I have a 78 that I just got a salvaged radio and console for. There is a large opening for the Alpine radio and the face of it fits nicely in the opening.
To mount this, is there a kit I should get from a car audio place? Something in the dash meant to hook a radio on to?
Found lots of interesting stuff in other threads about wiring and connections, but not the basic mounting hardware.
Thanks for any help. Spring is approaching and I want to be ready for the break in the weather after our record setting snow this winter in Michigan.
radio mount on 78
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Daniel
Re: radio mount on 78
Your not going to find any wire harness or mounting kits for this car you'll need to have it hard wired
1 hot 1 ignition 1 ground 2 speaker wires (if your just doing fronts) 1 antenna not that complicated the
radio i'm assuming is a din size?
1 hot 1 ignition 1 ground 2 speaker wires (if your just doing fronts) 1 antenna not that complicated the
radio i'm assuming is a din size?
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timspider
Re: radio mount on 78
Yes, a din size. I have the pigtail and am figuring that stuff out. What I'm asking about is the method of mounting this radio. How to physically attach it inside the dash.
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aj81spider
- Patron 2020
- Posts: 1526
- Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 9:04 am
- Your car is a: 1974 Fiat 124 Spider
- Location: Chelmsford, MA
Re: radio mount on 78
That was a problem for me as well. My radio came with a slide in bracket. I had to cut the hole in the center console big enough to fit the bracket (but not so big that the tabs in front could go through. Then there were some bend out tabs that supposedly held it in place. They weren't very inspiring, so I also epoxied a couple of "L" brackets to the bracket behind the console (and to the console) to help hold it in place. You can't see any of that from the front.
A.J.
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
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timspider
Re: radio mount on 78
that "slide in bracket" sounds like what I'm looking for. I'll call a stereo place and see if they have those for my model of Alpine. One of the things I like about this radio is it's shallow depth, so there is less to hang and fit in there.
Off to find a slide bracket.
thanks for weighing in
Off to find a slide bracket.
thanks for weighing in
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Daniel
Re: radio mount on 78
you will need to cut the radio opening to din size i use a air saw but if you have a jig saw maybe its possible to use that
and some tin snips.
and some tin snips.
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aj81spider
- Patron 2020
- Posts: 1526
- Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 9:04 am
- Your car is a: 1974 Fiat 124 Spider
- Location: Chelmsford, MA
Re: radio mount on 78
I used a Dremel with a cutoff wheel to make the hole larger. It went through a couple of wheels but did the job.
Last edited by aj81spider on Sun Mar 02, 2014 10:17 am, edited 1 time in total.
A.J.
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
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JEEPER
- Posts: 136
- Joined: Tue Aug 16, 2011 6:34 pm
- Your car is a: 1979 SPIDER
- Location: SANDUSKY OHIO
Re: radio mount on 78
Got mine from CRUTCHFIELD on line with my radio (they have tech assis to walk you through the adapter you need). With a dremell I ONLY HAD TO CLEAN UP THE OPENONG then drop the plate in and bend the tads. I installed it about 5 years ago.timspider wrote:that "slide in bracket" sounds like what I'm looking for. I'll call a stereo place and see if they have those for my model of Alpine. One of the things I like about this radio is it's shallow depth, so there is less to hang and fit in there.
Off to find a slide bracket.
thanks for weighing in
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timspider
Re: radio mount on 78
update. while a trip to the car audio guy did yield a set of very nice 4 inch kenwoods which I opted to install in the map pockets, he was unable to find anything that would help me physically mount the Alpine unit that I have. He sent me back here. It's looking like I will need to fabricate something. I'll go through all the threads I can find on that first, but if anyone has anything good to add about that, that would be great.
thanks
thanks
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aj81spider
- Patron 2020
- Posts: 1526
- Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 9:04 am
- Your car is a: 1974 Fiat 124 Spider
- Location: Chelmsford, MA
Re: radio mount on 78
I'm not sure what model you have, but I would try to find a mounting sleeve for it on line. They seem to be pretty readily available. One example (not sure if it is your size):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/360786931615?lpid=82
Mine came with one of these, and that's what I mounted in the dash.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/360786931615?lpid=82
Mine came with one of these, and that's what I mounted in the dash.
A.J.
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
1974 Fiat 124 Spider
2006 Corvette
1981 Spider 2000 (sold 2013 - never should have sold that car)
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Exit98
Re: radio mount on 78
Tim, OK, I was going to post on this right from the start but I can't find my pictures anywhere. So this won't make much sense without them. But I see you're still looking for a solution.
I was replacing my center radio console with a nice used one I picked up. So I decided to put the modern radio that the PO had installed in the glovebox into the console. I never installed a radio before and I had no idea how it was held in place. Someone told me about the sleeves but I couldn't find one. So anyway, I cut a base for the radio from a square of 1/4 inch plywood then I used 90 degree metal brackets from the hardware store to attach the plywood to the back face of the console. I had to bend the brackets as the angle is more than 90 degrees. The screw heads are concealed by the speaker grill (which you have to remove). I used a third 90 degree bracket on the back of the platform facing upward to secure the back of the radio to the base. There were threaded mounting screw holes on the back of the radio that worked fine for attaching it to the bracket. Also, by using washers on that mounting point I could adjust the radio in or out a little so it fit flush in the front.
