DIY: 2001 LX 470 Apple CarPlay stereo install, Mark Levinson Amp Removal, Speaker Replacement (2 Viewers)

[Pyrenees]

Overview:

I replaced the stereo, replaced speakers and bypassed the amp in my 100-series cruiser (2001 Lexus LX 470). I installed a Sony Apple CarPlay headunit and Alpine component speakers and removed the factory amp. The instructions are below.

NOTE: I took so many photos that I realized if I put them all inline in this thread, it would really clog things up and make it messy. It's such a long DIY that I didn't want to disturb the flow of things. Thus, all of my photos are in an imgur gallery, please consult this:

Full photo gallery of install with 167 images: LX 470 Stereo



Background info:


The 100-series (1998-2007 Land Cruiser and Lexus LX platform) came with different stereo options (JBL, Nakamichi, Mark Levinson). This guide is specific to my 2001 Lexus LX 470 with the Mark Levinson stereo and WITHOUT the built-in navigation.

Specifically, my stereo was the non-navigation 6-disc CD changer and tape deck with "Mark Levinson" written on the front of it. Additionally, the amplifier underneath the passenger seat will say Mark Levinson. The front doors have a main woofer in the door kick panel, a mid speaker which is behind a chrome "Mark Levinson" fascia and a tweeter in the A-pillar crack on the front door. In the rear there is a 4" woofer and a separate tweeter but you can't see them behind the kick panel speaker grille which looks just like the front kick panel grille. There is no mid or tweeter separate higher on the door. You can't see what's behind the speaker grille without removing the door panel, because the grille does not snap into the door panel with clips. It is fastened by screws into the door panel. There is a dual voice coil subwoofer (i.e. four leads) on the driver's side between the second and third row wall. If what I just described is your stereo then proceed. If it isn't, I would suggest purchasing the factory electrical wiring diagram for your model year/vehicle and figure it out.

The two options to replace the stereo:

If you want to install a new stereo in a 2001 Lexus LX 470 without navigation and with the Mark Levinson stereo, you have two general options:

1 - Plug a new stereo and be done with it using a TYTO-01 harness ($50) that can convert the analog amp turn-on signal to digital. which the factory amp apparently needs, but this will retain the factory amp and speakers. In this case you will need the double-DIN trim kit to make the double-DIN stereo fit the curvature of the Lexus center console (I bought this one https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RJ58JXO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ) and an antenna Y-adapter since one antenna is in the right front fender and the other is on a rear side window. The upside of this approach is that it's a quick way to get a new stereo in the dash. The downside is that you rely on the factory amp and speakers. Some have spoken of audio hum/interference this way. In my case, the 17-year-old speaker foam surrounds had simply deteriorated and fallen apart entirely.

2 - Remove the amp entirely and replace the speakers. You'll still need the trim kit and antenna adapter, but will not need the TYTO-01 harness so you'll save about $50 on that part. In the 98-02 Land Cruiser models I have seen random videos and posts online that show the factory electrical wiring diagram. It seems that indeed the ground, power and accessory leads for the headunit actually come up through the amp, so if you remove the amp you have to find a way to power the headunit, or splice some leads (TLCFAQ has a post on this if you care). In the 2001 LX 470 with Mark Levinson 9-speeaker setup, at least in mine, it was a pleasant surprise. The splice points feed all three of those leads both to the amp and the headunit independently. You can completely remove the Mark Levinson amp from under the passenger seat (US) without disrupting power to the headunit. One of my pictures in this thread proves it, where the factory headunit is running normally right after I have disconnected the factory Mark Levinson factory amp. There is no way to install an aftermarket headunit without running new speaker wires from the headunit to the location of the old amp, located underneath the passenger seat (US). You need to run these wires here to splice into the leads that normally come out of the amp and go to the speakers.

I chose option #2 and I spent $850 on everything, down to the spade connectors and speaker wire. All labor was performed by me. I could have done the stereo headunit replacement, speaker replacement and amp bypass for probably $450-500 if I wanted to just simply get it done on a lower budget. It might have sounded fine, I have no idea. I bought components that I trusted.

