How To Install Aftermarket Car Stereos

[matizzay]

Hi I have a 1991 LS400 with the stock rear load nakamichi stereo system. I would like to install a 3rd party front load CD deck. Can you give me advice as to what would be compatible?

I know I need a harness. What is the power of the stereo? It has 6 speakers i think and a sub. Does anyone know the wattage or the info about the amp? I don't want to put in a deck that won't support the proper power of the system. I found this site on how to remove the stereo (http://www.carstereohelp.com/stereoremovalLexusLS400str.htm),

but am stuck after that. How do i put a harness in, how do i connect the stereo, will it still have the changer control option, etc. Can anyone give me a site or a detailed tutorial as i would like to do it myself. Thanks

[marlon08901]

Hi I have a 1991 LS400 with the stock rear load nakamichi stereo system. I would like to install a 3rd party front load CD deck. Can you give me advice as to what would be compatible?

I know I need a harness. What is the power of the stereo? It has 6 speakers i think and a sub. Does anyone know the wattage or the info about the amp? I don't want to put in a deck that won't support the proper power of the system. I found this site on how to remove the stereo (http://www.carstereohelp.com/stereoremovalLexusLS400str.htm),

but am stuck after that. How do i put a harness in, how do i connect the stereo, will it still have the changer control option, etc. Can anyone give me a site or a detailed tutorial as i would like to do it myself. Thanks

Ok a couple of things:

No 3rd party stereo is going to be able to control the "Stock" CD changer in your car.

I am not sure about what the proper wattage is for the trunk mounted amplifier but this amplifier is only for the rear subwoofer and does not power the rest of the speakers.

The installation kit the new radio is pretty much already pre-assambled and it's pretty easy to put install - just reverse the instructions from the link you already have (radio removal) - the installation kit uses the stock screws.

Any radio you get with at least 25 watts RMS per channel should have plenty of power for your speakers. Yes! There are 6 speakers ( 2 tweeters and four full range speakers) however, on the harness there are only wires for the full range speakers, the 2 tweeters are already wired directrly to the front speakers so there is no need to rewire them. Also, in order for the "new" radio to work with the stock amp (for the subwoofer) you will have to split some wires but I know it is possible becaue I did it...if you decide that you want to do this project let me know and I'll tell you exactly what wires you need to tap into.

If you get the right wire harness...the installation is easier than you think....one end plugs into the harness that you will unplug from the stock radio and the other end you have to connect to the wires coming from you "new" radio and it's all color coded so you should not have a problem...just match the colors!

It's a project you should be able to manage just fine - you will be real happy with your new system and proud to have done it yourself.

About the "new" radio - I've always used "Kenwood" brand in all of my cars. I like the way they look, the way they sound and their reliability...I never had any "kenwood" stereos go bad on me. Oh! By the way, you can either get a regular single din size (2" tall) radio or a double din sized radio (4" tall)...I have a double din size and it looks great.

Let me know if this helped!

[marlon08901]

Hi I have a 1991 LS400 with the stock rear load nakamichi stereo system. I would like to install a 3rd party front load CD deck. Can you give me advice as to what would be compatible?

I know I need a harness. What is the power of the stereo? It has 6 speakers i think and a sub. Does anyone know the wattage or the info about the amp? I don't want to put in a deck that won't support the proper power of the system. I found this site on how to remove the stereo (http://www.carstereohelp.com/stereoremovalLexusLS400str.htm),

but am stuck after that. How do i put a harness in, how do i connect the stereo, will it still have the changer control option, etc. Can anyone give me a site or a detailed tutorial as i would like to do it myself. Thanks

Ok a couple of things:

No 3rd party stereo is going to be able to control the "Stock" CD changer in your car.

I am not sure about what the proper wattage is for the trunk mounted amplifier but this amplifier is only for the rear subwoofer and does not power the rest of the speakers.

The installation kit the new radio is pretty much already pre-assambled and it's pretty easy to put install - just reverse the instructions from the link you already have (radio removal) - the installation kit uses the stock screws.

Any radio you get with at least 25 watts RMS per channel should have plenty of power for your speakers. Yes! There are 6 speakers ( 2 tweeters and four full range speakers) however, on the harness there are only wires for the full range speakers, the 2 tweeters are already wired directrly to the front speakers so there is no need to rewire them. Also, in order for the "new" radio to work with the stock amp (for the subwoofer) you will have to split some wires but I know it is possible becaue I did it...if you decide that you want to do this project let me know and I'll tell you exactly what wires you need to tap into.

If you get the right wire harness...the installation is easier than you think....one end plugs into the harness that you will unplug from the stock radio and the other end you have to connect to the wires coming from you "new" radio and it's all color coded so you should not have a problem...just match the colors!

