97 Corrolla audio install questions

Niknah · #1 07-15-2004, 10:44 AM

I have a 1997 Corrolla. I would like to purchase speakers to replace the stock ones. I was referenced to a webpage from this forum which told me I would have 4" in the doors and 7" in the back dash. I called best buy who looked it up on the computer and I was told 5 1/4" in the doors and 6 1/2" in the back dash. Does anyone have the correct info? Also, I am worried about the depth. I plan to buy speakers online and would like them to fit.

How do I access the speakers in the door (how does the panel come off) and how do I access the rear dash speakers? I appreciate any feedback.

impulse_owner · #2 07-16-2004, 11:10 AM

The front panels off the door's just come off. my mom's 1997 Corolla didnt have back speaker's i had to cut the hole's and install them myself.The door's speaker's are 4 inch. sorry i'd help with the front but my mom's car didnt have any.

Niknah · #3 07-16-2004, 03:24 PM

Thanks for the reply. I assume with the doors you are talking about just the piece covering the speaker that has the little cubby attached to it? I was hesitant, thought I might break the door. I've only had the car a week.

impulse_owner · #4 07-16-2004, 05:03 PM

lol yea it just pops of but in the top i said id help with the front but my mom's car didnt have any i meant rear her car didnt have any in the rear

dirtymoney · #5 07-19-2004, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Niknah

I have a 1997 Corrolla. I would like to purchase speakers to replace the stock ones. I was referenced to a webpage from this forum which told me I would have 4" in the doors and 7" in the back dash. I called best buy who looked it up on the computer and I was told 5 1/4" in the doors and 6 1/2" in the back dash. Does anyone have the correct info? Also, I am worried about the depth. I plan to buy speakers online and would like them to fit.

How do I access the speakers in the door (how does the panel come off) and how do I access the rear dash speakers? I appreciate any feedback.

I don’t know which corolla you have...But in my '97 corolla CE sedan the door piece with the cubby covering the speaker DOES NOT JUST POP OFF ! You have to remove the whole panel. I’m in the process of running amplifier wires to the speakers so I can explain removing the front passenger side panel in detail. Open it and roll the window down. 1. The top piece of the door handle (not the handle that opens the door but the one used to pull it closed) pops straight up and off. Underneath that piece there are two screws to remove. 2. Find the small circular piece on the side of the door (when open it is away from the car body near the top of the panel). Push the middle circle part of it in to take it out. 3. On the side of the panel twords the hinge of the door there’s a larger flat circular piece that you need to get under the edge of to pry off. Underneath this is a screw. 4. k.. I dunno if this is an option or standard on all 97 corolla ce's ..but mine has electric windows / locks.. The top of this panel is removed by prying up on the side twords the inside of the car if open ( it’d be twords the front if the door was closed). The other side (twords the back if doors closed) has a lip which doesn’t pry up. The piece slides out twords the hinge on the door once the one side is popped up. The 2 electrical harnesses detach by pressing a small piece on them down and pulling apart. 5. All the edges of the door should now be free to pop out by pulling the panel away from the door. 6. The part which took me a while to figure out is the door handle that’s used to open the door. There’s a screw to unscrew which you can see when pulling as if to open the door. The next step I’m not so sure was even necessary so don’t try it unless the part after it doesn’t work... I removed with tweezers a small plastic piece underneath the screw as well as a metal wire which turned out to be the spring in the handle. This stupid spring is proving to be a hassle to put back in. Anyways.. Once that one screw is out I believe the handle (and the surround for it) slides twords the hinge of the door and comes out. So don’t remove the small piece and spring unless this doesn’t work. 7. The door panel should now be able to lift up and out of the slot where the window goes in. Pessing down the lock may help. Now maneuver the panel to get the door opener handle through the hole where it sits. Tadaa ! There' s my lil 4” speaker. It measures 1 5/8" deep measured from underneath the screw hole. I'm not sure what depth is possible without hitting a rolled down window.

