Factory Car Stereo Repair

"Let's keep it original"

 "Why is keeping it factory the best?"
(or at least a very good idea!)
Shouldn't I just buy a used one?

6 Disc CD Changers
These units are held in the car by two brackets that can be easily seen by moving the trunk lining from around the player. Once unbolted, the changer has a connector on the black wire about 10 inches from the unit.

 
1991 - 1995 Acura Legend Radios

These radios can be unhooked by moving the trim piece that surrounds the radio and surrounds the shifter. Start by removing the two Phillips screws that are in the storage compartment right in front of the shifter. Then there is a black plastic frame around the base of the shifter that pulls up and out of there. Once those two screws and the frame have been removed the console piece will snap up from around the shifter. You'll need to grab the wood trim on both sides of the shifter and unsnap it straight up. Sometimes this can be done with your hands, other times we have used a tool to gently pry it up so your fingers can get a better grip under it. Once the part of the trim that surrounds the shifter is unsnapped, it will easily unsnap from around the stereo. This will then expose the the two screws that hold in the radio on the bottom/rear of the unit (behind the ashtray that moved when you moved console piece). Then slide the stereo forward and out of the mount, unplug the connectors, use pliers to squeeze the plastic wire wrap out of the metal hole so it  releases the stereo completely. If you don't understand what the wire wrap is, just unplug everything and you will see the last thing that stops the stereo from being unhooked. 

1991 -1995 Acura Legend Bose Amplifiers

These amps are mounted behind the rear seat.
Start by pulling out on the tabs that stick out on front of rear seat and pull up on seat on the front. You cannot lift the seat unless you pull on the tab to unhook it. (There is two tabs, on the bottom front of the seat, located about where a persons calf is when sitting on back seat behind the driver and behind the front passenger seat.) Once front of rear seat has been unhooked, you can pull out bottom cushion from the car. Now you have to loosen the bottom of the back rest. There is four bolts along the bottom, these bolts are gold in color and they are 10MM in size. Once the bottom of backrest is loose, on the 4 door Legend, you can see the amplifier (with a flashlight) by looking behind the backrest from the driver side. On the 2 door coupe, you'll need to move the back of the seat (back rest) by lifting it straight up about 5 inches. This can be a little tough lifting it. You may need to get your arm under it and with your other arm grab the headrest area and wiggle as you lift up. Once raised it is unhooked. Where the hooks are you'll see black plastic bushings or sleeves. Take them from the holes where the backrest was hooked and slide them onto the hooks themselves, that makes it easier for it to go back together. To put it back, you hook the top, then bolt the bottom. 

The amp is black plastic and is 10 X 9 inches with 3 connectors along the bottom. Also you will read BOSE on the sticker on the amp. There are 3 bolts that hold amp in. 2 gold bolts through bracket in front of amp and one bolt on bracket that hooks on the right side wall.

When we rebuild these amps, we rebuild all 4 speaker amps in the amp box with upgraded parts, even if your only having trouble with 1 speaker. All repairs use upgraded "grade A" capacitors/components that meet or exceed military specs for longer life.

1991 - 1995 Acura Legend Bose Speakers

Moving the door panel to get to the front door speakers.

To get to the front door speakers, basically we just loosen the door panel from the bottom enough to get to the speaker. The speaker grill DOES NOT come off, it stays hooked to the panel and the panel swings out. There are 2 large Phillips screws deep inside the holes in the doors armrest underneath which need removed to allow door to come out a little more. Also, for the plastic snaps that hold the door panel to the metal door are all along the edge of the panel. If you gently move the panel out a little, you will notice the snaps holding it. What we do is use a regular screwdriver to go between the panel and the door and force gently on the snap itself to pop it out, we do that all the way around it the be sure it unsnaps, and the snap doesn’t stay in the metal door, pulling out of the panel.

 To remove speaker from door to replace with new Bose speaker only.

When you get to where you can see and unscrew the door speaker, just know in advance that it is best to unscrew the plastic mounting that the speaker is screwed to instead of taking the 3 screws that hold the speaker to the plastic frame. Because of the location of the connector, you want the mount out to get to it.

To swap front speakers. Be sure you have a good understanding, even write it down of how each speaker is responding prior to switching so you can figure it out if speaker or not with only one time swapped. Try to test before putting panels back.

Also if you gently press the center of the cone in and out, if you feel rubbing, then bad. Sometimes you can see that the cone has waves in it warping instead of smooth. If you see this then not really a need to swap, just replace.

The Left and the right mounts are different so you can just plug them into each opposite side and play it. If the voice type static goes to the right side then you would know that replacing the speaker (with Bose) would fix the problem. Hope this gives some ideas, let me know.

 To swap rear speakers.

The rears come off from the topside. The covers (cloth material covered) do pop up and off to expose the speaker. Don’t force anything and contact us with your particular vehicle for help.

1985-1990 Acura Legend Radios

These radios are bolted with 2 Phillips screws on the rear/bottom of the radio. Depending on the year, you will be able to see the screws by using a flashlight and looking up behind from the gas pedal angle. The Bose stereos require that the full console between the seats and up around the stereo be removed in order to get the stereo mount out of the car first.

1988 and 1990 Acura Legend Bose with Amps attached to the speakers

The front speakers: 

The doors have to be loosened at the bottom and even the screws that are in the inside door handles so the bottom can be pulled away enough to get under the door panel to remove the 4 screws that hold the speaker to the door and the speaker unplugs from above it on the wire harness. The plug is green and it is mounted in a tough place to unplug. So what we do is take a regular screwdriver and pry under the connector in order to pop it out of the plastic piece that holds it in the hole in the metal door. Once it's popped out of the hole, you can easily unplug it.

The rear speakers: 

They are removed from the top. With a flat head screwdriver, pop up the top part of the speaker grill. It is the part that usually is material (not plastic base). Pop it from the front on each end, towards the corners. Once front edge unhooked, then the back just lifts out. Remove the 4 screws that hold the speaker in and lift it out of the hole to expose the wires and connectors (many times there's a filter inline) it just unplugs the same. You only have to unplug one of the connectors for the speaker to be unhooked. 

Shipping speakers: (IMPORTANT)
Speakers are best shipped by taking a piece of cardboard and cutting it round so it can be taped across the top part. The cardboard then will protect the paper cone while being packaged for shipment.