Is this Best Buy Car Cd deck install worth it? - Update - Screw best buy

[TallBill]

Went to best buy today and found a kenwood cd player that plays mp3's/wmas and has sirius which i was looking at getting. The deck itself is 178 plus tax with a free installation. Unfortunatly I drive a Ford Crown Victoria which has a weird shaped radio, so i need a 62 dollar kit for attachment. so ~240 plus tax for it installed.

Theres also a 4 year warranty for 40 bucks which includes unlimted free cleanings (which supposedly makes it worth it)

I really am to lazy to install a deck myself, and i'd rather have a professional do it anyways. So is this a ripoff or a so/so deal? Also, is the extra warranty a total rip off?

 

[minendo]

The kit is a ripoff as is the warranty. Free cleanings are worth it, my ass. Have had my deck for 6 years, 0 cleanings and it still works fine.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: minendo
The kit is a ripoff as is the warranty. Free cleanings are worth it, my ass. Have had my deck for 6 years, 0 cleanings and it still works fine.

ok, well figured that the warranty was a ripoff, but i can justify the kit being the cost of the install.

 

[MrBond]

Did they tell you that the CD Player needed monthly cleanings and recalibration, otherwise the warranty would be void? That seems to be a pretty popular lie among best buy installers.

Car audio "on sale" at bestbuy is rarely a better price. They just advertise certain head units in the weekly ad, more often than not the price is the same as the regular price.

Stop by a real car audio shop and price it there, you might be surprised. $60 for an adapter kit is a ripoff, I didn't pay more than $20 for either of the two I've had to buy. Also, at a real car audio shop, you'll get a better installer than the flunky at BestBuy. I've never been impressed with the Bestbuy installer's work personally.

Edit: Sounds like that is this reciever here:

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-UryzhF7vrN8/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=62700&I=113MP225&o=m&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y

(If it doesn't show up, just browse crutchfield car audio, it's easy to find there).

$170 + shipping + tax, so chances are that's about what it'll cost at a real car audio place. Sure, you'll have to pay for install probably, but you're paying for it anyway at BB with the $60 kit.

 

[TallBill]

Yeah, thats the deck. And no he didnt lie about the warranty, just mentioned it.

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

I had a deck installed at BB here. 2 weeks later my truck was broken into. Over the next couple of weeks I spoke to several people who had similar experiences. Figure the installer or their buddies made notes of addresses and vehicles then came back to steal them.

 

[stev0]

personally... i would go with one of the alpines that does the mp3/wma thing, you'll have the option of xm radio instead of sirius, which, imo is better than sirius

 

[stev0]

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Ay7e61xUVKR/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?s=0&c=3&g=62700&I=500CDA9827&o=m&a=0&cc=01&avf=N

for the same price as it would be if you got that kenwood installed at bestbuy.

the install is easy, especially on fords. if you can build a computer you can install this deck

edit: btw i've had my delphi skyfi xm tuner in my truck for 2 weeks now and it's easly the best money that i have ever spent.

 

[TallBill]

Oof.. just got ahold of the 2 local places.. one is super high end, and the other charges 85 bucks for installs.. looks like best buy it is. I aint driving into the city to save 20 bucks, even if I did search around

- maybe i'll just browse crutchfield - looks like it comes with a mounting kit. i still know nothing about car stereo. i do understand that its super easy to do. is just a standalone deck extremely easy to wire? probably uses same wires as existing radio no? i always think of my brother in law's car that you can see wire running to his trunk for his amp/sub/whatever

 

[styrafoam]

Sounddomain.com usually throws in a harness and install bracket for free when you order a deck from them. For wiring in most cases the adapter harness has a female plug that conects to you cars harness. Then you use wire nuts to splice the loose wires from the adapter harness to the loose wires from the deck. Pretty painless, its usually more work getting inside the dash then doing the actual wiring.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: styrafoam
Sounddomain.com usually throws in a harness and install bracket for free when you order a deck from them. For wiring in most cases the adapter harness has a female plug that conects to you cars harness. Then you use wire nuts to splice the loose wires from the adapter harness to the loose wires from the deck. Pretty painless, its usually more work getting inside the dash then doing the actual wiring.

That is my last worry. It doesnt look like i'll have an easy time popping off radio face, but who knows. I'm probably gonna end up with the Kenwood that I origionally picked out, because all I really want is mp3/wma playback plus sirius. I'm waiting on good sound untill I get a new car.

 

[styrafoam]

What year is your car? Here is a pdf on an installation on an '89 Continental, anything look similar? Text The sight doesn't have a listing for the Crown Vic.

 

[TallBill]

wow, thanks for some pointers guys.. i put in that alpine deck from crutchfield it was SUPER easy to install with NO glitches whatsoever. about 15 minutes total too. Sounds awesome already even with the crap generic speakers. Time to go speaker shopping now.

 

[EXman]

Best buy does charge $60 for almost all installations. heck I went to k-mart and did it for $12.

WorstBuy sux

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: EXman
Best buy does charge $60 for almost all installations. heck I went to k-mart and did it for $12.

WorstBuy sux

I did it from crutchfield and they just sent all the wiring harness's and faceplates for free.. for the correct car.. so I didnt even have to pick em out.

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: EXman
Best buy does charge $60 for almost all installations. heck I went to k-mart and did it for $12.

WorstBuy sux

But it's half-price if you don't happen to need that $1.50 piece of plastic to fit it in the dash opening. They've still got you for almost $30 for the $3 wiring harness though. That's how they offer "free" installation. Circuit City is the same way.