Okay here it is! Updated FM-AM/CD/audio/ipod system in the 88-89 Reatta. Saw lots of threads that indicated it can't be done or leave it along and let it stay original. This is the bomb and very easy to accomplish. No massive wiring involved. Didn't interfere with the touch screen-etc. Besides, the original set up is a pain in the neck and limited in today's technical world . All things must change for the better. 8 tracks, cassettes and the likes were good in their times, now there is digital. Besides, if it didn't work,(console got destroyed), all one needs to do is acquire another vertical center console which are plentiful in the junk yards. They come in Rivieras, Olds Tronatos - etc. and can be painted to match your application. The picture is attached.All inquiries can be addressed at: djbillyt@hotmail.com or call (321) 609-0132. I will respond to those who are interested.

Looks Great. Do you want to sell your old cassettes?

ONLY KIDDING.

Thanks Drake. Yes you can buy the cassette players. Cassettes are out and digital is in. Even though I am 57 years old, I have come to know that things must change for the better. I have two of them and they don't work. They are a piece of crap. I still have a little work to do on the project. It needs to go in the dash a little more, (1/4 inch or less). My Sony unit was just a little deeper than most units on the market.I have a Kenwood unit that is almost 2 inches shorter, (front to back), and fits much better. I used the Sony unit because it had an ipod adapter kit and remote with it. The ipod adapter is behind the dark smoked Plexiglas.I didn't really take my time because my time is limited in school these days. Sorry about the large picture. I forgot to adjust my camera to e-mail specs. Thanks for the reply

But you lost all control of the audio from the TCC. It does look good if yo are willing to give up that part of the radio.

Thanks.That's the idea expressed in the post,Daniel. I don't care about the stock radio.It's not up to specs. Cool to touch a screen and make it work but not practical in today's digital world. Besides I can control the new radio by a remote on the left side of my steering yoke wired to the new set up. Actually, I could have ran the radio parallel to the stock radio,(with extra speakers), but the idea was to get rid of the old radio for the new set up. There is just so much more advantage to the new set up without taking out my center console storage area like I have seen suggested. My effort are at it's ruff draft stage at this point, and will get a cleaning up soon. Besides the old set up can be replaced with minim efforts if I wish to sell the car.

Actually Daniel, I have not lost control of the old set up. It is still in the car, (minus the cassette deck) and works, it's just not hooked up to the car speakers.

Here is how I did it and everything is controlled through the TCC, even the DVD, and yes I can also use my Ipod or any other personal audio device. There are many ways to do it but I just like having full controll from the touch screen.
I do not have a pic, but the aux connection is under the ashtray lid and is a standard 2.5 mm audio jack.

Hey Daniel, That's neat. Good Job! I went out to the junk yard today and got another vertical center console for $5.00. I'm gonna try a little something until I get it perfected.

Daniel I'm in south FL my amp is in the trunk, after about 20 min. or so, it over heats and turns off, and when i have stuff in the trunk and turn, the stuff falls on the amp. I have been waiting for it to cool off a little to move it to the back part behind the seat, for now. I have a box with two 8 in. speakers i want to mount the amp on that. What i would like to do is get a old trunk door and mount the 8in. in it and if there's enough room mount the amp on it. I also have two small bose 4ome book shelf speakers i would like to get in the front some how, but i haven't thought of how to do it without cutting into the car. Bill has a good Ida with the console thing. Put the original in the garage in-case you want to put it back.

What size power wire are you running? and how long is your ground wire? Also with a over heating or hot amp I would not put in on the box or even near a sub. It may heat up and internal components may come free. As far as a sub in the trunk access door, I would not do it unless you have a free air sub. They are not very easy to find "in the US" these days. The book shelf speakers are not a good idea, they are mad for there current inclosers. If you want a decent replace ment and are not looking fo compitition quality, pick up a 6.5" speaker set from autozone (or any other parts store). They are like $10 each. Then get a set of tweets from walmart ($20). These will surfice for most anyone.

All in all spearkers are not made equill, each is made for its own application.


Billy,

What about the original mount location for the fog light switch? You had to remove them correct?

Hey Daniel,
No I didn't remove the fog switch. I relocated it just above the Sony audio unit. See it under the ipod to the right? I did some cleaning up of the installation today, (Oct-12-2008).I Will have more pictures as I progress.

