6.5" door speakers? Yep

[Tommy]

Ok, this is the project.

1 - Eliminate the need for those crappy 3.5" front speakers
2 - keep foot space available
3 - at least retain a semi-clean look


Here's whats needed
1 sheet 1/2 ply or mdf
1 yard of fleese
1 yard of vinyl
3/8ths staples
fiberglass resin
possibly some fiberglass mat


Started off, measured out the area of the lower portion of the door, wanted to eliminate the map pocket. ended up cutting a piece of wood 31" long, and 7" wide. 9" were then left 7" wide, while the rest was cut to 4", so that it would sit along the line of the door.

Followed that by cutting another piece, about 8"x7", then a 3rd piece 8"x2" to use to give the 2nd piece some lift and to let the speaker mount sit at an angle. after cutting the first 2 pieces of wood to shape, rounding them out and cutting the hole for the speaker, i tack nailed them together.


Once tacked together, its time for fiberglass. Started off by tacking a piece of fleese down and pulling it across so that it would leave a slope from the bottom of the board to the top where the speaker mounts, once its all secured on all sides, I mixed up a batch of resin and laid it on thick. I followed that initial coating with 2 more of just resin, straight to the fleese. i decided i wanted a little extra strength, so i layed a few layers of fiberglass mat on the fleese, and then coated it with two more layers of resin. This made a very hard surface, that surely wont crack or move.







After letting it all cure for 24hrs, i sanded the whole thing down and covered it with a layer of fleese. thought this would be a good way to hide some blemishes in the wood/glass and would give the final product a little bit of cushioning.

Then came the vinyl. Fabric store had a gray vinyl very close to the factory gray color. Trimmed it up and stretched it out. This was probably the hardest part of the project, as this stuff doesnt stretch that well. gluing it down doesnt work that well, and it can be a pain if you have curves to cover.

Anywho, this is the final result.









I am considering making another set to sell if anyone is interested. Initial cost of supplies is around $50, and time is the other issue. Probably spent about 12hrs total to make both pods. If someone is interested, lemme know and we'll work something out.

Lemme know what you gen2 guys think.

btw, this is what i had in my old gen2, didnt like them that much, they stuck out too much, didnt flow well and were heavy as they were all wood. These new ones stick out at the most about .5" more than the door map pocket. http://usera.imagecave.com/c4mry91/door1.JPG

[fredk]

you betcha

[car_boy_16]

It looks nice! A tip though, just something I noticed, grind down the sharp edges of the panel edges that the speaker screws onto so you cant see the sharp extremities of the frame after you fiberglass and cover it. It will look better than it already is, and it should only take you another 5-10 minutes to smooth those edges nicely.


...yup I know it's an oldish thread.

[nogard]

Very nice, just smooth out those choppy corners and you will really have something! Try making the second slanting piece of wood, that holds the speaker, round on the back edge. Cut more of a ring for the speaker to attach to. I think then when you stretch the felt it will give you the look you are after, smooth. Very nice, How do they sound? How is the sound imaging?

[nogard]

[IvanHoe]

to picky....I think it's fine either way....lol

[Tommy]

Yea, i tried it like you suggested and it didnt work very well. made it much harder to wrap the felt for the fiberglass, doest matter anymore though, havent had that car for 4 months, was actually trying to sell the ones i made.

If anyone wants them, ill take $100 shipped.

they're not perfect by anymeans, but it was only my 2nd attempt at making something like this, and first time working with fiberglass. But they fit perfectly and if you seal up the backs to the door panel, theyll sound great.

[fredk]

tommy is the bomb on these speaker housings, putting speakers in the doors is a major ordeal and his idea works

[88yotaDX]

I almost bought those but my only concern is opening the door in the rain and getting the speakers wet. I know they can handle some but, what I plan on doing is forming eclosures on the A-pillar cover. Similar to gauge pods but larger and if I locate them correctly they will be good for sound imaging, and won't get in the way.

[Tommy]

Thats an odd reason not to put speakers in the door. Had speakers in the doors in all my cars, in similar enclosures and never had a problem.

A-pillar mounted would be cool, but difficult. Dont forget about UV damage to them, id be more worried about that than 10 seconds of rain.

[nogard]

I wouldn't be worried about rain. Speakers are make from synthetic material now days anyway, and are water resistant to a point. So what do you do when the rain gets on your power window and door lock switches?

Chances are you are more likely to kick them when you get out of the car. Especially if you have bigger feet. But all you have to do is use some care. The speakers on my wife's 4th gen are this way, and someone who owned it before must have kicked one, there is a small dent in the grill.

Put grills on them, you will be fine.

[88yotaDX]

UV damage is a concern that I hadn't thought of, but I think it would be easier to run the wiring, but molding the enclosure will be real hard. I am still thinking about other options, I do like what you did but I would need more of an angle to stage the sound.

[Tommy]

it wouldnt be that hardt to angle these upwards more. They actually do aim up towards the roof more than they look.

If you dont want to do something like these, just make some kick pods to go in the foot wells.

[91_ToYoTa_CaMrY]

dont really need to do that if u got subs those 3.5" pump nice stock anyways

[1883atlantics]

you want as much bass presence as you can get up front. this is a great idea IMO.