Toyota Tacoma Stereo/Audio

johnm_10 · April 2006

I bought a Scosche dash kit and it looks like crap. The mold has lines in it, some of the edges are dented, and some of the paint is oversprayed making it look blistered. I called them up using the 800# on the front of the bag and they refused to warranty it. They said where I bought it from "wasn't an authorized dealer" and that I should go get it from bestbuy or cardomain. They gave me a bogus bestbuy sku number (I looked it up right with the guy on the phone) and I know they don't carry it because I just went there.

Dash kit: poor
service: extra poor

I won't ever buy something of theirs again.

I told them I would post pics on the internet, but they didn't care. So here are pics of the kit, sorry for the quality, it's hard to get the camera that close to something and have the pic clear. (Click icon for larger pic, click again for full size)

pekosrob · April 2006

so wait, i thought it was supposed to be the best one out there. so customer service sucks, but the thing doesn't work at all? i want to get the double din one... i'm still working on saving the money (and the IVA-W200 still hasn't even come out yet).

trdprerunnerdc · May 2006

I was wondering if I upgrade my stereo system to a Pioneer AVIC D2, will I loose the keyless entry feature of my trucks? The factory stereo will have to come out I suppose...?

THanks

wooddorker · May 2006

"so wait, i thought it was supposed to be the best one out there. so customer service sucks, but the thing doesn't work at all?"

Unfortunately, it appears that the original poster of the complaint was a hit and run, as he never answered the question of what the seller did to help him out.

Some points that may bear on Scosche's "bad" customer service.

- Auction and online sites, especially eBay have created a whole new market for "sideways" gray-market retail. Many of the items sold through this channel are either defective, "stripped", or used.

- In most cases, an "authorized" retailer accepts the customer service responsibility as part of his agreement with the supplier. The costs of this are part of the standard retail markup. In the case of a defective product, many manufacturers and wholesalers will replace the part to the retailer, and expect the retailer to destroy the defective item. Many suppliers don't want the defective item back. Unscrupulous retailers (or individual employees) send the bad part out the back door at a fire sale price, via eBay or a garage business site, because they didn't pay anything for it. These businesses typically don't pay taxes, either.

- Many wholesalers and manufacturers are not set up with standard "customer service" departments, as their cost structure doesn't support one. The customer service is handled and funded by the retailer, as I outlined above. The higher price of the "official" retailer is not usually extra pocket lining for the retailer, but something that covers a real cost of doing business. Many folks without business experience either are unaware of this fact, or they choose to ignore it.

- Many eBay users are so afraid of receiving retaliatory negative feedback, that they won't post negative feedback even when the deal went sour.

- The gray-market issue has gotten serious enough that companies like Garmin have actually placed statements on their site: http://www.garmin.com/support/faqs/faq.jsp?faq=607 warning customers that they may not be supported if they don't buy the item from an genuine dealer.

The bottom line is that there is value dealing with a "real" retailer (and some ARE online!, like Crutchfield). Otherwise, we have to be prepared to suck it up if the seller stiffs us. Once upon a time, more manufacturers would have fixed the problem, but the problem is now so big, they often can no longer afford to!

I wish he would have posted the SELLER'S name!

You payz your money, and takes your chances...

budol · May 2006

Hello,
I wanted to know if anyone has the directions to remove the stock deck from my 2006 Tacoma?

Thanks

pekosrob · May 2006

So I'm expecting my Alpine IVA-W200 double din DVD player to come in tomorrow, and I just bought a Sirius satellite receiver. Anyone have any idea how to route the cable from the antenna from the outside rear of the cab to the inside? Also, any suggestions where to put the receiver box?? No room inside the glove compartment, although it may be possible to remove the glove compartment and install it behind it. My friend said to try opening up the third brake light and route the wire through there... Any suggestions would be great!

pb2themax · May 2006

I am happy with my Scosche dash kit. It looks perfect and is pretty solid. I added some glue where the side mounts attach, but it wasn't really necessary.

I really like my Eclipse AVN6600 too. All the stock wiring just plugs right in. No wiring harness adapters.

I ran the Sirius and GPS antennas out through the 3rd brake light and on top of the roof. Then I sealed around the brake light with black silicone adhesive. Works awesome. I love the Sirius and GPS. Watching DVDs is cool too.

wooddorker · May 2006

"I really like my Eclipse AVN6600 too. All the stock wiring just plugs right in. "

Do the steering wheel controls work?

Thanks!

pb2themax · May 2006

I don't have the steering wheel controls on my truck, but yes they do plug in, and work perfectly. I've talked to other guys that have an Eclipse with stock steering wheel controls.

