New Head unit

I have a new stereo head unit and will be changing it out tomorrow. What is the easierst way to get the factory stereo out?

Check the how-to section. There is an article on that posted there.

Thanks BP...I searched for that but couldn't find that!

Btw, don't know if you've noticed but Metra (seems to be the mfr of all dash kits for aftermarket radios) makes two different versions for Jeeps with round corners. The standard one has the headunit poking out from the dash. The other one lets the headunit sit further back, more flush with the dash, and adds a pretty useless pocket underneath. It doesn't seem like much, but it looks so much better. I think most places don't carry it because sitting so far back isn't good for *some* headunits with motorized faceplates.

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My 04 there was 1 screw at the back of that little cubby down by the ashtray/power supply. Then that whole bezel pulls off. You will have to disconnect the wire plugs for the heater controls and vacuum tubes on the backside of that bezel.There are 4 screws to take the head unit out and thats it. For some reason I remember pulling off the shifter bezel too.

Oh yeah, I think you pull it out of gear to get behind that bezel to unplug stuff. Its pretty straight forward. Philips screw driver is about all you need.

I also had to get an adapter for the antenna wire to plug into my new Panasonic head unit.

You might want to shift into neutral to pull the bezel off. When you see the force it takes, you'll realize that the screw on the bottom right is pretty much useless. Once off, you can rotate the bezel enough to get to the radio mount without having to disconnect anything. And yes, remember to get an antenna adapter since Chrysler uses a locking mechanism on their plugs.

Here's my adapter.

Thanks everyone. Can't wait to get the new stereo installed...I miss my MP3s. This also has the Aux input so I can play my iPod also if I ever bring it home from work.

kj924 said:

Here's my adapter.

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Click to expand...

Just like mine. They're amazingly hard to find around here in stores. Even crutchfield didn't carry them when I bought my headunit. I tried both out and liked the flush-mount model a lot better, even though the pocket is way too narrow and way too deep.

I got mine at a local stereo shop here for about 20 bucks, which is amazing since I usually have to order even the simplest things.

Just replaced my deck and wanted to share a picture. Didn't get that neat little hiding hole, but I found that the USB flash drive fits nicely in the console below the shifter. (KDC-M638U)

Looks good! The hidey-hole is pretty much useless anyway. It's too narrow for most anything, and so deep you could lose anything that *would* fit in it. The only good thing about it is that the headunit sits further back and you don't have to use the bezel that came with the radio.