Rheostat.

Option 1. Their may be an UNUSED Spade terminal on the Rheostat that is Parallel with the RED/white wire terminal. If that is the case, you can just connect the Orange wire to that terminal with a simple female spade terminal.

Option 2. If not, another clean way to make that connection is to use a PIGGY-BACK spade terminal on the new ORANGE wire. Connect it to the Rheostat at the RED/white wire location. Then connect the RED/white to the PIGGY-Back terminal.

[DMC5180]

And one other question: if I run a dedicated +12V wire from the new head unit to the post behind the bulkhead connectors and I fuse that connection, what size fuse should I use?

Thanks again

The unit should have a fuse in the primary 12v+ feed wire already. It's probably on the Car side pig-tail harness that you would spice into the factory wiring. I can't think of viable reason to run the main feed from that location in the car. What would be the point in doing it. Radios Head units don't draw that much power. Amplifiers are different story though.

Just connect your 12+ wire to the normal factory harness wire (already fused inline) I don't recall the rating but it's not much. See if the Alpine Radio supplied fuse is the same size as the OE Car fuse. If not you can adjust the size within reason.

[Jonathan]

Just connect your 12+ wire to the normal factory harness wire (already fused inline) I don't recall the rating but it's not much. See if the Alpine Radio supplied fuse is the same size as the OE Car fuse. If not you can adjust the size within reason.

Of the two inline glass(?) fuses on the original factory wiring for the stereo, is it recommended to keep those as is? I am replacing all the speaker wire, going with a dedicated pair to each of the four speakers, but wasn't sure about what would need to be replaced of the rest. Antenna cable can stay as is. I think these inline fuses are on the 12v+ lines coming from the fuse relay area. I was going to keep the power wiring as is unless it should be changed (and those fuses would stay as is). I wasn't sure how accesible it would be to get to the end terminated in the fuse block so was leaning towards leaving it alone. Was there a reason they added the extra inline fuses in addition to the main fuse already present in the fuse block?

[DMCMW Dave]

Of the two inline glass(?) fuses on the original factory wiring for the stereo, is it recommended to keep those as is? I am replacing all the speaker wire, going with a dedicated pair to each of the four speakers, but wasn't sure about what would need to be replaced of the rest. Antenna cable can stay as is. I think these inline fuses are on the 12v+ lines coming from the fuse relay area. I was going to keep the power wiring as is unless it should be changed (and those fuses would stay as is). I wasn't sure how accesible it would be to get to the end terminated in the fuse block so was leaning towards leaving it alone. Was there a reason they added the extra inline fuses in addition to the main fuse already present in the fuse block?

Get rid of those fuses. They are part of the old stereo. The new one should have its own.

[Jonathan]

Get rid of those fuses. They are part of the old stereo. The new one should have its own.

Roger that. And "new one having its own" being internal to the deck? Or go get new inline ones and add this to the power wiring as it meets up with the deck connector wiring?

[jawn101]

Roger that. And "new one having its own" being internal to the deck? Or go get new inline ones and add this to the power wiring as it meets up with the deck connector wiring?

It will have a micro blade fuse in the back (or a standard mini one, depending on the model) - no need for inline fuses at all :)

[DMCMW Dave]

Roger that. And "new one having its own" being internal to the deck? Or go get new inline ones and add this to the power wiring as it meets up with the deck connector wiring?

Newer stereos tend to have an internal fuse to protect the stereo. If you are using the car's wiring to power the stereo, the fuses in the back of the car are protecting the wiring. If the new stereo is a higher power unit the car's wiring may be too small. In that case run a new wire to the back of the car and put a fuse at the far end. There is no point at all putting inline fuses near the radio, they don't protect anything but the radio in that location. You need to protect the wiring in the event it moves and, for example, shorts out inside the console.

Most newer generation stereos (and the original) have two power leads. One is a keep-alive for the clock and memory, the other is really powering the radio. In aftermarket radios the always-on is often the high power lead with the switched lead simply used by the stereo to tell whether the car is on or off. In that case you may find that the car's power lead is too small and you need a new run to the back on a new fuse.

Fuse 17 is hot all the time (purple at the radio). Fuse 11 is switched (green at the radio)

[Jonathan]

...If the new stereo is a higher power unit the car's wiring may be too small. In that case run a new wire to the back of the car and put a fuse at the far end. There is no point at all putting inline fuses near the radio, they don't protect anything but the radio in that location. You need to protect the wiring in the event it moves and, for example, shorts out inside the console.

