Mazda 2 - Demio Install

[3stagevtec]

I'm putting a lil hard pong in the wife's car..

Mazda designed the 2 (Demio) dash like a real donkey. They placed a circuit board behind the center console that blocks up all possibilities of installing an aftermarket head unit. Because of that, no company can make any dash kits for the vehicle because the circuit board will always remain in the way.

Dash with factory radio (AM/FM only, the CD / Tape etc are non functional)



The circuit board behind the center console.



The plastic knockout is 1/2 din high and about 4 inches across. The AC controls are wired in below, so you cannot even remove the board if you wanted to.

That limitation called for some out of the box (or out of the dash) thinking.. No, i'm not going to make a podium..

[3stagevtec]

My solution, install the deck inside the storage bin located on top of the dash board.

The bin location..


Opened..


Removed..


Now to get a head unit to fit in there..



1/4" ply, a jigsaw and sand paper and I end up with..











Wood glue + clamps to stick the pieces together..



I intentionally left that small gap between the cover and the wooden frame to allow for cooling of the headunit..

[3stagevtec]

This is what it looks like test fitted in the dash..





Now to carpet.. wait, I hate to carpet stuff.. Need a lazy man solution..





All taped up and under coated, I mean, spray painted..





The final look..



Good enough..

If you look closely in the pics, you will see I glued pieces of rubber inside the bin to support the back of the headunit. A hole was also drilled to allow passage for the wiring.

That's all you're gonna get for today.. Equipment details will come as the install progresses..

[Firewall]

God I wish my gf would let me do an install in her car....

Looking good so far. Not sure from the pics but can the pocket still fold down?

[3stagevtec]

God I wish my gf would let me do an install in her car....

Looking good so far. Not sure from the pics but can the pocket still fold down?

The cover for the storage bin opens upwards. I placed a small tab inside so it can latch close.

The funny thing is my wife is actually using my van these days to go to work and I ended up with the small compact.. I can't complain though, it plenty faster than my Suzuki..

[nervewrecker]

Thought is only me hate carpet.

Keep the updates coming, I feel im gonna like this build.

[Firewall]

God I wish my gf would let me do an install in her car....

Looking good so far. Not sure from the pics but can the pocket still fold down?

The cover for the storage bin opens upwards. I placed a small tab inside so it can latch close.

The funny thing is my wife is actually using my van these days to go to work and I ended up with the small compact.. I can't complain though, it plenty faster than my Suzuki..

Oh goar, i meant fold down to close.

You real lucky the wifey understanding about music yes. Can't wait to see the rest of the install.

[3stagevtec]

Nope, can't close..

Next i'll show my electrical upgrades put in place to adequate supply the 1400Wrms total amplifier power to be installed..

[black start]

that oem design real crappy though.

liking the radio location though.

[- Rovin's car audio -]

aah boi u start it ....

[kurpal_v2]

Nope, can't close..

Next i'll show my electrical upgrades put in place to adequate supply the 1400Wrms total amplifier power to be installed..

it can't close



Very cool so far doh (y)

[ward one]

very neat idea. liking this build already . what are your system plans? equipment to be used?

[3stagevtec]

very neat idea. liking this build already . what are your system plans? equipment to be used?

Equipment to be used? Nahh, hadda keep alyuh in suspense..

My wife shares similar tastes in music as me, so she likes the full / clean sound with a powerful low end response. The Mazda only came with two full range speakers up front, no rear speakers in that car. I am planning to keep just the front stage setup, no rear fill and a 10" sub at back. Looking at 3 way active for the tuning ability.

One cool thing I noticed is that the front doors are already factory sealed on the inside, so the stock speakers has a nice response to them. That should make installation a little easier..

[ward one]

very neat idea. liking this build already . what are your system plans? equipment to be used?

Equipment to be used? Nahh, hadda keep alyuh in suspense..

My wife shares similar tastes in music as me, so she likes the full / clean sound with a powerful low end response. The Mazda only came with two full range speakers up front, no rear speakers in that car. I am planning to keep just the front stage setup, no rear fill and a 10" sub at back. Looking at 3 way active for the tuning ability.

One cool thing I noticed is that the front doors are already factory sealed on the inside, so the stock speakers has a nice response to them. That should make installation a little easier..

tuned in to this build. cant wait to see the equipment u using. the suspense....................

[Ryan123]

Cool idea! and it's a Mazda build

[3stagevtec]

A lil update on the install..

Amps going under the front seats because I don't want to compromise the rear storage + rear seat folding ability. The rear seats fold flat into the floor for extra cargo capacity.

First up, remove those rear seat AC vents, we hardly ever have rear passengers and wouldn't you all prefer the cold breeze flow up front for the driver / passenger anyway?? To remove them I simply lifted the carpet, unclipped and pulled them out..



Next up was to run all the wiring down the center of the vehicle and distribute accordingly. I dunno why I always miscalculate wire lengths.. Check where my main batt + wire reached..



