I'm looking to install a custom subwoofer in the access port between the trunk and the rear seat... where the armrest is when it's down.

Has anyone removed the hatch w/ the lock that covers this? I want to remove it and replace it with the front of the sub. I'm suspecting the rear seats might have to be removed. I've never done any work on the rear seats of a CL before but suspect this might be a pain in the @$$.

If anyone has any experience/thoughts about this, I'd appreciate any help I could get.

-- Nihil

 

Rear seats removal instructions:
- Pull up the bottom cushions. It may take a little force but if you pull up (vertically) they should come off.
- Remove 2 bolts in front of the console, 2 bolts in the back, remove the console. Remove 2 bolts on the sides (1 on each side at the bottom of the back cushion). All bolts are 10mm.
- Lift the back cushion up (vertially) then pull it out, it may be a little difficult because of the sides making contact with the pillars.
- Be careful when you move the back cushion out of the car because of the 2 metal brackets. They will scratch whatever get on their way so I suggest you wrap them up with a drag or something.

Reverse the process to put it back in.

Good luck.

 

Removing the back seat isn't that hard.... I did it to take out that 'door thing' just like you are planning.

Once you get the seat back out, removing the door is pretty easy. You'll just have to slide this metal rod out, remove the door, and put the rod back.

 

That'll do it... Appreciate the help. I'm thinking an 8" sub firing directly into the cabin will sound a hellofva lot better than the POS stock Bose speakers trying to make bass. Will work on the rest of the speakers in due time.

Edit: I took some measurements of the trunk access door and even with the lid removed there won't be room for the sub I have my eye on. Seems I need to remove the entire plastic "cover" from between the two rear seats. I honestly haven't had a chance to rip out the seats, but was wondering if anyone already knows whether this is integrated into the rear console and can be removed w/o cutting? If cutting's involved, any ideas on how much to replace it?

-- Nihil

 

The console is not built in with the seat. It's seperated.

 

Hey,

I'm interested in doing this. . how many 8" subs are you gonna install? Will the sub protrude into the trunk or will it be flush against the trunk wall? Do you have any pics or diagrams of what it would look like after installation?

If it looks good, I might do this one also. Thanks.

 

I am going to install one (square) Kicker solobaric 8" (S8L7). I ordered one from Crutchfield for $129. They mount 8.8" wide so it will fit perfectly between the seats where the trunk passthrough door is with no gap between speaker and seat. There's no room for 2 of these. I'm going to make a ported enclosure and actually use the rear seat as the remaining 4" or so.

I took out the rear seats (thanks everyone, it was EZ) and was able to remove the entire hatch assembly. The custom box I'm going to build this weekend will sit where the hatch used to be. There's about 2" between the "trunk" and the armrest (when it's upright), so this will be a pure stealth installation.

I'll post pictures, diagrams, etc... when I get everything in place.

-- Nihil

 

Hey dude,

How many watts can the 8" subwoofer take? I am thinking of getting a JL Audio 500.1 amp and using that to drive the sub. What if I replaced the stock Bose speakers in the rear with mini-subs and then use them in combination with the 8" sub? Will that give me pounding bass?

Do you think you can make another enclosure for me? Let me know how much something like that will cost. Thanks.

 

According to the Kicker tech notes, the S8L7 can handle 450W in a sealed box, and between 300W - 325W in a ported one (with a subsonic filter).

If you're looking for MAD bass heard for blocks, this is probably not the kind of system you want, although the 8" square is about the equivalent of a 10" and should hit hard. Those stock Bose speakers are for sheot when handling any bass... they sound muddy (but so do all Bose speakers 'cept maybe the old 901 series). I prefer flat frequency response over big bump--but do like a system that can hit the lows. I'm going w/ a critically-damped ported box. Should be able to hit ~33 Hz w/o any bumps (assuming I get the port tuning correct).

About the amp, I think it has all the right features, assuming we grab the line-level connections to the stock Bose amp. Otherwise, you're going to have to use speaker to line level converters and tap off the speaker wires. From what I've read on the forum, the stock amp is in the trunk in front of the jack so shouldn't be a problem. Honestly, you might consider going with the JL 500/5 if you can afford the difference (and if the stock amp also powers the fronts). From there, you're only a drop-in replacement for the stock speakers to have a much improved stereo.