As for the back you have to take apart the rear light in the middle first. After that the panel can be popped up by squeezing/rubber hammering the white pop-ups from inside the trunk along where the back seat is. Then there are clamps which need to be pulled apart in the trunk as someone pulls it forward from the inside. Be careful not to scratch the interior panels alongside the rear panel ! Back there they were 6 1/2" speakers. I cut bigger holes, removed the plastic brackets and installed some 6X9s though. Now I need to build a custom rear panel because the stock one doesn’t fit over these speakers.

Niknah · #6 07-20-2004, 04:04 PM

THANK YOU!! The answer I've been looking for. Unfortunately, I found out the hard way that the speaker panel on the door doesn't just pop off. Fortunately I realized it was the wrong thing to do before I went to far. I did manage to get the back panel out and touched the side panel with minimal damage. Now I know. That was just to measure the speakers because I was getting conflicting info.

With your 6x9's are you able to just cut your back panel to make them fit topmounted? I have a pair of 6x9 kicker's that I will use instead of buying a pair of 6 1/2 if its that easy. Sounds like we've got the same car. Thanks again for the correct info and detailed response. Big help!

dirtymoney · #7 07-21-2004, 03:12 PM

lol.. I accidentally popped one of the plastic pieces off the back of the door speaker cover/cubby piece myself !

About the 6x9 rear install.. It wasn't easy and its still not finished. I didn't have anything else so I used a dremel tool to do the cutting and the damn blades kept braking. It might have been easier had i decided to put the speakers in the middle holes.. But I'm looking for a stock look and thought the greater distance of separation might make it more surround soundish. So I went ahead and mounted them in the corners at an angle that’s about the same as the angle of the window that wraps around the side corners. I believe I'll still be able to use the stock speaker covers themselves in the same location (more or less) since i mounted the speakers at an angle. The metal screen part of the speaker cover has little lips that I bent to take off so that I could cut the holes in the plastic about the same size, shape and angle of the 6x9s. I doubt the panel will fit over the speakers (by cutting it or otherwise)..since the panel curves down and my speakers stick up. So now I’m faced with possibly constructing a panel of either wood or fiberglass or something, finding the same color/type of fabric to cover it, while still using the stock speaker covers on the 6x9s. I’m also thinking about leaving holes underneath the fabric (where the 2 large holes are between the speakers) to allow air pressure (from the subwoofer in my trunk) to flow through. I would just stick in a couple large ports back there but I'd rather not tip off thieves.

Anyways.. I happened to have plastic 6x9 spacers about an inch high which I used so that the speaker mounts flat on the top of it.(over the modified stock holes).. I basically just removed the stock plastic bracket and cut the metal frame so that the hole there was a little bigger than the magnet of the speaker. When/if you're cutting the holes make sure that there's a decent amount of space surrounding where the wire connections will be. If the metal touches the connections anywhere, it will break the circuit and you will not hear anything. (I found this out the hard way too.)

Well.. Good luck with whatever you choose to do!

Niknah · #8 07-21-2004, 04:05 PM

The 6x9's sound like a decent project. I like doing that stuff but unfortunately right now, time will not allow. Think I'll just buy some 6 1/2's and call it a day.

You said you have a sub in the trunk. I didn't see a great place to run the power wire through the firewall, did you drill a hole? If so, where's a good spot? Thanks!

dirtymoney · #9 07-21-2004, 05:37 PM

No, keeping with my stock theme I ran it with the others. The hole is to the right and up a little bit from the gas pedal. You can have someone else push the wire from the interior so that you can see it bulging through the rubber in the engine area. Cut a hole right there just big enough to push it through. Run it with the others and get a proper fuse close to the battery. I wrapped electrical tape around where it comes out of the rubber and in various other spots. Taping/running it is somewhat of a challenge, even for people like me who have skinny arms. Is this the best/correct way to do it ? I dont know. But it has worked so far.

heres a link which may be of use to anyone checking out this thread.

http://www.clubknowledge.com/Car_Audio_FAQ/articles/

http://www.clubknowledge.com/Car_Audio_FAQ/articles/

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