The reason that everything plugs right in is because the company that makes Eclipse is also the company that designs Toyota's stock radios. Fujitsu-Ten

havok · May 2006

Hey, post some pix after your install. I want the same system too along with a rear monitor, the GPS module, and a backup camera.
Are you going to use the Scosche DD kit?

I'm just scared someone's going to steal mine right after I get it.

pb2themax · May 2006

I would certainly get a security system before you get an DVD/Nav head unit.

I ran my Sirius and GPS antenna cables through the 3rd brake light. I pulled the headliner down, then I cut the sealant foam from the outside and pushed the connectors through. Then ran the wires down the passenger side. There's lots of room above the glove box to mount a satelite radio reciever. After I was done I sealed up the the 3rd brake light with black RTV Silicone adhesive.

For the GPS you'll have to tap into a few wires. The backup wire can be found in a bundle of wires under the door sill trim on the drivers side. The VSS (Speed Sensor) wire can be found behind the glove box going into the CPU. It's a thin purple wire with a white stripe. It's in the second plug from the bottom. As for the brake wire, I just connected it to the radios ground wire, so that the head unit will think that I have the brake applied, and then it will let the DVD player play all the time. Otherwise you can only watch a DVD when the truck is parked.

mobert78 · May 2006

I neet to remove the center console in my 2006 tacoma. Anyone have any tips to do so? It's a manual and I need to remove the whole thing from below the dash to the flip-top console. Thanks.

pb2themax · May 2006

I assume that the process is similar to how I took out the console in my auto trans 05 taco. Pull off the silver trim/cupholder peice around the shifter, then undo the two screws that hold the console to the shifter. Then pull up the carpet in the bottom of the console/armrest. Take out those two 10mm bolts. Then you just pull the whole thing back and up at the same time, toward the rear window. It has clips that hold it in the front, but they just pop loose when you jerk on it. That's it.

rlbtacoma · May 2006

Hey pb2themax,
how good is the gps on that system? Looking to get one now! Just need some feed back.
Thanks, and nice truck!!!

pb2themax · May 2006

It's great. It seems to be accurate within about 20 feet. It's not annoying or very hard to operate, at least for me. You can turn the guidance voice off, or on, and control the volume of her voice. It gives you plenty of warning on upcoming turns. It quickly finds a new route, if you need to bypass the planned route. It will show where all the local gas stations, ATMs, hotels, restaurants are. And it will show you their phone numbers too, in case you want to call ahead and reserve seats at a restaurant or a room in a hotel.

You can have the GPS going on while you are watching a DVD or CD or whatever. You can easily switch back and forth between the GPS and the DVD screen. When a turn is coming up, the sound will mute in the speaker by the driver and then the ladies voice will tell you what you need to do. It doesn't interupt the whole sound system, just the speakers by the driver, which is nice.

It will also do a split screen and show you the next several steps of your route, not just the next road.

You can do the fastest route, highway only, scenic route, no toll roads. You can easily add any extra stop-offs, like amusement parks, museums, nature parks, etc.

I really recommend the Eclipse AVN-6600.

jlv1204 · June 2006

2006 Tacoma factory 6 speaker set-up, not the JBL system. The standard poor quaility Toyota set-up. Can not believe the low end speakers, magnet is about the size of a coke bottle top. The Toyota web site out lines the arrangement of the JBL speaker system in the Tacomas. It shows 2 tweeters upper front doors, two sub's lower front doors and 2 full range rear doors with an amp and sub back seat.
Question is, does the factory speaker system follow the same arrangement as the JBL. Are the front door speakers subs or are they standard full range speakers. Looking for the proper replacement speaker set-up. Anticipate using the taco spacers and accesories for the speaker upgrade. taco mentions replacing the 4 speaker with full range 3-ways front and rear. I further anticpate replacing the factory door tweeters with the JBL version to prevent any major fabrication issues. They have to be better than the factory version. Intresting taco does not offer any accessories to replace the tweeters.

Any info would be great.

pb2themax · June 2006

The stock speaker magnets are small because they are high strength neodymium magnets. But I still agree that they are weak.

The stock sound system in a double cab or access cab has: A tweeter and 6x9 in the front door. The rear door has a 6.5". If you have the JBL system then there will be an amplifier and a single 8" subwoofer behind the rear seat on the passenger side. I've heard it, and it's not that impressive. You would be better off by not getting the JBL system and then add an aftermarket sound system.

I replace the so-called stock tweeters with B&G high-end home audio ribbon tweeters. I replaced the stock 6x9s with Dayton Audio RS180 7" woofers in all 4 doors.