I am putting this deck in:

http://www.alpine-usa.com/product/view/cde-126bt/

The Alpine CDE-126BT.

I definitely did not purposely go looking for a higher power unit. I think this one is a more standard power, oui?

I may go ahead and replace the wiring anyway. But at the very least, do an end to end inspection to see if there is any damage along the length of it. I already found a spot on one of the rear speaker wires that had been pinched or something and the PO had soldered it back together.

[OverlandMan]

I am putting this deck in:

http://www.alpine-usa.com/product/view/cde-126bt/

The Alpine CDE-126BT.



Just throwing my .02 in here... I'm in the budgeting and determination phase of my car's stereo system as well. I've decided regardless that I want a single-DIN digital media receiver (no CD/DVD player). I like this one: http://www.crutchfield.com/p_113KIV701/Kenwood-KIV-701.html?tp=5684 but I may end up going with something less fancy like this: http://www.crutchfield.com/p_158DSX210X/Sony-DSX-S210X.html?showAll=N&search=158DSX210X&skipvs=T.

Since the car is not my DD, I don't need anything too crazy.

[kings1527]

I'm guessing the Daylight illumination is Defaulted FULL Bright with lights OFF. Then when the lights are ON night-time the levels are reduced and controllable with the Dimmer-rheostat. The purpose of connecting the Orange wire to the instrument panel lights is so the background illumination of the head unit is in SYNC with the instrument lighting levels and a signal too dim the lights with lights ON. If you connect the Orange wire to the always ON with the key ON wire. You likely will always be at a FIXED muted level in daylight conditions.

To do it as stated in the instructions, you connect your wire to the (RED/white) Instrument lighting Output wire connected to the Rheostat.

Option 1. Their may be an UNUSED Spade terminal on the Rheostat that is Parallel with the RED/white wire terminal. If that is the case, you can just connect the Orange wire to that terminal with a simple female spade terminal.

Option 2. If not, another clean way to make that connection is to use a PIGGY-BACK spade terminal on the new ORANGE wire. Connect it to the Rheostat at the RED/white wire location. Then connect the RED/white to the PIGGY-Back terminal.

Excellent. Thanks for the info. So now I need to my rheostat in order. When I first got the car, my rheostat would spin round and round and round and not work. I'm guessing that was the problem with the rheostats when they broke. I've since come across a "new" rheostat and I think it works. I'll go ahead and install it. Right now, my wiring for my rheostat has a series of jumper wires with blade connectors but I see the RED/white you're talking about. I'll just piggy back it onto the RED/white.


The unit should have a fuse in the primary 12v+ feed wire already. It's probably on the Car side pig-tail harness that you would spice into the factory wiring. I can't think of viable reason to run the main feed from that location in the car. What would be the point in doing it. Radios Head units don't draw that much power. Amplifiers are different story though.

Just connect your 12+ wire to the normal factory harness wire (already fused inline) I don't recall the rating but it's not much. See if the Alpine Radio supplied fuse is the same size as the OE Car fuse. If not you can adjust the size within reason.

Gotcha. I think I'll go ahead and run a dedicated +12V wire to the rear bulkhead with a 10A fuse right near the bulkhead connection. My new head unit is going to draw more power than the Craig, so I'll go with Dave's recommendation below (like I'd ever go against it).


Newer stereos tend to have an internal fuse to protect the stereo. If you are using the car's wiring to power the stereo, the fuses in the back of the car are protecting the wiring. If the new stereo is a higher power unit the car's wiring may be too small. In that case run a new wire to the back of the car and put a fuse at the far end. There is no point at all putting inline fuses near the radio, they don't protect anything but the radio in that location. You need to protect the wiring in the event it moves and, for example, shorts out inside the console.

Most newer generation stereos (and the original) have two power leads. One is a keep-alive for the clock and memory, the other is really powering the radio. In aftermarket radios the always-on is often the high power lead with the switched lead simply used by the stereo to tell whether the car is on or off. In that case you may find that the car's power lead is too small and you need a new run to the back on a new fuse.

Fuse 17 is hot all the time (purple at the radio). Fuse 11 is switched (green at the radio)

Thanks for all that, Dave.

And thanks, everybody. There's no way I'd be able to do any of what I've done with my car without everyone's help.

[kings1527]

I just had another thought: I'm 100% LED in the interior now. I'm guessing my rheostat will be useless now. Should I still hook the stereo up to the RED/white and use the rheostat knob to adjust the radio illumination? I'm guessing that'll now be the knob's only function.