It's a project you should be able to manage just fine - you will be real happy with your new system and proud to have done it yourself.

About the "new" radio - I've always used "Kenwood" brand in all of my cars. I like the way they look, the way they sound and their reliability...I never had any "kenwood" stereos go bad on me. Oh! By the way, you can either get a regular single din size (2" tall) radio or a double din sized radio (4" tall)...I have a double din size and it looks great.

Let me know if this helped!

Ok - Here are the schematic diagram for all the wires in the audio system.

http://www.lextreme.com/Lexradio.pdf

On the bottom left handside of the diagram you will see the wires going into the amplifier in the trunk for your subwoofer - there are 8 wires - 2 for the + and - to the subwoofer - 1 for constant power - 1 for remote power (when you turn radio on) - 1 for mute- 1 for ground -

and the last 2 are the ones we are interesting in; one is for + input from the rear (+) speaker from your "new" radio - Yes! one of the (+) wires from your "new" radio will be going to the speaker it belongs to AND also to this PINK wire. And of course, the same goes for the (-) speaker wire from the "new" radio, connect it to the (-) wire of the speaker it belongs to AND to the BLUE (-) wire going to the Amp.

When you unplug your old readio and connect the harness for the new one.....there will be an extra harness from the old radio that won't be going anywhere - it won't be used by the "new" radio harness. This harness from the old radio will have six wires in it....THERE you will find the PINK and BLUE wire. That is it!!

Plug in your new harness, connect all the wires for power, ground etc....then connect the front speaker wires (match the colors) and when you do the rear speakers, connect one of the speakers to it's mathching color wires and the last speaker wires, positive AND negative....connect it to the matching color wires from the new harness AND also to the PINK (+) ang BLUE (-) wires from the extra harness from the old radio that you won't be connecting anywhere...when you do the install you will see what I am talking about.

I hope I have been cleared enough....let me know if you have any more questions....it's too confusing....I am willing to take my radio out and take some pixs...but that won't be until Monday...let me know.

[Lexls]

This is one of the first tutorials I did: http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/audio/headunit.html

Very easy to do but you'll lose your changer and sub. I'm sure the sub can be wired up somehow but IMO it's not worth it, just add a aftermarket amp/sub. That stock sub is only like 25 or 35 watts.

[marlon08901]

This is one of the first tutorials I did: http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/audio/headunit.html

Very easy to do but you'll lose your changer and sub. I'm sure the sub can be wired up somehow but IMO it's not worth it, just add a aftermarket amp/sub. That stock sub is only like 25 or 35 watts.

Adding an aftermarket amp and sub sounds like a good idea but......unless you do it yourself it will cost you a lot of money to have someone run all the wires and install a new amp. If I may....I will suggest that you do try to get the stock amp working with the new radio and if you feel that the stock sub is not giving you the sound you like....you can just replace the sub with an aftermarket one. I replaced my stock sub because when I bought the car, the sub was damaged-I put an aftermaket sub in and I am happy with the way it sounds.

[JTom]

Hi thanks man for your instructions. I'm also trying to do this on my LS 400 1992. I'm trying to figure out though which wires from the original car stereo relate directly to subwoofer? I had one one of the pink and blue wires on there and the sub worked for a few seconds but then switched off. Came on and then turned off. Does something else need to be grounded.

[JTom]

Hi thanks man for your instructions. I'm also trying to do this on my LS 400 1992. I'm trying to figure out though which wires from the original car stereo relate directly to subwoofer? I had one one of the pink and blue wires on there and the sub worked for a few seconds but then switched off. Came on and then turned off. Does something else need to be grounded.

Or to add to this, which wire on the original car stereo wiring is the ground wire for the amplifier for the subwoofer?

[stumptown]

Hi, I was hoping someone could help with this. I have a 1990 ES250 and I'm trying to remove the radio from it to replace it with a factory one. How do I remove the radio? I saw the step by step for the LS400 but as I'm sure you know, it's a little different. I could sure use some help here, thanks guys. Oh, and I did lift the panel on the shifter but cant get it to slide out, am I missing something?

[Colin ES250]

This is one of the first tutorials I did: http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/audio/headunit.html

Very easy to do but you'll lose your changer and sub. I'm sure the sub can be wired up somehow but IMO it's not worth it, just add a aftermarket amp/sub. That stock sub is only like 25 or 35 watts.

Very impressive website and detailed step-by-steps. I'm sure your efforts are appreciated by many. Colin

[archielinens]

Hi I have a 1991 LS400 with the stock rear load nakamichi stereo system. I would like to install a 3rd party front load CD deck. Can you give me advice as to what would be compatible?