Accessing the door speakers:

Again, all images are here and they will help you: LX 470 Stereo

I consulted this thread for the door panel removal. Door panel removal process

The pictures and description made it easy to figure out what fasteners needed to be removed. The only edit I would make (since the article is for a 2003) is that for a 2001 LX the plastic trim surrounding the door handles is different. You have to pop out the screw cover inside the handle, remove the screw behind it and then press down on the lock button from the top, and press up on the bottom of the handle to release the cover, with a little flat screwdriver. There are black tabs in there that hold the handle trim on, when you press them out of the way and then actuate the door handle and the whole trim piece falls off. Also note that the door windows will not go up or down using the drivers side door switches once the other door panels are off, so roll them up first or plug the individual door switches back in after the panel comes off. Once the door panels are off, all of the speaker assemblies (speaker and plastic housing) easily unscrew from the door with a phillips head screwdriver.

Do not rely on screwdrivers and crude tools like that alone to pry up the lock/window assemblies. You will scuff/nick the soft 100-series doors if you are not careful. Even with a proper trim removal kit I was concerned about how much pressure I was putting on the panels. If you are spending the time and money to do this, buy a trim removal kit (make sure it is nylon and not ABS plastic. I spent less than $10 on Amazon for this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XF1F3CS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

For each door, I labeled a ziploc bag with the door and side (i.e. Right front) and I put all of the hardware and trim from each door into it, so I would have a handy grab-bag to easily reinstall the door panel. If you choose to leave the front door center/mid speaker in its original place on the door panel, just remember to NOT plug it back into the harness when you reinstall the door panel, otherwise you'll introduce a rogue old speaker into your new setup! I decided to leave my center speaker in place to maintain a completely stock look, and to avoid having a big hole in the panel where road noise could enter.

 

[Pyrenees]

Putting together a gameplan for the replacing the speakers:

With the door panels removed, the assemblies/speakers are exposed. Most of the woofers in my vehicle (17yo, 170k mi) had deteriorated foam surrounds. The front door has a tweeter and a 6.5" woofer that will be replaced; the mid-woofer in the center of the door will be ignored in this job. The original front door 6.5" woofer (P/N 86160-0W270 / 6650) is fastened with two phillips head screws into a plastic housing (no P/N stamped) that is then fastened to the metal of the door with three phillips head screws. The front door A-pillar tweeters are fastened on a metal clip that presses into the door and is also attached to the door by a single phillips-head screw. The tweeter assembly, minus the clip, is less than 1" deep and is between 1.5-2" wide depending on where you measure it. 86160-0W300 was stamped in the metal on the right-hand side one. The tweeter is held to the metal assembly with a single phillips head screw.

The rear door speaker assembly did not have any part numbers stamped on the 4" woofer or the 1" tweeter, but the plastic housing that both of them were in had P/N 86160-0W280 for the right rear, and P/N 86160-0W290 for the left rear. Unlike the front woofer, the rear 4" woofer and tweeter are fastened to the plastic housing by T20 Torx screws. I have no idea why. The front door woofers also come out with a phillips-head screwdriver. I found the easiest way to break the 17-year-old speakers out of the housings was to turn the speaker/housing combination upside-down on a tabletop and push down on the speaker magnet. They were in there really tightly, just make sure all of the screws are removed before you tear them off.

None of the plastic housings are actual enclosures, they are open on the back and this actually gives a tremendous amount of depth (4" or so) between the inner and outer sheet metal of the door for aftermarket speake options. Speaker depth considerations are virtually unimportant. In fact, if I were to ditch the plastic housings entirely and fabricate my own mounting plate, I wouldn't be able to fit something much wider than 6.5" in the front without cutting metal, but I could have probably put 6x9s in the rear doors. The openings really appear to be that large. I took some quick measurements in case anyone is interested in doing some custom work on their LX 470. I wanted to use the factory plastic housings with as little fabrication as possible and purchase a separate powered subwoofer to toss in the back, so the time and cost of doing huge modifications would not make sense for me. Same reason why I didn't bother trying to rehab the 6" sub in the back and it isn't discussed here.

