SirLapsalot

Tried searching with no luck. Can anybody point me in the direction of a write-up for installing a basic aftermarket head unit on our cars? Mine is an 89 N/A with a very old aftermarket head unit that sucks. Stereo is the only system on an automobile that I have zero knowledge and experience with but I imagine it is that hard so id rather save a few $ installing myself.

Maybe all head units are different and there's no way to make a generic write up I don't know so educate me please! Also if it matters I already have a new pioneer unit that just looks like a basic $100 unit you might find in the best buy adds in the sunday paper.

alex

It isn't hard at all, and it is pretty universal for any car.

There are a few wires you need to concern yourself with coming from the head unit, you just need to figure out which is which and put it together:

Power lead- Red
Aux power- Yellow
Ground- Black
Antennae remote
Speaker wires

When you cut the factory harness, give yourself as much length as possible. It is not hard to push extra wire back behind the head unit, but it can be a real pain if you don't have enough length.

Use a multimeter/voltmeter ( you do this by trial and error with the stripped wires if you have to, but a multimeter is preferred) to figure out which of the wires from the factory harness is constantly on- you need a constant line to keep your clock & EQ settings when you turn off the car- and which is only one when the key is turned. I like to use bullet type terminal connectors so I can easily disconnect if necessary:

Attachment 535703

Connect the constant power line to the red wire in the head unit harness, the one that turns on when the key is turned to the yellow wire in the head unit harness. Find the ground and connect, or you can find a ground point and attach to the car that way.

Now you should have power when you turn the key on, be able to set the clock, and have it keep when you turn the key off and on.

The antennae cable (the large black one that has a male connector on it) will have a thin black wire with it, connect that to the ant remote line, plug the antennae cable into the head unit.

The wiring diagram will tell you which speaker wire are which, they are usually green, purple, white, gray. With the power on, test out which speaker is which by connecting the + and - to the factory wires. Connect them as you sort them out- you'll hear it through the corresponding speaker.



It is something that you can do in under an hour, even the first time.

saifhaq

If your car's factory harness hasn't been cut up/butchered, I would suggest you get something like this....

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_1207018...orsche+harness
It ties in to the back of your new stereo and preserves your factory wiring.

And here is the writeup for my stereo install...
https://rennlist.com/forums/924-931-...-pictures.html

SirLapsalot

Thank you very much guys! Your help is much appreciated. I might have more questions when I actually start the install and have the wiring in front of me but with the older aftermarket head unit in there currently that I intend to replace I assume the wiring has already ben butchered or the pigtails you show have already been used

YoungerThan944

Here's a pretty good writeup for a general head unit install :Installation Guide

Cyberpunky

The colour of the old HU loom should be same as the ones for new HU, so as long as you cut the wires after the factory loom and on the old HU's loom, it should plain sailing, as the aftermarket HU's all tend to have same wiring conventions(colours). It's really only a challenge when you are fitting first unit, and as suggested above, you can use a crutchfield harness to avoid any pain if that was the case.
peace
Cyberpunky

86 951 Driver

Get that kit from crutchfield. It might be expensive but it will keep your car intact.