The first stereo I put in my 2005 Tacoma got stolen this summer so it was time to do it all over again. It was a lot easier this time since I wasn’t starting with the stock stereo still installed, but it’s a fairly easy project either way.
Shopping List
- Head Unit: JVC KD-R810
- Dash Kit: Scosche Single Din Silver or Double DIN or Single DIN Black
- Wiring Harness: Scosche Wiring Harness
- Tools: Crimp Caps, Wire Strippers, Socket Wrench Set and Joint Pliers
Head Unit: Last time I bought a Pioneer unit and liked it, but this time around I was looking for more features, especially built in Bluetooth. I narrowed my choice down to the JVC KD-R810 because it had Bluetooth and good iPod support along with customizable backlight colors. One of the preset colors matched the rest of dash exactly. You can read my full review of it here.
Dash Kit: The Scosche kit is pretty nice and matches the flat silver color on my 2005 SR5 Access Cab almost exactly. I prefer it to the stock stereo which has the textured silver. I chose to run the Bluetooth microphone and the rear USB connector through the back of the dash kit’s pocket. There’s a plastic support piece that screws onto the back of the pocket and it covers up nearly the whole thing. I was able to drill two 1/2″ holes right next to each on each side to feed through the mic and USB. There’s just enough room with the support piece on for the cables themselves and covers up the bulk of the holes. You can kind of see this in the picture below.
Wiring Harness: The wiring harness is a must. Not only does it make installation go quicker, but it avoids having to cut the factory harness off. The wire color on the harness and the stereo are standardized so you just have to match them up and crimp. You can solder them, but either way works just fine. I found joint pliers were the easiest to get a good crimp with.
Final Results: I’m much happier with the install this time. My old stereo matched the color of the dash, but it had white text and green backlighting. I think I prefer the JVC and its black/silver front with matching lighting.
Installation Process
- Pop out climate control panel with a screwdriver
- Unbolt stereo from dash, 4 total behind the climate control panel (exact head size of bolts eludes me)
- Pop the whole stereo out, it’s held on by little clips
- Unconnect everything and bring the stereo inside
- Transfer the little yellow clips onto the dash kit
- Transfer the clock and hazards assembly to the dash kit (kind of a pain to get out)
- Wire up the harness to your new stereo, twist matching wires together, stick them in a crimp cap and give a good squeeze with pliers (give them a tug to make sure they’re in there tight)
- Drill any holes you might want in the pocket
- Install stereo in kit, but be careful not to scrape the mouth of it, the metal sleeve will take paint off
- The metal sleeve around the stereo has little tabs, bend those up along the back of the face to help lock it in
- Hook the stereo up and test it (having a second set of hands will help here)
- Connect the hazards and clock harness
- Once everything looks good, bolt the dash kit back on
- Snap climate control panel back into place
Glad the new one is working well.
Followed your guide (wouldn’t have tried without it).
Notes:
– The 4 bolts behind the fan controls are 10mm.
– The clock / hazard assembly needed punching out from the old housing without removing any screws. I had to remove one of the metal brackets from the side of the old head unit to free it. The bolts for the metal brackets are 8mm.
– Installing the deck in the new housing required removing the front bezel and the metal sleeve on the head unit. Installing it was a bit confusing. The odd shaped plastic piece is screwed on the back facing down with the two self tapping screws not shown in the provided diagram (that I could see). The two rectangular plastic bits need to be clipped in on either side of the head unit opening. They are marked “left” and “right.” Wedging the head unit between the two plastic bits through the back of the housing finished the job.
Thanks for the guidance!