One of the inarguably great things about vehicles made from – roughly – the late 1990s through around 2015 or so is that it’s both easy and inexpensive to upgrade the factory stereo system. Chiefly because all you have to do is remove the factory head unit (this is the “face” of the factory stereo that has the buttons and so on showing and the connections in the back) and unplug the connections and then reverse the procedure.
The original stereo head unit is easily removable because it is a unit – i.e., a single thing that is bolted to to the rest of the thing (i.e., the dash) and can be easily unbolted and removed without removing the rest of the dashboard – including the vehicle’s gauges and other controls – about which more shortly. The wiring connections were made universal – and so easy to disconnect and reconnect without having to cut/splice anything, as you used to have to do before the late 1990s/early 2000s if you wanted to replace whatever the factory had installed with something more up-to-date.
As an example, my ’76 Trans-Am came from the factory – back in the mid-1970s – with a basic AM/FM radio and – back in the ’90s – I paid a stereo shop to replace it with a then-up-to-date Kenwood stereo with a cassette tape player. This entailed a lot of wire cutting/splicing and that’s why I decided to let a stereo shop hook it all up.
My 2002 Frontier was much easier to update because the truck’s wiring for the factory stereo has universal connectors. All similar vintage vehicles have these. This makes replacing the head unit with a much better modern unit a 20 minute job almost any enterprising ape who can turn a few screws and unsnap a few trim plates can handle. The aftermarket offers a huge choice of new units (and speakers) that are as good or even better than the stereos in brand-new vehicles.
The key point here is you don’t have to buy the new vehicle to get the new stereo. Or even the fancier vehicle, back in the day. You could be a cheapskate and buy the base trim and then replace the crap stereo with a much better unit, thereby getting the superior sounds without having to buy the more expensive trim. It was a way to get around the high cost of a new vehicle without having to accept the low-rent factory sound system.
And now, it’s even better than that.
Because now you can easily and inexpensively get one of the few things about new vehicles that is objectively much superior to the vehicles of 15-20 years ago without having to buy into everything else that comes with a new vehicle – including “advanced driver assistance technology,” among other delights. Put more finely, once you update your older (but still “modern”) vehicle with a modern stereo, there is very little meaningful difference between it and a new vehicle – and a whole lot that’s better.
My ’02 Nissan, for instance, has a modern fuel injected engine that starts as immediately as any new vehicle’s direct-injected engine, just without the complexity and repair/replacement costs of a direct-injected (and probably turbocharged) new vehicle’s engine. The transmission has overdrive gearing, which reduces engine RPM at cruise speeds – just like a new vehicle’s – only my truck’s transmission is a manual, which is almost impossible to find in a modern vehicle. My old truck has modern brakes, AC and most of the rest that makes a vehicle feel (and drive) “modern” – even if it is nearly an antique.
It just doesn’t have all the latest “safety” and “assistance” stuff. I consider that an advantage.
Very little – in terms of what’s meaningful – has changed since my old truck was built. Vehicles made more recently have merely become more complex and expensive and Big Brothery. They don’t start or run or drive any better. In fact, they sometimes don’t run and drive as well – because they are so complex. This gives people a reason not to buy them.
Need another?
Well, here you go:
Most (soon all) new vehicles have these huge LCD touchscreens into which the stereo controls are embedded. But not just those controls.
Put another way, there is no longer a separate stereo head unit. This means you can’t easily replace just the stereo. It is now a matter of replacing the LCD screen that houses the stereo and other car controls, such as the AC controls and apps – and the related displays.
This is not as they say, plug-and-play.
It may not even be possible because the screen is specific to the make/model – and universal replacements won’t “mesh” with the factory computer system that controls everything in a new/recent-vintage vehicle. The older stuff – like my ’02 Nissan – also has a computer, of course but all it controls is the engine’s fuel delivery system, the injectors and stuff related to that. In a new vehicle, everything is tied into the computers – plural – including peripherals such as the headlights, power window controls and windshield wipers.
Replacing parts requires the car’s computer “recognizing” them – something that usually involves a trip to the dealership because he (and only he) has the proprietary equipment to authorize the new/replacement components to work with the system.
In other words, even if you can get a new stereo head unit physically installed, it will probably not work unless the rest of the car – its computer controls – recognizes it.
One more incentive to roll with (and update) what you’ve got!
. . .
If you like what you’ve found here please consider supporting EPautos.
