2002 Taurus Stereo/Climate Controls

[jsorrell84]

hello all.

I have a few questions that I'm hoping someone might be able to answer. I have a 2002 Taurus and would like to upgrade the audio in the car.

I was online looking for the required parts, but I can't seem to find a faceplate that will allow me to use an aftermarket CD Player. Anyone know where I might be able to find them? Also, what size speakers will i need to look for that i will be able to replace the speakers in the front and rear doors, I think I blew the speaker on the front passenger door anyway, :-/.

Also, i had a question that I've been wondering about for a while, and I figure since i'm on the topic of the deck, is it possible to replace the manual knob climate control system in my car with an automatic climate control? i know they were available the year my car was built, so i was wondering if it possible. not sure if is a simple change, a hard change, or simply impossible.

Thanx in advance for any advice.

Justin

[sfontain]

Nobody makes a faceplate/mounting kit for any Taurus with automatic electronic climate controls. Yes it's possible to upgrade from the rotary controls to electronic, but you will lose the ability to install your head unit in that space.

For the rotary controls, Metra and Scosche make kits for your car. I own the Scosche and it costs $60; you will not find it cheaper than that anywhere, period, unless you get very lucky and find it on eBay (but it's very difficult to find for the Gen4 Taurus). If you buy your new head unit from Crutchfield they will sell you the Scosche kit for $40, but I would advise you to search on Froogle.com and Pricewatch.com because even with the $20 discount you may still save money by buying the mounting kit for $60 from Crutchfield or Best Buy or whatever and getting the head unit from a smaller Internet company.

Your car takes 6"x8" speakers all around. There are no speakers in the rear doors; there are 2 in the front doors and 2 in the rear deck just under your rear glass. 6.5" will fit in the front and is recommended but you would need to create a bracket, probably out of MDF so that you screw the bracket into the 6"x8" opening and then screw the speaker into the bracket. It's up to you. I will say that you simply aren't going to get tons of loud, clear bass without a sub, so if that's what you're going for, new door speakers won't cut it. But they will, paired with a new head unit, get you more overall volume and a LOT more clarity and low to medium volume.

[jsorrell84]

Thank you for your reply.

i will look into the speakers. Just out of curiosity, did Ford offer the automatic climate controls with the Mach Stereo, and if I was able to find one, would I be able to replace the deck with that and upgrade the speakers, then add a custom box with woofers in the trunk?

How much do you have to do by changes to go from an Automatic Climate Control from a Rotory? Do you just replace the whole stero box with the included climate controls, and just put in another one from a Gen 4 with Automatic Climate? Or is there more to it then just that simple swap?

Thanx again!
Justin

[sfontain]

I've never done it before so I can't say for certain but I don't believe the change is as easy as swapping out the interface.

I would recommend not even bothering with the Mach stereo unless you found one for cheap and can't afford something aftermarket. Mach is better than the Ford alternative, but it's still weak compared to most other aftermarket systems. I will say from personal experience that for only around $300-$350 with some shopping you can get a very solid MP3/WMA head unit and replace all 4 speakers with Pioneer 2-ways or 3-ways. You can get a cheap amp for $80-ish if you want and then spend whatever you like on your sub(s). Depends on the sound you want and the money you have to spend, of course. Good luck.

[aspec]

Originally Posted by sfontain

For the rotary controls, Metra and Scosche make kits for your car. I own the Scosche and it costs $60;

As a Best Buy employee, I picked up the metra kit for $31. However, I can't get the dials the light up. Am I doing something wrong? Any suggestions?

[drdisque]

changing from rotary to automatic climate control is VERY difficult and not plug and play. Also, to swap in a mach audio system, you would need ALL the components and wiring from the Mach system in order for it to work properly.

[sfontain]

Originally Posted by aspec

As a Best Buy employee, I picked up the metra kit for $31. However, I can't get the dials the light up. Am I doing something wrong? Any suggestions?

I used the Scosche kit so I don't know what your wire colors are. But you should have a dimmer wire (I believe on the Scosche kit the wire was orange and came out of the rear defrost switch, but it's been a while). You need to splice this into your guage cluster dimmer circuit (controlled by the rotary thing left next to your headlamp switch). I don't know what year car you have but mine is a Gen 4 (2002). The easiest way I found to get to the circuit was behind the radio, just above the ash tray, on the left side. If you look/reach back in there, there was a light gray wiring harness with a light blue and white-striped wire. You'd need to SPLICE into this (that is, DON'T cut this wire, only strip back some insulation, and hook up your dimmer wire in parallel). Also, DON'T use the wire that's on the RIGHT side for the cigarette lighter.