Installed a WRX stereo

[svxash]

I just finished installing a WRX stereo in my wife's SVX. What a huge difference in sound quality over the stock setup. It looks great too. Thanks SVXdc for the wiring harnesses. I was lucky and bought the stereo for $100 on ebay. Here are some photos of the process.

Bracket mod. I didn't cut all of the cage only enough to get the unit in. Also notched for antenna.

Stereo mounted inside of cage.

Modded dash. I didn't cut the tabs I only bent them out of the way.

Installed

Powered up.
I'll add a night photo later.

[drivemusicnow]

Looks good!, does the black plastice piece that goes on the back of the little door thing still fit?

[svxash]

I need to modify it to fit and then I will reinstall it.

[RSVX]

I want to do this so bad, but everytime I try to contact the guy who makes the adapters, I never get a response

[svxash]

Here are some more photos of the install. When grinding be careful not to grind all of the way through the cover. You will start to notice where it is getting thin or starting to blister on the back side when you are almost through the cover. As far as the harness goes, SVXdc makes a great product. I e-mailed him with what I needed and once he received the payment I had the harness in 4 days. If you are installing a WRX stereo you will need both of his harnesses. They are worth getting.

[ensteele]

That looks great! If you write up a How-To, I will post it. If you are not sure how to do it, I will give you a hand and we can get it done. Let me know.

[SVX-FF]

Very sharp looking.
Looks like OE radio.

Steve

[svxash]

Hey Steve,

I'm guessing by your screen name and pic your a firefighter. What dept do you work for?

[SVX-FF]

Originally posted by svxash
Hey Steve,

I'm guessing by your screen name and pic your a firefighter. What dept do you work for? I work for the city of Casper.

Sent you a pm.

Steve

[Sid E. Ryner]

That's a great upgrade, keeping the sounds in the "family" and for a $100 awesome. I hope we all can get hook up like this.

[SVXdc]

Originally posted by svxash
Here are some more photos of the install. ...
As far as the harness goes, SVXdc makes a great product.

Great pictures! (and thanks for the compliments). I've been wanting to add a section on the WRX radio to my SVX Audio Install instructions. Mind if I use your pics?

Originally posted by RSVX
I want to do this so bad, but everytime I try to contact the guy who makes the adapters, I never get a response

You've got mail. If you don't hear back from me, then it's OK to PM me.

Several months ago, I got messages from a person with an AOL address asking to buy a harness, but each time I replied AOL bounced the message, saying that address was unknown...

   ----- Transcript of session follows -----
... while talking to air-xj03.mail.aol.com.:
>>> RCPT To:<SCREENNAME@aol.com>
<<< 550 SCREENNAME IS NOT ACCEPTING MAIL FROM THIS SENDER
550 <SCREENNAME@aol.com>... User unknown

(I replaced the real address with "SCREENNAME" here)

I even tried replying from different e-mail addresses, all with the same result. There was nothing else I could do, so I gave up.

To everyone else who wants wiring harness(es), here's my post on the Wanted or For Sale forum with details and ordering instructions.

[AJ4U2]

Originally Posted by svxash

I just finished installing a WRX stereo in my wife's SVX. What a huge difference in sound quality over the stock setup. It looks great too. Thanks SVXdc for the wiring harnesses. I was lucky and bought the stereo for $100 on ebay. Here are some photos of the process.

Bracket mod. I didn't cut all of the cage only enough to get the unit in. Also notched for antenna.

Stereo mounted inside of cage.

Modded dash. I didn't cut the tabs I only bent them out of the way.

Installed

Powered up.
I'll add a night photo later.

On the picture where the tabs were bent i have not been able to see what was bent or what is to be done in this modded dash, I have all else done except for the radio going back about 1/4 inch. or so.I know it is not the wires for i have them tuck away and not connected for i am trial and fit before i hook up the wires. It is the same radio as picture.

[SVXdc]

Originally Posted by AJ4U2

On the picture where the tabs were bent i have not been able to see what was bent or what is to be done in this modded dash, I have all else done except for the radio going back about 1/4 inch. or so.

In this picture...



follow the "inches" scale of the ruler all the way back, then look straight up from there. The bottom of the struts angle back deeper into the dash, so they do not get in the way of the cage. But the top half of the struts are right behind the cage.

On the inside edge of the two struts, there is a flange that points towards the rear of the radio. These are what touch the rear of the WRX radio. The upper half of these flanges need to be nibbled or bent out of the way.

It is easier to see this by sliding in the cage without the radio.

[AJ4U2]

Originally Posted by SVXdc

In this picture...



follow the "inches" scale of the ruler all the way back, then look straight up from there. The bottom of the struts angle back deeper into the dash, so they do not get in the way of the cage. But the top half of the struts are right behind the cage.

On the inside edge of the two struts, there is a flange that points towards the rear of the radio. These are what touch the rear of the WRX radio. The upper half of these flanges need to be nibbled or bent out of the way.

It is easier to see this by sliding in the cage without the radio.

Thanks a lot for that infor, I was looking at that part but did not want to cut or do something that was not needed,, I will do that in the morning, and those wiring harness is a perfect way to do it right, Thanks for that i know it save a bunch of time by not having to cut into the harness,

[svxash]

If you look in the photo attached, I circled the tabs or wings that I bent. I circled the LL stamped into the bracket(hard to see because of dark pic). The tabs or wings are next to holes that are in both brackets. Hope this helps.