I was wondering if any one may have any info on replacing the factory radio in my 02 ls. My question is do i have to buy the relocation kit and install the factory unit in the trunk or is there a way to completley do away with the factory stereo? My car does not have onstar but it does have the factory amp in the trunck if that matters.

 

you got to buy a kit that retails at 150$ just to maintain the norm. i just bought one used on ebay for 35bucks with the rcas cut off. i repaired the rcas myself but aint even sure if i need them. i dont think i do but iv never changed the hu of a monte carlo yet. i got a pioneer double din in the mail tho and it comes in on monday and ill be taking videos of myself as i put the deck in and get it all working so i can give you a full run down on whatcha need. the product i bought is called the GMOS-04. i drive an 04 ss btw so just look around and see if you can find one cheap.

 

Thanks for the info. I had some spare time yesterday and built a harness for it. It worked out well took a little time but to me was worth it to not have to buy the expensive harness.

 

How did you build the harness though? Just hooking the wires straight up doesn't cut it. You'll still lose the door chimes and the RAP feature, not to mention probably setting BCM codes. The expensive interfaces do more than just adapt the wiring harness.

 

I bought a relocation kit used two from a another Monte guy for $15 shipped. So they are out there I agree look for one on forums or ebay. I am also going to install a Pioneer double din in my car two. So I am looking forward to seeing this video of you putting in your HU.

 

You talking you just relocated the stock in the trunk?


and Dbl_D718 right, you could make the new deck work but as for maintaining all the stuff you need the thing

 

All I did was relocated the factory unit to the trunk. I looked online for a cheap kit and never could find a good deal on one i probably was not looking in the right place. The way I did mine took a little time but with every thing soldered and heat shrunk should never have a problem. Every thing still works on the car door chimes, light delay and so on. I also was not concerened with cutting in to the factory wiring in the car loosing resale value or any thing like that i got very lucky buying it. The car is near perfect conditon it had a blown intake gasket and the person i got it from was told it needed a whole new engine because it had to have major problems due to water in the oil so i was able to pick it up for $500 replaced the intake gasket and all is good. Sorrry for getting of subject but my point is the route i went probably isnt for every one but for me it seemed to be the way to go and every thing still works and i saved to $150 on the kit by just using things i had around the garage. And sorry for my spelling.

 

Gotcha. I suppose I shouldn't have assumed you built a harness to remove the factory radio altogether lol. If you have the skill to build your own harness and save the money from buying one, why not

 

How did that GMOS-04 work for you? I currently have an e-mail into Metra to see if I wired mine wrong. Do you speakers in the car work just as good as factory after the GMOS-04 was installed? I noticed on mine it doesn't seem like the amp is on at all. There is no bass, at least not like the sound I got from the factory unit.

 

If your speakers are playing anything at all, the amp is on. If everything is wired according to Metra's instructions, have you tried adjusting any of the head unit's EQ options? Maybe you just need to make some changes on the head unit, like boosting the lower frequencies some.