We depend on you to keep the wheels turning!
Our donate button is here.
If you prefer not to use PayPal, our mailing address is:
EPautos
721 Hummingbird Lane SE
Copper Hill, VA 24079
PS: Get an EPautos magnet or sticker or coaster in return for a $20 or more one-time donation or a $10 or more monthly recurring donation. (Please be sure to tell us you want a magnet or sticker or coaster – and also, provide an address, so we know where to mail the thing!)
If you’d like a Baaaaa hat or other EPautos gear, see here!
Your article reminded me of bit a black-market stereo installer said back in the ’80’s, “Eyes on your fingertips”.
I never forgot that line.
Applies, to wrenching.
And, a whole lotta B.S., we humans do.
No More Automated Waymos for you!
‘After protesters set fire to five Waymo robot taxis in Los Angeles on Sunday, the company on Monday began preemptively limiting rides to areas of San Francisco where people were expected to gather to show their opposition to President Trump’s immigration policies.
‘The robot taxis have become a way for some protesters to display resistance to the tech industry’s close ties to the Trump administration, said Elise Joshi, an activist in San Francisco who attended rallies on Monday.
“Waymos don’t have human drivers, they’re devoid of humanity,” she said. Destroyed robot taxis are “symbolic of the attempts, throughout the history of this country, by the tech industry to strip us of community.” — NYT
Last year, I asserted that Trump’s election would lead to California’s secession from the US. This scenario is playing out, as Newsom bridles at fedgov troops being sent into Los Angeles. Culturally, SoCal is as much Mexican as American. Mira:
https://x.com/rawsalerts/status/1932209020535775642
California is on the verge of 1967-style urban riots. Cf. the Wikipedia article Long, hot summer of 1967.
Three thousand guitars, they seem to cry
My ears will melt and then my eyes
My heart is black and my lips are cold
Cities on flame with rock and roll
— Blue Oyster Cult, Cities on Flame
Footnote: ACAB is an acronym that stands for “All Cops Are Bastards”. It is a slogan used by some individuals and groups, particularly within certain subcultures, to express negative views about law enforcement.
Yep, seemingly few seem to grasp or realize that Culturally, SoCal is as much Mexican as American.
…Might as we be written in Gobbledygook?
From looking at the alt-right websites, it’s an emerging, & directed, meme. More of that, “Let’s, you & him, fight”.
‘Blue Oyster Cult-Godzilla’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GtTyC53kjU
The only thing missing is, Lucy & her football.
The ‘91 Silverado got the swap about 2 years ago. The original AM/FM unit had failed, a restoration shop online wanted $350 to fix. Nope, although I’d like to have kept the original for ease of use I did the conversion to a Sony receiver and the conversion parts which included a new center dash panel with the AC vent holes and the DIN size opening for the Sony. The 91 from GM used a narrow radio in the instrument pod couldn’t find a unit for that sized opening. The panel kit came with a “filler” for the old radio, a black slot that fit perfectly. Got the Sony (the one and only) for $95 delivered.
Conversion kit came with a plug and play wire harness adapter.
Plugged it all together works great no fuss. The Sony has AM FM, Bluetooth, and mic for phone calls. The features are funky due to the space age button configuration (not obvious what does what other than station presets). Anyway, feature packed great reception and all in about $140 including the dash panel paint which matches the original great.
The neighbor gal loves her Toyota truck – she also loves the warranty since several years ago the head unit with Nav wouldn’t take the Nav update disk at the dealer. She was two weeks from end of warranty. It was thousands to replace it lots of it labor to tear down the dash and then the cost of the unit too, dealer showed her what it would have been out of warranty she about fainted. She signed up for extended warranty on the spot.
That is just a fookin’ bizzare tale, Sparkey. The cost$ are, helium!
…We’ve certainly come a LONG ways from when I was sweating bullets about the idea of spending $25 to get a new stereo upgrade back in the 1980’s.
…Ain’t “technology” Grand? We get to pay More for sheet, which doesn’t last longer, and sounds the same (or, worse?) all the while, people (our overlords & their latchkey kids?) tell us things are improving.
…”Make do, with less” Was that what… oh, what’s the point?
Turtles, all the way down.
So does this mean the return of the under dash stereo from back in the day? I miss the old Pioneer Supertuner with a voltage converter in my old VW.
That what I was thinking, just bypass installing it into the rats nest of the computer controls. Yeah, lots more work running wires which is a big disadvantage.