Finally, regarding building a box for you... I don't have a problem with that but the shipping is going to be expensive. I'll use at least 3/4" MDF with a lot of internal bracing. Bastard will be heavy. Have no idea how much it's going to cost but can't imagine it would be more than ~$150 all said and done. If you want a sealed box, I could make an extra front baffle when I make mine and send it to you... I'll probably have enough scrap wood when finished w/ mine and the shipping wouldn't cost that much. Hell, if others are interested, I'll make a jig for it and knock them out for everyone.

-- Nihil

 

Yo,

Thanks for the info. I am not planning to keep the Bose speakers. As I mentioned earlier, I want to replace them with better-quality speakers. In fact, I would like to replace them with subwoofers, if that's at all possible. Do you have any recommendations for good Bose replacements that can output a lot of tight, pounding bass?

What I want my system to be like is as follows:

8" Kicker square sub
2 subs that replaces the Bose stock (same size)
JL 500.1 driving the above 3 rear subs.
Stock Bose amp driving the fronts.

I don't want the JL 500/5 because it is not a Class-D amp and would take too many amps from the battery, degrading my engine performance.

The system above should give me really heavy and pounding bass inside the car. I am not interested in bass that can be heard for blocks. Just MAD ear-busting bass inside the car only.

You live in LA, right? Well, I live in San Francisco and I am planning to drive down to LA for the Thanksgiving weekend. If I can buy the box from you on that weekend, let me know - we can save the hassle of shipping. Hell, if you could even install the box, that would be great.

As soon as you finish your install, please post your pics. If it looks good, then I will definitely want to do the same thing. Thanks.

 

I have no idea what subs you might replace the stock speakers with. However, you are going to be limited to free-air subs unless you build custom boxes... Free air subs sound like sh|+.

If you want hard pounding bass inside, beyond what a single 10" equiv would do, IMO you're going to have to go w/ a different setup. Someone in the Bay area has to have a single 10 installed in their car. My recommendation would be to check it out and see if it's enough. Keep in mind, the single 8 should put out nearly 90dB at 1 acoustic watt/meter down to low 30z... at that volume, your stock bose amp is going to be hard-pressed to keep up w/ the base.

Regardless, you're going to have some wierd wiring going on if you try to drive all those subs w/ one amp. The amps only going to be happy w/ a resonable impedence. The easiest would be to find two of the smaller w/ 8 ohms. Then just wire everything in parallel to give you a equiv. 2 ohm load. But then, better make sure the smaller drivers can handle 1/4 of the amp's power. Probably not realistic with free-air. Definitely doable w/ a custom sealed. Obviously try whatever you want, but you may have better results with just driving the main sub harder and keeping the rear speakers as is (but replacing the stock) or going w/ larger subs in the trunk. I'm going for the stealth install w/ minimal impact to usable trunk space.

I'll make two boxes unless others want in too... you can see it for yourself ~Thanksgiving and take it home if you want. I'm sure there's someone out there who would use it if you don't.

-- Nihil

 

yeah, I looked into doing this same thing. That 8" kicker will definetly give more bass, but i'm unable to do the work myself, and my local audio shop wanted like $300 for the box, +sub. So i put this on hold. Like you, i'm not concerned about having a tremendous amount of bass, just some more low end. Kenwood has some premade flat box with a 6.5" and a 5" amplified. Anyone know of a good place to put this?

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-nieb3AJ...sp?i=113WA62RC

 

I've never listened to one. But, I would try to put it in the cabin, not the trunk.

Maybe remove the rear seat console and put it there. Or bolt it on top of the console. The console, lid, and lid cover are removeable. I was considering replacing the rear console with a small sub box, use some JL 6.5 (6W0) subs or a kicker. It's a tight space. There is also some space between the front and rear consoles. Depending on design, you could face the sub(s) forward, up, or down. I just don't have time to do the work and experiment.

 

Update: It's doable... the Kicker 8" square is a PERFECT fit between the rear seats. I'm going to build a small box to fit in the trunk and have a baffle that fits the driver snugly behind the armrest. If you're intrested:
http://www.acura-cl.com/forums/showt...threadid=82988
After I finish the box prototyping, I'd consider building these for others. Guess the protos could be had at cost

Sorry for the plugs all, but this seems to be a common thread that no-one has given a viable custom solution to. I'll give it a shot.

-- Nihil