Beating the Odds of Getting Your Car Stereo Stolen

Tech - Installing a Secretaudio

Auto burglary has become one of the fastest growing felony crimes. Almost any car stereo is worth about $20-$50.00 on the street which may be good for a rock of cocaine. Its a horrible thought that your hard earned money invested in a stereo for you car could end up in the hands of a junkie.

We have found the answer to having good tunes in your car or truck without having to worry about it...Secretaudio! This system was originally designed for custom hot rods, however we have found that its a great way to keep the original look in your car or truck while upgrading your stereo system.

Our daily work horse, a Chevy Suburban, is the perfect example for our story. This truck is usually parked in strange places and due to that the stereo has never been upgraded. And, you know what its like to listen to the stock radio and tapes...yikes!

We approached our friends at Sal Audio Accessories in Wilmington, CA. for help with the installation. Two young and very ambitious guys who

Rocky Garcia from Sal's Auto Sound preparing to install the Secretaudio into our Suburban

have been installing custom stereo systems since the age of 16 have now decided to open their own shop. Only 3 weeks since the grand opening and they already have a waiting list for daily installations. That shows you how good these kids are.

While Salvador (Chava) Garcia was busy running the business, Rocky Garcia, Sal's protégé, would do all the trick installation.

One of the most fun things about this project was seeing the expression on Sal (Chava) and Rocky's face when we first listened to the radio after the installation. "It Sounds Awesome!" both guys exclaimed. They were not expecting the quality of sound from this stereo.

Here is a step by step installation that may help for all the do-it-yourself installers. However, Sal Audio Accessories is located at 921 W. Anaheim Blvd. Wilmington, CA 90744 and they will be happy to take on the project for you! You may want to call in for an appointment at (310) 952-9363 and tell them you read about them here, they will give you a deal!

**Click on any picture to enlarge


Deciding were to place all the parts and yet keep the dash stock looking was the first challenge.	The in-dash O.E radio will have to be pulled in order to get to the wire harness.	After removing the radio Rocky identified all the wires that would be tapped into. The O.E radio will still turn on in order for the clock to work.

Disassembly of the interior starts with the removal of the seatbelts. There is a hidden screw underneath it the belt harness.	All the equipment will then have to be test fitted prior to cutting. The face plate would be installed deep into the dashboard tray.	The radio will be intslled under the tray inside the center console its ultimate hideaway.

Rocky felt that we would need a little more sound volume at least to the front speakers. He happen to have a Kendwood amplifier laying around that could be fitted under the passenger seat.	The difference between a good and bad installation is in the detail. Rocky spent most of its time making sure that all the cables were run properly underneath the carpet.	A proper ground for the amplifier ensures that there will be no engine noise coming thru the speakers. Grinding away some of the paint under the carpet for the ground wire to bolt to will do the job.

Rocky explained the importance of using the same amp fuse in the power wire and the amplifier itself. He used a 15A fuse in both places.	our original idea was to install the CD changer inside the center console. As you can see this did not quite work.	So we had to remove the driver seat and install it underneath it. We actually liked this better.

The final touches included strapping all the wires together and making sure that all the connectors are easily identified in case they need to be accessed later. This a trick of the trade among the pros!	A 27A battery is used in the remote that controls the complete system, it's tiny and so much fun to use!	The final product! The only visible item is the face plate that can't really be seen from the outside of the car as it is well tucked inside the dashboard tray area.

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