Out with the old, in with the new(er)

[97BlackAckCL]

cool, one thing you might want to try is some 3m double sided tape around the edges . Should help the rattle .

I'm hoping that the dynamat will help eliminate the rattle, I'm planning on doing all 4 doors, and the entire rear panel that this panel snaps into. I really want the ability to remove and access the amp if I need to adjust things.

 

[V8.]

Do you have a photo of your new HU during the day?

I would like to see how it sits in the dash.

thx!

 

[97BlackAckCL]

No, but I can take 1 for you. It sits out a bit, but since it has the removable face, that is why. Still looks good, but you'll see what I mean

 

[dccgrillz]

I have that jl amp 250-1 it fits under my pass seat

This is tempting to say the least....

The JBL system in my 4Runner just doesn't cut it anymore.

Would that AMP that you squeezed in there not fit under the passenger seat?

I have a 2006 limited with xm (xm tuner under passener seat) and the amp fit no prob. under the passenger seat... I can't wait till I upgrade the existing mids and highs then I plan on installing some 4 channel amp in place of the stock jbl amp. I installed the jl 8" the model below the 8w3 and it works pretty well, I wished for the 8w3 and it didn't happen... Maybe if or when I blow the current jl 8 I bought I will upgrade then

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Gauge LED transformation

Well, I worked with Alex to get my gauges and HVAC modified over from orange to Blue. It took quite a while, but the final result was at least worth the wait.

While I was waiting for Alex to do my conversion, I started the tedious process of switching the rest of my switches and lights to LED. I'm about 90% done to date. Figured I'd throw up some before and afters since this turned into such a project.

First, you all know the ugly amber/orange color.
So, the orange needles turned out just like i wanted, so we're good to go. Kid sent me a couple of pics from his iphone and I am satisfied. Here's a few before pics and his couple pics since I promised updates. I'll have better pics once I actually get the damn things back

Not mine, but here's what they look like stock, ugly ass amber color

Here's a few pics I took of all the switches that I have to change to blue

And to get an idea, I changed the orange back ground and LED controls to blue

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Started off with the switches and smokers kit, the smokers kit has been quite a pain so far, but I'm making progress

While my whole interior was ripped out, I took the center console radio trim out to get to the 4wd switch. I used a wide angle LED, but it still will need some work.

Not perfect, but it matches way better than the orange

Also while that piece was out, I was able to get to the cup holder bulb finally

Here's the shifter and the cup holder

Here's most of the center console, minus the ashtray cluster that I am waiting on an LED to solder in to the cig lighter.

Now the fun begins

 

[97BlackAckCL]

And here we go...

So, here are the gauges that I waited almost a month for, back where they belong, and looking amazing

Here they are fully lit up

Here is the HVAC controls with full LED conversion, there is a hot spot or 2, so I will be ordering some wide angle bulbs for those 3 switches, but overall they look great

Here's the center console all reassembled, with the DAC switch converted as well as the ashtray and cup holders visable

Here are the 3 switches on the left that I finally got converted to blue, the process involved filing the bulb socket openings in the switch to widen them, and then sanding the head of the LED bulbs down almost to the diode in order for the switch buttons to actually move freely

The Downhill Assist Control switch also had to be modified, here it is with the ashtray light showing but no ashtray

Here you can better see the hot spots on the switches that I will attempt to eliminate with different bulbs.

And here it is with the ashtray replaced

Hope you guys enjoyed, I still have to solder an LED in for the cig lighter ring in the smokers kit, as well as update the 4wd switch, convert the driver's window button, and the steering wheel controls. But overall I'm really happy wiht the change

 

[riceandpho]

i think you need to do the power tap mod like i did for full brightness on the hvac lcd.

 

[snowbrdr033]

97 -- looks good, I like the blue LEDs on the cup holder and shifter. I had Alex do my gauges a while back and got the blue/white. I wanted to swap out the cupholder and shifter bulbs to blue. Is it difficult to do or just plug and play?

Also -- for your sub swap. I just put the JL 8w3 in the stock box in my truck. Have noticed that between the spacer ring/box/sub, there isn't a complete seal (you can feel some air escape when it hits). Did you seal the spacer ring to the box & sub or only use screws? I'm thinking I should seal the ring with silicone or glue (suggestions?) to help with the rattle and improve sound quality.
I've also dynamatted the hell out of everything back there.

