audio problems... :(

Searched through the forum for the past hour and cant seem to find what im looking for...

was wandering if anyone here could help me with the following few problem areas before i embark on tearing up my Golf FSI...

The aim is to basically upgrade my stereo system with a simple yet temporary sub/amp package consisting of 4channel JBL amp n 1202d sub, Alpine 9850ri hu... Main criteria is to avoid drilling/altering the car anyway or splicing/cutting the original wiring up..

first problem is.. with most golfs.. my hu is constantly powered? How do i alter this so its only powered once i turn my ignition on? dont want to be draining my battery etc

secondly.. does anyone know where the best location on the firewall to run the main battery wire? and how easy is it to run the rac cables and ignition cable from the hu to the amp without tearing up the whole dashboard?

Since im based in the UK was hoping you guys would be able to help as opposed to many of the other cars being based in the US - where their firewall holes are located elsewhere etc

cheers

to sort out the head unit having a constant live you just switch the yello and red wires round on the wiring harness, easy to do mate. as for the rest im not so sure, havent bothered taking anything apart on my golf, too much effort!

The golf's HU is only powered via one constant 12v power source so you need to get your aftermarket HU which requires two, one constant and one switched, and route the HU's constant power into the right one on your new HU and find a switched one from somewhere (I think most people use cigarette lighter, i sourced mine from the fuse box) and plumb that in the right place =D

When it comes to the power wire search on the AUDO ICE section for "Power wire" and you will find a thread called "I found the best place to run a power wire" and it's a real neat place to do it.

Noel

I run my power cable behind the battery (on the passenger side). There is a grommit with a already made whole that will fit through nicely. You'll need to have a poke about and its easiest to do it from the engine bay, not from inside the car.

It comes out just under the passenger airbag/glove compartment. No drilling required. I did have my mechanic friend do it but I did watch him.

Also, as a tip, you can get the RSA leads and the remote cable under the plastic trim that runs along the side of the car, without having to unclip it - just force it in. There is also a gap behind the steering wheel to the back of the headunit.

I've managed to pretty much hide all my cables.

Cheers for the replies guys.. so to sort out the constant powered HU is simply a matter of switching around the red and yellow cable i gather? Where is the 'switched' cable located? or do i need to 'make one'?


Yega - Do ya just take out the battery and case and then poke the wire through the grommet or do ya need to stick some some sort of coat hanger down the hole first? as for running the power, rca and remote cables what would be the best route for this considering the power cable needs to be on the opposite sides to the rca n remote cable?

One other question... if i were to stick in a high powered battery 1050A battery - Stinger SPV70 would it cause any problems to the electricals of the car?

cheers

Ye take the battery out and behind it to the right there is a hole already - he didnt have to do much poking, kind of knew where it was. The hole is ready made and the power cable should be stiff enough just to go through.

I have the power running down the passenger side (I got some cable cleaner tube type of thing and put it in that so it looks like some sort of air conditioning pipe and not a red power cable). The RCA and remote run down the drivers side undearneath the grey plastic trim, under the steering wheel and at the back through the seat gap.

Cheers Yega... was it easy to get the RCA and remote behind the steering to the back of the HU? or was there any removal of panels needed?

Cheers

I had to remove the 2 front air conditioning grills, near the hazard light switch, to remove the stock radio (be EXTREMELY careful not to knock the plastic bits off the grill because they are a pain to get back in and they are very flimsy). You'll need to take that whole pannel off down to the 3 air conditioning knobs. There are lots of clips too (VW love their clips) so some gentle pressure will be required.

There are a couple of screws on the top of the dashboard in that little storage compartment undearneath the rubber mat. Once you get those off you'll see more and more screws to take off.

It was fairly easy to get the cable in behind the radio. You just need someone with small hands What I did is fed the cable from underneath and then to the left of the steering wheel and kept pushing it up until it eventually found its way up and had the other person grab it. I can take some pics where abouts it goes in to give you an idea. There is defenitely a gap between the two tough.

I think there is radio installation thread in the audio section on this forum I followed - have a look around.

Where bouts you from btw?

Cheers for the great info Yega... Im from west London - Hayes area...

Im planning on installing this weekend so gathering as much info as possible before i rip her apart.. so to speak...

any pics would be brilliant!

the only other main concern is the actual cable run..

to get the cables to the headunit did ya jus pull back the carpet under the steering column bottom and then feed it in through any gap to the HU?

and for the run either side of the car how did ya go about removing the plastic trim near the door sills? it it easy to remove? any screws or jus clips holding it in place? Ive got a 5door btw

cheers once again mate...

Im from Bucks, near High Wycombe so not too far from you. (Check your PM btw).

I'll try to take some pics tomorrow if I get a minute. I run the cable from the HU through the gap like we talked about, then under the steering wheel near that plastic handle that lets you change the position of the wheel, then I used some tape to stick the cable to the pannel underneath it (near the air conditioning vents, above the pedals) and then down the side near the door (just right of the gas pedal).

I didnt actually remove any carpet or trim pannels. Like I was saying earlier with the RCA and remote cable you can get away with simply forcing them inside the trim - they will find space themselves. I think there are clips there so you can try remove it but then you run the risk of breaking it, so try to push them in first. A flat wide piece of plastic would be useful just so you dont use your nails or a screwdriver to push it in.

Hey Yega did you have to remove the Glove department area to feed the cable through?

cheers

Nop. It went under it somewhere. I dont know 100% where it is as I didn't do it myself - I watched my mate do it, but I defo know it went through without any drilling.

Maybe check with a mechanic - they might know what to look for.

Cheers Yega... Okay.. so now ivemanaged to get the 0gauge through the firewall and into the passenger cabin... as you probably wud of guessed the wire is impoosible to just tuck inot the trim/sill plates like the rca and phono cable.. looks like ive got to actually take the door sill trim out..


anyone know how to do this? does it just pop out? easy to put back in?

secondly... Im not sure if youve got an aftermarket hu, but how did you manage to go about the whole 'constant powered hu' problem?


cheers again mate..