[kobachi]

Just throwing my .02 in here... I'm in the budgeting and determination phase of my car's stereo system as well. I've decided regardless that I want a single-DIN digital media receiver (no CD/DVD player). I like this one: http://www.crutchfield.com/p_113KIV701/Kenwood-KIV-701.html?tp=5684 but I may end up going with something less fancy like this: http://www.crutchfield.com/p_158DSX210X/Sony-DSX-S210X.html?showAll=N&search=158DSX210X&skipvs=T.

FYI I am also upgrading my stereo and was also planning on buying a KIV-701 (or it's bluetoothified brother, the KIV-901BT). I liked that it had a simple interface with not too many buttons and a nice jog dial for volume/scrolling. After playing with it in a local store for a couple of hours though, I came to be quite displeased with it. The software on it seems buggy and required regular reboots. Scrolling through tracks on an external device (iPhone) is extremely slow and laggy. Since that's my primary use scenario, that wasn't acceptable to me.

I ended up going for a Pioneer AVH-X7500BT (http://www.crutchfield.com/p_130X7500BT/Pioneer-AVH-X7500BT.html), which is much more expensive at Crutchfield, but can be had for around $380 on other sites (not much more than the $300 Crutchfield wants for the KIV-701). The touchscreen works fantastically and the iPhone integration is the best I've seen. Also, the lighting on the controls is also nice and subtle -- I do not like bright, ostentatious LEDs. And when the screen is stowed, the face is very plain and clean, so it doesn't stand out so dramatically from the DeLorean's 80's interior.

[Jonathan]

Seemingly long winter project is nearing completion. Thought it be best for an update of sorts.

Getting replaced:

Front speakers (with Kicker 3.5s)
Rear speakers (with Kicker 4x10s)
Stereo deck (with an Alpine CDE-126BT)
DIN radio bracket from DMC
New speaker wiring

Also,

Replacement seatbelt assemblies/kits (from DMC, which includes mainly the retracting contraption for both seats that has the lap belt, shoulder belt, and receptacle end (driver's side with switch telling car if your seatbelt is fastened))
Misc fittings to do the seatbelt replacement as some were rusty and didn't survive the removal process.

In a nutshell, most everything on the interior of the car came out. Console, original radio bracket which means everything connected to it got disconnected, seats, carpet (all pieces except the ones along the door side of each seat as they are vinyl glued in place), rear interior panels (vinyl glued in place removed with heat gun), weather striping/door seals.

Removing everything was most of the hassle, but also a great time to get in there and clean things up once it was out. Amazing what you find under there if it hasn't been explored in 32 years. Lots of vacuuming, wiping, and peeling away old adhesive in various places. The passenger side seatbelt female receptacle end was easily the biggest PITA to remove. The end of the receptacle which threads through the bolt and is pinched together with a rubber ring, washer, collar, some carpet, etc. was all rusted together like one big ugly sandwich. I managed to get it to spin freely in the threaded collar (which is welded to the frame and was not something I was looking forward to repairing if it got snapped) by using enough force and PB Blaster as I needed to. The receptacle sandwich would only spin 180 degrees or so before bottoming out on the floor. So to remove it I Dremel tool cut it up enough to pry the layers apart and eventually get it out. That part was the least amount of fun of any of it.

Going back in was the DIN bracket. This was not very difficult and fit reasonably well with a little convincing. It also allowed me to confirm a good ground to the 5 or so grounds that meet at the screw on the passenger side of the bracket. When I later went to put the vents back in, I learned the little rubber sleeves that connect the vents to the ports in the back can be a little fiddly to get together.

The rear interior panels were much easier to get off than I had stressed about them being. Go fast but take your time. This is good advice if you know what it means. Take your time removing the panels and carefully peeling back the vinyl, but don't put too much heat with the gun on one area all at once. After they had come out, the rear speakers were simple to install and needed no bracket modifications. I don't have my interior panels put back on yet, so hold tight incase I have to renag on that comment.

The front speakers pretty much sucked. Getting all twisted around under there with enough light and being able to see and use both hands while not trying to drop a tool on your face or breaking your back kinked over the less than flat floor of the car is not ideal. The old speakers came out pretty easy and my new Kicker ones didn't go in quite as well though. Case of the offset-itis and the tabs on the new ones wouldn't reach the studs. I fashioned a meccano set style fix for now and another owner is sending me a set of 4 coupling nuts that I'll go back in and replace things with. Otherwise, they went in pretty well.

