Door panel speaker question (1 Viewer)

[dparnas]

Yesterday, I took off the drivers side door panel to replace the window/door locks switch. I got one from Amazon that seemed to have really good reviews for only $25 (see link below), which is kind of crazy, so figured it couldn't hurt to give it a try. The reason was that the passenger front window was not responding to the button from the driver side, but was fine on the passenger side, so I figured it was a switch issue. A rare time when I was right, as this fixed the issue which made me quite happy. I figured while I had the door panel off, I might as well replace the speakers, which have to be very very shallow to fit in that space, so I did (see link below for the speakers I bought). I had to do a little modification to the speakers to get them to fit, but nothing major. Doing both door panels and speakers and the switch probably took no more than an hour of my time. Everything worked great and sounded great. Then I took a test drive to the hardware store and tested out the speakers and noticed the one on the driver side didn't sound right. Kind of tinny and weak. I opened the door and it sounded fine, which explained why I hadn't noticed it when I tested it out in my garage. The one on the passenger side sounds totally fine with the door shut, so it's only on the driver side. Gonna go back in today and see if I can figure out what might be going on. Doesn't seem like closing the door would pinch any wires or anything, so really no clue why closing the door is causing that. Anyone have any theories or things I should check?

Door switch. Amazon product ASIN B001MOZ3HI
Speakers. Amazon product ASIN B00A0LZHYS

 

[dparnas]

BTW, I used this video, which was great and made it super easy for removing the door panels.

And the video recommended this tool, which was invaluable and super cheap. Panel Clip Pliers - https://www.harborfreight.com/panel-clip-pliers-63699.html

 

[dparnas]

Well just spent an hour taking it all apart again and rooting around and I've come to the conclusion that the old speaker wasn't working and putting in a new one didn't change anything. The wiring that goes through the door into the footrest of the driver side, if you move it around, the speaker cuts in and out. So when closing the door, it puts tension on that wire and that's why it cuts out. Can't have had anything to do with the new speaker install. I guess I just never tested just the driver side front to see if it worked before replacing the oem one. Not going to go down the rabbit hole of taking all of that wiring apart to see what is causing the problem. Not worth the hassle at this point. Unless someone has dealt with this before and has any helpful suggestions.

 

[zapatius]

Well just spent an hour taking it all apart again and rooting around and I've come to the conclusion that the old speaker wasn't working and putting in a new one didn't change anything. The wiring that goes through the door into the footrest of the driver side, if you move it around, the speaker cuts in and out. So when closing the door, it puts tension on that wire and that's why it cuts out. Can't have had anything to do with the new speaker install. I guess I just never tested just the driver side front to see if it worked before replacing the oem one. Not going to go down the rabbit hole of taking all of that wiring apart to see what is causing the problem. Not worth the hassle at this point. Unless someone has dealt with this before and has any helpful suggestions.

If it's the original head unit, I would just trace the wire and wrap where it's exposed. If it's an aftermarket head unit, I would just run new speaker wire directly from the unit to the speaker.

 

[dparnas]

If it's the original head unit, I would just trace the wire and wrap where it's exposed. If it's an aftermarket head unit, I would just run new speaker wire directly from the unit to the speaker.

Thanks! I hadn't even considered that. It is an aftermarket head unit, so running a new wire makes a lot of sense. Appreciate the suggestion.

 

[truthdetector]

Any pics of the speaker installed with the door card out? What minor modifications did you need to make?

 

[dparnas]

Any pics of the speaker installed with the door card out? What minor modifications did you need to make?

When I go back in and rewire, I'll take some photos. The speaker that I used had some tabs for installation, I think to provide more options for where to insert screws. But the existing size of the speaker was already pretty perfect, so I just used my dremel tool to cut off those tabs around the perimeter of the speaker and grind down the edges. That was it. Nothing too significant.