Car audio question

[Demon-Xanth]

Okay, I'm gonna be seriously suprized if anyone responds seriously to this one.

My cousin wants to install a stereo in his '87 Volvo 240. It's a standard head unit. What's involved in taking apart a Volvo's dash, and mounting the stereo?

 

[Gand1]

Surprise!!!!

That part of the dash is quite easy to remove. There should be about four screws holding it in, but don't forget about the hidden one inside the ashtray area. Other than that it should be straight foward.

There is a small joke about that model Volvo. That cars' heater core is suspended in air and the car is built around it.

Heater core - $70
Labor - 13 ish hours!!!! @ whatever a garage charges.

= incredibly expensive job unless you are willing (and masochistic) to do it yourself.

It literally takes a half a day to get all the crap out (the whole entire dash) just to get to the core!

me = Volvo owner

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Nice to know that if the heater core ever breaks in his car, it's totalled (some 350,000 miles on it)

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Okay, one add on to the question, there seems to be an "upper dash" and "lower dash" version of the car. Being an upper dash mount, does that change it at all?

 

[astrosfan90]

Hey now, at least you can replace the stereo. I have a '95 850, which has some bizzare-sized stereo in the dash that I would need to get a custom job on to put in a freaking CD player. Volvo would charge me like 2 grand for a CD player, and most car stereo places tell me that the custom job would run anywhere from $600 to $1,000 to just put a measly $99 CD player in the car.

 

[echo4747]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
Okay, I'm gonna be seriously suprized if anyone responds seriously to this one.

My cousin wants to install a stereo in his '87 Volvo 240. It's a standard head unit. What's involved in taking apart a Volvo's dash, and mounting the stereo?

Im a volvo owner, but I am not famalir with the '87 240. Have you tried www.swedespeed.com ? This site has a volvo car audio forum . I t also has a very knowledgeable /helpful group of members

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90
Hey now, at least you can replace the stereo. I have a '95 850, which has some bizzare-sized stereo in the dash that I would need to get a custom job on to put in a freaking CD player. Volvo would charge me like 2 grand for a CD player, and most car stereo places tell me that the custom job would run anywhere from $600 to $1,000 to just put a measly $99 CD player in the car.

Ouch. When I got a new one in my Dodge Dakota, it needed a kit. The original stereo was a DIN and a half sized, but so common that there's a ton of kits for them. I had a shop install a JVC SH99. I just swapped it out yesterday with a DV5100 (MP3-DVD-Rs baby!). Didn't need any tools outside of a screwdriver to bend the tabs on the sleeve.

 

[astrosfan90]

Random GIS for Volvo 850 dash--here's what I'm talking about. The stereo is some sort of car radio on steroids. http://www.chrisandmichelle.us/pictures/volvo/dash.jpg

 

[tallest1]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90
Hey now, at least you can replace the stereo. I have a '95 850, which has some bizzare-sized stereo in the dash that I would need to get a custom job on to put in a freaking CD player. Volvo would charge me like 2 grand for a CD player, and most car stereo places tell me that the custom job would run anywhere from $600 to $1,000 to just put a measly $99 CD player in the car.

I got a '96 850 and I thought they would put a standard size deck and a 'pocket' underneath just like any other car with an oversized dash. You sure thats right?

 

[astrosfan90]

Originally posted by: tallest1

Originally posted by: astrosfan90
Hey now, at least you can replace the stereo. I have a '95 850, which has some bizzare-sized stereo in the dash that I would need to get a custom job on to put in a freaking CD player. Volvo would charge me like 2 grand for a CD player, and most car stereo places tell me that the custom job would run anywhere from $600 to $1,000 to just put a measly $99 CD player in the car.

I got a '96 850 and I thought they would put a standard size deck and a 'pocket' underneath just like any other car with an oversized dash. You sure thats right?

That's not what they told me. I went to a few places, Tweeter and Best Buy among a few others, asking all of them if they could do it. I was told by all of them that it would take some custom kit because it was sized funny and the labor and backordered kit would run me a few hundred each. One of them said something about a custom kit for a '6x Mustang or something. Who knows, maybe they were all tryin to pull my leg. Regardless, I still have the same 'ol factory stereo.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
Ouch. When I got a new one in my Dodge Dakota, it needed a kit. The original stereo was a DIN and a half sized, but so common that there's a ton of kits for them. I had a shop install a JVC SH99. I just swapped it out yesterday with a DV5100 (MP3-DVD-Rs baby!). Didn't need any tools outside of a screwdriver to bend the tabs on the sleeve.

My Chrysler has DIN and a half too. How come I can never find any DIN and a half CD players?

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth
Ouch. When I got a new one in my Dodge Dakota, it needed a kit. The original stereo was a DIN and a half sized, but so common that there's a ton of kits for them. I had a shop install a JVC SH99. I just swapped it out yesterday with a DV5100 (MP3-DVD-Rs baby!). Didn't need any tools outside of a screwdriver to bend the tabs on the sleeve.

My Chrysler has DIN and a half too. How come I can never find any DIN and a half CD players?

Because you're not looking hard enough?

Pioneer has had them for a while


As far as the 850's stereo goes, that actually looks like a double-DIN size.

 

[tallest1]

Originally posted by: astrosfan90

Originally posted by: tallest1

Originally posted by: astrosfan90
Hey now, at least you can replace the stereo. I have a '95 850, which has some bizzare-sized stereo in the dash that I would need to get a custom job on to put in a freaking CD player. Volvo would charge me like 2 grand for a CD player, and most car stereo places tell me that the custom job would run anywhere from $600 to $1,000 to just put a measly $99 CD player in the car.

I got a '96 850 and I thought they would put a standard size deck and a 'pocket' underneath just like any other car with an oversized dash. You sure thats right?

That's not what they told me. I went to a few places, Tweeter and Best Buy among a few others, asking all of them if they could do it. I was told by all of them that it would take some custom kit because it was sized funny and the labor and backordered kit would run me a few hundred each. One of them said something about a custom kit for a '6x Mustang or something. Who knows, maybe they were all tryin to pull my leg. Regardless, I still have the same 'ol factory stereo.

I just returned from one of the better Volvo shops in my town. They say that installing plain 'ol decks is nothing special at all. They said if anyone claims its difficult, it means they don't know Volvos well enough. They then offered to install my CD deck and changer but I declined since Sound Advice is doing it for me for free