There is a Kenwood in the Ford F-150, cranks out some sound. Bought the truck, the Kenwood was there, not complaining.
I do have to replace the tensioner unit along with a new pulley, tried to replace the serpentine belt, but the tensioner unit is the immovable object. Buy new, you have to.
Maintenance issues no matter the day of the week.
You gotta make hay when the sun shines.
The most important factor is to have some wheels, gotta have those.
Wagons and horses still do a lot of work.
Vehicles and machines are the preferred choices.
100 million barrels of supply meet the daily demand.
Give us this day our daily beer.
The interesting thing about all the electronic geegaws is that the use of them discourages situational awareness, offloading the responsibility of actually controlling the automobile to computers programmed by fallible, and increasingly incompetent, coders…..this is a recipe for disaster IMO. The hoi polloi will increasingly view folks like us as Luddites, but when their systems inevitably fail, few of those tech dependent people will have a clue what to do….think for themselves? Preposterous.
My Millennial nephew says, “That’s, ‘the old ways;”
I imagine, my uncles who were paratroopers surviving landing in Italy in WWII thought I was a dumb ass, too.
One of them told me to keep my head about me.
Q Would my nephew think that was the name of a sandwich at Arby’s?
Idk.
Key phrase: “offloading the responsibility of”
Seems to be, The Plan/
‘roll with (and update) what you’ve got!’ — eric
A canary just croaked in the EeeVee coal mine:
‘Chinese-owned AESC has halted construction of its $1.6 billion battery plant in America’s emerging “Battery Belt.” Construction of AESC’s electric-vehicle battery plant in Florence, South Carolina, began in 2023 after securing a deal with BMW to make battery cells. On Thursday, the company sent a letter to employees regarding the construction halt. The letter laid out:
– Tariffs on Chinese-made machinery, steel, and aluminum, which significantly raise costs.
– A proposed tax bill in Congress that would end EV battery production subsidies early and restrict eligibility for China-linked companies.
– Broader industry pressure as automakers slow or cancel EV rollouts.
https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/chinese-owned-firm-halts-battery-plant-americas-ev-heartland
‘It’s all over but the crying’ — Georgia Satellites
… while one benighted little island swims in the opposite direction:
The “vast majority” of new homes in England will soon be fitted with solar panels as standard, UK energy secretary ‘Ed Miliband’ has confirmed.
Developers warned of added costs and bureaucratic hurdles.
https://www.zerohedge.com/energy/uk-makes-solar-panels-mandatory-most-new-homes
Solar panels in cloudy Blighty — about as useful as air conditioning in Antarctica!
I remember when a lot of economy cars came with NO RADIO. I had a EK Civic hatchback in Midori Green Pearl (one year only) and it came with a snick-snick 5-speed, the world’s best clutch (Hondas in the 1990s had unworldly good shift quality) and a plastic panel where the DIN radio could fit.
I got one of those Pioneer CD player head units with the dolphins on the display, an amp and some high quality speakers to replace the paper cones and off I went. Now, there’s no way you could do that.
I later ported that head unit over to my Supra before I replaced it years later with a Bluetooth compatible one. I’ve got the original on a shelf in my garage in case I ever have to put it back.
The only sound I want to hear while driving is the sound of my engine.
I *despise* other peoples’ car stereos and the (often hateful and obscene) noise they spew.
The problem now is most engines are as fake, gay and retarded as everything else in this day and age.
I always played my music at what Milton McWadams from Office Space would call a “reasonable volume.”
RE: “The only sound I want to hear while driving is the sound of my engine.”
Interesting. Fascinating, even. [I like it}
‘Cause, of course, most Vehickills these days produce almost, No sound.
Ya got me trippin on the implications of, ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ and the dumb engines of The Day.
Combine that with, “I always played my music at what Milton McWadams from Office Space would call a “reasonable volume.”
And, it’sno wonder the ragers against ‘The Machine’ play their crap m,usic so loud it sounds bad.
Bullet With Butterfly Wings (Remastered 2012)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCmA1uC0r9A
…To drown out the thoughts?
The lack of customization options for modern autos is yet another nail in the coffin for the auto enthusiast market.
Young men (and some ladies) from the 1940’s to roughly a decade ago were affordably able to express themselves and modify their cars to their desires – tasteless or otherwise.
New generations – raised largely in the “saaaaafty cult” as noted in this column – of kids will have no understanding, awareness or interest in any of this.
