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AM stereo replacement

Discussion in 'Subaru Sambar' started by LittleWasabi, Jun 18, 2014.

  1. LittleWasabi

    LittleWasabi New Member

    I love the local "angry old man" radio stations here in Calgary but I need some music! So before I start to take apart the entire dash of me Sambar, is there any gotchas that others have come across when changing out the stereo? The first would be fit. Will an off the shelf North American radio fit in the dash? The harness? Just have to locate the correct wires, power, ground L+R and common for the speakers. Anything else? Please chime in!
    Thanks
     
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2014
  2. packrat

    packrat Member

    check at wreckers, I found a stock AM/FM cassette Honda radio that hooked right up for my Acty for $5
     
  3. LittleWasabi

    LittleWasabi New Member

    Sweet, cassette!! I can make mixed tapes again.. hello 80's
    Thanks packrat!
     
  4. packrat

    packrat Member

    hey come on, it was only $5
     
  5. SpikeFiend

    SpikeFiend Member

  6. Deanclean

    Deanclean Member

    If you havent already replaced your radio, but my Sambar came with a "modern" stereo installed in it. Its a Kenwood KDC-152. It works great. Has a cd player and an auxiliary jack to hook my blackberry up for digitial tunes. Hope this helps.
    Ryan
     
  7. accttiger

    accttiger New Member

    I used the installation guide "SpikeFiend" provided as a guide to help me with my installation in my 91 Sambar KS4 Super Deluxe and it was extremely helpful. I took his advice and ordered my radio through Sonic Electronix to get the free accessory kit for a Subaru Justy...although most of the stuff I did not use...after making a few modifications....the free wiring harness worked great.

    I went with a Sony FM/AM Digital Media Player/Radio (Model DSX-A40UI), which fit perfect. The antenna extension cable is also a must...i purchased an 18 in extension and I just zip tied the excess up to the wiring harness after installation. Trust me...this extension makes your life a whole lot easier when you get ready to install the radio unit in the dash.

    I tried to go back with the same size oval factor speakers but couldn't quite find a set that fit correctly, so I I decided to go with a pair of 4 inch round Alpine dash speakers. I had to use a dremel to do some shaving and trimming on the plastic housing of the speaker to get a better fit, but they worked great and sound really good.

    I also had to do a small amount of shaving/trimming on the stock face plate and I did that with dremel and box cutter. The dremel really saved me some time in some areas and I would defiantly recommend using it if available.
     
    Last edited: Jul 16, 2014
  8. LittleWasabi

    LittleWasabi New Member

    I sure wish I had a correct wire diagram for my Sambar. Tried this weekend to install a Kenwood stereo and cooked the unit. I have a Yellow, red and black wire in the harness with factory tape and it doesn't match the diagram from the manual I was sold. :( Good thing the head unit was only $50 so no big expense. I'm unable to get a pre-wired harness from Kenwood to Subaru. If anyone wants to share the proper wire diagram from a manual that would be awesome!
     
  9. SpikeFiend

    SpikeFiend Member

    Use a voltmeter to measure what you're getting out of those wires. You will still need the wiring diagram for the new stereo you're going to be using though. The radio I used had 2 x 12V inputs (one for memory, and one to turn it on/off with the ACC/ON key positions), yours may be different.

    Are you sure it's just not a fuse that's blown?
     

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  10. LittleWasabi

    LittleWasabi New Member

    Thanks SpikeFiend, just kicking myself for making an assumption on the colours. I talked to the guys at JB power centre and they are going to test the head unit to see maybe there was something actually wrong with the radio itself. The key was off when I hooked it up so either way the fuse should have blown and not the stereo. But I should had tested every wire before, during and after soldering on the Kenwood harness. I just don't do this kind of work often so remembering the steps...well... lets just say a learning process! As for the fuse, i checked all fuses and all are good, albeit nothing adds up with what is on the cover vs. what is in the box LOL. I tell my wife KEI FUN!
     
  11. Seabassjay

    Seabassjay New Member

  12. SpikeFiend

    SpikeFiend Member

  13. Maximal

    Maximal Active Member

    for anyone searching this topic still, i tried the 1991 Subaru Justy radio harness for my 91 Sambar KS4 and its not a match. speaker has its own connector on the OEM radio and the constant power, switched power, grounds etc have their own connector. neither fit into the Justy adapter harness, the wrapper for the harness said Subaru 1990+. not a big deal being only $9, i ended up hardwiring a new deck into mine

    if anyone needs the wiring diagram for KS4 i can upload it, the OEM wiring harness doesnt have conventional wiring colours and its slightly tricky because the cigar lighter is wired into the radio. also for reference the antenna unplugs to the left of the steering column underneath the dash
     
  14. nepegg89

    nepegg89 New Member

    will any radio fit into the sambar? or are there small differences in sizes?
     
  15. Maximal

    Maximal Active Member

    i havent tried making a double DIN work, my 91 a regular single DIN Kenwood worked. i bought a single DIN Kenwood stereo with a TV/DVD player in it i will be installing into my 97 Sambar next week, i can post how it goes
     
    nepegg89 likes this.
  16. rkrenicki

    rkrenicki Active Member

    It is a standard single DIN, so any normal DIN radio would fit height and width wise. The depth is a little shallow, so fitting a CD deck will be tight, but it should fit unless it is exceptionally deep. I personally used a KMM-BT315U in my Sambar, which has no CD so it is quite shallow. Lots of extra room to be had with that type of radio.
     
  17. Maximal

    Maximal Active Member

    I picked up my 97 and ended up using the Kenwood from my 91 instead of the tv deck, the tv deck looks like it would block the heater controls and I would lose the cupholder. Down the line i might install it but for winter climates it's too room consuming. 97 wiring is the same as 91
     
  18. Ryan Macfarlane

    Ryan Macfarlane New Member

    Hey fellas, I've had a good look around for other threads on head unit wiring and diagrams for the singlular plug units rather than the dual plug.. Was wondering if you knew of any wiring diagrams for the single plugs?
    Cheers, Ryan
     
  19. SpikeFiend

    SpikeFiend Member

    rkenicki posted this in a similar thread:
    The Scosche SU03B lists the Baja, Legacy, and Outback models as compatible vehicles, so it's probably safe to say Subaru standardized it's radio connector during this time (1993-2007).

    This website has details on the pinout for some North American models. The Sambar is probably the same, but work carefully and see if you can test the wiring harness in the vehicle to confirm (especially which pins are power, and their polarity).
     
  20. Maximal

    Maximal Active Member

    Hey, singular plug the scosche adapter plug will work. I hardwired mine, just get a test light. It's very easy to wire, there's the gray and red wire that's speaker positive and gray and black is speaker negative, otherwise there's a switched positive wire and a constant power wire and 2 ground wires I just hooked together. That's it
     
    nepegg89 likes this.

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