HU Harness Wiring

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

Whats the best way to wire a HU harness to the vehicle specific harness?

My CD7000 harness is getting short and I want something that I can just sort of unplug and plug into another harness if need be. I was going to use the bullet connectors, but the bullets are a tight fit and the metal pulls out of the sleeve fairly easily. I dont have a soldering iron or the know how to use one.

What other options do I have?

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[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

buy a soldering iron and learn how to use it. heat shrink the wires. that's the correct and best way to do it. just make the leap - you'll be glad you did.

soldering is pretty easy. i'm sure there are tons of videos on the net. i've been doing it for almost 16 years now, so obviously you get better with time. soldering wires is easy - especially when they are on a table in front of you. soldering in a car is a bit trickier, just because of the position and being careful with the iron.

if you refuse to solder, then you can use NEMA rated butt splice connectors, properly crimped (i.e. buy a good crimper). avoid the el-cheapo butt splice connectors at walmart. find an autoparts store or electronics store or hardware store, or order them online. NEMA connectors usually have a harder, shiny plastic while the cheap ones are softer and dull. but with a short wire harness, this is tough to do.

you can also buy a new harness for the head unit.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

This one is only $20 and it's adjustable with an integrated holder...

Adjustable Solder Station

don't forget the solder (silver is nice)

Lead Free Rosin Core Solder - Tin / Silver / Copper 6OZ

and desoldering braid if you make a mistake

Rosin Flux Desoldering Braid - 10' x 0.075''

radio shack sells all of this also.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

i've taken a lot of detailed pics of me soldering in action and during the process. i can make a soldering post if necessary/wanted.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

I have a good crimper. I didnt want to use butt splices because you cant get them off. I want something thats plug and play so when I switch to a new car all I have to do is buy the harness for that car, stripe the wire, put on the male/female ends that correspond the ones on the HU harness and plug them in.

 

[FenixAudio 10+ year member]

buy kline crimpers and use crimp caps. i have installed 1000's of decks and never not a single time used solder. twist properly and crimp correctly and afterward zip tie the wires together to take any pressure off the caps and it will never come off.

now if i was doing this at home and had an hr to spend on a deck harness id do as mentioned above. that is the best way if you have the time and tools to do it.

soldering is cake but take some time and practice to get used to it.

ifyou want somthing like a quick connect harness to take the radio in and out and put into another car you could use a harness and reverse harness. you will need the vehicle specific harness wired to a general harness and reverse of that wired to the deck in each car. had a customer want that set up before he wanted a harness wired to his car, rhino, and boat so he could take his deck in and out of each vehicle. thats how i did it.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

Im not spending extra money on a Metra Smart Harness. They are worthless as far as Im concerned.

The crimp caps are just little white caps right? Where can I get them?

I was thinking of using insulated spade connectors with male and female versions. Something like these:

Where do I find the counterpart to that?

 

[FenixAudio 10+ year member]

they will owrk but they ahve the same issue as the bullet caps. they stick together and the insulation comes apart or sometimes the wire will pull out. lol smart harness...i havent called it that in a long time. it will cost money but you will not have the headaches that you WILL have with the spades.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

The reason I want to avoid the Smart harness is because my new car requires a CanBus harness for switched accessory power. They run $70+ just for that harness.

I think Ill just go with the tiny clear or white crimp caps. And get a new Eclipse harness on the way for the future before they sell out of them. Where can I pick up the crimp caps?

 

[FenixAudio 10+ year member]

any auto parts store should have them. or go to bestbuy and ask tobuy some they will sell you some for a $5 materials fee. what kind of car is it?

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

Its an 08 Caliber

I picked up these:

For 18-22 gauge wire and some heatshrink wrapping to wrap it up when Im done.

 

[FenixAudio 10+ year member]

no shit. i drive a 07 caliber. you dont need the canbus harness at all. uset he cig lighter under the shifter for your acc circuit. i wouldnt use wire nuts. they fall off.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

I picked a smaller wirenut so it was a snug *** fit on the wire. I found the Canbus for $15 new on eBay so I couldnt pass it up.

 

[FenixAudio 10+ year member]

all it does is allow you to retain your RAP. but for 15 thats good price. i put a double din in it a couple months ago. looks nice.

 

[whitedragon551 5,000+ posts]

I want a DD but no funds. I have my Eclipse CD7000, BNIB IPC106, and the GPS105 for it all up for trades for a double din and cant find one.

I got stuck with the REC stock deck which has the HU with the ears on it where the 2 knobs are. I bought a NAV bezel and a double din kit for my single din HU so I can get rid of the stupid *** ears. This way I can upgrade to the NAV in the future or I can just keep my Eclipse if I cant find something. I also get to retain my factory cubby slot under the HU.

I got my canbus today and have it wired up to the Eclipse. Tomorrow I get my nav bezel in satin silver and Wednesday I get the HU mounting bezel so I have lots of work cut out on Wednesday. I have wires to run, amps to mount, subs to put in and the HU. I think Im going to pre-run all my wires tomorrow though. And then deal with the RCAs on Thursday.

Where did you put your ground for the amp?