I'm toying with the idea of getting a "newer" stock Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep CD deck to put in my '93. I've been broken into and stereo stolen so I figure I'll be able to put a CD deck in and have a lesser chance of getting it stolen. Plus the stock decks are internally amplified, which means they sound better with less wiring.
I want to know if anyone else has done this with a first gen Dakota. I have a deck out of a '03 Neon. Wired it up, works great, but doesn't fit without either trimming the dash face, or trimming the face of the CD player it's self. Plus the mounting holes don't line up. If anyone else has done it, what model did you get the CD player out of?

 

i had a pontiac stereo out of a fiero in my truck for about an hour. it fit in with the trim but the mounting holes didn't line up. the only reason i got rid of it was because the cd player didn't work, but i plan on throwing a honda cd stereo in once i'm done fixing the deck.

at 1 point i had a 2nd gen dakota stereo in too. the wiring lined up but it never fit with the trim. i have recently gone with a stereo out of another older chrysler(unsure of vehicle) it fit perfectly! and for 4$

 

Lol, whats with ya'll and your factory decks? I've never in my life heard one that sounds good enough to make it worth the trouble of installing it! I have pioneer head unit in my truck... internally amplified. Hooked it right up in no time at all, no fit problems whatsoever, and I have yet to hear a cleaner sounding car stereo... louder sure, but not cleaner! Of course I have polk speakers and an MA Audio 12 inch, 400 watt sub, but its still the deck that makes it sound good.

 

after owning/driving multiple cars the last few years i found out that hondas have the best factory deck around(and speakers). and since most of us are victims of unintentionally missing radios i think factory decks are best to deal with since no body wants to steal them...lol

i have tried to blow stock honda speakers before with a pioneer deck...after 20 min of maximum bass, volume all the way up, things vibrating off the car and windshield cracking, they never blew.

 

I did a little bit of online research, but couldn't find any decks that were internally amplified. What model Pioneer deck do you have, if you don't mind? I had a pioneer in my '92 and it got ripped out along with one of the extended cab windows ($400+ just for the glass). I just hate having something that tempts the dishonest.

 

All aftermarket decks I've ever seen have internal amplifiers in them. But most off of them also have pre-amp outputs if you choose to run an external amp.

I have a Pioneer Premier DEH-P590IB. 50 watt per channel amp, 7 band graphic EQ, seperate front, rear and sub preamp outs. And my favorite part... it has an iPod Bus input on the back of it so I can plug my iPod into it and control the music selection from the head unit.

It was like a $300 head unit that I got for like half price on clearance sale! Like I said before, I have yet to hear one that produces a cleaner sound!

 

I'm going to look into an aftermarket setup. I just prefer something that looks "stock", to help deter theft. I hate other people's sticky fingers.

 

I definately understand that! I've been lucky nobody has ever broken into my truck or any of my past vehicles. My old car had a 2400 watt stereo with 6 speakers and 2 subs, all powered by external amps. I really toned it down when I got this truck!! I just can't deal with it that loud anymore.

Here is a picture I found on my computer... not the best angle, but you can see what the Pioneer cd player looks like in the dash...

 

LOL! Ya the stock units are junk. The Walmart special $30 sounds better. And to prevent others from stealing it you simply take off the face, takes 2 seconds.

My radio is cooler. It tilts and you can load pictures on it. It was top model 3-4 years ago.

 

My escort has one of the motorized ones. It didn't take long for the mechanism of the fold down to break. Now changing out CD's is a pain because you have to hold the face in position as to maintain contact for power, while at the same time changing the cd with the other hand.