Hey guys, this thread is intended to help with uncommon issues as far as installations are concerned. Our goal is to save someone a headache, and give a heads up when working on a particular vehicle. Please contribute, and lets do one post per vehicle...

Please, everyone share, Ill keep randomly chiming in, I have pages and pages of notes at the shop on odd things with certain vehicles. Ill try and remember to grab my notebook tomorrow and really add tons of info to this thread.

 

1999-2002/early 2003 acura TL with bose for deck:

Wire up the harness like normal. If it has bose, remove two screws that hold the ISOmount bracket in place. The two screws are right behind the radio, below the clock. Attatched to that bracket is a bose EQ. There will be a green harness plugged into the EQ.

To integrate the stock bose subs, you need to locate pins 3 and 10. These wires are blue/green and orange/blue. Solder on RCA cables to these wires, and plug into the sub preamp output of your aftermarket radio. You now can use your aftermarked radio's sub control to independently control the volume of the stock sub.

Note: twice now, I've see these harnesses labled backwards. If you don't find the blue/green and orange/blue where the stock harness is labeled 3 and 10, its just backwards. Use pins 4 and 11.

Note 2: There are two sets of the blue/green and orange/blue wires. One is the input side to the EQ, and the other is the output out of the EQ.

 

1992-1995 Honda Civic for deck:

Its a really tight fit for you guys that aren't installers, this may help a do it yourselfer out... If you're trying to replace an already aftermarket radio, you need to remove the bottom of the lower dash console. There are two screws, directly underneath the radio, and two screws on the sides of the console. remove those, and pull the console out. Now you have access to the back of the compartment for the radio, and you can reach up and pull the harness down from behind the radio, so that you can push your radio all the way in.

 

2003-2006 Honda Accord, FM antenna junction:

If you are trying to hardwire anything to the FM antenna, you don't need to take the radio all the way out. Pop up the bezel around the shifter. pry up the coin holder next to the cigarette lighter plug. Remove two screws from inside of where you just removed the coin pocket. Remove two screws that hold the large storage pocket that sits in front of your shifter. Pull the storage pocket out. If you look behind where the pocket used to be, and to the right. It is held inplace by a ziptie. There is an FM antenna junction right there to hardwire your FM modulator.

 

1997-2001 Prelude Acoustic Feeback System (AFBS) Bypass

Some would argue that it is better to keep it, some would argue to bypass it. If you want to bypass it, here is the wiring...

LR+ Blue wire w/ Yellow stripe (pin7) to Pink wire (pin1)
LR- Gray wire w/ White stripe (pin17) to Yellow wire w/ White stripe (pin9)
RR+ Red wire w/ Yellow stripe (pin8 ) to White wire w/ Yellow stripe (pin2)
RR- Brown wire w/ White strip (pin18 ) to Light Green wire w/ White stripe (pin10)

This should only be done if you have an aftermarket radio. Just remove the little box under your rear deck lid, and tie the wires to eachother.

 

1994-1997 Honda accord radio removal trick.

In this car, it is possible to remove the radio without removing the whole center console. Get a right angle bit, and some extensions. You can reach the two 8mm screw/bolts that hold the radio to the bracket from behind the lower dash near the foot wells. Just get a light and look up there, and you'll see them.

 

1992-2000 Honda Civic front door speakers not working?

I've seen this a few times. You have a good speaker, and you have output from the radio, but the speaker won't play inside of the door? There are molex plugs that connect the door harness to the car. I've seen the pins break in the molex plug that send the signal to the speaker, and have been able to resolder with a fine tipped solder iron, the wire, back to the broken pin to fix the speaker.

 

1996-1998 Honda Civic aftermarket radio with factory keyless entry

If your 96-98 civic has factory keyless entry, removing the radio will disable the keyless if you are using a standard 87-up honda harness. The most common way to retain the factory keyless was to remount the stock radio inside of the dash, right behind the center of the dash console. There are companies now days such as Scosche and Metra that actually produce a harness that will allow you to remove your stock radio and maintain the factory keyless entry...

Edit: Contibuted by audioroach (thanks audioroach!!!)

Here's an addendum to the tip:

Say you just don't care about the oem keyless (OEM sucks) and you remove the radio
anyway...but now the dome light does not work. Look at the green plug...there are 2 light green wires (same gauge...one with a black trace the other a red) connect these two together and the dome light works like normal.

 

1994-2001 acura integra coupe rear speakers

I have received tons of questions on this particular vehicle... The stock speaker size is 6 1/2", but yes, you can fit a 6x9 speaker back there. It isn't my personal preference to do so, If I were going to, I'd cut a adapter plate that fit in that opening, and then cut the 6x9 stencil out of the plate. That way, the speaker mounts more securely. Some ppl prefer not to go that route... They have been able to just use 3 mounting points from the stock set up, and just use 3 screws to mount the 6x9 in the side panel. This isn't a preferred method, as it leaves the speaker only 3/4 of the way mounted, but, it has been done.

 

Honda airbag light reset

Is your airbag/SRS light on? Here is a tip that has worked for me on quite a few models of Honda's. I don't know the exact years/models it works on, but if the light is on, it can't hurt anything! LOL!

Locate the airbag plug at the fuse box. It will be in yellow loom, with yellow tape, two wires into a harness.

Use a paperclip, unbend it, and make it into a horseshoe shape, that will fit into the two pins of the airbag plug while it is unplugged.

