Front Speaker Installation Question

[Rot 911]

'86 Coupe. I ordered some Infinity Kappa 52.1i speakers for my doors from Crutchfield. I know a couple of guys on here have the 52.3i's in their doors. The only difference in the speakers are that the 3i's have a crossover. Both are 5.25" speakers. I get a call from Crutchfield and they say the speakers will not fit because they are a "bottom mount" speaker and not a "top mount". Of course when I ask what they mean the person can't really explain. The picture of the speaker look similar to the type I presently have in the doors. Are they right or can I mount these speakers like I think I can?

[Steve W]

I am not really sure what you mean by top mount vs bottom mount - does top mount mean mount over the top of the door panel? If so top mount should not be a problem. I think the 52.1 is a typical 5 1/4 and should be a drop fit in your door; I think Crutchfield is wrong. Here is a picture of some Focal kevlar 7"s mounted on top of my door panel along with the T90k tweeter angle mounted behind a factory Porsche tweeter grill:

[Steve W]

Close up shot without tweeter grill:

[jlr69s]

Top mount means you can mount your speakers the conventional way, on the outside of the door panel. Bottom mount means you mount them from the inside of the door panel, pretty stupid if you ask me! As long as the screw holes line up with the existing ones or you have enough door panel to drill new ones you can top mount your speakers. In my opinion, Crutchfield doesnt really know what they are talking about. Maybe they do with Fords or Chevys but not European cars. I have installed many stereo systems in many different cars, including P-cars, and lots of the time Crutchfield says stuff wont fit when I order it but I have never had a problem with it not fitting. Need any more help feel free to ask!