"alternative" HU Installation?

[ak05 10+ year member]

Hey, i just purchased an 06 chevy cobalt.. Little did i know that in order to replace the stock radio you need to purchase a part to replace the cpu bus that is in the stock radio. That's 200$, and not something i'd like to spend on a dash kit alone.

Would it be possible to mount the HU somewhere else in the car, and run power to the radio and have it turn on/off with the car? If so, how would i go about doing that? Amp installation is going to be SO easy since the battery is in the trunk.

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[project f-150 10+ year member]

Yes it is possible. but i think there is something to where you cant just tap into the ignition on the cobalt cause it will lock out the bcm. i cant remember but i just remember reading something bout that car that was wierd. i will try to find the info 4 you.

 

[kpozr2 10+ year member]

battery is in the trunk?? deamn...thats nice.

 

[OldOneEye 10+ year member]

One thing on some of the newer cars is the radio doesn't have an wire that turns on and off with the ignition. It is told through the bus that the ignition is on and that it can turn on. So you will have to find a switched source as well to run the battery. You would probably have to buy a reverse harness and regular harness so you can physically keep the radio in the dash but run the signal from your head unit/amps into the store wiring bypassing the amp on the OEM radio.

Juan

 

[KaeZoo 10+ year member]

I've replaced a couple radios in Cobalts with no problems, but they were base models. I'm not sure how to tell whether removing your radio will be a problem without actually trying it. The Cobalts I worked on lacked the "info" button up by the steering column; does yours have it?

Note that even if your radio can't be removed, its physical location isn't relevant. You can put another head unit into the dash location as long as you keep the factory radio wired into the system. You would just extend the power, ground and data wires that connect to the factory radio so you can relocate it to the trunk. The speaker wires can be disconnected and attached to your new head unit. You can probably share the factory radio's constant power connection or tap the cig lighter; accessory power can be found at the key switch or fuse box.

Finally, I think the $200 part you were quoted was for the LAN-bus dash kit with the built-in LCD display that takes over the "info" functions. That particular kit is only required if you have an "info" button built into your factory radio, and I don't think Cobalts are equipped with them. If you have an "info" button but it's somewhere else, then you need a standard kit and a LAN-bus harness, which would be somewhat less expensive. If you have no "info" button, I don't think you need anything special to replace the head unit in that vehicle. But I have to admit I'm not 100% certain.

 

[ak05 10+ year member]

i do have an info button, but it displays on the dash under the RPM gauge. if i don't have to get the 200$ kit that'd just be dandy. but i was told this at best buy.. so maybe they're not so credible

 

[wesl56 10+ year member]

idk but i remember one of my friends that had a civic needed to keep his stock radio for some reason, so he just had it stuffed inside the dash behind the aftermarket deck he put in... i thought it was ghetto as hell... lol

 

[Randy Savage 5,000+ posts]

You don't need anything special.

You can either hardwire the aftermarket harness to the factory harness, or pick up a Metra 70-2103 harness(~$15) and use that.

You're going to lose door chimes and the RAP (retained accessory power-radio keeps power for 10min after car is shut off or until door is opened). You'll also need to find a source for accessory power (either the fuse panel/BCM on the left side of the passenger dash panel or the ignition harness under the steering column).

 

[ak05 10+ year member]

gotcha. If i were to do the install myself is that going to void the warrenty? or will they just never know

 

[Randy Savage 5,000+ posts]

gotcha. If i were to do the install myself is that going to void the warrenty? or will they just never know

The only way you can void the warranty is if the install was deemed to cause a problem.

They can't tell you your ****** went but changing your radio voided the warranty...//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[OldOneEye 10+ year member]

In some cars the radio is an integral part of the system. They use it to display warnings and other stuff so the body control module pings it to make sure its there. If it isn't there, you can start throwing check engine lights on top of check engine lights in some cars. Think about it, do you honestly think they designed cars to have to operate to have the radio removed? No different than asking a laptop designed to design a computer so that it works correctly if you seperate the keyboard from the screen. They don't design for a la cart operation.

Juan

 

[Randy Savage 5,000+ posts]

In some cars the radio is an integral part of the system. They use it to display warnings and other stuff so the body control module pings it to make sure its there. If it isn't there, you can start throwing check engine lights on top of check engine lights in some cars. Think about it, do you honestly think they designed cars to have to operate to have the radio removed? No different than asking a laptop designed to design a computer so that it works correctly if you seperate the keyboard from the screen. They don't design for a la cart operation.
Juan

The Cobalt is different then most newer GM's, where the DIC is integrated with the factory radio.

 

[mikeyboc 10+ year member]

If the part you need is similar as the one I needed for my 04 Tahoe, Walmart has then for $50 and it works fine.

 

[Randy Savage 5,000+ posts]

If the part you need is similar as the one I needed for my 04 Tahoe, Walmart has then for $50 and it works fine.

'Tis not.

 

[mikeyboc 10+ year member]

'Tis not.

nvm then. my bad. I am inferior.