Hi to all. I am brand spankin new to the fiero forums. I recently scored a 84 Quad 4 fiero with all 87 GT panels on it and i am super excited. We started the resto back about 6 months ago and finally Its about 90% restored. I am wondering if anyone has had any luck fitting a double din radio in their fiero. Any pics or tips would be much appreciated. Thanks
Thanks for the tip, i did try that. i really only found 1-2 semi helpful threads with some pics. I would love to be able to hunt down something that is super detailed and maybe even includes a video
I have a recommendation you might not have thought of. There are some DIN-and-a-half units out there specifically made to exactly replace a GM unit. I have a Pioneer unit, it's a few years old, but it has lots of really cool features, including a 3 band fully parametric EQ, an input bus that you can connect anything to with the right Pioneer adapter (I use mine for line-level RCA inputs; you can also get one for an iPod dock, etc. Has detachable faceplate, subwoofer outputs, line-level and speaker level outputs, detachable face, etc. and it's grey, blends beautifully with the car. Oh yeah, it has an adjustable high-pass filter, a must if you have stock headrest speakers that you want to keep.
It's the easiest and best looking swap; I have seen some really nice Fiero sound systems but they usually have single-din units... and putting a single in is a PITA unless you don't mind it sticking out an inch...
Well my issue is that i already bought a double din for my Vette but decided not to use it there. So now its brand new still sitting in the box at my house. I did find some other forums of just a few small amount of people who managed to fabricate and shave/file down the spot in the dash to make it work but clearly every unit with clearance and size is different. My fear is i wont be able to use the touch screen due to the manual shifters placement. Does your unit that you purchased have navigation? that was another reason why i sprung for this radio.
My unit doesn't have navi. In my Fiero, I strongly prefer to use a windshield-mounted navi (I even hard-wired mine so no unsightly cables). The Fiero radio is positioned so low that looking at the navi while driving would IMO be dangerous. That and the fact that the Fiero's radio placement makes it a little hard to reach - but maybe that's just my short arms. Good luck with whatever you do, just remember that replacement center stacks for Fieros are very hard to replace anymore, so once you cut, you are committed.
[This message has been edited by Fierotoyboy (edited 06-20-2012).]
well in this case idk if i am lucky or not, my car is technically an 84 i have no GT gauges just GT body panels for the exterior. I can see if you did though how it could potentially be a great idea with a side pillar instead of the stock placement. All of this info is great, i am going to keep compiling and i hope to get the project situated and undergoing soon. My Boyfriend has agreed to help doing the customization work so i feel as though my car will be in great hands since he is also restoring it. I just wish someone had a vid or better pics of their completed job somewhere.
I don't nkow if even switching the radio for the heater controls and vent if it be high enough.. to be safe.. as a nav.. g.m. had a thing for radios being low in the late 70's through late 80's cant tell ya how many times I lugged a gear in my 5spd t/a and had a penny or dime jump into the catt deck.. my 86 SS the radio is really low..
I cut out the metal bracket at the back of the skeleton, then used a dremel to trim down my bezel to fit in my Pioneer double DIN unit in. To finish it off I got a mount kit from eBay. It sticks out a bit, but nothing like you would get with a single DIN unit and aftermarket adapter kit.
Old post. This is something I looked in to several years back. No real solutions out there at the time. As I read through any recent postings it appears nothing has come up since. I am surprised. My whole thing with adding a double din is the cutting of the bezel. To me the end result needs to look like it was meant to be there. Like factory. Back when I was researching it I found a Fiero for sale on ebay with a double din. The install was perfect. I exchanged some emails with him, but cannot remember what he told me. What I did get out of it is that it CAN be done.
A thought- Is the factory bezel something that could be 3d printed? Could it be scanned in it's current form, modified for double din, and be 3d printed? Could the opening be modified on a milling machine to provide a perfectly straight edge?
It has been some time! While i certainly did not do the best job, i did manage to slam in a Double DIN since my original posting. I literally already had a cracked broken beat up trim piece that went around my stock radio. I wasnt put off my cutting it at the time. I just wanted the Navi and radio in! It is in, just not pretty. It is on my to-do list of things for later. As of now it works just fine and im lucky if i get 700 miles on her in the season. I converted my dash gauges to blue LED's, the plan has been once im ready to do the heat controls too i will tackle the radio aesthetics issue at the same time since they both will be disassembled simultaneously.
I wish you luck if you plan on tackling this soon too.
The replacement bezel is actually one of the things I'm working on now, though mine will be tailored around a single DIN touch screen set up I'm working on at the moment, but don't expect anything that I'd be able to provide to other people any time soon.
I think part of the problem at this point is that there really isn't a solid specification on double DIN outside of chassis size. Even in newer vehicles that came with a double DIN from the factory, many aftermarket radios look like they're hacked in there, as opposed to being able to get clean looks from the single DINs years back, assuming you used a solid install kit as opposed to the $10 Scosche kit from WalMart. Then combine that with the US double DIN units being slightly smaller than the international double DIN specification, and you have a whole new set of issues to deal with. Such as the case with the Fiero - if you buy something from Pioneer, Alpine, Kenwood, etc in the USA, it can be made to fit in the Fiero. You buy something from the Chinese companies - Joying, Eonon, Pumpkin, etc, you're going to have a radio that will be occupying the same space as the HVAC controls with the radio in the stock location (I have a few of these radios here...I tried fitting one in the GT...no go, even if I did carve up the console behind the bezel).