Just made it..

I ran the power wire down the right side of the vehicle and the RCAs on the left. All wires were placed inside wire loom to help protect them from getting cut against the sharp edges inside the vehicle.. Should have put loom over my fingers too..

I used sand paper to get a nice piece of exposed metal under the seat to make my main ground, I then jumpered that ground point to another factory ground point I found near the hand brake lever. The 2nd (factory) ground point was then connected to the 2nd amplifier. So I have the both grounds on the 2 amplifiers connected to 2 ground points inside the vehicle and the both ground points are also connected to each other.

I also connected the head unit to the factory ground wire inside the dash AND too a second ground wire I ran to some bare metal I found there as well. In the engine bay, I did the batt -ve to chassis and engine block to chassis upgrade (two parts of the 'Big 3') with 2 gauge wire. (the 2 gauge was overkill but its what I had).

The benefit of all that attention to grounding was no ground loops in the system, i.e. no engine noise!

[3stagevtec]

What? Want more pics??

Ok ok, hold this for now..

The Power..



JBL GTO-804EZ (4CH with 80W x 4 @ 4Ω and 100W x 4 @ 2Ω)
JBL GTO-1001EZ (Mono with 1000W @ 2Ω)

What I like about these amps is that they have an LED input level indicator for setting the gains. It uses 3 LEDs for Low / Maximum / Overload. If you leave the Input level indicator turned on, you can easily see when you are over driving the inputs to the amp! Really cool featue IMO. Of course, they are there to help you properly set the gains, JBL also includes a setup CD and full instructions to set them up.

These amps also have the ability to accept speaker level inputs (JBL includes bare wire to RCA connectors) and they have an auto turn circuit that switches the amp on once it senses an input signal. Those features make it ideal for upgrading a factory audio system.

Pics of headunit (kinda easy to guess this one), components and sub (kinda easy to guess this too, lol) will come later..

[SnipeR]

Lookin good there! Keep us posted...

[- Rovin's car audio -]

going good so far but whats with d choplash , what u using that to install ...

u suppose to have 1 these for ur drill instead of ketching ass with hand sand paper




did u block off d ground a\c with something or u simple dont set d a\c for ur feet but for head use only ?

amp securing to a piece of board & then unto d floor or just velcroing it onto d carpet ? ...

[kurpal_v2]

What? Want more pics??





JBL GTO-804EZ (4CH with 80W x 4 @ 4Ω and 100W x 4 @ 2Ω)
JBL GTO-1001EZ (Mono with 1000W @ 2Ω)
..

NICE LEG......amps, definatly amps

[3stagevtec]

Rovin - Yunno I really forgot about those wire brushes. Will have to purchase a set. I'm planning to block off the rear ground AC with styrofoam so all the air will be forced to the front seats only. The amps will be secured into a board that will be fitted between the seat mounts. The fitted board will keep them in place.

Kurpal - Trusty assistant at work as always! lol

[ward one]

looking good so far man.

[ruffnek]

MIGHT bre a crazy question.....

but what you plan to do with the left rear mat....?

screw the amp on it?
cover the amp with the balance/
or cut?

[3stagevtec]

I feel I'll just push the mat under the amp.. Amps will be screwed to a board and then I'll just rest them in place under the seat.

[ruffnek]

cool....but is that reccommed?

[Brian Steele]

I feel I'll just push the mat under the amp.. Amps will be screwed to a board and then I'll just rest them in place under the seat.

Hmmm... if someone in the backseat accidentally kicks the amp, or scratches it with whatever they happen to be carrying or rest in the rear footwell, it might end up spoiling your day.

I've done a few "under the seat" amp installs. The approach that best worked for me was to epoxy to the metal floor some pieces of 3/4 ply in place under carpet where you expect to screw the amp into place, making sure that they are all level (the use of a Dremel to trim the wood to fit best would help). You can then screw the amp, or the amp and a custom mounting bracket or shelf, down through the carpet to those "risers".

Concerning the rear rubber mat, it shouldn't be an issue if it covers a small part of the amplifier, and it should protect it against scuff-marks from the occasional shoe. You can always remove them for display purposes

In my last install, I didn't remove the underseat vents. I thought they could come in handy if the amps needed any extra cooling. So far, they don't.

[3stagevtec]

^ Nice suggestion.. The reason I prefer to place the board on top of the carpet is for the vibration damping it will provide to the amplifier. Once the amp is securely mounted to the chassis, road vibrations will find their way straight to the amp and possibly could work parts loose over time.

[Ted_v2]

whats the pricing on those amps?

it looks really nice wrt the power and size

[3stagevtec]

whats the pricing on those amps?

it looks really nice wrt the power and size

I believe the 4CH was around $1300 and the mono was $1700.. Got them from Mobile Authority in the classifieds.

[neckto]

nice,

suscribed