The crossover is mounted on the door temporarily. I will soon switch to an Active speaker arrangement (no passive crossovers).

autaco · June 2006

I just bought an 06 double cab with the JBL system. I want to replace the head unit with a pioneer avic Z1 with navigation. I wanted to avoid pulling the truck all aprt to change speakers and all sorts of things. Now I hear that the jbl amplifier is turned on by a data line and that it will not work with an aftermarket radio. The local audio shop wants to bypass the amp that they don't even know where it is, install some great big amp, cut plastic behind the rear seat, and install all new speakers. I hope this is not the answer. I like the JBL sound and want to do minimal alterations to the truck. I know I'm not the first person with this problem, so somebody please help.....

pb2themax · June 2006

The amp is built into the sub enclosure behind the seat. I'm not sure about the other issues the the JBL stuff.

ish6 · July 2006

Hey guys. I just bought a 2005 Tacoma. It had an after market dash kit with after market CD player. I want the factory dash kit and CD player. I'm willing to trade someone my after market dash kit and CD player for the factory dash kit.

pekosrob · July 2006

I have the original CD player for the 2005 Tacoma. I just upgraded to an Alpine IVA-W200 DVD screen last May. The thing is, it's not a dash kit, the dash is actually a part of the CD player. I tried to tinker with it to separate it (I left a CD in there, but it was a burned copy, so no big deal) to try and get the CD out, but no luck, it's on there tight. Is that what you're looking for? To put the original stereo back in? Or a dash kit that looks like the factory?

pekosrob · July 2006

OK guys, I'm going nuts. Why did Toyota have to make it so annoying to change out the speakers in the Tacomas? I wanna get some component speakers for the front doors, but apparently none of the ones I see at crutchfield.com don't fit. I heard about some brand called MB Quart, but again, I have no idea if they're any good. Does anyone know if the speaker brackets at tacotunes.com works for any speaker, or certain ones? Also, any ideas on GOOD speakers to put in the Tacos? I want to replace all of them. Either component 6x9's that would also replace the tweeters, or 6x9's, tweeters, and 6.5" speakers for the rear.

pb2themax · July 2006

You can fit pretty much any speaker under 8" in the doors of the 05/06 Tacoma. You just have to have an adapter plate to make the bolt holes match up. I made my own from MDF. Check out TacoTunes.com if you want to buy them.

ish6 · July 2006

pekosrob,
Thanks for the reply. I'm looking for the original CD player with the original dash piece that's a part of it so it will look like it did from the factory. When I purchased the Tacoma it had an after factory dash kit in it along with an after factory CD player. You interested in selling or trading?

baldy54 · July 2006

Hello pb2themax, I am newbe and own a 06 toyota tacoma double I would like to put in the same radio in the truck.. I would like to know where did you get the dash from web or store?? and how did you run the antennas after you went thru the third Break light,did you down the back wall then thru under the door jams?? where did you mount the sirius box? Is the GPS and the Sirius antenna next to each other on the roof of the truck?? Do you have any pics that show how you did it?? I am very interested in how you have done the install of the radio on the truck.

pb2themax · July 2006

I partially took down the headliner then I took the connectors off of the ends of the wires and ran them though a hole that I poked in the foam gasket in the top of the 3rd brake light. Then I ran the wires down the passenger side, by the seatbelt, under the door sill plates, behind the kick panel, behind the glove box and then to the radio. Then I sealed the 3rd brake light with black RTV silicone adhesive to make it water tight.

Here's a picture of the antennas.

baldy54 · July 2006

Pb2themax, thanks for the reply now I know were to run it.. two last questions for you. were did you mount the small Sirius box that the antenna plugs into? also Where did you buy your scosche dash kit from?? I dash is silver and the kit need to be silver.. If you have any more pictures that would also help in install the radio,Sirius box. thanks for you help for the install of the stero..

hanbt · July 2006

I have an 06 Tacoma V6 dcab. I'm upgading to an in dash Eclipse AVN 5500 w/navigation and I'm having trouble locating a wire is called vehicle speed pulse signal terminal if anybody knows where and what color that wire might be please advise me, thanks for your help...

baldy54 · July 2006

Did Find were the vehicle speed pulse signal?? I have the same truck 06 I have a couple of question for you.. Were did you get the dash kit store or internet?? I looking for one so I can put the same radio in my truck also. If you have satlite radio Were did you put the box to pug it in the radio??

rambeau71 · July 2006

anyone know what size speakers I can put in a 2004 tacoma access cab?