Then I found that the plywood interfered just a little with the back of the cigarette lighter and I think the console light so I just cut out a circle of the plywood for the lighter and trimmed for the back of the light. That worked. After I had it test fitted and was ready to go I took long nylon tyes, two of them I think, and used them to further secure the radio to the base. Oh yeah, I cut a piece of a foam yoga mat I have and sandwiched it between the radio and the board.
I was really winging it, and I was never really sure it'd work, but it came out fine. I kinda suprised myself.
I used a dremel to carefully cut out the opening. The nice surround that came with the radio helped a lot.
Take a look:
I was replacing my center radio console with a nice used one I picked up. So I decided to put the modern radio that the PO had installed in the glovebox into the console. I never installed a radio before and I had no idea how it was held in place. Someone told me about the sleeves but I couldn't find one. So anyway, I cut a base for the radio from a square of 1/4 inch plywood then I used 90 degree metal brackets from the hardware store to attach the plywood to the back face of the console. I had to bend the brackets as the angle is more than 90 degrees. The screw heads are concealed by the speaker grill (which you have to remove). I used a third 90 degree bracket on the back of the platform facing upward to secure the back of the radio to the base. There were threaded mounting screw holes on the back of the radio that worked fine for attaching it to the bracket. Also, by using washers on that mounting point I could adjust the radio in or out a little so it fit flush in the front.
Then I found that the plywood interfered just a little with the back of the cigarette lighter and I think the console light so I just cut out a circle of the plywood for the lighter and trimmed for the back of the light. That worked. After I had it test fitted and was ready to go I took long nylon tyes, two of them I think, and used them to further secure the radio to the base. Oh yeah, I cut a piece of a foam yoga mat I have and sandwiched it between the radio and the board.
I was really winging it, and I was never really sure it'd work, but it came out fine. I kinda suprised myself.
I used a dremel to carefully cut out the opening. The nice surround that came with the radio helped a lot.
Take a look:
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timspider
Re: radio mount on 78
that is beautiful. ok, that gives me the needed motivation to get in there and start fabricating a solution.
thank you. this was your first install? did you find all the wires you needed to hook up? I have 15 wires sticking out of the radios harness. After watching a couple hours of youtube installs, I've identified all but the pink. My question is how did you hook up the "switched on" power line? Did you wire that one to a specific fuse or was there something in the dash to plug in to?
thanks again from a former New Jersey guy.
thank you. this was your first install? did you find all the wires you needed to hook up? I have 15 wires sticking out of the radios harness. After watching a couple hours of youtube installs, I've identified all but the pink. My question is how did you hook up the "switched on" power line? Did you wire that one to a specific fuse or was there something in the dash to plug in to?
thanks again from a former New Jersey guy.
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Exit98
Re: radio mount on 78
Tim,
My memory's not what it used to be.
First of all I googled the model number of the radio and downloaded the manual which helped a little, but the wires coming out of the radio were pretty stright forward. A ground, an always on power for the clock and presets and then the main switched power. There was probably one or two others for an aux amp and whatever.
I think I spliced into the power wire to the cigarette lighter which I think is an always on, or maybe the console light power I forget. I really wanted to have the switch power to be independent of the ignition switch so I could play it without having the ignition on, which also runs the fuel pump. But I couldn't find a good way to do that.
After checking with one of the NJ electrical guru's I ran a power line from the radio directly to the back of the fuse box. Scott had told me that there are extra male fittings that you can jump onto. I wanted the direct line to cut down on interference. That's what I did but there wasn't one I could find that was ignition switch independent so I have to have ignition on to power the radio.
Probably just as well. I'd no doubt forget I turned it on and run down the battery.
60 degrees but windy here at the shore. Took her out for the first time since November. Running great.
My memory's not what it used to be.
First of all I googled the model number of the radio and downloaded the manual which helped a little, but the wires coming out of the radio were pretty stright forward. A ground, an always on power for the clock and presets and then the main switched power. There was probably one or two others for an aux amp and whatever.
I think I spliced into the power wire to the cigarette lighter which I think is an always on, or maybe the console light power I forget. I really wanted to have the switch power to be independent of the ignition switch so I could play it without having the ignition on, which also runs the fuel pump. But I couldn't find a good way to do that.
After checking with one of the NJ electrical guru's I ran a power line from the radio directly to the back of the fuse box. Scott had told me that there are extra male fittings that you can jump onto. I wanted the direct line to cut down on interference. That's what I did but there wasn't one I could find that was ignition switch independent so I have to have ignition on to power the radio.
Probably just as well. I'd no doubt forget I turned it on and run down the battery.
60 degrees but windy here at the shore. Took her out for the first time since November. Running great.
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Daniel
Re: radio mount on 78
you might want to enclose those map pockets for better sound the open tops will cause cancellation, this effect
happens with the front and rear portions of a midrange or woofer are allowed to share/explosed to the same air
space. This will cause bass and mid level frequencies to sound weak, flat no punch at all...
happens with the front and rear portions of a midrange or woofer are allowed to share/explosed to the same air
space. This will cause bass and mid level frequencies to sound weak, flat no punch at all...