Aftermarket Stereo Install for my 2006 Honda Element part 2

Posted On April 8, 2013

Continued from https://heavymod.com/aftermarket-ster…lement-part-1/

Ok – so the first thing I do as part of the installation is unplug my car battery. I don’t want to accidentally short/fry anything.

With the front trim panel off, I remove the 4 screws shown in the previous video, and the factory radio slides right out. I unplug the factory radio and set it aside. I then plug in my own harness.

When I pulled the radio out, it was screwed into a small frame, along with the under radio pocket. I was able to just unscrew the old radio, and screw my new one in. Very straightforward. I then plug the white harness into my stereo.

For the most part I can just push these cables back in place, and be ready to roll. However I need to figure out where I am going to put the USB cable. I have a few feet to work with, and I’m going to try sticking it in the glove compartment.

I take off the glove co, and use a nifty tool I got with a scoche wiring kit. It is designed to make wiring RCA cables earlier, but it will work for this as well. Starting in the glove, I push the long orange wire up into the dash opening.

Hook it around the USB wire…

And pull it through…

I then slide the radio unit into place, attach the battery cable for a quick test:

Looks good, so I screw the 4 screws back in, and pop on the panel.

The radio at the top is flush to the trim…  It rests a few MM more forward than I would like, but I think that it is designed to “bulge” outwards a bit.

SCORING:

• Device is Functional: +15
• Parts Damaged: Trim: -5
• Parts Damaged: Plastic snaps: -1
• Time Spent 300% estimate: -1
• Additional Parts: Under $50: +1

POST MORTEM:

• Took way longer than expected ( 3+ hours counting re-reading tutorials )
• Trim tools + RCA wiring device were very helpful
• Last minute harness purchase cost twice as much since I bought it at Best Buy
• Buying better trim tools from ebay, or Harbor Freight. They are cheap, and seem like good things to have around. Especially a metal puller of some sort. I’m going to mess around with the audio more in the future ( install amp / speakers )
• I really need to get better at removing trim, I don’t want to scratch the hell out of my interior working on the amplifier/speakers.

Much thanks to www.elementownersclub.com . Amazing resource, and very friendly people.