Not only are there few if any car stereo shops remaining, aside from the “BroDozer” and “Stanced” or “Donk” crowds, there appears to be fewer once popular aftermarket wheels on most vehicles.
Go to a car cruise some night and you’ll find its full of more canes & walkers than anything else. (At least in my area.)
Look at the brand names of once-popular aftermarket companies (think Cragar, Hurst, MSD, Flowmaster, Simpson) and many have been recently consolidated under the Holley Performance portfolio.
And who is the parent company? You guessed it – PRIVATE EQUITY…..Sentinel Capital Partners!
It’s true, Flip –
Whenever I take the TA out, I feel like Edward James Olmos’ character Adama in the Battlestar Galactica reboot. In the pilot episode, his ship is basically a museum piece, an analog, hardwired relic. But this is what ends up saving the Galactica when the Cylons attack. They were able to hack into the newer ships and render them defenseless. But the analog, hard-wired old ship was secure – and escaped.
I use that exact Adama analogy often to our biz partners that want us to put everything we value on the cloud. It’s become a joke to them. They even brought me a present of a model of one of the ships. Keep laughing, you’ll see. I keep it on my desk as a reminder.
There is no cloud. There is only someone else’s computer.
Weird, is this a glitch in The Matrix I keep coming across?:
“There is no cloud. There is only someone else’s computer.”
Or, is it up there with, “People are smart.”?
I’ve noticed AM radio getting short shrift in newer vehicles. The manufacturers almost dropped it until Congress mandated the frequency band be retained in a rare flash of common sense.
I believe it is only a matter of time before Elon asks Congress to give him the existing terrestrial broadcast TV and radio bands for his Starlink Internet service so the elites can get their Internet porn out in the boonies.
They will have satellite radio in their cars, and, as for the rest of us, we won’t be driving anyway.
Back in the 80’s I bought a used AM/ FM radio for my car just to rip out it’s harness connector, that radio in unknown condition now sells for $100 but it did save me from cutting up the wiring that was in the car.
Since the radio is now part of the CANBUS it means that if the radio breaks the car probably won’t even run. Progress……..
THIS! -> “Since the radio is now part of the CANBUS it means that if the radio breaks the car probably won’t even run. Progress……..”
Have, most of us (not, “us”, I hope) become Pakleds?
‘Don’t mess with Pakleds – Star Trek With Context’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7PZKzKPFfE
“It’s all deception!”
Aaah yes, Eric, and I was thinking about buying a new touch screen set, so that I have it when the one I have for my Camry goes out. For I know it will not last forever. And seeing is how it will not be made in the USA, better get it now (and set it aside) while I can. This is my first touch screen in a vehicle, so it will be interesting to see how long it lasts, especially with our long, cold Winters.
Hmm, are touch screen sets really, precious?
I’ve never had one. Do they purr when you pet them?
In the Winter, do they help keep you warm?
I have failed at having a good inventory of oil filters, jugs of oil, & extra belts or tires, you must be way ahead of me. I imagine.
B.T.W. I’ve been looking at used cars. How’s the frame holding up on yours? Are you fortunate enough to live away from road salt? I learned recently that imports couldn’t have rustproofing undercoating applied (for certain years?) until AFTER they reached the usa.
…More fuck-overs, compliments of Uncle Sam? Idk.
I stumbled upon this article this morning, Eric. New vehicles do not have dipsticks, because they do not trust us to use them properly? Or, more rather, now even THAT task is going digital. WTH?? Or WTAF?
Hi Shadow,
Yup – it’s been that way in BMWs for some time, actually. I’m surprised they haven’t locked us out of open the hoods entirely…to prevent “tampering.”
Don’t give ‘them’ any ideas!
I’d never thought about them doing this, “I’m surprised they haven’t locked us out of open the hoods entirely…”
I know, Helot!
Glad to see your posts this morning; I thought perhaps Freedom Loving American had cut your brake lines!
That Frontier probably only had 2 speakers, both in the door panels. Back then it was pretty simple to increase your bass by simply adding some power and coaxial 6×9″ speakers to the door. Then crank up Led Zeppelin’s “communication breakdown” from cassette.
Today, even a low end Hyundai comes with several speakers of different sizes and likely a sub-woofer to boot. The music has also changed with voice box synthesized harmonies and other electronic music and rhythm streamed over Itunes or Spotify from a smart phone, which is also used as a navigation system and a messaging app. Many owners even use speech to text to send and receive their messages while driving. Then there is integration of “drivers assistance” options into the sound system. Its a brave new world out there.