The inside of my car can get so hot that i cant touch the steering wheel, So i know the trunk gets just as hot. Today i didn't have a problem with it over heating it was only about 85* not that sunny, its when it gets 95* in the shade is when i have problems. I seen other people put there amps mounted on there boxes that's why I was thinking it would stay cooler in the car. now that I think about it,it might vibrate to much. I tried getting the replacement speakers and didn't get the sound I like. Maybe ill have to leave it the way it is for now,it sounds good, I would just like to clean it up back there. Get the amp. inside the car without making more of a mess. Bill i like what your doing cant wait to see the pictures. Thanks for the help.

Billy,
I mean the original mounts, where the fog lights switch used to be. You had to have removed them to make room for the deck.

Bobby,
150 deg F inside the car should not effect (to the point of shut down or major opperational issues) a properly installed amp. Remember wire size is basicly the most important part of a amp install. Are you running multiple speakers off the amp? or dual voice coils?

Inside my trunk had a old car phone hook up with two 12 volt wires #12 I used one of them so I would not have to take apart anything to hide wire The amp said it was 20 amp and to use #10 maybe ill try having two #12 hooked to the same terminals, Just so i don't have to run new wire. I'm thinking its the heat in the trunk, When its raining or cloudy it takes longer to trip. Im runing two sets of speakers but I did wire them the way it said to, I used the ground wire that came with it.

Bobby,

I would almost put money on the power wire being the cause of your over heating. Look at it this way if you are running a 500 watt amp you should at least have a #8 wire (8 gauge). 500+ to 1,000 watts use no smaller than #4 (4 gauge). These are close to the minimums. Also is this a 2 or four chanel amp? and what is the ohm load of each set of speakers?

If the amp is not made to handel the load it will cause over heating.
Two sets of 4 ohm speakers equill a 2 ohm load. mos amp are not made to go any lower than a 2 ohm load, and even fewer are made to be bridged to 2 ohm.

Daniel your not telling me anything i want to here. It went three days without tripping 85* and cloudy. Today it was 88* and sunny tripped after 20 min. or so. I know your right ill have to run a new wire(#10 or bigger) to do it the right way. Ill try disconnect one set of speakers to see if that helps. The amp i have is a $65.00 from wall mart 200w maybe I'm expecting to much from it. Bill hows your project going? Give us a update please. Cant wait to see pictures when your done. Thank you for all the help.

Daniel,
You are right. I removed the tabs with a hack saw blade. Next time I will use a small air grinder with a small cutting wheel. The hack saw thing was slow. Also the inside of the vertical center console was modified somewhat. The steel lining inside on the left side of the console was cut and modified to accommodate the din size radio cage, (the cage that the unit slides into). The steel lining was not cut out completely but just partially and bent/pushed out to accommodate the cage width from left to right. All din size radios have the same width from left to right. The problem area is the measurement from front, (just behind the radio faceplate/trim rectangle), to the back of the radio. Some units are shorter than others by a couple of inches. That measurement is important because the unit will hit the fuse box on the right rear side if the radio unit is too deep. This limits the radio models you can use, but there are lots of high tech units out there that you can use. I'll send/post some ideal measurements to work with when I pull my radio unit out in a couple of days.I'll also post/send some pictures when I modify the console that I recently brought from the junk yard. I will have to do it a couple of times to get it perfected. I'll Maybe even play around with the dash faceplate choices, to get the right look. I have access to lots of center consoles and dash faceplates. It's almost like research and development at this point. Later

Billy,

I hope you get an STC or at least a field approval for that installation. How does it effect W&B?

That's funny. The weight & balance is just fine.

Hey Daniel,
I'll have to get with you one day about the supercharger installation. I was tracking you and your project last year in 2007 but interest kind of fall off. I have the supercharger-etc. Just wondering how much electronics had to be modified. Holla Back man !!

Electronics do not get changed much, other than the programming of the ECM. But I would not just bolt on a supercharged. Cost wise it is about the same to just purchase the whole set up from a yard. I did make a list of the thing that had to be changed or modified in a erlier post.

Hey David,
When you say the whole setup, do you mean the complete engine with the supercharger-etc on it?