From a personal standpoint, I can accept a less than factory appearance when I down a few fizzy drinks, and hack the snot out of a bezel to fit the radio. But if I'm buying a bezel from someone, or some company, I'm going to expect a clean appearance that looks factory. Given the huge variance in aftermarket radios today, that's a tall order to fill, and not one that I believe can be solved with a general "double DIN bezel".
That is all very well put! i agree with you on the exact dimensions all seem to vary slightly. I have a clarion radio in my Fiero. Im sure like you said there are people out there who can custom make anything you want. I did order a metal plate before, it involved switching the heater controls lower and radio up. But it came looking awful and butchered so i abandoned that. Like you said, if im buying something specific it better be GREAT! i dont mind butchering it on my own for the time being, just havent found the right product for me yet.
I used a single DIN unit with a pop out 7" screen and an adapter to fit it in the 1.5 DIN Fiero opening. It has an integrated NAV system and I have no issues using it even with my five speed manual transmission.
Nelson
[This message has been edited by hnthomps (edited 10-25-2017).]
Sorry. Got no email notices on your replies and forgot (I am getting old).
Not much has changed on this subject, but one thing caught my eye- I did not know there were differences in the name brand head unit dimensions vs. generic. Good to know.
I like the idea of swapping the location of the headunit with the heater controls. I am guessing this requires cutting metal?
If I were to want to just mount a double din in the existing location and want a clean cut out I had thought to somehow chuck the bezel up in a milling machine to make sure of a perfectly straight cut. Using the correct diameter cutter should get the matching radii in the corners.
Originally posted by sjmaye: If I were to want to just mount a double din in the existing location and want a clean cut out I had thought to somehow chuck the bezel up in a milling machine to make sure of a perfectly straight cut. Using the correct diameter cutter should get the matching radii in the corners.
IIRC, the 1.5 din opening in the stock bezel is wider than a norlam 2 Din unit, so if you made a straight cut on the sides, you would have a gap on each side.
I like the idea of swapping the location of the headunit with the heater controls. I am guessing this requires cutting metal?
No metal to cut. There's a plastic housing that holds the hvac controls and head unit. Many times this gets brittle and cracked with age, as was mine. I cut that out with a dremel cutoff wheel. Then built a new one out of wood with brackets and mounting holes to hold the double din head unit and relocated hvac controls.
Bump. To keep this one alive. Now that almost 6 years have gone by. What's good to use now days ? I'm considering a Kenwood unit from bestbuy. Kenwood Double DIN Is HD radio the same as regular FM? I don't understand what regular live radio it can do?
------------------ Project Genisis Lo Budget 3800SC swap SOLD 12.840@104.8 MPH Intense-Racing 1.9 rockers, 3" exhaust, 3.4 pulley, ZZP tune and 18 year old tires.
The first pic is what is looks like installed the second pic shows the whole skeleton. The double din is 290 shipped in usa payment through paypal friends and family. If you want the stock skeleton it does not include a new face place because it is meant for stock cars is 240 shipped usa.
I can vouch for mmeyer86gt/gtp, his product is top notch! Even if you do not do it for the double din feature and stay stock, you will not be disappointed with the new skeleton. Very well made and much stronger. At this point the skeleton will last longer than the car now.
[This message has been edited by Spadesluck (edited 07-21-2022).]
Requires no mounting brackets or hardware, but you do need to cut into the skeleton under the climate control for the double din to fit. The climate control is basically being held up by the double din, so I dont think cutting this material will cause any stress to the frame.
(Also I copied someone elses work and splice it around so that the radio would be at the bottom, the credits for that are in the thingiverse post)
[This message has been edited by Xenoblast (edited 07-21-2022).]
Requires no mounting brackets or hardware, but you do need to cut into the skeleton under the climate control for the double din to fit. The climate control is basically being held up by the double din, so I dont think cutting this material will cause any stress to the frame.
(Also I copied someone elses work and splice it around so that the radio would be at the bottom, the credits for that are in the thingiverse post)
That is definitely a viable solution. However, it still does not address that the skeleton itself is probably falling apart in many other places. I would much rather prefer all my stuff to be firmly mounted as I have done stuff like this in the past with other vehicles only to have stuff move around doing some spirited driving. Dont want to discourage anyone from doing what fits best for then (pun intended) but just wanted to share my thoughts.
I would much rather prefer all my stuff to be firmly mounted as I have done stuff like this in the past with other vehicles only to have stuff move around doing some spirited driving.
I could see that being true, and its always a better solution to have things mounted properly. My skeleton is definitely falling apart. Luckily I havent noticed any movement since the 8 months that I have been daily driving this car, but also I dont have many twisty roads near where I live.
The stock climate control mounting locations are all fully usable, but for my case the single right one isnt because of damage to my skeleton. I was only able to use 2 of the stock mounting spots for the radio, but I decided to put a screw underneath on the right side for better positioning.
I am realizing this may have been misleading, what I meant is you do not have to custom fabricate/print mounting brackets, or buy new hardware. Stock locations and screws were used, but not all of them. There are mounts that usually come with most radios that you need, which is the metal thing on either side of the radio in my picture.
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