The speakers are all connected to the amp/wiring by snap-in connectors. I chose to re-use the factory connectors on the factory plastic enclosures, so I cut the old speakers off their wiring right at the terminals.

The Mark Levinson amplifier under the seat is physically connected to a metal bracket that grounds it to the body and there are two electrical plugs, S18 (rearmost) and S19 (frontmost) that connect it electrically. The part number on the Levinson amp is 86280-0W050.

Speaker sizing:

Front doors: Four screw holes to mount the speaker on the plastic housing are exactly 6.5" apart, directly across from each other. The inner diameter of the plastic housing was about 5 and 10/16ths of an inch, but keep in mind the plug sticking out on one side, which can be removed. I'm pretty sure most aftermarket tweeters from a component set are 1-2" wide and they should fit in the A-pillar triangles.

Rear doors: the 4" speaker is held on by two Torx screws directly across from each other and these screw holes are 4 and 12/16ths of an inch apart. 4.5" is the absolute maximum width of the aftermarket speaker if you want it to sit down in the receess like the OEM speaker did. The inner diameter of the hole is about 4.1". The tweeter assembly holes are 2 and 2/16ths of an inch apart. The width of tweeter hole is 1 inch and 6/16ths wide conservatively. Could very easily bore out to 1.5” if desired.

Aftermarket speaker choices:

I went with the following door speakers because I hoped they would be a direct fit for the OEM plastic enclosures:

Alpine SPS-610C
Alpine SPS-410

The first one is a 6.5" + 1" component set with a small inline non-adjustable crossover for the front doors. I saw in some other posts that it was hard to find placement for a dedicated crossover behind the door panel, so I thought it was nice that this one was simpler. The second one is a two-way 4" speaker set, for the rear doors. I left the original rear tweeters in the plastic housing but did not hook them back up. I also did not bother running new speaker wire from any of the doors back to the amp, as I could identify the correct ones and just hook them up under the passenger seat. In reality, these speakers were not plug-and-play, but I'm not sure if anything aftermarket really is. Ultimately they fit well enough that I did not return them.

Removal of front passenger seat (to remove factory amp and rewire):

If you missed it above, all of the pictures I took during the install are here: LX 470 Stereo

This isn't as bad as it probably sounds. I did it by myself and didn't break anything, but it requires a socket wrench that is bigger than my regular short handheld one. I just grabbed a breaker bar, but it does not need that much torque whatsoever. A small cheater pipe would have been fine. This process requires 14mm (seat) as well as 10mm sockets (amp). You would benefit from an auto trim removal kit, since you can easily pop the plastic/decorative seat bolt covers off without damaging them this way.

Don't disconnect the battery yet, because the battery is your friend here. Slide the passenger seat all the way back and remove the front cosmetic bolt covers. Put your 14mm socket on a ratchet and take them off. All four of the seat bolts are just like this, two in the front and two in the back. Something I noticed while removing the seat bolts was that the inboard front bolt on the passenger seat (closest to the center console and the front of the car) was silver and seemed heavier-duty compared to the others that were black in color.

When the passenger front seat bolts are out, slide the seat all the way forward and remove the two plastic trim/bolts from the rear of the seat. There is one electrical harness underneath the seat (for the power seat functions). Just press down on the center of this connector and it will pop off just like most connectors in this car. I opened the rear hatch and then picked the passenger seat up and moved it to the back of the car for storage. I think it weighed 50 lbs or so. This completely exposes the amp and the two main 10mm bolts that hold the amp/assembly to the body. There is also a brown ground cable that bolts on to the amp assembly and it disappears into a wiring harness in the body.

