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This Head Unit Installtion is making me chain smoke, some advice may be needed

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    This Head Unit Installtion is making me chain smoke, some advice may be needed

    I recently bought a nice Sony Headunit and 4 Pioneer 5.25" Speakers. I decided to not purchase an amp and power the speakers through the head unit amp. I ran fresh beautifully concealed wires from the deck to all four points. For the rear, I ran them right down the center console, underneath the carpet and undearneath the seat. I attached them nicely to the back of the top panel and lead them into the speaker slots. Getting underneath that carpet and feeding the wire through was a real pain in the butt. I shoulda ran them down the left side of the car.

    Anyways, after removing all the old equipment and sealing off the old cable ends, I install speakers. The stock covers and grills won't fit with these new speakers so I Dremel around them and build and screw on some new grills I fashioned using parts from the Pioneer grills. It was a hassle but I like to have a clean look to my car.

    Now it's 5AM and I'm in my garage taking down cigarettes... Why? Because I tried to install my head unit (and because I'm an addict). Every wiring diagram I've read seems to not apply to my car. I have a 1989 325is (production date 11/88 ) with the factory premium system. Almost everything I've researched has lead me to the following...

    Code:
    Constant 12V+	Red/White 
    Switched 12V+	Purple/White 
    Ground	Brown 
    Illumination	n/a 
    Dimmer	n/a 
    Antenna Trigger	White 
    Antenna	Left Rear 
    Front Speakers	5 1/4" Kick Panels
    Left Front (+)	White 
    Left Front (-)	Black 
    Right Front (+)	White 
    Right Front (-)	Black 
    Rear Speakers	5 1/4" Side Panels
    Left Rear (+)	White 
    Left Rear (-)	Black 
    Right Rear (+)	White 
    Right Rear (-)	Black
    I don't have half of those wires in my E30. So... I've been looking at the Electrical Book for my E30 and I can't figure out where I'm supposed to get Constant, Switched, Antenna Switch and Illumination.

    I noticed there are 2 white wires. One is plugged into some sort of loop of cables and the other has an insulated connector at the end. I have figured that the one with the connector is the antenna most likely, but that's about as far as I've gotten...

    So, I have a few questions...

    Does anybody have any insight or any direction they can point me in on where to find those 4 necessary connections?

    The ground that was screwed on to the factory unit, can I use that for my aftermarket HU? I don't know much about electronics and common ground and what not.

    The Amp in the trunk? Can I just remove it and seal off what ever connectors were there?

    I think I'm gonna get some sleep and try again tomorrow. I'll post up what ever I learned after this incase somebody else is as stupid as I am and needs some help. I need to finish this soon as it's timing belt time this weekend and I'd like a day away from my little E30. Any help would be very much appreciated!

    - Tommy
    Last edited by TommyS; 05-29-2009, 03:24 AM.

    #2
    Check this out, page 98:



    Taken form the above:

    Ground - Brown/Black
    Constant - Red/Green
    Switched - Violet/Grey
    Antenna Trigger - White

    The ground screwed to the case is common ground for the speakers. Don't use this to ground the new HU. Use the Br/Bl wire.

    Yes, you can just remove the factory amp. Or just leave it. It won't affect anything.

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