can I fit a new car radio/CD?

tomandkath

Sorry, a bit of a how long is a piece of string question, but in general .......... could someone who can just about tell a blue car from a yellow car fit a new radio? Don't want to find myself totally bemused and tangled up in wires, but don't want to pay for something I could easily (that's the key here) do myself. Many thanks :beer:

colin13

yes ,,it is only a ariel tht u put in in to a hole,,and 2 plugss that u cannot connect together wrong,,it is very simple:)

nomoneytoday

If the old and new stereos are standard, then it is a case of fitting the old and new plugs in the same place.

Some cars use a specific loom / adaptor - these are usually on ebay for a couple of £ or in a motor factor (more £ but convenient)

The lugs on the plugs are offset so the "round plug doesn't fit in the square hole"

anewman

You need the keys (coathangers can sometimes be used as a substitute) to remove the existing stereo. If this is the original stereo with the car it may need a wiring adapter.

Remove trim around stereo face to expose key holes. Insert keys. Pull out stereo and undo the wiring connectors at the back. Bend back the tabs in the metal cage that retained the old stereo so it can be pulled out. Insert new cage and bend the tabs so that the cage is firmly held in place. Attach appropriate connector to new stereo if needed, plug everything in, slide stereo in carefully ensuring nothing is trapped and there is sufficient room for all the wires at the back (may need to take the stereo back out and juggle everything a bit) - then fit the trim. The instructions will probably say to disconnect the battery but I've never known an issue caused by not doing so.

Sometimes it may be a bit more difficult than this, but usually it isn't.

PayUpMrBookie

Hi TomandKath, its pretty straightforward, if you are replacing your standard car stereo with a higher spec system them theres a fair chance that you will need an adapter or 'wiring loom' You will only discover if this is the case when you remove the existing head unit.

Halfords are conveniant for these 'adaptors' although slightly overpriced, expect to pay £10-£15 for one, it does make the job of replacing the stereo very easy though, otherwise, something i have done a few times in the past is snip all the wires from the existing adaptors and connect each one manually using old fashioned block connectors (i do not recommend this unless you have a fair grasp of what wire connects to what)

And finally, in order to protect your flashy new car stereo, i would recommend pulling the fuse that corrosponds to the power for your car stereo, most vehicle manufacturers will have the fuse box mounted inside the passenger cabin either in the footwell or at the side of the dashboard where the front doors shut, alternatively, most car stereos these days have a fuse on the back of the unit, pull this until all connections have been made.

Hope this helps.

Gordon861

The real question we need answering is what car do you have atm so you can see if you are going to need a special addapter/facia to make it fit.

Most aftermarket radios come in a standard size and you can get adapters to make the wiring looms just plug straight in, making the job much easier. As well as the 'coat hanger' type tools to remove the radios there is also another format that is just a 'flat key' that you slide into the side of the radio. A lot of the new radios come with the tools anyways.

goldspanners

thats right gordon, we need to know what car you have ( year,make, model).
what stereo is currently in there, is it factory standard or is it an aftermarket one?
what stereo do you plan on fitting to replace the exsisting one?
do you have steering wheel controls? do you still want them to work after you fit the new stereo?

tomandkath

I have a Ford Focus 12/2004. The stereo is, I believe, original and I plan to replace it with a simple radio/cd players on the basis of looks rather than performance (oops, woman driver!) Don't want technicolour knobs and dials to replace my nice elegant black one!
Steering wheel controls???? It's a silver car, if that helps :rotfl:

goldspanners

tomandkath wrote: »

I have a Ford Focus 12/2004. The stereo is, I believe, original and I plan to replace it with a simple radio/cd players on the basis of looks rather than performance (oops, woman driver!) Don't want technicolour knobs and dials to replace my nice elegant black one!
Steering wheel controls???? It's a silver car, if that helps :rotfl:

i have a focus and have fitted an aftermarket stereo in mine, its pretty simple to do.
the hardest part is getting the original stereo out.
to get the original stereo out you will need removal pins, or alternatively make them from a wire coathanger, bend then into "u" shapes so they fit the small holes at the top and bottom of the stereo and pull then away from each other whilst pulling them and the stereo out.
then you will need a your replacement stereo, you will need a wiring harness adapter, a company called autoleads make harness adaptors to fit the focus, you can get them from ebay,halfords or motorworld. it must have the ford fitment on one side and the standard iso connections on the other side.
and also a fascia adaptor plate to take up the space left as no doubt your new stereo will be single din rather than the ford double din.
here is a link to a good kit that contains all the stuff you will need, http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AUTOLEADS-FOCUSother than the stereo, i think argos were doing a nice pioneer for £29 last week.

Gordon861

Not suggesting this actual radio(I just like Blaupunkt radios) but it's an example :
Radio http://www.bluespot.co.uk/stock/sevilla.asp

Then you'd need :
from http://www.bluespot.co.uk/install/show_model.asp?id=85
Fascia Adapter - FP07-08 and
Wiring Adapter - PC2-08-4

Then all the parts should basically plug together.

goldspanners

Gordon861 wrote: »

Not suggesting this actual radio(I just like Blaupunkt radios) but it's an example :
Radio http://www.bluespot.co.uk/stock/sevilla.asp

Then you'd need :
from http://www.bluespot.co.uk/install/show_model.asp?id=85
Fascia Adapter - FP07-08 and
Wiring Adapter - PC2-08-4

Then all the parts should basically plug together.

thats all a bit expensive, mine is cheaper and the same thing.