How hard is it to install car speakers?

[LukFilm]

I have '91 Ford Escort and AIWA head unit with 45W RMS output power and I was thinking of getting 6.5'' Pioneer speakers (50W RMS -here) for the front and 5x7'' Pioneer speakers (40W RMS - here ) for the rear. How hard would it be to install them? Best Buy has a deal where you get the second pair for 50% off plus I have a 15% off coupon for car stereo, so both pairs would only cost me $119. You think I could install it myself and save on the installation fees?

 

[bmacd]

installation=breeze. You're gonna need a couple tools. I've never installed anything into an escort, but with most all Ford cars, you're gonna have to remove the door panel. You can goto murrays or pep boys or whatever you local auto store is and pick up a door panel remover. It looks like this. You just pop the "eyes" away from the door and unscrew your speaker, unfasten the harness, plug in your new speaker, and put the door back on. 2 hour job, tops for a n00b.

-=bmacd=-

 

[LukFilm]

Oh great! Thanks so much Looks like I am ordering my speakers from eBay, they have better prices than BB even after 50% off and 15% off discounts, wow.

 

[bmacd]

ya...i bought my infinitis from CC and checked ebay a couple days later only for the exact speakers to be about $25 less then what i paid for.

-=bmacd=-

 

[Imported]

Yep, it's an easy thing to do. I got Infinitis as well off of eBay since the price difference was quite big. Only problem I ran into installing them into my Civic was the 6.5 up front had too much depth for the enlcosure, so I had to cut away at the plastic enclosure (Dremel works wonders ) and for the rear, the factory speaker cover wouldn't fit without some cutting away at them too. Still, you can't notice that they don't fit perfect.

 

[StageLeft]

Nice speakers I think - I was considering those ones too - the 50% off on second pair made me soil my underwear.

It depends on the car. The rears are generally the easiest - in a couple of cars I've done it on you simply unscrewed them and had to remove minimal paneling. In my sentra it was a bit harder, but still not rocket science.

For the front you just remove the front door panels unscrewing all the obvious stuff and don't forget to unclip the window lever if you don't have power windows - it's a little clip in behind the handle you may need long needlenose pliers to remove.

Anyway yes it's easy BUT don't forget this: If you have to force it you're doing something wrong.

Don't be like me and learn that the hard way; I missed a few screws and ended up snapping plastic in a fit of frustrated semi-rage

 

[bmacd]

ahh...i forgot about the armrest/window lever. Your best best is to get a haynes or chiltons shop repair manual and glance at door panel removal. It will, at the least, give you a heads up for what you're about to indulge in.

-=bmacd=-

 

[Imported]

You people had to remove the whole door panel? Wow.. I just took off the factory grill portion, unscrewed the old speakers, took em out, and popped in the new ones with a little custom fabrication via my dremel.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Imported
You people had to remove the whole door panel? Wow.. I just took off the factory grill portion, unscrewed the old speakers, took em out, and popped in the new ones with a little custom fabrication via my dremel.

Yeah - I was considering for my car forcing that grill off but i'd have had to glue it back on. Not a pretty job, so I removed the entire panel.

 

[bmacd]

Originally posted by: Imported
You people had to remove the whole door panel? Wow.. I just took off the factory grill portion, unscrewed the old speakers, took em out, and popped in the new ones with a little custom fabrication via my dremel.

removing the door panels seems to be the going rate, however, you should check a haynes or chilton's repair manual for installing/replacing speakers for proper installation.

-=bmacd=-

 

[BillGates]

Guys - you can't forget the wiring part of the installation...

Optimally he would want to run new wires from the head unit to each speaker, but going through the door wire "boots" is a huge pain in the ass.

Alternately he will have to cut the connectors off of the old speaker wire and then determine which one is positive and negative and finally figure out a way to mount those to the new speakers (I have done this a few times and it is lots of fun)

Finally he could try Crutchfield or a similar store, who sell adapters that plug into the factory wiring plugs and give you speaker wire with the proper polarity marked to plug into the new speakers.

Running new wires = pain = easy wiring connections

Using existing wires = easy labor = pain in the ass wiring

Getting adapters = easy labor = spending more money = easy wiring

You decide based on how comfortable you are with electronics and ripping your car apart!

 

[Angrymarshmello]

It depends on the car. In my Accord, I'm supposed to take off the door panel but I stretched the bottom plastic on the door enough to get the speaker out (looks really odd if the speaker grille isn't there to secure it in place) - had to cut part of the plastic enclosure but otherwise went painless. I didn't replace the speaker wire just because I don't really care that much about it. Once I get a new car I'll go the extra mile on that though

 

[Pepsi90919]

it's not hard to determine the positive and negative...i always thought that if you turned the speaker upside down and looked at the wires, the positive is on the right and the negative is on the left.

 

[BillGates]

Originally posted by: Pepsi90919
it's not hard to determine the positive and negative...i always thought that if you turned the speaker upside down and looked at the wires, the positive is on the right and the negative is on the left.

I would never count on that as being consistent - there are too many manufacturers of speakers and too many years.

The easiest way to test polarity when you aren't sure which is which is to use a AA or AAA battery and a short piece of speaker wire.

When the + side of the battery is connected to the + speaker input, the speaker should be pushed "out" - if you have it backwards the speaker will be pulled in.