I have done a couple of quick searches here, and I am a little more confused now than before. I knew before that there was something with the stereo and alarm that I needed to look into before replacing the stock stereo for an aftermarket one. What exactly do I need to do before making this upgrade? I have read about codes, but I don't know how to find it or how it fits into the whole setup. I am planning on doing this in a couple of days, so any help would be appreciated.

'98 CL 2.3
101K
Manual and loving every bit of it.

 

unless you have a bose system or you are putting the stock radio BACK IN....you will be fine no code required. the code is only needed for putting the stock back in.

 

yeah the "code" is the anti-theft code for a factory radio incase somebody jacks it they cant use it without the code, some aftermarket units feature this but most dont

if you have a factory bose system youll need to do some work, but if you have just the bare bones Alpine system, youre fine, just wiring harness and dash kit and youre good to go, and those 2 pieces are for just about any other install out there, so nothing special on this one

 

There's nothing to do with the alarm, except the unlock code if the battery dies or u remove the head unit. Hope that helps

 

well you do need to put in a transponder bypass but thats WITH the new alarm, NOT before

 

I am not planning on putting the factory stereo back in. How do I know if I have the bose system? Thanks for all of the responses.

 

the BOSE logo should be on your back speaker covers. just look at them and you will tell

 

Just remember the saying. No highs, no lows, must be BLOSE.

 

 

I am planning on putting the following stereo in my '97 2.2CL Special:
Kenwood Excelon KDC-X789 head unit
JL Audio evolution VR600-CSi front speakers
Eclipse EA3422 4/3/2 channel amp
JL Audio 10" sub

Does my car support this setup (power-wise)?
Will this set-up work without replacing the rear decks?
Your help is MUCH appreciated

 

what do you plan on using to push the sub???

and the series of JL sub helps too, because pushing a 10W7 will take alot more than pushing a 10W0

id say it can handle it, but do upgrage the wiring and the alternator to be on the safe side

 

Ok...I will get have to post later on which sub it is. The Eclipse amp will power the new JL Speakers and sub.
What kind of wiring should i upgrade it to and what kind of alternator should i get?

 

Your car will support that no prob

 

Never a good idea to use the same amp to power both. They tend to do one thing better than the other. For instance theyre good for highs and mid but doesnt do bass well, or vice versa. Does make it simple tho. Your car will be fine to handle that using 8 gauge. 4 guage if the amp will take it. Put a fuse right next to the amp in the back and one right after the battery under the hood. You dont want a fire in your car. The jl's will sound great up front but you will have NO rear fill which will sound funny. Its kind of like listening to a tv, all the sound will be in front of you at your feet. The kenwood is a good choice for HU. Loads of settings on it, more than youll ever need. The only thing I would do different is get something for the rear deck. You dont have to use 6x9's back there. I used 6 1/2's for a while and got a lot better sound out of it. You have ZERO need for a new alternator. If your concerned about that just swap out whatever battery you have under the hood for a yellow top optima.

 

Thank you so much! So it sounds like I will be going out to get another set of JLs :-)
With regard to using one amp...This is the same set-up that my dad had in his Sequoia (actually this is his stereo system). He had the rear two speakers (stock) hooked up to the Kenwood, the front two speakers (JLs) hooked to the amp, and the 10in sub hooked to the amp.
Right now the battery I have is a one year old Toyota battery (since we bought it used at a Toyota dealership). Is there a way to tell if my battery can handle this system?

 

good points, I didn't catch you were powering the sub and the highs together, def wanna split them up. And optima yellow is def a good investment. For the rear deck, get some 3 way 6x9's they make the sound so much crisper having lows mids and highs

 

Sounds good to me. Thanks so much!

 

the only way to really tell if the battery and the alternator can handle it, is to try it and see if the lights dim. remember it you drain the battery to the point where you draw from the alternator the lights interior lights headlights will dim to try and give the amplifier more juice if this happens turn it down and get a new battery. too many times drawing off the amp will kill it and thats a pain in the ass thats avoided with a new battery. good luck with your project and post pictures if you can.
almost forgot on the dashboard next to the windshield are two shit tweeters if you want a little extra imaging up front. try to pick up some decent ones i think im using 2" alpines or something. they may be small but youll notice a little something extra. just a thought.....