 

[Pyrenees]

Removing the factory amplifier:

I disconnected the factory 2001 LX 470 Mark Levinson amplifier completely without any effect on the head unit, despite the numerous concerns I had read online about the headunit ground/ACC/12V+ leads that are supposed to be fed through the amp. You can completely unplug the amp without disrupting power to the headunit and I have tested this. The headunit powers on as expected, and there is no sound which is also expected because the amp is gone

Once the front passenger seat is removed, there are a couple of brackets down there. One is empty and I imagine it's for the navigation ECU on the nav-equipped models. The other holds the Mark Levinson amp. After removing these that the amp will pull out to the side easily since there is a ton of slack in the two wiring harnesses. Disconnect the two harness connectors from it and remove the brown ground wire if you haven't already. I removed the amp from the bracket with a 5/16 socket and reinstalled the brackets on the body. There is more room under the seat than I had imagined, so I took some pictures with crude measurements in case anyone is curious. There is plenty of room for an aftermarket amp down there.

P/N on my factory ML amplifier was 86280-0W050.

Removal of "center cluster", power outlets and headunit:

Before you disconnect the battery, make sure you do a couple of things. Make sure you've removed all CDs from the CD changer and eject any cassette tapes/iPhone adapters, because once the power is cut, you're not getting those things back. Also, Make sure to turn the radio completely off before you disconnect the battery, so that the power antenna (which sticks up about 4 inches when the radio is on) retracts completely into its housing

Use a flat nylon blade from your trim removal kit and stick it in the upper left corner of the center cluster, then apply some pressure to pop it out, while simultaneously reaching underneath to get your fingers behind it right at the headunit. There are six clips and they all pop out. Remove the four connectors for the HVAC assembly and that's it. The center cluster is off.

Getting the cigarette lighter panel out is less obvious. It's not screwed in and it has the same type of clips as the center cluster, however there are little tabs on the bottom that you have to navigate out. It wants to get stuck on the lower trim piece. The USB mount I purchased fit perfectly into the center cigarette lighter hole and then I just ran the cable up to the back of the stereo: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MY1WDIU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Getting the cigarette lighter out is easy, you just push it out and then turn and remove the funky plastic piece that was attached to it. Then the new USB mount fits right in, and you screw it onto the cig lighter panel from the back side.

Removing the headunit is easy. Four screws holding the mounting brackets on to the inside of the dash come out, then the stereo has just one plug on the back to remove. The brackets then come off the side of the headunit, save these for later because you will attach them to the new headunit.

Wiring:

The overall strategy I employed was to splice the Sony XAV-AX100 headunit harness (Ground, battery and ACC leads) into the matching original wiring behind the dash, then run eight new individual speaker wires from the headunit down to the area previously occupied by the ML amp under the passenger seat. Then I attached all eight leads to the corresponding wires that all disperse throughout the car and eventually lead to the speakers in the doors.

Keep in mind that the original headunit-to-amp configuration was a nontraditional speaker output with shared ground, thus you 100% are required to run new speaker wires in the manner I just described when installing aftermarket stuff. I opted not to rewire all the way to the speakers, since there was honestly no need to do that. For the headunit-to-splice-point speaker wires, I chose a Metra Installbay 9-lead (MC918-20). This is a bundle of individual wires in a single sheath, which just makes things simpler. The wires in this bundle are also color-coded exactly the same as the speaker wires coming out of the new headunit harness, which takes some of the guesswork out of it. I ran the sheath and other wires up over a couple metal crossmembers behind the glovebox to keep them well away of the cabin filter door.

I absolutely implore you to double-check the pinouts and wire colors at the amp harnesses to ensure that you are cutting and splicing the correct wires. I verified by the factory service manual as well as visual inspection that the wire pairings I determined in the chart will need to be made between the speaker outputs from the headunit and the old amp harnesses undearneath the passenger seat (2001 LX 470 Mark Levinson Non-navigation). Also, never plug your ML factory amp back into its two harnesses after you make the changes! You will be guaranteed to fry something. This guide is simply a guide and I cannot be held liable for your damages. Again, disconnect the battery. Previous owners add and remove various things and they rewire stuff just like I did. Examine everything and make sure your plan will work.

