'95 premium sound confusing stuff.

[tbdmitl]

I've worked on jeeps all m life, but my girlfriend has an explorer, and I'm just not used to this kinda stuff.

first. I have an after market HU by Alpine.
I have a Amp Bypass wiring kit.
I have a wiring kit
The Amp bypass is no problem.

The wiring harness is WRONG! The black connector won't even go into the Green after market connector, and even if it would, the posts are not in the same spot. Everywhere I go, best buy, circuit city, Ultimate electronics, Audio advice, Car Toys. They always try to give me the same connectors.

My other concern is this. There is no Antenna port on this factory head unit, and no cable, unless it's integrated into the wiring harness. Yet it has reception. Where is this antenna, and how do I integrate it into the after market HU?

The factory unit is by JBL and it has a 6 disk Cd changer which doens't work.
This thing is just killin me. Surely there's a wiring harness that's MADE for this thing. Thanks in advance for your knowledge and patience for a new guy. I have a feeling I'll be doing a lot of work on this thing.

 

[tbdmitl]

Found the answer

Well, no thanks to you geniuses. I found the answer.

The factory audio system in this Explorer is a rare little guy. Most of the installers I talked to here localy had only seen 1 or 2 of them in the 9 years the car has been out. It's a dead head unit with an external amp. Not only is it a seperate amp, it's a seperate am/fm tuner. all the head unit does is display numbers, have buttons and play tapes. The 6 disk cd player is sepperate to. The reason that there's no antenna plug in the back of the head unit is because ITS ATTACHED TO THE AMP IN THE BACK!!! THANKS FORD!! FOR MAKING IT EASY TO INSTALL AN AFTER MARKET HEAD UNIT!!!!

So now I have to move the antenna line to run behind the dash, rather than to the back of the car. Run speaker wires to the back where the amp and tuner are located and the wires split to go to the speakers. And run new power, ground, and accessory wires to the aftermarket HU. Then if it turns out the thing has a sub, I'll have to add an aftermarket amp and run power, RCAs and a turn on to kepe the sub working. This is just the kind of crap I expect and get from ford vehicles. I've got to go back to my Jeep now for a little bit of sanity.

 

[axionplaya]

Watch it there buddy... us Ford owners will unite and lay the smack down...

Roy
_______________________
1996 Ford Explorer XLT
4WD
4.0L SOHC V6
K&N Filter
Flowmaster

 

[cobrajeff]

".....if it turns out this thing has a sub...."

...don't look now, but, there IS a sub in your system.

There is a helpful "Quick Reference" guide on this forum that explains many of the questions you asked, including the "distributed architecture" of the Ford/JBL systems used in 1995-1997 Explorers.

I don't care for the distributed architecture, either, but, contrary to popular opinion, it was NOT designed to preclude vehicle owners from "upgrading' to aftermarket stereos. The original intent was to "put the guts of the radio" in a box in the trunk, so that the styling guys could "freshen" the styling of the radio every year or so, without affecting the electronics in the head unit. It took me three years to get it out of the Explorer vehicle line.

If you want to install an aftermarket stereo system, you would likely want to replace ALL of that "factory" stuff (the HU, the wiring, the amps, the sub, etc., etc.) ANYWAY - I don't see how running your antenna lead from the right front fender to an aftermarket head unit in the dash is such a dilemma.

regards,

cobrajeff

 

[tbdmitl]

Thanks

Thanks Cobra jeff.. That was a very informative post. I appreciate your knowledge and help. Like you said, replace the whole thing. That's more than just moving the antenna lead. It will be quite a venture, and i'm sure I will learn much abour Ford's wiring, molding and interior assembly. I still think it's annoying , but I'm all about function over form. Thanks again.

 

[IAmTodd]

Well, since your dissing us, I don't think you'll get much help. The JBL system isn't rare. Most EBs and Limiteds have it. And it does have a sub. So I hope you have fun! And get a better attitude buddy!