Joe Dirt
Explorer Addict
- Joined
- October 4, 2007
- Messages
- 13,325
- Reaction score
- 28
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 07 Camry
Ok all, I've spent about an hour searching, then went through countless pages of threads. Some threads say this, some say that, none of them have complete and total info in one place, there always seems to be a "second guesser" post creating doubt in my mind. Please indulge me? 
I want to do a green dash swap into my '95, I don't like the blue displays. This leaves me to change my head unit out, and being one of those people that prefers stock, I want to have a (at least mostly) green display. So, I tried the '98 Ranger deck, F87F-18C815-CA (shown below) it DID plug and play into the '95 Premium sound setup, and this one was out of an '01 Explorer, but was found mostly in '98 Rangers I think... (?)
(nevermind the message, it was the junk CD player acting up) when it worked, it sounded great with the extra internal amp...
Problem is, it was in a wreck, and it didn't play all the time, so it had to be returned, It almost ate my new Kid Rock CD until it decided to behave for 5 seconds and spit it out before I took the deck back to the boneyard. So, I'm looking aftermarket, since I can get a Pioneer DEH1900-MP for $95 locally, have all kinds of goodies, and some green lights to match!
So, now I need to get a Metra harness, and maybe bypass the amp. Here is where the fog settled- and the part numbers in searched threads came fast and furious, and the sometimes confusing dialogue left me, well... Confused. Maybe this can be one thread for the aftermarket deck swap into the externally amped X's from 1995-1997?
My plan: I don't have a subwoofer/JBL, I have Premium sound- the tape deck in-dash, and CD changer in the armrest. I only want to install an aftermarket deck.
Here are my questions, and a couple others that I thought it would be nice to have answered in one thread.
-Do I need Metra Part # 70-5514, 70-5600, or something else entirely?
-Is one of these the amp bypass kit- if not, what kit do I need to bypass?
-Is the bypass kit a harness that plugs in someplace behind the radio into an extra factory wired in harness as it did in my JBL-equipped Taurus?
-Do I need this thing: (and will it deem my upgraded wattage pointless)
-If I bypass the amp, do I need to pull the side trim out of the back to access the amp, and cut and splice the signal/speaker wires around the amp?
-Can I hook the remote antenna wire from the new deck to the factory amp power wire, and run the aftermarket deck through the factory amp?
-Will this sound like crap?
-Will my only problems be the chance of blowing the factory amp if I don't bypass it?
-(Completely pointless question, but it ran through my mind before deciding aftermarket) Can I change the color of my factory head unit somehow by pulling the face off the deck and doing something to the bulbs or facing?
My shopping list will include:
-New deck
-Metra dash kit with 1/2 din compartment
-Metra Wiring harness kit # _______________
-Metra amp bypass kit # _______________ -or- Re-wire around amp?
This will help me out a lot, and hopefully help some other '95-'97 owners as well...
I want to do a green dash swap into my '95, I don't like the blue displays. This leaves me to change my head unit out, and being one of those people that prefers stock, I want to have a (at least mostly) green display. So, I tried the '98 Ranger deck, F87F-18C815-CA (shown below) it DID plug and play into the '95 Premium sound setup, and this one was out of an '01 Explorer, but was found mostly in '98 Rangers I think... (?)
(nevermind the message, it was the junk CD player acting up) when it worked, it sounded great with the extra internal amp...
Problem is, it was in a wreck, and it didn't play all the time, so it had to be returned, It almost ate my new Kid Rock CD until it decided to behave for 5 seconds and spit it out before I took the deck back to the boneyard. So, I'm looking aftermarket, since I can get a Pioneer DEH1900-MP for $95 locally, have all kinds of goodies, and some green lights to match!
So, now I need to get a Metra harness, and maybe bypass the amp. Here is where the fog settled- and the part numbers in searched threads came fast and furious, and the sometimes confusing dialogue left me, well... Confused. Maybe this can be one thread for the aftermarket deck swap into the externally amped X's from 1995-1997?
My plan: I don't have a subwoofer/JBL, I have Premium sound- the tape deck in-dash, and CD changer in the armrest. I only want to install an aftermarket deck.
Here are my questions, and a couple others that I thought it would be nice to have answered in one thread.
-Do I need Metra Part # 70-5514, 70-5600, or something else entirely?
-Is one of these the amp bypass kit- if not, what kit do I need to bypass?
-Is the bypass kit a harness that plugs in someplace behind the radio into an extra factory wired in harness as it did in my JBL-equipped Taurus?
-Do I need this thing: (and will it deem my upgraded wattage pointless)
-If I bypass the amp, do I need to pull the side trim out of the back to access the amp, and cut and splice the signal/speaker wires around the amp?
-Can I hook the remote antenna wire from the new deck to the factory amp power wire, and run the aftermarket deck through the factory amp?
-Will this sound like crap?
-Will my only problems be the chance of blowing the factory amp if I don't bypass it?
-(Completely pointless question, but it ran through my mind before deciding aftermarket) Can I change the color of my factory head unit somehow by pulling the face off the deck and doing something to the bulbs or facing?
My shopping list will include:
-New deck
-Metra dash kit with 1/2 din compartment
-Metra Wiring harness kit # _______________
-Metra amp bypass kit # _______________ -or- Re-wire around amp?
This will help me out a lot, and hopefully help some other '95-'97 owners as well...