 

Thanks! and I definately will post pics.
I decided to sell the sub and buy JL audio rear decks. This will eliminate the need for more than one amp and trying to get around the Bose amp. I may add a sub or two later down the road.

 

sounds like a plan and it will sound better in the long run. hope it works out for you. take your time removing the back 6x9 panels so they do not break. otherwise they will rattle and not stay secured down. oh yea good friend is running nothing but jl components, subs, amps, eq's, everthing he could get. helps that his uncle runs a large stereo shop we worked for years. its the best sounding car ive really heard. he uses it to compete for SQ (sound quality) and consistently ranks very high. heres a pic of his car sorry no inside pic

 

Nice ride.
My dad and I get hooked up by a local stereo store as well since he knows a couple of the guys there. I will buy JL 6x9s forthe back from them and have them install it if I cannot figure it out :P
I am still new at all the car stuff

 

how much did you get the rear JL's for? They shouldnt be too bad to hook up. I was told just cut the harness off the rear speakers and tap them into the new speakers wires. Shouldnt be too difficulut..hopefully. haha

 

Are you positive that you can just snip the wires and attatch the new JLs to the old speaker wires??

 

A higher capacity battery will only buy more reserve time when drawing power. Current is limited by the alternator's output, which on a 2.3 is 80 amps (according to the noob guide). If your super duper radio along with anything else electrical on the car are drawing and average of 81 amps (stereos obviously fluctuate with draw), you're emptying the bucket faster than you're filling it, and it will eventually run out.

The easiest and most accurate way to see if you can continuously power everything is to idle the car, crank the stereo, turn on everything electrical that has a continuous draw (lights with highbeams, A/C, etc.) then put a voltmeter on the battery and see if it's dropping in voltage. When running it should be around 13-14v. Revving the engine will get the alternator to crank closer to 80 amps, but you don't really want your battery draining at redlights then charging up again while driving.


If the battery drains faster than it fills you'll want to get a higher-output alternator. Some aftermarkets will put out 150 amps at idle.





LC.

 

Yes. Be sure to get positive & negative in the right order though. If not (and correct me if I'm wrong) your speaker will implode vs. explode.



LC.

 

it probably wouldnt be good either way.

 

Fixed

Yes it'll work, that's how my speakers are hooked up until I get my highs amp in

 

haha dont worry if you dont hook the speakers up right they just wont play. thats how youll know you did it wrong. no worries there.and yes you can cut the harns if you dont have a highs amp it works fine.if you have an amp just run normal speaker wire. as for the fronts, if its too difficult for you to run the wires through the door. (which there is a diy here for that) then just use the stock wiring and youll be fine. you can intercept the wiring behind the radio where it would have connected to the radio.

 

Ok than you for replying! I am so happy to hear that I can just snip the old wires and attatched the new ones without having to fish...
The only question i have is, what is the difference between a high amp and a low amp??
Oh yeah, and on a scale of 1-5 5 being really difficult, how difficult is it to remove the stock stereo?

 

you mean like the stock headunit? just to remove it? theres a DIY in the DIY section with step by step on how to remove the center console.

 

^^^ says the guy who had his head unit installed for him by me while he sat and watched Stock headunit I'd give it a 3, only cuz the first time getting the dash apart is time consuming. As far as fishing the wires, it all depends on how much power you're pushing to the speakers. Keep in mind that our stock speaker wires are super thin, so if you're powering off the head unit, no problem. If you switch to an amp, then run new speaker wires

 

I was talking about removing the center console, you butt wipe. the center console isnt hard to remove at all. and yeah, your right, you did. that was when i was like 16 and retarded. Now i'm older and just half retarded.

 

fixed

 

Ok sweet. It sounds like I will be running new wire though since the speakers will run off of the amp oh well...

 

I'm doin it on tuesday, if you need pics lemme know

 

THe only thing i need to know is how to get the door panels off and how to remove the stock stereo, so pictures sound like a good aid to me
If you don't mind

 

Well, my door panels are already off, they've been off for over a year and my stereo is already out, my whole interior is gutted right now. But we have a diy for the stereo in the diy/faq section. As for the door panels, you just remove 2-3 screws and pop all the clips one at a time

 

the clips love to break though. so be careful.