I ran all new speaker wire. I think it turned out pretty well yet I also realize that in terms of the weakest link, the wires in the Alpine harness are tiny compared to what is being recommended. I got rid of the Craig harness completely as well as the inline glass fuses in the power wiring. Jawn was right that the deck has a micro fuse (10A) built into it. I used the existing ground wire with new connection, power and ignition wires that came from Dunmurry. Same goes for the front fender antenna connection. As a bonus I now have a nicely placed iPod cable snaked into the glovebox and it will charge and communicate with my iPod at the deck. Sweet!!!

One other thing added to the list was redoing the connector on the replacement headlight switch. This got installed just as I bought my car in 2007 and I think the place I bought my car rushed it just to get the car out the door. I was having trouble getting the quick connect to go together and realize they had globbed solder in a few places and pinched the female ends together so it wouldn't go in. I put new ends on each wire and tidied it up and we were good to go.

When things started going back together, I tried to do it the way the owner of a car would versus the way a shop might do it. Meaning, I took time and care to clean up and tidy up wiring to try and make sure nothing was pinched or rubbing on something sharp, etc. It seems to have gone back together fairly nicely and I was pumped to turn it on for the first time.

All the lights and switches check out okay. I mistakenly popped the top off my defrost switch upon reinstall and thank God the little metal inards didn't fly all over the place. I am no good at putting those things back together. I'm not sure my lighted ring bulb is working so might need to check that out. I didn't reinstall my drinkholders as they have been sloppy and unsturdy since I got them. So will need new coffee holder ideas soon :)

I mentioned in a different thread that it seems if you don't have the rheostat plugged in at all it won't let your directionals work. Sure enough, once I plugged them back in and got the console together, all the turn signal lights worked again.

I also think I see better why my shift interlock button on the auto trans doesn't stay in place. If you have seen one of these, down below on the stem is a little collar which if it stays in place, is supposed to prevent you from ramming it in reverse while you're flying down the highway if it gets bumped. I had thought the little allen screw in the collar was getting loose, but I now think it is because the plastic stem which rides overs the metal stem is not physically connected to the top plastic handle halves. It is snug enough to lift it up when you press the button, but not so snug that it won't spin if you force it out of position without pressing the button. I'm wondering if these were supposed to be together as one and whether I may need to glue it perhaps. Not a big deal for now... hoping someone doesn't hit it with their knee :)

I haven't put the seatbelts back in yet as I need a few fittings first. But the thread was mainly about the stereo originally so wanted to give an update. Looking forward to driving it soon, but still need to do a couple more projects and may wait on a couple of them. Rockscreen replacement is one, and rear fascia edging strip install is the other. I will likely do that one first before driving it as I don't need to melt my bumper. Oh and ATF leak is on the list too :)

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https://vimeo.com/66446721

[kobachi]

I mentioned in a different thread that it seems if you don't have the rheostat plugged in at all it won't let your directionals work. Sure enough, once I plugged them back in and got the console together, all the turn signal lights worked again.

It's the light switches that matter, not the rheostat. You need both the headlight and hazard light switches connected for the directionals to work -- I imagine the resistance they provide is part of the relay switching circuit (my motorcycle works the same way).

[Jonathan]

It's the light switches that matter, not the rheostat. You need both the headlight and hazard light switches connected for the directionals to work -- I imagine the resistance they provide is part of the relay switching circuit (my motorcycle works the same way).

Interesting. I had thought the light switches were plugged in when I did the test, but maybe not.

When I first hooked up the battery to give it a shot (just incase it didn't work and I wouldn't have to remove the console again), I had the centre console off and the stuff unplugged were: window switches, defrost switch, cigar lighter, light bulb in auto trans shifter plate, console clock, and the rheostat. My intention was to have the HVAC panel all connected and I had thought I did that. I don't remember tightening up one of the light switch connections prior to the console installed test, but can't say for certain it didn't get bumped in some way.

I couldn't figure it out from the overall electrical diagram and I couldn't find one of the broken out style schematics we have for a variety of things (but not one with the rheostat clearly indicating the wiring).

[kobachi]

When I first hooked up the battery to give it a shot (just incase it didn't work and I wouldn't have to remove the console again), I had the centre console off and the stuff unplugged were: window switches, defrost switch, cigar lighter, light bulb in auto trans shifter plate, console clock, and the rheostat. My intention was to have the HVAC panel all connected and I had thought I did that. I don't remember tightening up one of the light switch connections prior to the console installed test, but can't say for certain it didn't get bumped in some way.

I have all of those currently disconnected and my directionals work. :)