Red Factor

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Engine        Interior        Exterior

Here is a list of the add-ons and alterations I have done and want to do to the interior of my car.

Here are the details of the add-ons and alterations I have performed.

Pioneer DEH-P940MP Premier CD Player

I purchased this CD Player because for one, it was Pioneer.  I think Pioneer is the best car stereo provider out there, but everybody has their own opinion.  Second it was the best Pioneer that didn't have the flip-up screens to watch movies on.  This CD Player has everything.  Here are just some of the options:  plays MP3s & WMAs, 3 sets of 6.5V preamp outputs, OEL Display, Satellite Ready, BBE, DSP, etc...  It is great, and it looks great too.

XM Radio Tuner

Pretty simple installation as far as radio gadgets are concerned.  It is about as easy as installing a radio deck.  Since my radio is "XM Ready" I can add a tuner to receive satellite radio.  I was going to install the tuner inside the back right panel but it was too thick.  So I installed it under the read deck between the two speakers.  It hooks up to the IP-Bus just like a CD Changer would.  The reception is amazing and the music is crystal clear.  It is $9.99 a month for subscription but I think it will be worth it.  I have 100 channels of every type of music available.  Think of it as one CD per month.

Infinity Kappa Perfect 5.1 Component Speakers

These speakers are absolutely awesome.  They are as they are called, "Perfect".  The sound is incredible and the power handling capability is great.  They are 100W RMS and 400W Peak.  The crossover is also huge and has an adjustment that allows you to tweak the tweeter so to speak.  Installing it was fun though.  The tweeter was hard to find a location for and the woofer was too deep.  Also since the crossover was so large, there were very limited spaces inside the door.  Although, since all of that is done now, it was worth it.  They sound great.  For more information on where I installed everything, click here.

Infinity Kappa 693.5i 6x9 3-way Speakers

These speakers are the perfect match for the component speakers that I installed.  They are top of the line Infinity Kappas and are the 3-way.  They can handle 110W RMS and 330W Peak.  They even have a miniature crossover to ensure optimum sound.  They sound distinct too.  They produce crystal clear highs.  The only problem with these speakers was that the magnets where larger than anticipated.  As you can see in the picture there is a large difference between stock and aftermarket.  I had to grind down the edges of the opening in the rear deck to accommodate these large magnets.  It was worth it though.

Crime Guard 745i³ Alarm

This alarm can be purchased from Crutchfield and is one great alarm system.  I purchased the highest model so I have everything.  It comes equipped with:  remote starter disable, external sensor, glass break sensor, all relays needed (except trunk release relay), remote door locking, and so much more.  I installed it myself with just a few tools and a digital voltage meter (this is a must).  Without that meter I would have been totally lost.  This project took me the longest to finish.  I still am not done.  I am about 98% complete.  The other 2% involves installing a sensor to let the alarm know that the trunk is open.  I installed the alarm brain underneath my dash on the driver's side.  The total amount of hours it took me would be about 20 hours, only because I didn't know what I was doing.  Most of that time was finding out how my car's electrical system worked.  Now that I know it all and had to install again, it would probably take 7 hours, less with another person.  In the picture above the alarm is somewhere in all of those wires (wires colored for security reasons).

Tinted Windows

I had my windows tinted professionally by Hunter's Window Tinting.  They did an excellent job and my car looks great.  I had 5% (limo) installed on the back, 15% on the sail panels, and 35% (legal) on the side windows.  Since I live in Texas, this was well worth the money.  My car is not an oven  in the summer days anymore.

Wolo Model 345 Animal House Electronic Horn

This addition was done completely for fun.  My friend had one and we had so much fun with it.  It plays 9 different animal sounds (my favorite is the "bull"), 16 chimes (sound like ice-cream truck music), and 10 sirens that sound like car alarms.  I installed in with no problem in the engine compartment.  It is pretty loud and is pretty fun to play with in traffic.

3A Racing Pedals

I purchased these pedals from Pepboys for the simple fact that you could change their color.  The package came with the option to use blue, red, yellow, or black pedal templates to add to the pedal.  I used the red.  They were pretty simple to install except for one thing, they did not fit on the pedal without modifying them.  I just used my little Dremel tool to saw away just a little bit of the original gas pedal.  They simply clamp on to your existing pedals.  The modifying was done to keep the pedal covers from slipping off during driving.