I know I need a harness. What is the power of the stereo? It has 6 speakers i think and a sub. Does anyone know the wattage or the info about the amp? I don't want to put in a deck that won't support the proper power of the system. I found this site on how to remove the stereo (http://www.carstereohelp.com/stereoremovalLexusLS400str.htm),

but am stuck after that. How do i put a harness in, how do i connect the stereo, will it still have the changer control option, etc. Can anyone give me a site or a detailed tutorial as i would like to do it myself. Thanks

Ok a couple of things:

No 3rd party stereo is going to be able to control the "Stock" CD changer in your car.

I am not sure about what the proper wattage is for the trunk mounted amplifier but this amplifier is only for the rear subwoofer and does not power the rest of the speakers.

The installation kit the new radio is pretty much already pre-assambled and it's pretty easy to put install - just reverse the instructions from the link you already have (radio removal) - the installation kit uses the stock screws.

Any radio you get with at least 25 watts RMS per channel should have plenty of power for your speakers. Yes! There are 6 speakers ( 2 tweeters and four full range speakers) however, on the harness there are only wires for the full range speakers, the 2 tweeters are already wired directrly to the front speakers so there is no need to rewire them. Also, in order for the "new" radio to work with the stock amp (for the subwoofer) you will have to split some wires but I know it is possible becaue I did it...if you decide that you want to do this project let me know and I'll tell you exactly what wires you need to tap into.

If you get the right wire harness...the installation is easier than you think....one end plugs into the harness that you will unplug from the stock radio and the other end you have to connect to the wires coming from you "new" radio and it's all color coded so you should not have a problem...just match the colors!

It's a project you should be able to manage just fine - you will be real happy with your new system and proud to have done it yourself.

About the "new" radio - I've always used "Kenwood" brand in all of my cars. I like the way they look, the way they sound and their reliability...I never had any "kenwood" stereos go bad on me. Oh! By the way, you can either get a regular single din size (2" tall) radio or a double din sized radio (4" tall)...I have a double din size and it looks great.

Let me know if this helped!

Hello, saw your great post and had a question for a problem I am having. I'm looking to keep the process very simple as was wondering if you knew what wire harness and where to get it for my 93 ls, one that one cause me to lose the sub. Or is your splicing technique the only way to keep oem sub. I too am a kenwood man and just got a new one for mine. Local retail sold me on the harness with the rca's and it plugs in to nadda. Any help would be awesome

[Gkoornhof]

On 9/25/2008 at 7:34 PM, marlon08901 said:

Ok - Here are the schematic diagram for all the wires in the audio system.

http://www.lextreme.com/Lexradio.pdf

On the bottom left handside of the diagram you will see the wires going into the amplifier in the trunk for your subwoofer - there are 8 wires - 2 for the + and - to the subwoofer - 1 for constant power - 1 for remote power (when you turn radio on) - 1 for mute- 1 for ground -

and the last 2 are the ones we are interesting in; one is for + input from the rear (+) speaker from your "new" radio - Yes! one of the (+) wires from your "new" radio will be going to the speaker it belongs to AND also to this PINK wire. And of course, the same goes for the (-) speaker wire from the "new" radio, connect it to the (-) wire of the speaker it belongs to AND to the BLUE (-) wire going to the Amp.

When you unplug your old readio and connect the harness for the new one.....there will be an extra harness from the old radio that won't be going anywhere - it won't be used by the "new" radio harness. This harness from the old radio will have six wires in it....THERE you will find the PINK and BLUE wire. That is it!!

Plug in your new harness, connect all the wires for power, ground etc....then connect the front speaker wires (match the colors) and when you do the rear speakers, connect one of the speakers to it's mathching color wires and the last speaker wires, positive AND negative....connect it to the matching color wires from the new harness AND also to the PINK (+) ang BLUE (-) wires from the extra harness from the old radio that you won't be connecting anywhere...when you do the install you will see what I am talking about.

I hope I have been cleared enough....let me know if you have any more questions....it's too confusing....I am willing to take my radio out and take some pixs...but that won't be until Monday...let me know

I tried your instructions here, but after connecting the pink and blue wires to the rear speaker wires, the radio said Miswiring. Any ideas?

[paulo57509]

15 hours ago, Gkoornhof said:

I tried your instructions here, but after connecting the pink and blue wires to the rear speaker wires, the radio said Miswiring. Any ideas?

You're replying to a post by someone who was last here 10 years ago.  I doubt that you'll get a response.  One of the things with car forums....cars die painful deaths and their owners disappear with them.

You might try to find a more generic car audio forum?