Speaker Replacement

Richard C2S · 01-27-2004, 08:36 AM

My car is an '81 SC with factory speakers front and rear.

I have an oppty to buy a "set" of MB Quart speakers at a very good price. Two 5.25s and two tweeters and the crossovers.

Do I have to take the door panel off to get to the 5.25s? Or, can the plastic speaker grille be removed without ruining it?

Thanks.

VaSteve · 01-27-2004, 09:28 AM

No you don't have to take off the door panel.
Here's a tip though. Get an offset screwdriver from Home Depot it will make the job marginally easier. The bottom screws are in the pocket, and you can't reach them w/o such a tool. Or, I have yet to try this, but have job done now... Find a ratcheting box wrench with a 1/4" hole. Take one of those 1/4" Phillips bits and put it in there to remove/reinstall the grill. Sears had a bunch of wrench like this around the holidays for $10. The good ones were $40.

When you get the screws out, it is likely that the grills are fused onto the leather after many years. Pry them off carefully to avoid ripping the leather. It is also likely that the speakers won't fit all the way into the hole. I bought some Polks from Crutchfield (their recommendation over Blaupunkts) I had to send them back b/c they wouldn't fit w/o cutting into the plastic speaker surrounds in the door. I sent them back and got the Blaupunkts. I tried to re-use the grills, but to no avail (the tweeter stuck out). I used the Blaupunkt grills and it pretty much covered the pressmarks of the old speakers. A little less so in the back, but it still looks nice.

Hope this helps!

88911coupe · 01-27-2004, 11:05 AM

Not sure if this helps but I added 6.5 MB Quarts to my 88 coupe and it was easier to just remove the pockets to do the work. I also had to widen the hole at the bottom for the 6.5" main but they sound awesome. It would be better to have a more solid mount but I did not want to drill 4 new holes in the sheet metal, I just used washers and attached the spkrs to the fiberboard panel. It took some work to solidify the mount but there's very little rattle on low freq now. You will love the MB quarts but get a GOOD amp.

dude · 01-27-2004, 11:54 AM

I installed 5.25 Alpine type r w/remote tweeters in my 82 SC. Had to fab a .25'' plywood spacer ring to bring the magnet away from the door hole. (Spacer goes behind the fibre board) carefully installed the tweeters into the door panel with no clearance issues at all. Crossover sits in the door pocket w/velcro. Works well, looks good.

bell · bell's Garage

i agree with removing the pocket first.....

i hope you have an amp for those, if not be carefull with the volume so you don't blow them up

DanTheCat · 01-27-2004, 05:11 PM

I don't know when they changed, but in my '78 SC the original factory grilles had plastic tabs that went through the panel with push on one-way locking washer thingies on the back that I had to fold in half to remove. If I had tried to pry the grills off from the front the tabs would have broken off. There were no screws in the grill.

Taking the door panel off isn't very hard. The biggest thing is if you have power windows write down how the wires plugged in so you put them back on the switches properly. Otherwise you will have no power windows, and may even melt something down. Bad news that is...

Dan