Euro White Faced Gauges

These gauges looks great at night.  I installed them to make my car look different, and they do exactly that.  They light up blue or sea green.  There is a switch that will let you change them.  They were really easy to install.  The only hard part was making sure the needles where put on the same way they came off.  For installation instructions click here.

Hardwired Radar Detector

My girlfriend purchased it at Radioshack for me for my birthday.  This radar is made by the same company that makes Cobra.  I hated turning it on and off all the time, and having to reach all the way onto the dash just to get to it.  I also didn't like the cord always in the way, so I modified the cord.  I cut the wires and soldered the wire to the ignition wire so that it would receive power whenever the car was on.  I then ran the wire up the side front panel to the ceiling and over to the rearview mirror.  From there the AC plug hangs, ready to plug into the radar.  I then moved my radar detector up behind my mirror, but just low enough so that I could see the numbers on it.  The radar will now turn on when the car turns on and off when it turns off, which is great considering I forgot to turn it off one day and it drained my battery to the point of jump starting.  What is also cool is when the radar is turned on, it says "Welcome, buckle your seat belts", so I hear that when I turn my car on.

Brown Bread 140 sq ft.

This stuff is great.  I installed 140 sq ft. of Brown Bread which is very similar to Dynamat Xtreme, just without the pricey price tag.  It made a huge difference in how the car sounds.  The outside is quieter, the inside music is more detailed, and the road noise has been eliminated a lot.  I have a detailed write up on this installation, which can be found here.

Past
Modifications I did have, but no longer have on my car

Pioneer DEH-P6000 In Dash CD Player

This was the best of the best CD players in 1998.  It still is an awesome player.  It has a Mosfet 45Wx4 chip and a SuperTuner III.  I bought it originally for my Escort and decided to transfer it over to my Grand Prix.  It also has preamp outputs for the subs, which is a must if you want to add subs to a car.  It is a slot E (according to Crutchfield) CD player so that means that I had to buy an adapter to allow it to fit in the CG slot that GM cars have.  They can be bought for $15.

Sony Xplod 5¼" 3-way Front Panel Speakers
I purchased these speakers because their speculations were what I wanted and also they were red to match my car.  These particular speakers can handle 150W maximum so adding an amp would not be a problem with over powering them.  They also are the 3-way model and not the 2-way.  I prefer a 3-way because they give a more distance clearer sound.  I had to take the whole door panel off just to get to the speaker.  The hardest part was finding all the screws that held the door on.

Sony Xplod 6x9 3-way Rear Speakers

These rear deck speakers can handle up to 180W maximum, so like the front speakers, adding an amp would not over power them.  They too are also 3-way.  They sound really nice.  Installing them was somewhat difficult because I didn't have a screwdriver that was fit for the job.  It was easier than the front speakers because you have bottom access to them through the trunk  The picture that is shown is not the best.  It looks like the sun has gotten to it.

Rockford Fosgate Punch 500.2 Amplifier

This 2-channel beast pumps out a lot of power for just being a 500 watt amp.  RF amps are designed to run cooler than any amp I have seen.  Also the amp produces more than just 500 watts.  Their number is not the maximum power obtainable.  According to the statistics sheet sent with the amp, this amp produces a maximum of 752 watts under the right conditions.  I highly recommend a RF amp if you have the money.  I installed this amp onto the back of the sub box because there was no where else to mount in without it blocking or puncturing something I didn't want.  I used 4 gauge wire so that I will be able to add a 4 channel amp for my speakers later on.  Although I have no plans on getting another amp, I just used that gauge wire just in case.

2 Sony Xplod 12" Subwoofers

These subs can handle up to 800W maximum, but I would not recommend them ever going that high.  They are not the best subs on the market, but they get the job done for the price, and do it very well.  They are loud and hit hard.  The only difference I can tell between these subs and high priced subs is the type of hit they produce.  A more expensive sub will have a more distinct hit than the Xplōd's would.  I faced my subs forward because I didn't want my trunk to rattle like crazy with the subs facing to the back of the car.  The only thing that rattles a lot is my spoiler.  I fixed all the other rattles.