Car stereos in old Celicas

[Thorin]

Now that spring is here, I'll get the deck installed one of these weekends. 

Have you got your eye on a particular deck or a particular set of features you want in your deck?  CD playback, MP3-on-a-CD playback, front-panel audio input to hook up portable music players?  Removable faceplate, since your car is pretty easy to get into and doesn't have an alarm system?

All of the above would be nice.  I just noticed that Best Buy has free installation with a deck over $149.

Installation Included on all Car Decks over $149 ? Click for Details

Installation Included on Car Decks over $149*

*Applies to basic car deck install only, parts and extensive labour extra. Exludes prior purchases. Offer available in store only. See store for details. 

I don't know if ripping apart my dash would qualify as extensive.  Given the age of the vehicle, I imagine converter cables would be required.  I might wait for Mel to come back from Mani, though, since I know he swapped the stereo on his old '82 Supra among other Toyotas, so he'd know the quirks of replacing a deck in a vehicle like mine.  If you'd like to give it a try in the meantime, Thorin, there'd be a 26 of your favourite beverage in it.  Or do you think I'd be ok with the Best Buy guys?  I get nervous at the thought of strangers touching my baby.

Are your radio and tape deck together as one unit with a pocket underneath, two separate units one right below the other, or two separate units in two different parts of the dash?  Toyota had three different systems they used, although the single-unit-with-a-pocket-under and the two-separate-units-one-above-the-other were much more common than the now-extinct separate-units-in-separate-parts-of-the-dash units.  I'm guessing you've got the two-separate-units-one-above-the-other, given that Melbosa said you'd need to buy a pocket.

I'd be fine with people who do installations all day five days a week for a living to work on my car audio, and I'm an audio enthusiast myself.  They'll probably do a better job, given that they have a nice warm work area with all the right tools and connectors and wiring harnesses and soldering bench, etc.  To be honest, it'd be as good or better to get them to do it, because if it's done wrong and they cause, say, an airbag failure, you have a target with money for a lawsuit (yeah, I know, no airbags in your car; it was just an example).

And a final article I found while looking for pictures of a 1984 Celica coupe dash (that I never did find): 1985 Celica Coupe with a Dodge 5.2 litre V8!

Oh, and 26 ounces of Coca-Cola doesn't seem like a real good bribe

[Thorin]

If the installation is done at home by a friend, I suggest you get a mounting kit and wiring harness.  This will generally remove the requirement to cut any wires or run any new ones, and will provide a decent finished look when it's all said and done.

Don't forget to buy a stereo with a removable faceplate and remove the faceplate, even if you just throw it under your seat. This will stop most people looking to steal your stereo.  Or better yet, spend a couple hundred dollars on an alarm and join the BEE-woo-BEE-woo-ing masses.

[Mr. Analog]

Nah, just leave a couple 8-tracks on the dash

[Ustauk]

I think I'll wait for Mel to get back from Mani, given his prior experiences.  By the time he gets back, hopefully he won't be freezing his fingers working on it outside, which would happen today, brrr.  I'll try and get a wiring harness for it; is there anyplace local I can get one?  I think its a two level unit, but I'm not sure if its two smaller or parts or one whole part.  I'll use my phone to take a picture tonight  

That's some pretty cool pictures you found.  My car is an 1985, so you could theoretically do the same thing to it, though I'm certain Mr. Analog would put some holes in me if I spent that much money on the car.

As to Mr. A's 8 track comment, I'd actually be happy to keep the current deck if I could get the FM radio working, since it would allow me to use an FM transmitter.  Unfortanately, whatever short is causing this would require the deck to be hauled out anyways (I think its water in there because the radio works in the summer, except when the car gets wet, after which it takes time to dry out, and then it doesn't work at all when it freezes in the winter).  If replacing the deck doesn't fix the radio, I could always use the aux in along with my phone's radio or one of those miniuature battery powered units.

I'll definetely get a deck with a removable faceplate.  Part of my foot dragging on getting the new deck was not wanting to make my car more of a target;  this concern has been ameliorated somewhat by my car getting stolen, since it was a target even without a nice deck.   I'll just have to remember to remove the faceplate on exiting the vehicle, along with putting my steering wheel immobilization device on.  I also don't know how much longer the car will run, but I suppose I can pull the deck when it dies and sell it or put it in a new to me vehicle.  Thanks for all the advice.

PS: I meant a 26 of a favourite alcholic beverage.  I have to remember to get a 26 of Crown Royal for Mel sometimes in the next while...