What did you mean by the "reverse seal" on the sub?

thanks for any help!

 

[97BlackAckCL]

i think you need to do the power tap mod like i did for full brightness on the hvac lcd.

Nah, I just switched the 3 HVAC bulbs over to SMD and I like the look. I don't need them super bright, but I did look into your mod when I first looked at doing this.

97 -- looks good, I like the blue LEDs on the cup holder and shifter. I had Alex do my gauges a while back and got the blue/white. I wanted to swap out the cupholder and shifter bulbs to blue. Is it difficult to do or just plug and play?

The shifter and the cupholder bulbs are 2 of the easiest bulbs to do, they are just #74 bulbs and after you wiggle them a bit, they slide right in.

Also -- for your sub swap. I just put the JL 8w3 in the stock box in my truck. Have noticed that between the spacer ring/box/sub, there isn't a complete seal (you can feel some air escape when it hits). Did you seal the spacer ring to the box & sub or only use screws? I'm thinking I should seal the ring with silicone or glue (suggestions?) to help with the rattle and improve sound quality.
I've also dynamatted the hell out of everything back there.

What did you mean by the "reverse seal" on the sub?

thanks for any help!

I didn't use a spacer, so I just used the rubber seal that came on the sub and screws. What I did to get it to sit flush was flip the seal upside down, I think that's what I was refering to as reverse seal. I would definitely seal yours with silicone.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

I Finally got the cigarette lighter LED on the smoker's kit replaced. I bought a prewired LED from superbrightled's and then made my own LED bulb out of the old socket.

Came out pretty good, I'm very happy with it.

I also ordered a spare set of steering wheel controls, since all that remains is the steering wheel and auto window button. :frog:

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Almost done with the LED project, picked up another set of steering wheel controls so I can solder the led's on the board ahead of time, but I ordered the wrong size SMD's so that's gonna wait a while. I did swap my hvac controls and rear window controls over to SMD bulbs to better match the gauges. Still debating if I like the 2 tone with the defroster, recirulator, and reset/mode switches. I may end up buying SMD's for those also. But here's a pic of where it's at now.

Also did my glove box LED, was one of the hardest and most frustrating ones to do simply because I've never messed with it. It was in a cage, mounted up under the passenger airbag. I took the glove box out, did the cabin filter while I was in there, and then had to take the trim piece above it out just to get to the bulb, then remove the little cage piece that held the bulb, but thankfully it's all back together now.
Here's a before with the incandescent bulb, you can see how dim it is

Here's the after, I did cool white LED to match the interior dome and door bulbs.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

So, my old 03 4Runner Sport had the JBL 10 speaker system which I replaced with all aftermarket speakers, including cutting a 3.5" full range speaker into the center channel. The biggest downfall of the 08 SR5 is that it had the stock 6 speaker stereo and no center channel. I missed having that crisp clarity in the center of my old truck so I did the next best thing. I bought another set of the Infinity 3.5" speakers and replaced my 1" MB Quart tweeters with a set of 3.5" coaxials.

Here's the original setup

I kept the MB Quart 6x9's and just replaced the tweeters to add more depth and midrange to the stereo. The speakers almost fit right out of the box, however I did have to trim down the tweeter brackets a bit with a dremel, and drill new screw holes in order to mount these bad boys. Here is my first test fit before any trimming. This is actually upside-down in this pic, but you can see how high it's sitting because the basket was hitting on the sides of the bracket

After some cutting, grinding, and a little bit of hammering on the door panel, this was the final result all screwed down, I also kept the stock screw holes for whenever I want to trade it in and put stock speakers back in.

The driver's side was the first attempt, so most of the time (a couple hours) was spent on that side to perfect everything. The passenger side went quick, probably about 20 minutes total. Here's a test fit of the the passenger side before I started trimming the bracket.

And here's the passenger side all complete

I trimmed back the tweeter ring around the inside of the door panels, just to make sure that they didn't touch or contact the speaker, although I'm not sure if they would, it was just to be on the safe side. I debated on using bass blockers, but decided to go without since I spent the money and time to upgrade to these full range speakers. If I ever put my highs amp in, I may put a cross over in there, but right now everything is powered off of my JVC navi and sounds amazing. :whoo: