How to switch the stereo in the car?

Answer 1

Pull out the old stereo. Turn your car off but keep the battery connected. take your multi meter and ground it to your cigarette lighter (assuming the lighter works) then test all the wires going to the stereo. There should be ONE wire that is carrying a current. This is your constant hot, label it (keeps your settings and clock going when the car is off). Make sure that YOU are not grounded!!! Then turn your ignition switch to "on". Find the wire that is now giving you about 12vdc. This is your main power, mark it. Keep your multimeter connected to the main power and take your negative (ground) lead form the cigarette lighter and test each wire in the radio wire harness individualy...when your multi meter jumps back up to 12vdc you have found your ground (label it). The remaining wires should be 1 dimmer wire, 1 antenna wire, and probably four pairs of colored wires (i.e. one pair would be a purple wire and a purple wire with a black stripe). The pairs are your speaker wires. To find out which speaker they power use a D cell battery and rub the wires lightly on the contacts, you will hear static coming thru the speaker. Label these wires too. Your new stereo should come with dirrections as to which wires hook up and how, follow those dirrections (don't forget your antenna wire (the great big one)). I recommend using crimp-type insulated butt connectors when you hook up the wires. Not only does this facilitate later replacement of the stereo, but it prevents allot of damage to your car when some fool steals your stereo too. NOTE: don't hook your speakers up out of phase, they'll sound terrible. The rule of thumb is "writing to red". In other words, on a matched pair of wires one will have writing on it and the other will not. Always hook the one with the writing on it to the red contact on your speaker/reciever/cd changer etc.