Ok, I went and picked up some Eclipses today to replace the tired and crackling stock speakers. I got the SE8353 5-1/4" 3-ways for the front and the SE8243 4" Coaxials for the back. I wanted to retain the stock appearance, and I accomplished that.
Front installation:
In order for the fronts to clear the window tracks I took the Eclipse supplied grill ring(the black plastic ring that holds the actual grill on) and turned it around backwards. This makes a perfect spacer for between the door and the speaker. Then I just wired it up and screwed it in. Very simple
Rear installation:
The rears were a little more involved since the stock plastic "basket" that holds the stock speakers is pretty much molded to fit the speaker that was there. I cut the back out of th basket. This allowed the eclipses to set all the way back. The next problem to contend with is that the 4" speakers have 4 corners and the stock grill has 3 clips. These two patterns cannot happily co-exist. Therefore I had to cut off two corners(next to eachother, not opposing corners) in order for the grill to snap back on. In theory you could cut all of the corners off since you don't use them to secure the speaker, but I wanted to do as little cutting to the speakers as possible to avoid heat damage and possible mishaps. The speaker now fits perfectly in the basket and behind the grill, but how do you secure it? The answer lies in 3M double-sided tape. Wrap the tape around the circumfrence of the speaker and press it into the basket. Now that the speaker is secured to the basket, wire the speaker, screw the basket back onto the door, and snap the grill back on. You're done!
I would rate this as a 1.5 banana job. Fairly easy to do, but requires some forethought and close attention to detail so you don't mess anything up. If you have any questions feel free. I would have loved to have taken pictures, but my digi is in MD and I'm in Virginia Beach.
Oh, I guess you might be interested in how it sounds! It sounds great with just the factory power. I had been contemplating installing the amp from my Jeep, but I don't think it will be necessary. I have a Phoenix Gold Titanium 10" sub with 800 watts to it in the back(way overkill) and it nicely complements the stereo on its lowest setting, but is completely unnecessary for a good full-range of sound. I did disconnect the dash speakers, but not the overheads in the way back. They will be disconnected shortly as I plan to install cargo lights behind those grills in the near future.
Ary
Front installation:
In order for the fronts to clear the window tracks I took the Eclipse supplied grill ring(the black plastic ring that holds the actual grill on) and turned it around backwards. This makes a perfect spacer for between the door and the speaker. Then I just wired it up and screwed it in. Very simple
Rear installation:
The rears were a little more involved since the stock plastic "basket" that holds the stock speakers is pretty much molded to fit the speaker that was there. I cut the back out of th basket. This allowed the eclipses to set all the way back. The next problem to contend with is that the 4" speakers have 4 corners and the stock grill has 3 clips. These two patterns cannot happily co-exist. Therefore I had to cut off two corners(next to eachother, not opposing corners) in order for the grill to snap back on. In theory you could cut all of the corners off since you don't use them to secure the speaker, but I wanted to do as little cutting to the speakers as possible to avoid heat damage and possible mishaps. The speaker now fits perfectly in the basket and behind the grill, but how do you secure it? The answer lies in 3M double-sided tape. Wrap the tape around the circumfrence of the speaker and press it into the basket. Now that the speaker is secured to the basket, wire the speaker, screw the basket back onto the door, and snap the grill back on. You're done!
I would rate this as a 1.5 banana job. Fairly easy to do, but requires some forethought and close attention to detail so you don't mess anything up. If you have any questions feel free. I would have loved to have taken pictures, but my digi is in MD and I'm in Virginia Beach.
Oh, I guess you might be interested in how it sounds! It sounds great with just the factory power. I had been contemplating installing the amp from my Jeep, but I don't think it will be necessary. I have a Phoenix Gold Titanium 10" sub with 800 watts to it in the back(way overkill) and it nicely complements the stereo on its lowest setting, but is completely unnecessary for a good full-range of sound. I did disconnect the dash speakers, but not the overheads in the way back. They will be disconnected shortly as I plan to install cargo lights behind those grills in the near future.
Ary
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jammed two CDs in it) I want to give it some powa