You will be connecting the speaker wire at headunit to the speaker wire in bundle to the speaker wire at (factory original) amp harness based on the chart/table I have included. On the combination-color wires, the color is main color and the second color is the stripe:

Underneath the seat, it really doesn't matter how you join the wires. Solder? Spade connector? Butt? I certainly don't care which you choose because chances are the wires at this location will never be modified. However, I chose to use nylon-insulated press-on spade connectors to connect things together. Why? Because I might replace the headunit with something else in a few years and this will practically make the swap plug-and-play. It also makes troubleshooting a little easier, I think.

Let's get to the door speaker wiring. Each door harness has various colored wires as shown in the chart. These harnesses plug into the plastic assemblies that hold the speakers. Then from the assembly to the speaker, it's another color. None of this stuff is marked on the original equipment so I used the EWD to make sure. For whatever reason, the rear speakers came with wiring pigtails, complete with spade connectors of both sizes and the front ones didn't. So I re-engineered the front and rear harnesses (from speaker to plastic assembly) in different ways, but the result is the same. In short, Red is (+) in the front doors and Green is (+) in the rear doors. Black is (-) in all doors. That's it!

Back up at the headunit, there are other wires that need to be connected the factory radio harness behind the dash. This of course is for the Sony XAV-AX100 that I installed; your mileage may vary.

Let's talk about some of the items in the wiring chart/table. The ground, battery and ACC all splice into the factory radio harness R34. In fact, on this model there is only one harness back there, so you can't get it wrong (nav models also have the R35 harness). Other than those three, nothing else attaches to the factory radio harness. The Illumination lead is used to dim the display automatically at night, but unfortunately I don't know which corresponding lead to connect this to in the factory harness. So far the illumination on the Sony headunit hasn't bothered me at night, but if someone wants to chase this down and let me know what wire to tap into, I can update this thread.

The parking brake lead is supposed to be wired to the parking brake, so that if you want to watch movies on your screen you have to be at a standstill. I have heard that you can ground this wire directly to the radio chassis to bypass it, but I bought a little bypass device to use because I wasn't sure if I needed one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005SVTMKU/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 - this gets connected to the ground wire (black), the amp turn on wire (blue or blue/white) and then the parking brake wire (green).

The "reverse in" lead is a 12V+ trigger to bring up the back-up camera on-screen automatically when the transmission is placed in reverse. It is wired to the white back-up light 12V+, which is what turns it on and off.

The microphone is pretty simple. Plug it in and place it somewhere. I popped out the plastic cover above the rear diff lock button coverplate (since I don't have a diff locker) to the left of the steering wheel and clipped the mic on there. Multiple phone calls have sounded good from this spot so I might permanently install the mic there (i.e. drill hole through plastic cover and glue the mic in).


The antenna input requires a splitter because the 100-series has both an antenna in the front fender and in the rear side glass. In other words, there is one radio antenna plug on the back of the new headunit but there are two factory antenna connectors behind the dash. I used the "Metra 40-UV43": https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002EXF10/ref=od_aui_detailpages01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 To make things more interesting, the two antenna connectors behind the dash are different sizes, so you'll want to get one of these "Scosche Mda-B Micro/Delco Antenna Adapter Tips" too: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009UHRI/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

The subwoofer output is just like any other RCA cable. Plug into the preout on the back of the headunit, run to the subwoofer location. Recall the amp turn on lead is part of the 9-wire sheath already installed.

The USB input is on the rear of the headunit I purchased, so I purchased an extension cable with a mount. The plan is to replace one of the cigarette lighters underneath the HVAC controls with this, so I have a clean spot to plug my iPhone into the headunit: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MY1WDIU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Speaker installation into plastic enclosures and door:

I thought that installing these speakers into the OEM plastic speaker holders would be practically plug-and-play. In reality I did need to modify some things, but on a difficulty level is was still only a 2/10. It took probably an hour or so.

To install the rear 4" speakers, I had to snap off two of the four plastic mounting tabs on the side of each 4" speaker to fit it into the plastic assembly. I was actually surprised with how easily they broke off with a pair of pliers, being plastic and all. To my dismay, the 4" speakers fit perfectly inside the recess but they did not completely occlude the hole. In other words, there is a little sliver of space where air could travel between the speaker and the plastic housing. Maybe a set of 4.5"s would have been better, if that exists, but then the outer diameter might be too big to fit in there. I used some washers under the mounting screws to better hold things in place.