hanbt · July 2006

I haven't found the speed pulse signal wire yet I just leave it as side will hook it up later when I find it. I got the dash kit on the following website with reasonable price www.discountcarstereo.com/detail.aspx?ID=893, I installed sirus satlite receiver in the glove box, if you get any info. about the speed pulse signal wire please let me know, thanks.

nytaco05 · July 2006

You should change all your speakers with some (components)6.5 Polk Audio db6500 rated at 100W RMS. Pioneer makes a shallow mount 12" sub rated at 350w RMS, a set of these would fit perfectly behind the rear seat of a DBL CAB since the debt of the subs is only 3.4 inches. audio bahn makes a 4 ch amp that can power all speakers. Oh and by the way, you will need the 6.5 mount from taco tunes for your front speakers.

twitol · July 2006

I have 2 questions. Wich is better to upgrade with, stick with a 5x7, or a 6.5 comp. speaker system.
Also, I'm looking for a speaker that will work well with my stock stereo to begine with, then will put out a great sound when I add a new deck, and amp. later. The amp. I have is a Kicker, 35 RMS. 4 channel. I listen to Rock. Anything from AC/DC to ZZ Top. If anyone has any good advice I would appreciate it. Thanks.

pb2themax · July 2006

5x7? Our Tacomas have 6x9s in the front doors and 6.5" in the rear. Most audiophiles scrap the 6x9s and use 6.5" components in the doors. You need to make or buy an adapter plate to make aftermarket speakers fit. Check tacotunes.com. I put 7" in my doors, but even some shallow 8" mids will fit.

pekosrob · July 2006

Thanks, so basically as long as I get those 6x9 and 6.5" speaker mounts from tacotunes.com i'll be able to put a bunch of different speakers in? i just have one question - component speakers will fit in the front door as well? i'd like to put components in the front AND back if possible! i know the rear speakers are for filler, but i want to sound great. i'd need to get an amp though, right? i have an alpine iva-w200 DVD player and was thinking about getting the sound processor for it ($500 at crutchfield: PXA-H701). if it's also got an amp, then i'm totally down for it, but if not, i don't know what i should do.

pb2themax · July 2006

You can put components in the front. Just replace the stock tweet with the component tweet. I would go with coaxials in the rear. No need for components in the rear, plus you would have to mount the tweets somewhere.

If you tap into the stock wiring then you need to connect to the wiring where all the tape is, before the wiring splits off into two pairs. just take the door panel apart and you'll see what I mean.

the PXA Alpine processor only puts out to outboard amps via RCAs. You wouldn't be able to power the speakers off of the headunit.

baldy54 · July 2006

I need a little help with a install of Eclipse AVN 6600. I have a 06 dbl cab tacoma Need to find out were the reverse signal wire is to hook up the to the stereo? and if anyone has hooked it up. also Need help to find the vehicle speed pulse signal wire is it at?? Thanks for the help..

twitol · July 2006

I picked up some Polk DB6500 for the front doors. I was wonderind what would be the best amount of sound deading material to use. I have seen pic's of doors that had to have cost over $100, and ones that were a 10"x10" squair.What would be a fair amount, thats not overkill?
Thanks...

pekosrob · July 2006

So if I get component speakers for the front, I'll definitely need to get an amp for the speakers? getting the multi sound processor isn't that important, I just want really good sound. Not like I'm gonna spend hours watching DVDs in my car, or play video games (but I'll admit having the option of playing Gamecube in the truck is awesome). Also, I want to get a Borla Cat Back for the Taco, how easy is it to put these bolt on exhaust systems? I don't know crap about doing stuff like this, and I'll probably just take it to a mechanic.

pb2themax · July 2006

No. if you get the processor then you will need an amp. It would be a lot easier and cheaper to just power the components off of the head unit. You might want to get a head unit that has built in crossovers, EQs, and maybe Time Alignment (time delay). Go to Crutchfield or some audio forums and do some research.

nytaco05 · July 2006

Welcome. I personally think you should have the same component speakers on all doors. Most components comes with a surface mount, and a flush mount. And the best sub you can get are the pioneers shallow mount. They fit perfectly fine behind the rear seats of the DBL CAB. I am going to make a custom enclosure for the subs, amps, and capacitor. This is something i plan on doing later this year. before i start that project, i need to build a driveway that goes into my side yard(just to keep my investment safer). One thing you should consider before investing your money is an auto alarm pager. I have one with the Remote starter and it works fine, the pager could be louder.