[Mr. Analog]

IF I had an older car (which I can't) I'd buy a kick ass deck for it and when the car died I'd take the deck and install it in my new car.

[Ustauk]

IF I had an older car (which I can't) I'd buy a kick ass deck for it and when the car died I'd take the deck and install it in my new car.

Yup, that's what I'll do, unless the replacement car has an even more kick ass deck that comes with it, in which case I can sell the old one.

[Cova]

Every time I've had a deck put into a car I own, I've done it myself.  Which is 4 times - twice in the '94 probe, and twice now in my '02 RSX.

Happy to help ya put one into a celica - its easy to do.  Go get a harness that fits your car, and I can solder it all together to the new decks wiring.  Then it's just a matter of pulling out the old deck, slap in the new one, and plug'n'play with that harness.

I also have an old deck I'd like to sell if yer interested.  It's an Aiwa MP3 deck, one of the first MP3 decks in Edmonton.  When I got it I had to special-order it from a computer-parts store, no audio stores sold MP3 stuff back then.  The LCD on it is a little flakey, but it still sounds good, reads disks fine, etc.  It has a remote-control that attaches to the steering wheel and controls the deck by IR as well, though I found the way it attaches annoying and didn't use it.  $50 and its yours.  It's currently got a harness on it that would plug into a 02 RSX with no modifications (any Honda '97+ actually I believe uses the same harness), but thats easy to cut off and put a different one on.

[Thorin]

I'll try and get a wiring harness for it; is there anyplace local I can get one?

Yup, go to a place that stocks lots of installation components such as (wait for it...) the Best Buy installation department!   Futureshop, Visions, Certified Radio, AutoTemp (or are they closed now?) are other places that have fully-stocked install departments.

I'd actually be happy to keep the current deck if I could get the FM radio working, since it would allow me to use an FM transmitter. 

You realize these newfangled car stereos have both an FM radio and a CD player in it?  I know, I know, shocking   All kidding aside...

Unfortanately, whatever short is causing this would require the deck to be hauled out anyways (I think its water in there because the radio works in the summer, except when the car gets wet, after which it takes time to dry out, and then it doesn't work at all when it freezes in the winter).  If replacing the deck doesn't fix the radio, I could always use the aux in along with my phone's radio or one of those miniuature battery powered units.

...can you describe more accurately what happens to the FM radio?  Does it go fuzzy, or does the sound go completely away?  Is there a backlight on the radio that comes on normally, but not when it's not working because of water?  I'm wondering whether this is because of the radio, or the wiring behind the radio, or the antenna, and it concerns me because if it's not fixed then you've spent a bunch of money and can't enjoy the expenditure to its fullest potential.  And finding and correcting shorts in electrical wiring can be one of the most challenging parts of automotive repair...

I suppose I can pull the deck when it dies and sell it or put it in a new to me vehicle.

Having an after-market adapter wiring harness is especially beneficial if you plan to pull the stereo out and re-use it, because it means you won't have to cut any wires in your car.

[Ustauk]

Every time I've had a deck put into a car I own, I've done it myself.  Which is 4 times - twice in the '94 probe, and twice now in my '02 RSX.

Happy to help ya put one into a celica - its easy to do.  Go get a harness that fits your car, and I can solder it all together to the new decks wiring.  Then it's just a matter of pulling out the old deck, slap in the new one, and plug'n'play with that harness.

I also have an old deck I'd like to sell if yer interested.  It's an Aiwa MP3 deck, one of the first MP3 decks in Edmonton.  When I got it I had to special-order it from a computer-parts store, no audio stores sold MP3 stuff back then.  The LCD on it is a little flakey, but it still sounds good, reads disks fine, etc.  It has a remote-control that attaches to the steering wheel and controls the deck by IR as well, though I found the way it attaches annoying and didn't use it.  $50 and its yours.  It's currently got a harness on it that would plug into a 02 RSX with no modifications (any Honda '97+ actually I believe uses the same harness), but thats easy to cut off and put a different one on.

Sounds cool, but does it have an Aux in?  That'd be a requirement in case my FM antenna is busted someplace else besides the deck, and it'd nice to use a cable and not have to fiddle with an FM transmitter, anyways.

[Ustauk]

Unfortanately, whatever short is causing this would require the deck to be hauled out anyways (I think its water in there because the radio works in the summer, except when the car gets wet, after which it takes time to dry out, and then it doesn't work at all when it freezes in the winter).  If replacing the deck doesn't fix the radio, I could always use the aux in along with my phone's radio or one of those miniuature battery powered units.

