upgrading 3rd gen 4 piece base speaker system

skolinsk

skolinsk

New member
hey everyone,

I gotta 00 Base Model 4Runner with the stock 4 piece speaker system. I'm looking at upgrading it to the OEM 6 piece system (adding the 2 tweeter sized speakers near both side view mirrors). Does anyone know if i can just add those speakers, assuming i can find them at a junkyard or ebay or something. Or would i have to re-wire them into the stereo directly?

Just trying to improve the sound is all. Cant be too hard, as it doesnt sound all too pretty currently.


Any one?

thanks
 
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your best bet is going to be a new headunit and picking up some new aftermarket speakers. You can spend around 300-400 bucks. and get something with CD /MP3/ possibly ipod connectivity, and four new speakers (figuring they are about $80 pair).

Drive on over to your local big-box store, and look what they have (stay away from wal-mart or auto-part store audio please).

Replacing your factory system with another factory system is still going to leave you with the limitations of a factory system. Its worth the extra money.
 
thanks for the advice, but im really not trying to spend 300-400.

any one know if you can add tweeters (plug n play) to a 4 piece speaker system if they're both factory?
 
Honestly, just upgrading the HU will make a lot of difference. Search around for the Scion radio upgrades (they're plug-n-play in the 4Runner) in first few pages of this forum. That's the best bang-for-the-buck upgrade you can do to your audio system.
 
Has anybody put the Scion HU in a 3rd gen? Is that still plug&play since fitment might be a bit different?

I'm going to do a speaker upgrade soon to complimnet my HU and sub since the stock speakers are showing their limits but sliders will be coming first.
 
Ok, theres a ton of scion head units on ebay, which one is for me??
Also, I can understand that they would fit 4th gen 4runners, but would they fit my 00 (3rd Gen) base model system which is only 4 speakers??
Also what am i really changing here? I guess im asking what the Scion HU brings that my Toyota HU lacks besides newer technology like playing mp3 cds or being xm ready (even with the base 4 speaker system)??
features i'd be interested in is an mp3 input for my ipod (using the tape adapter now) and better overall sound.

-sk
 
Here's more than you wanted to know:
Scion HU Install
Scion HU (huge thread with TONS of info)
Scion Head Units (outlines differences in Scion HU models)
Scion T1807 stereo install in 3rd gen '99 Limited (pic heavy) (My T1807 install thread - How'd you miss this Ron???)

Also, all of these were in the first 3 pages of the forum. There's another long thread awhile back talking about the ipod cable/interface. If you read my thread, I tell you how to hook up an aux input straight into the back of the stereo. There are adapter harnesses on ebay that give you the full ipod functionality if you get one of the ipod capable units. The sound quality on the Scion HU's is FAR superior to the OEM stereo. You wouldn't believe you had the same speakers. Most all of the Scion HU's are made by Pioneer. Add a speaker upgrade and it would be very hard to beat the overall sound of the system for the money.
 
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well the long and short of it is that im a college student.. so not much. I'm really trying to find deals more than anything (junkyards, ebay, etc.). Im not looking for anything amazing, just simple upgrades i can do for a small amt of money. she already has around 185k on it so Im not sure its worth it to dump money into. especially if im not gonna have it "forever"

I mean the reason i made the original post was i saw some OEM tweeter pods with speakers on ebay for like 20 bucks and i wanted to know if i could install them (plug n play) to upgrade my current base 4 speaker system to 6.

-sk
 
hmm, thanks fisher. Im wondering if its worth the extra $$ to get the ipod connection. I dont have steering wheel controls and Im not so lazy that i cant look at the ipod to see whats playing.. I think the only way it would be worthwhile is if it charges the ipod too. Do you know if it does?

thanks,
sam
 
The Scion HU's can be had for less than $50 most of the time. The better ones do usually get a slightly higher price, but if you watch, you can get some pretty sweet deals on fleabay. (My T1807 was only $32 shipped!)

The OEM tweets might work in your car. The only reason I say might is that the wiring harness might not be present. However, don't let this stop you - the tweeters are hooked up in parallel with the front door speakers, so it should be an easy addition even if you don't have the factory harness.

PS - I edited my previous post with more info in case you didn't see that.

PPS - I'm not 100% sure if the connection charges the ipod, but I think it does. I'll see if I can find the link to the ebay seller's description. I use a different MP3 player, so I use the Aux input instead.
 
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alright, thanks for your help. Looking at the pic heavy writeup, it looks like a lot more than simply plug and play. Not sure if im just psyching myself out or what.

I was really looking to just replace the old HU with a Scion HU and hear the difference. Again, whats the difference between those HU's if they're running out of the same old speakers? If i did get a Scion HU would i need to get anything else (amp, harness, adapter, etc?)

ANYONE KNOW IF TWEETER HARNESSES ARE INSTALLED IN A BASE AUDIO SYSTEM. SO I COULD JUST BUY THE TWEETERS AND PLUG EM RIGHT IN??
 
Don't get too psyched out; the write-up is pretty detailed, but in actuality the work wasn't hard at all.

The quality of the amplifier in the Scion HU is much better. The difference is especially noted on the Bass end; the Scion HU has a lot more punch than the OEM HU did. You can turn it up louder with far less distortion too. If the sound you're putting in to the speakers is crap, it will sound like crap even out of the best speakers. The OEM HU was underpowered for the speakers they chose to put in the truck.

For less than $100, you could get a T1804 (no dash bezel trimming should be required because all of the buttons sit further inboard than my T1807) and a decent set of new front speakers and the sound quality would be a world of difference!
 
ok, i just checked ur post on the "scion head units" thread. It seems that one has some features i would want like the better audio quality you just explained (thanks). The main thing is that if there's no tape deck, I'd like to have a way to play my Ipod thru it. Are there ipod adapters for all scion HU's or are only some compatible?

also, do these HUs have green backlighting like my radio (and the rest of the instrument panels)? this is less important but a factor nonetheless.

thanks
 
nah, its just 4th gen tweets in a 3rd gen 4runner.. doesnt sound promising. not to mention i still dont know if the tweeter harnesses are wired or not.
 
I'm not 100% sure, but I don't thnk the T1804 or T1805 have the Aux input. They still have the satellite radio input, so there might be a way to use that for an aux input, but you'll have to research that one. The Aux adapter on ebay will work on all the other Scion HU's. Or you can make your own for a lot cheaper.

Most of the HU's have amber backlighting (see the dark shot after install in my thread), but the T1805 and T1806 are the two that let you choose the backlighting color out of something like 8 different colors. The buttons don't change color though - they're always amber, but there are some threads (especially on Scionlife.com) where ppl have changed out the button LEDs on the circuit board to a different color.
 
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