However, I do agree that older 90’s and 2000’s cars will soon bottom out in depreciation and start appreciating. Certain years will be worth far more than other just due to changes in emissions and safety regulations, and this is why muscle car fans know that the last good year was 1971, which would make a prime example of a ’71 Firebird worth more than Eric’s 1976.
All true, Brosi –
In re my ’76: One reason why the value of this year is less than the earlier (pre-75) models is Pontiac made a lot more of them. The earlier cars are rarer because they were fewer to begin with.
In Europe they are already killing the older cars, especially diesels using other tricks. Many cities in most of western part of the EU have been declared “low emissions zones” and now require window stickers proving compliance with draconian EU emissions. Diesel is usually from Euro6 (2019?) which means it has a particle filter and AdBlue. Otherwise you will get a fine of hundreds of Euros.
A German lawyer from Düsseldorf told me that if you have a specially certified old timer that you can drive in the city without a sticker. He has an original mini (her) and a spitfire (him) for this. This will definitely change for the worse over time.
BTW, this would be worthy of an article.
https://www.eurocampings.co.uk/blog/listing/emissions-stickers-in-europe/
Not if the AfD takes control.
Doug Doug, “If”.
Has, ‘The Empire’ taught you nothing?
‘The Outer Limits – 1963 Seasons – Intro – HD ‘
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCcdr4O-3gE
Mein Gott!
“Many cities in most of western part of the EU have been declared “low emissions zones” and now require window stickers proving compliance”
Those guys are so fooked.
Six ways, to Sunday.
https://usawatchdog.com/senators-graham-blumenthal-commit-treason-martin-armstrong/
“Then crank up Led Zeppelin’s “communication breakdown” from cassette.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVkbPErAmXU
Tomorrow I’m picking up my parent’s old car. I’ve purchased a head unit that will work better with my phone’s systems, enabling navigation, digital audio and hands-free calling/voice controlled texting. There’s even a little module that reads the CANBUS for the steering wheel volume and program change buttons. That’s 99% of what people want in car “infotainment” systems. All for $200 or so (not including the adapter cables, which bring the total to nearly double that).
What year, make and model is that car? If it has navigation integration then it has to have an decent color LCD screen which would make it a post 2015 model or some type of luxury auto…
It’s a mid 2010s Dodge minivan with a basic AM/FM/sat radio. No navigation, touchscreens or back-up cameras. While I love the idea of nothing more than a VFD display in the center console, I don’t want to go retro and deal with an FM modulator for my phone, if I can even find one that will work. And for certain I’m not living with the terrible state of broadcast radio either.
> While I love the idea of nothing more than a VFD display in the center console, I don’t want to go retro and deal with an FM modulator for my phone
This one has worked well for me:
https://amzn.to/441fjyG
I tried a Bluetooth-to-cassette adapter (my ’06 Tundra has both a cassette player and CD player in the dash), but people could barely hear me in a phone call and sometimes the tape deck would spit it out for no reason I could discern. I replaced it with the Bluetooth-to-FM adapter linked above, found a quiet spot on the dial, and it’s been good to go ever since. At some point, I might get around to replacing the head unit (one of the speakers needs to be replaced), but for now, this is getting the job done.
CANbus has indeed been integrated in vehicles for quite a while. It hasn’t been quite so simple for a while. Eric’s Nissan is probably the very tail end of old school. The Tacoma got CANbus steering and what not in 2005 and that was late in the Toyota world. In that truck even though it had dials for climate those were also CANbus inputs, not directly controlling anything. But that said putting in a plain Kenwood car stereo wasn’t difficult and it even kept the steering wheel controls and added a mic for the phone if I wanted to pair it or connect via USB. All in from Crutchfield I was at like $250. It came with four decent speakers from the factory, I’ve been plenty happy with it. The truck that I had before it was a 1989 Toyota and that sucker came with two 4″ speakers in the lower dash that sounded OK with talk radio. I ended up cutting the doors for 6.5″ speakers but doing that actually reduced it’s value since the guy who bought it was looking for un-cut door panels to restore his much, much less rusty 1990. He was melding mine with a compromised frame (rusting through it’s set of frame repair patches so it would have taken quite a bit of custom fab to keep road worthy) and his with a blown engine.