looking to install front speakers

[94cylcamry]

Hey all, the car in question is the car in my sig. Anyways, a few days ago I went and installed the rear speakers in my car...which was fun. Originally we'd scheduled an appointment at Best Buy for 40 bucks, but that fell through because the guy had decided....not to show up? I'm happy he didn't though. The stupid Haynes manual wasn't any help in getting the rear shelf off...had to take off the side seats to get it off. But once that was done, I just had to drill the holes and connect the wires.

Today I was hoping to get started on the front speakers. Now from the Hayne's manual, removing the front door linings doesn't look too hard....but just because of how innaccurate the manual was for the back cargo shelf, I figured I'd post in and see if anyone has any tips on how to do this right.

Thanks!

[eddie926]

Here check this out. Should tell you what you need to know.

http://rayrayonline.bravehost.com/frontspeaker1.htm

The only thing I disagree with... On page two, he tells you to pop off the little black triangle piece that is adjacent to the side view mirror. You don't have to take that off to get the door panel off, and it's somewhat easy to crack when you're trying to pry it off, so just leave it on. Once you have all the other connectors taken care of, the door panel will just slide up and off with a little jiggling.

Also, he's not kidding about the little trim piece around the door release being a little tricky. It's also very easy to crack, so take your time and be patient. If it's not coming, you're applying pressure in the wrong place. When you hit the right spots, top and bottom, it will pop out pretty easily, so if you're not getting it don't get aggravated and try to force it or you'll likely end up needing a new one.

[eurohazard]

I have cracked both of my front door handle bezels. Those are a bitch. Other than that, the door panel remover and installation is pretty straight forward. Try doing a search, I know someone has pics of it.

I also was surprised how involved the rear 6x9 speaker replacement was.

[eddie926]

Originally Posted by eurohazard

I have cracked both of my front door handle bezels. Those are a bitch. Other than that, the door panel remover and installation is pretty straight forward. Try doing a search, I know someone has pics of it.

I also was surprised how involved the rear 6x9 speaker replacement was.

Yeah, unfortunately, I don't have any pics that I can post right now, but there are tabs on the bottom and top of that bezel that snap over pins on the door handle. Unless you pry in just the right spot, the tabs won't pop off the pins and then you start to get aggravated and start prying harder only to break the thing. Been there done that.

One thing is, until you know how it fits, people tend to put the screwdriver in from the outside edge of the bezel and pry toward the door handle. But if you look at RayRay's pics, he's got it right. You have to put the blade inside and pry the tabs out AWAY from the door handle. Once you know where the tabs are and which direction to pry, it's not too bad. If you pull the door handle like you're opening the door and look in there with a flashlight you should be able to see where the tabs engage the pins.

Again, just take your time and be patient. If it isn't coming it's cause you're not prying in just the right spot.

And yeah, the rear deck speakers are a pain as well as the front door speakers. That's probably one of my few gripes with the Camry. I had an '86 Accord before my Camrys and the door and rear deck speaker grills just unscrewed and you dropped in new speakers and put the grills back on. No door panel or rear shelf removal. Of course, it's harder to steal the speakers out of a Camry

[94cylcamry]

Wow. Those door handles definitely do suck. I would have broken the one if you hadn't posted that link with the pictures, thank you so much for that. After that, it was pretty straight forward. If anything, besides the door handles, the front speakers were easier than the back. In the back I had to drill new holes as well, and in the front, I just used the old screws in the old holes. Very nice.

Thanks for the help guys.

[eddie926]

Originally Posted by 94cylcamry

Wow. Those door handles definitely do suck. I would have broken the one if you hadn't posted that link with the pictures, thank you so much for that. After that, it was pretty straight forward. If anything, besides the door handles, the front speakers were easier than the back. In the back I had to drill new holes as well, and in the front, I just used the old screws in the old holes. Very nice.

Thanks for the help guys.

De Nada. Always glad when somebody can benefit from my screw ups...