100 Headunit Replacement? (1 Viewer)

[toyotaman]

The CD player on my '99 Cruiser is busted and I want to replace the factory headunit.

The Crutchfield website says that there are no installation instructions or wiring harness available.

Does someone know what year/vehicle model would be the most similar to mine so I could order instructions and a wiring harness?

Also, any recommendations for a aftermarket headunit which would fit with the interior form and function of a '99 would be great. Pictures are definitely a plus.

For those who have done it before how difficult will the installation be?

 

[80and100cruisers]

It is not worth it to replace the stock cd player with a stock one, to expensive. Mine broke and I bought an aftermarket one. Most should fit because the opening in the 99 is double din (pretty sure). But if you do replace the stock w/ stock shouldn't it come w/ all the install things needed? I would reccomend a single din aftermarket cd player with removable face plate. This will leave a storage area under it, pretty usefull. I had mine installed at a shop (Tweeter) and it looks great, no rough edges and stuff. Also, a shop like Best Buy or Tweeter can sell you all the parts needed to do a self install. Self install in the 99 is harder than probably expected. The factory headunit sends out a very weak signal to the stock amp, which sends a stronger singnal to speakers. An aftermarket headunit has a strong signal straight from it. This will burn out the factory amp, you will need to by pass the factory amp to use the aftermarket head unit. This is what I was told Tweeter did when they did my install. I found that the factory speakers can go much louder when given more power than the factory amp will allow.


-Matt

 

[toyotaman]

Matt,
What unit did you choose to go with? How well does it fit with the rest of your dash in appearance?

 

[80and100cruisers]

I have a Panasonic. It is the model with the big blue screen. I think the blue is cool, and don't mind it with the stock green backlight buttons. It is from 2-3 years ago, so the updated model will vary, but same idea. It has few buttons, but they are easily memorized, and I adjust controls w/o looking at radio while driving.

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/...?s=0&c=3&g=300&I=133DF783&o=m&a=1&cc=01&avf=Y

That link shows basically an updated version of what I have.

It is very obvious I have an aftermarket unit, but I dont mind that.


-Matt