Right now my '88 vert has the stock radio/tape deck/CD player, which in my opinion looks great since it actually matches the car, but unfortunately the tape deck and CD player don't work anymore. Also, the speakers are... well, they're in bad shape. The headrest speakers don't work at all (not a big concern of mine), the other speakers either don't work or work intermittently, but are blown. None of these things surprise me at all, I just got the car and didn't even bother to check if the stereo worked considering its age.

I'd like to replace the head unit and speakers (the headrest speakers can wait though), and considering what the speakers are doing, I may end up having to run new wires too - but hopefully it's just corroded contacts on the speakers.

My car right now is bone stock, and the interior looks almost new, and not hacked to pieces like every other car I've ever owned. So I'd rather not do a cheap-looking install, even at the expense of sound quality. Having it LOOK good and sound okay is more important to me than having it sound good. That means no subs, no amp (where would I put them in a convertible anyway?) and no gaudy "XPLOD" logos all over my car.

So, if you made it through that wall of text, here's another.

Does anyone know of...

1) a reasonably cheap double-DIN head unit that is similar in color to the rest of the dash? A front aux port or Bluetooth would be a nice bonus but isn't essential, and I don't plan on pushing the audio real hard so it doesn't need to be anything special -- I just want something to listen to on the highway (other than wind noise). I know some of the newer units will actually let you choose a color, that would be okay so long as the plastic is black, I could just dial in to that amber-orange color myself.

2) a good bracket that will hold a double-DIN unit in the stock space and cover up the gaps, and not look cheap? Or am I better off making something myself?

3) a source of information (preferably online) pointing out things like how to take apart the dash without breaking all these brittle plastic parts, where the bolts are on the door panels, max speaker depths, stock head unit wiring, that kind of thing? I'm not new to stereo installs but I'd rather not trial-and-error and end up breaking a piece of my dash and then spending months looking for a replacement. My last car still had a broken window crank when I finally sold it...

Thanks in advance for any help. I know it may sound a little arrogant to say "I want a good-looking stereo in my 22-year-old car" but I really don't want to screw up the interior - I just got it.

 

well crutchfield is a good site, they tell you pretty much what you need to know, the dash is a 4" i think, depth doesn't really matter, i have 5 1/4's and they don't look bad, the p/s i was able to get behind the panel can't even see it, the rear speakers you can get up to like an 8" in there, i have 6 1/2" but i made a custom bracket out of some power door lock actuator brackets

as far as brackets and stereos that is just whatever you get, go to one of the audio shops in town and check out what they have, that is all personal pref...

SEARCH for the power antenna relay, aftermarket radios run +12V to make the power ant go up, the RX-7 uses a -12V trigger so you need to wire a relay in to make this work, most shops overlook this and end up messing something up...

and for searching, this site has been around for a LONG time so if you search most of your questions will be answered, no matter what they relate to with your car...

edit:
MAKE SURE you remove the A/C vents from center by gently pulling until they come out, there are two screws behind that, there are also two behind the ashtray, once those four are out GENTLY pull the shifter boot UP and off and push it out of way (or take off shift **** and totaly move it) then VERY VERY GENTLY pull the center console off, remove the light for lighter/ashtray by twisting the housing then pull the connector off the back of the lighter and you can remove the panel

I would sugest you do this BEFORE you take it to a shop if you plan on doing that, they will break it

 

Front Speaker 5.25 3" depth
Rear Speaker 5.25 3" depth

 

Thanks for the help, this is exactly the kind of information I was looking for.

What rear speakers? The only ones I have are the ones in the dash, in the doors and in the headrests... its a convertible so there's not much "rear" to speak of.

 

think he was talkin about the Coupes. Crutchfield says a Verts dash is 5" and doors are 6 1/2". dont really know.

btw have you looked in the SE regional forum. there's a little HSV chapter / grp of 7's, you should chime in.

 

Yes, and I am trying to do the same thing that you want to do. I have found a place that makes CF radio surrounds, Aeroworks, that looks good, and may actually allow installation of some [B]real[B] guages, if you use the single DIN radio chassis. Like you, I want to have both the CD and cassette, so that almost has to be a double DIN chassis. I think that there is one radio out there that has both in a single DIN, but I forget which one it is.

The Crutchfield catalog also says that the replacement unit for an RX-7 is a single DIN unit and we already know that is not correct, depending on what other mods you might want to make.

Just out of curiousity, have you had some notchiness in your transmission from 2-3 and 3-4? And have you replaced your rear axles yet? Mine are clicking now.

 

I ended up having the work done by someone else. Figured the installation cost was a small price to pay for not having a bunch of broken interior pieces.

I had them leave the headrest speakers disconnected. They're not necessary anyway.

Overall I'm impressed with the work the local audio shop here does, the head unit is a double-din DVD unit and the speakers match the factory sizes. Two very minor complaints (for me, at least) are that the unit is so low that it's hard to reach around the shifter to change songs, and that there's not a lot of bass from those speakers (not that I expected much anyway, there's very little room for big cones and deep magnets). A potential solution for problem #1 might be to swap the positioning of the climate controls and the stereo somehow, but even if it were possible I'm not sure I would want to, just because it would make it easier for thieves to see what I've got. The second problem might be a little tougher, maybe putting a couple small subs behind the seats... but I'm not willing to ruin the looks of the car to improve the sound system so whatever was done would have to be decently hidden. But at any rate it's not really worth the effort for me right now, I'm happy with what I've got.

The stock one is about an inch wider than DIN because of that mute button on the side. When you get the stereo out of the car you'll see that it's actually 3-4 separate components. The mute button is its own piece. Without measuring, I'd say that the rest of the stereo without the mute button is really close to being exactly double-DIN size, if not right on.

No, but I'm not sure if my transmission is original or not (I know the engine isn't). Sometimes I have trouble getting it into reverse but other than that mine seems alright.

 

Verts use a 4 inch speaker right under your knees they have a amp to them you may just have to uninstall like I did and run new wires due to the amps. As said before co to crutchfield they should have a install kit I ran a single din stereo due to goin Turbo soon I'm keeping the bottom part for the double din for gauges. It will be a tight fit but it can work make sure all wires are buttoned up or your stereo will cut off on higher volume. You can run subs in the trunk I have 2 10s and almost no room for anything else. so I would say maybe if they still make tubed boxes. Amp under the driver side seat would be the best place for one if you go that route. One of my boys put his Subs in custom boxs in the spare tire well behind the seat....

 

Mine's an '88, it's a little different. YMMV.

 

I Also have an 88

 

I also have an '88 vert. I used a Metra double-din install kit that I bought at Pep Boys a couple years ago. The head unit is a JVC cd/cassette combo. It is Sat/Ipod ready using the CD changer port on the back and also has an aux port on the front. I made a slot inside my console compartment for the Ipod cable so I can keep it out of sight of thieves. Here's my install: