I wanted a better stereo system in my Toyota RAV4 — one with an AUX input so I can easily plug and play music from my cellphone’s headphone jack. Luckily for me, Marco got a new stereo for his car and his old one was just sitting around collecting dust… so I asked him about it and he gave it to me! I now have a JVC KD-G140 stereo system. I didn’t really know how to hook it up to my car, so I searched YouTube and found this video that was very informative: How to wire / install a car stereo / deck (aftermarket head unit installation with butt connectors)
I had to buy two things before I could install my new stereo:
1. A wire harness, which is basically a plug with exposed wires for my car so I don’t have to cut my old stereo wires. I bought this on eBay from seller volaudio for $3.89 total.
2. A box of butt connectors, for connecting 2 wire ends together. I bought a box of 21 pieces at O’Reilly Auto Parts for $3.69 total. These fit 22-18 gauge wires. I didn’t have a pair of crimping pliers to use, but I did have a pair of Lineman’s pliers which worked well enough.
So what I had to do after I had gotten those 2 things was to just match the wire colors from the wire harness to the new stereo’s wires. I have taken progress pictures and placed them in a gallery below:
Overall, I am very pleased with the new stereo. I can now listen to my music on my phone without using an FM transmitter (which was pretty crappy). Learning how to replace a car stereo and getting my hands dirty was pretty fun. I have to thank Marco for giving me his old stereo system!