Here is the step by step process:

1.) Put the paperclip into the harness, connecting the two wires to eachother. Turn igntion on, The airbag/SRS light will turn on. after 6 seconds, the airbag/SRS light will turn off.
2.) Remove the paper clip.
3.) After 4 seconds, the light will come back on, quickly re-insert the paperclip.
4.) The light will go back off, after another 4 seconds, quickly remove the paper clip. the light will blink twice, and then turn off ignition.
5.) Plug the harness back in. After about 15 secs, turn the ignition back on, the light will come on for about 6 secs (this is normal functioning mode), and then turn back off.

You have now reset your airbag light, congratulations!!!

 

These are great, thanks for the tips.

 

I'll keep them coming, hopefully some of the other installers will chime in as well!!!

 

Here's an addendum to the tip:

Say you just don't care about the oem keyless (OEM sucks) and you remove the radio
anyway...but now the dome light does not work. Look at the green plug...there are 2 light green wires (same gauge...one with a black trace the other a red) connect these two together and the dome light works like normal.

 

Nice tip audioroach, Ill add it to that post!

 

So, I started this thread bc a cpl guys particularly mentioned that it would be useful, but there seems to be a serious lack of interest in it. Is this not what you guys were thinking about or had in mind when it was brought up? Would you like me to focus on tips/tricks on different subjects? Is there anyone else that would like to contribute at all? I just wanna know before I start unloading 10+ years of tips/tricks that I have written down in a 3 ring binder...

 

you should scan it and e-mail it to me...haha

 

I can do that for you, There is quite literally about 250-300 pages of s**t in that notebook. Amp bypass colors, Immobilizer and interfacing tips, different things ive done with relays, alternate wire locations, parts ive made work that aren't supposed to work in that application, programming tips, some disassembly stuff, reminders of companies that sell stuff that you wish was made, but had no idea that somebody makes it already, lol!, a little of everything. I should prob publish this thing, and sell it. It def gets a workout, my guys in my shop use it like everyday. I don't know how they find anything in it, its in no order at all, lol! Ive got really nice hand writing for the most part, but most of this magic notebook of mine was written while I was either really tired and frustrated, or just in a huge hurry, so hopefully you can translate pretty well, lol!

 

But seriously Jacob, is there any different types of info you guys were wanting? I know it'll be nice to have everything you may need to know in one place, but if its not really the stuff we need to know, Im pretty much wasting my time :/

I know you and I and someone else had also decided we should pretty much limit it to honda/acura, are we still on that same school of thought also, bc if we open it up to everything, Ill be typing for DAYS!!!

 

i have so much crap in my brain that it's triggered by situation, or random ADD thoughts. normally i completely forget a car unless i'm looking at it. it's nice because it's like a computer, it's not in RAM, it's in storage, with quick access time

 

yeah, I feel ya, but this little note book saves me time for those situations where I know I've done this already, do I really have to test all these wires again!? Lemme get my notebook out!

Examples:
Volvo C70 with Dolby... Its got 5 channels in that baby, and the signal is processed inside the stock headunit, so when I replace that radio, what do I do!? Well there is a din plug on the back of that radio, with 7 pins, cut it off, now I've got 7 different wires, all different colors, now I gotta test them all again to figure out LF, RF, LR, RR, and Center... PIA... Oh wait, I already did that, lemme find it in my notebook! Sweet, don't need to tone it out all over again! (FYI, free tip here, 7 wires, 5 positives for the 5 channels, 1 common ground, 1 amp turn-on, solder RCA's, and have fun!)

New BMW 7 series with Idrive... try finding switched power in that puppy... found an easy spot, there is a 7 pin harness behind the drivers side brake light. Pin #3 baby! (sat radio install, gotta grab fm antenna at tuner back there anyway, bc the tuner sends fm via fiber optic to stock radio. Run antenna and switched power to the front at the same time.) Can I please tell you I spent prob an hour and a half trying to find switched pwr in that car!? Holy crap man!!! Everything is data. Every freaking wire I tested was giving me like 3-9 volts, continuously fluctuating, it was f'ing nuts! The cig lighters I normally use in bimmers were all constant in that car, dude, it sucked!!

C'mon now, as many cars as we do in a day, there is nooooo way I could remember all that crap! If you can, Ill give you like 3 dollars if I can have your brain, lol!

 

Anway though, for real, is there any specific info you guys would want to have, or is just random tips on honda's/acura's like Ive already been posting what you were hoping for? I still haven't even brought my notebook home, so that stuff is just in my head, Ive got pages and pages of stuff for honda/acura...

 

I'd actually be interested in seeing what other vehicles you have tips for as well since I'm sure many of us have more than one car. If you did get a chance to scan that notebook it would be very helpful.

 

i used to remember a lot of stuff/tricks when i was installing, but forgot it all now. some cars were a pain, but i miss it sometimes. made the day go by quick working on cars.

 

It was discussed briefly btwn myself, and a cpl others on HT, and we decided to leave the tips/tricks for the honda/acura guys specifically. However, If you have a question about another car, PM me, I def don't mind helping out when I get the chance! Scanning my notebook and posting it on a thread isn't likely to happen. Its way too much info, and most of it would be of little use to the majority of ppl on these forums. (and, It'd take me forever, and Im just too lazy for that, lol!)

 

For all of the information. I wish I was electrically inclined so I could use it. Lol. I have never had much luck with wiring. Any tips/tricks on how to do it aside from just doing it for 6 or 8 months? Any tricks for that would be great. I only really know 3 things about wiring. 1. I am no good at it. 2. I shocked myself when installing a fuel pump kill-switch. and 3. Never try to wire anything when its 8 degrees out. Thats my extensive electrical knowledge. Lol.