On the front speaker plastic assembly I had to take a dremel cutting wheel to two stupid plastic tabs because they would prevent the new speaker from sitting flush in the assembly. If you want to go caveman style you could probably snap the tabs off easily with pliers and file down the rest. Dremel is going to be the best option though. To use the mounting screws that came with the Alpine speakers, I drilled the existing screw holes all the way through with a 1/8" bit (and a little wiggling around). I used some #10 washers here as well, to better hold things in place. I also drilled a hold with a 1/2" bit near the connector, so I could slide the crossover wires up and out of the aseembly.

For the front door tweeters, I just stuck them on to the original metal clip in the A-pillar crack with some 3M double-sided tape. I mounted the crossovers next to a wiring harness on the door using zip ties.

Installing the new headunit:

Thankfully the mounting brackets on the original stereo are an exact fit for the new stereo. No drilling or cutting required. Just install them in the same orientation that they were on the factory original stereo and plug all the wires into the back. Installation of everything is exactly the reverse of removal and is quite straightforward. In other words, if you made it this far, snapping all the pieces back on will be easy.

Full photo gallery of install with 167 images: LX 470 Stereo

 

[saucebox]

That's a fantastic head unit. LOVED it in my 4Runner, and it's been the single biggest disappointment that I can't get one in my '03.

 

[FxFormat]

Is your amp dead? I need an amp if it works.

 

[TheForger]

Wow this is the most detailed stereo write up I've seen!! Seems FAQ worthy to me. I'm sure it would benefit many others when it came time for them to do a similar upgrade. Great job!

 

[Pyrenees]

Is your amp dead? I need an amp if it works.

Amp was not dead. I just wanted to remove and replace everything with aftermarket since I plan on this being a long-term vehicle for me. I had a full aftermarket stereo in a previous car once, and it sounded better than anything. I always missed having it.

I plan on adding a writeup for installing the subwoofer and the backup camera in this thread later on, so stay tuned for that.

 

[TXSunDevil]

Check your EWD but on my 02 EWD it shows an illumination wire of plug C9 terminal 10. It should be a green wire. If you pull C9 off the back of your HVAC controller just tap into it and attach to the illumination wire on your new HU. Please double check on your EWD but Toyota likes green wires for lighting. This will allow the dimming of your HU. Great write up!

 

[FxFormat]

Amp was not dead. I just wanted to remove and replace everything with aftermarket since I plan on this being a long-term vehicle for me. I had a full aftermarket stereo in a previous car once, and it sounded better than anything. I always missed having it.

I plan on adding a writeup for installing the subwoofer and the backup camera in this thread later on, so stay tuned for that.

Let me know if you want to sell the amp, i don't have sound right now.

 

[Pyrenees]

Yeah right now we've got this hurricane about to slam us in a couple days so I'll figure out pricing on the amp, old speakers, headunit etc after this thing passes by. I'm eager to get rid of the original parts and recoup some of my investment

 

[FxFormat]

I have nav, but the amp should be the same correct? What is the part number, please keep mud members discount in mind when you do pricing

 

[Pyrenees]

86280-0W050

 

[FxFormat]

Yep same one I have

 

[Pyrenees]

PM'ed

 

[Thingfisher]

Great write up. Thanks!

 

[Leandro]

That's what I call a write up.

 

[Pyrenees]

Subwoofer Install:

When removing the battery terminals during prior work (10mm) I took the opportunity to bolt the subwoofer 12V+ red lead to the 12mm bolt on top of the battery + side assembly (I left the fuse out until the install was complete). I used the Rockford Fosgate 8ga amp kit, mainly because I didn't trust the cheap brands. The inline fuse fits well behind the battery and then I routed the rest of the cable up near the driver's side fender to a big rubber grommet in the firewall. If you just look at the driver's side firewall, you'll see it in plain sight. A number of things traverse this grommet, however there was enough open room at the top of it so I cut an X-shaped slit through it with an xacto knife and didn't bump into anything else. I had to lube up the amp cable and the the slit in the grommet before I could get the cable through (I used some gel from a fetal heart rate monitor, but any gel like that will do).