...can you describe more accurately what happens to the FM radio?  Does it go fuzzy, or does the sound go completely away?  Is there a backlight on the radio that comes on normally, but not when it's not working because of water?  I'm wondering whether this is because of the radio, or the wiring behind the radio, or the antenna, and it concerns me because if it's not fixed then you've spent a bunch of money and can't enjoy the expenditure to its fullest potential.  And finding and correcting shorts in electrical wiring can be one of the most challenging parts of automotive repair...

The really confusing thing is that my AM radio works fine, its just the FM that's flaky.  When its not working, I don't here anything except maybe a little bit of staic when I crank the volume.  During the summer it'll cut in and out when it gets wet, and sometimes it seems to help when I hit a bump.  Hell if I know what's going on.  When I had the car in the shop a while back, I had my mechanic check the wiring connections to the antenna, and they looked good.  If its just a loose connection to the deck, I'm golden.  If its a short someplace in the middle of the wire leading between the antenna and the deck, I'm pocked.  That's why I want the AUX input, in case I have to use an external tuner :sigh:

[Ustauk]

I'd actually be happy to keep the current deck if I could get the FM radio working, since it would allow me to use an FM transmitter. 

You realize these newfangled car stereos have both an FM radio and a CD player in it?  I know, I know, shocking   All kidding aside...

The CD player is nice to have, but most of the music I listen to would be coming from my phone or my Palm Tungsten.  As long as I can pipe the music into the deck from my portable device, I'm happy.  I'd use a tape deck adapter, except my deck has autorewind and even with a cassette adapter meant to work with that it will try and rewind after a while.  And I'd like to get FM radio back, if possible.

[Thorin]

If it's only FM that does it, but AM works all the time, and you notice this only when it's wet and cold out, then I'm guessing there's something actually inside the radio that's broken/near-broken/shorting.  So putting in a new head unit (aka stereo/deck/receiver/radio/whatever-we-want-to-call-it) will fix the problem.  If there was a problem with the antenna, your AM would be equally affected (it catches all signals and the head unit just pays attention to the one you care about).

When shopping for a new stereo, the most important thing to look for (beyond the AUX input on the front) is how easy it is to push buttons/change volume on the front.  Lots of after-market head units suffer from poor, poor ergonomics - buttons too small, volume knobs that if you accidentally push them lightly they change to bass/treble/fade/balance controllers, etc.  Try the different brands in the store and make sure that when you're trying to adjust things you try it at least a few times without looking at the head unit.

JVC and Pioneer both suffer from the touchy-volume-knob problem, where if you bump the volume knob it switches to the bass/treble/fade/balance controller.  Imagine trying to turn down the volume because you're about to order in the drivethru, but instead you turn down the bass...  Now you're blaring Nickelback in a horrible, tinny sound!

JVC, Pioneer, Sony, and Kenwood all frequently have tiny, tiny buttons.  Tiny buttons aren't entirely bad all on their own, but when they're closely spaced together, they suck!  I wish the after-market head unit designers would learn something from the OEM market on this one.

By the way, does your current radio have two knobs on it, one left and one right of the radio display?

[Cova]

Sounds cool, but does it have an Aux in?  That'd be a requirement in case my FM antenna is busted someplace else besides the deck, and it'd nice to use a cable and not have to fiddle with an FM transmitter, anyways.

It does have a aux-input jack on the front of it - a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

A quick googling of it gave me this:  http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/cdcmp3/  The one I have is the CDC-MP3 - not any of the other models referenced in that article.  And ignore all the pricing stuff in there - it's quite old (both the article and the deck) and in $US.

[Melbosa]

I'm back Ust, give me a call if you still want help.  I'm off the rest of the week.

[Ustauk]

Sounds cool, but does it have an Aux in?  That'd be a requirement in case my FM antenna is busted someplace else besides the deck, and it'd nice to use a cable and not have to fiddle with an FM transmitter, anyways.

It does have a aux-input jack on the front of it - a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

A quick googling of it gave me this:  http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/cdcmp3/  The one I have is the CDC-MP3 - not any of the other models referenced in that article.  And ignore all the pricing stuff in there - it's quite old (both the article and the deck) and in $US.

It sounds like a nice deck, but a "flaky" LCD could turn into a dead LCD pretty easily.  I think I'd rather get a new deck considering the effort that would go into the install.  Thanks anyways.  You might want to post on edm.forsale, usededmonton.com, and/or craigslist.  Good luck.