QuestionHi Brian,
Game time! I've been reading through your answers, and you seem very knowledgeable- so I'm hoping your the man to go to with a few very specific questions. I have a 2003 Ford Taurus.
I have a stock deck, and I bought a sub, and an amp, and a amp kit to wire it all together. I purchased a LOC as well because I plan on tapping into the rear speakers to provide my amp with the RCA inputs it needs (while hopefully still maintaining power in the rear speakers?)
How do I run the power wire from the amp to the battery? Specifically, how do I get through the firewall and under the carpet and through the back seats? I thought I had read about an unused clutch port somewhere near the center of the firewall, but I can't find ANYTHING (and I don't want to drill.)
I'm also unsure as to how to run and connect the remote wire that turns the amp on and off, but I'm hoping that will be obvious once I "get in there."
So in a nutshell:
Will tapping into the rear speakers with a LOC be possible without compromising the performance of the rear speakers?
How do I run the wire from battery to amp?
How do I run and connect the remote wire from stock deck to amp?
This is my first time dealing with wiring anything inside a car, so I want to do it safely, but I want to do it myself so I learn (and I can't afford to foot the installation bill.) I appreciate your previous answers and thank you for taking the time to read my question.
AnswerHi Justin,
A 2003 Taurus probably isn't the first car I'd pick to teach myself how to do an amplifier installation, but there are a few tricks I can pass along.
First of all, don't worry about the effect of the LOC on the rear speakers. A line output converter is designed to provide a low-level audio signal for an amplifier without affecting the high-level signal into which it's tapped. If it's correctly installed, you won't notice any difference in your rear speakers.
The real heart of the factory audio system in your Taurus is the tuner/amplifier box, mounted on the driver's side rear wheel well, under the liner in the trunk. You can find your speaker wires at this location; you might find it easier to tap the LOC there instead of under the rear deck. All the factory speaker wires can be found in the larger plug at the tuner/amp. The head unit module at the front is really just a control box; there's no reason to remove it during the installation, because there aren't any useful wires behind it.
The remote wire connection won't be obvious. You'll need to connect the amp's remote wire to a power source that switches off when you turn the car off. (Ideally, you'll want one that switches off when you turn the radio off; but you won't find a wire like this in the vehicle). If you get to the tuner/amp pack, you might find small plastic plug, attached to the side wall of the trunk near the amplifier. This plug should have three wires in it. If it's present, one of the three wires should test as an "accessory" power wire, switching on and off with the key switch. You'd need to use a voltmeter to identify the correct wire, but if it's there, you can connect it to your amp's remote wire. Another option is to run the remote wire up to the steering column area, and connect it to the thick black/green wire in the key switch harness. If you do this, though, you'll need to put a 1-amp fuse on your remote wire, near the point you tap into the black/green wire. This will protect your car's ignition circuit if the remote wire gets shorted.
Another option is to pick a LOC that has a remote trigger feature. When this type of LOC senses an audio signal on the factory speaker wires, it generates a 12VDC output that can be used for the amp remote wire.
I usually prefer to connect all the wires to the amp first, then mount the amp and run the power wires from the back to the front. You can remove the lower part of the rear seat by pushing backwards on it, then pulling up on the front edge of the seat. You'll need to do this on each side to release the seat bottom. You'll see plenty of space to run the power wiring under rear seat from the trunk to the front. The plastic sill panels running along the bottom of the door frame, front and rear, can just be pulled up and off. This will give you access to the edge of the carpet, and you can tuck the power wire underneath the carpet and up to the front of the car.
The most difficult part of the installation will be running the power wire through the firewall. There is an unused rubber grommet that can be pierced for the power wire, but it will be hard to get to. The grommet location depends on your car's shift lever design.
Some Taurus' come with a gear shift lever mounted on the steering column, and some have a shifter in the center console. If the car has a column shift lever, then there's a cable running through the firewall above the fuse box, under the driver's side dash. If there's a console shift lever, the cable runs through very low on the center of the firewall, right behind the engine. Whichever location does NOT have the shifter cable in your Taurus, will have a blank rubber grommet. If it's above the fuse box, you can usually unscrew the fuse box mounting bolts and move it a few inches out of the way. If it's in the center firewall, you can get to it from the passenger side footwell, pulling back the carpet and digging for the grommet right in front of the center console. In either case, the grommet won't be easy to reach; but you can usually get to it and pop it right out of the opening in the firewall. Then pierce it, push your wire through it, then run the wire through the hole in the firewall and push the grommet back into place. You'll need to carefully route the wire through the engine compartment, securing it away from hot or moving engine components.
Hope this helps!
Brian