Once the red 12V+ amp power cable came through the firewall, I did not think there was enough length to run it across the dash to the passenger side so I ran it straight back instead. I had to pop off the "lexus" door sill trim (2-3 clips each, pull it straight up and it pops out) as well as the foot rest/kick panel under the driver's side dash. With the door sills removed, if you pull up on the edge of the carpet these little gray plastic runners will pop up. This is basically where the various factory wiring travels, and I ran the 12V+ through these same channels on the drivers side - as well as the subwoofer level adjustment cable (a 1/8" male headphone jack on both ends of a long cable). It was a little tricky to get the thick 12V+ cable tucked under the B-pillar trim but it's much easier with the nylon trim kit. Then same thing again, under the rear door sill area there's that same plastic runner, I tucked the cables through it. Then I folded the second row seat forward and tucked the cables neatly under the edge of the big curved trim piece behind the door, to feed the cables into the third row area. On the passenger side I used the same exact methodology to route the amp turn-on lead (which terminated at the aftermarket 9-wire sheath under the passenger seat) and the RCA cable for the sub from the front to the back of the car. Just pull up on the carpet and route it under the plastic runners, then snap the runners back into place. Done. In the back (third row area), I had to find a ground. After messing around with a couple of spots, I decided to use one of the seat anchors built into the floor, right behind the driver's side second row seat.

I wanted to place the subwoofer level control in a covert but easy-to-reach spot. It turns out that the pull-out ashtray on the center console/dash under the HVAC controls is the perfect spot. I pulled the ashtray out, pushed down on the metal top and pulled it all the way out of the dash. Then I drilled a 3/8" hole in the middle/back of it, ran the cable through it and used 3M double-sided tape to stick the level control snugly in the ashtray. It tucks away perfectly and when I want to make a small adjustment I just pull the ashtray out and turn the knob, then close the ashtray. Totally concealed.

Then it was just a matter of plugging all the cables into the subwoofer itself and installing the inline fuse in the 12v+ cable up behind the battery. It's a Rockford Fosgate P300 10" powered sub and it has PLENTY of bass. This whole stereo setup sounds infinitely better than stock and I can drive on the highway with loud, undistorted music.

 

[KraziAzn]

Thanks for the write-up!

 

[EastTN01LX470]

Great write up!

Currently installing new head unit in 2001 lx470 Mark Lev Non Nav. Bypassing amp and ran wires from new head unit to speaker wires coming out of factory amp. Testing it out and the mid and tweeters in the front doors don’t have sound, but the bottom door speaker does. Any suggestions?

Also wondering if running sub preamps from Head unit to input leads of factor harness and hooking up amp connectors would signal and power factory sub?

 

[Pyrenees]

Great write up!

Currently installing new head unit in 2001 lx470 Mark Lev Non Nav. Bypassing amp and ran wires from new head unit to speaker wires coming out of factory amp. Testing it out and the mid and tweeters in the front doors don’t have sound, but the bottom door speaker does. Any suggestions?

Also wondering if running sub preamps from Head unit to input leads of factor harness and hooking up amp connectors would signal and power factory sub?

Thanks! So, are you using the stock speakers or aftermarket? IIRC the stock speakers have a non-typical resistance rating (2 ohm vs 4 I think) so I replaced them. If you're using the stock speakers, take a look at the picture gallery in my writeup, I think I included some diagrams from the electrical wiring diagram manual that show how the stock speakers connect. Did the mids/tweeters work before the install?

Also, with regard to the sub, take the panel off and verify that it's still in good shape. You can re-cone them and someone else has a big long thread on that, but I don't believe you can just hook up an aftermarket amp to it unless you find the wires going to it specifically and pull those out of the harness. Then there's the single-vs-dual voice coil subwoofer, so you'll have two or four leads. I said forget that mess, since it's only a 6" sub anyway. I bought a 10" rockford fosgate powered sub and called it a day