Well I hope everything goes well with the Truck.

pekosrob · July 2006

so I decided I would focus on getting my exhaust first, that way I can tell how much power I need for the speakers. I have a head unit already - Alpine IVA-W200. It's a DVD touch screen with a sirius subscription, ipod full speed hook up, and an a/v in for a GameCube. I figure I would get some component speakers for the front, and maybe some Infinity Reference (the Kappas would be a waste of money since I wouldn't be able to power them to their potential without an amp). But for now I just ordered a Borla Cat-Back Exhaust system from performance products.com (It was around $580 for the exhaust and shipping, I think they're around $630 if you order it directly from Borla). Looks like all I really need are some speaker mounts from Tacotunes.com, a pair of components, as pair of 6.5" infinity's. Thanks for the help, I'll try and post something later, maybe the sound of the exhaust. Does anyone know exactly how much hp gain you get outta the cat-back borla systems?

nytaco05 · July 2006

i bought my borla cat back exhaust from my friend's father(he works for Borla). He gave me the cat back exhaust along with a few other parts for $400. It was a good deal i say. You can mount it yourself. might take you like a hour or 2. The HP gain on the wheel probally is somewhere between 5-15hp(havent gotten the truck dynoed yet. There is a slight increase in PWR. A great way to gain PWR is by purchasing a K&N 77 series intake. It adds about 12 hp on the wheel. You will really feel the difference after adding the intake.

hanbt · July 2006

Hi, I'm trying to install the tail gate power lock and I'm having trouble locating the lock and unlock wires any one knows please help me, thanks.

pekosrob · July 2006

Man, that kit looks great!! I didn't know what mine would look like until it came in. Pretty crappy, because it's black, but I didn't feel like waiting for another kit to come in. The thing is, it was free with my purchase from crutchfield.com, and I could really care less at this point. Later on I might get a different dash kit. I ran into some problems when I installed the head unit, it stuck out too far, and me and a friend tried mounting the brackets a little closer towards the front of the unit, and we barely got it in there. There were so many wires: head unit wires, sirius, ipod, a/v for gamecube. Anyways, we also had to adjust the height of the mounted unit for it to fit. That's another reason I'm not sure if I want to get another dash kit, because it might not fit any better (or it could fit even worse). As for GPS, I don't really need it since I live in a small city, and the Alpine add on is pretty expensive ($1700 - costs as much as the flip up Pioneer that has GPS already). Of course I wanted a double din, because it has all that space, and I didn't want an unsightly pocket. I also like the simple design, all the buttons I need are right on the bottom, and I don't need to use the remote since it's touch screen. Yours looks GREAT though! Can't wait for my Borla exhaust to be put on this weekend.

dsignguy_35 · August 2006

did you get those JL 6" subs in? how did/do they sound? is it enough bass? I jst got my 06 access cab, and I'm trying to build a good sounding system, but keep it looking stock.

dsignguy_35 · August 2006

I'm taking mine out next week. already have the dash kit, but may be interested in your radio. what is the brand/model. mine is an 06, so make sure it will fit yours.

dsignguy_35 · August 2006

mb quarts are pretty good, ans are the higher end JL, but if you want REALLY good sound and have the budget go with FoCal.

pekosrob · August 2006

I think I'm gonna go with the Polk Audio db6500 component speakers. I did a little comparison of those with some alpine components, another Polk Audio set, infinity reference and infinity kappas. The Kappas are nice, but with the slight differences in the Kappas and db6500s, I don't think it's worth the money, plus I don't really want to get an amp, so it would be a waste of potential watts. For the rear speakers I'll probably go with some inifnity reference 6.5"

toytacstuph · August 2006

Well I have the ToyTac DblCab (its great, but a lot honkin bigger than my 92 extended cab toy-truck was) and am getting ready to do some stereo upgrading. Im looking at Infinity Kappa 60.7cs (front) and Infinity Kappa62.7i (rear) speaker upgrades. Then a Sony CDX-GT400 head unit, likely followed by a disc changer. Ill see how this setup sounds and then consider an amp if I need more power and a sub in the rear if I cant live without the bass.
I do have a couple more questions (and thanks to pb2themax for the last answer); does anyone know the size/number of the bolts that tacotunes uses to mount their adapters? Im getting their adapters, and probably could figure it out, but if anyone knows that could save me a step. Second question relates to the system Im planning; anyone see any problems? Now Im an old fart and well beyond the need to make my ears bleed, or to challenge the dufus in front/back/beside me whose vehicle is vibrating due to too-lots o watts. Im just looking for a good sound that I can do myself. However, I dont want to run into some unanticipated issues
Thanks in advance,
tt&stuph

Toyota Tacoma Stereo/Audio

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