Radio code needed to reinstall factory system?
 

I bought a used Z that has an aftermarket Pioneer headunit and an amp mounted behind the drivers seat. I just bought a factory headunit from a member here and was wondering what I will need to reinstall it. Will it need a code? Will the dealer give that to me? If not, where would I get the code? The system looks like it was installed by a professional so I'm hoping I can take it to a shop and they can figure out how to get it working again.

If you have a aftermarket amp in the back I garantee he did one of two things maybe three.

1. Bypassed the factory wiring and ran his own.

2.Cut the factory speaker wire from the factory harness and ran new wires from there to the new amp.

3. If the amp if for a sub than you SHOULD be fine however some installers like myself still run new wires to new speakers if they are being installed.

In either case you are going to have to do more work than just plug in the factory head unit.

If 1. is done you are going to have to open the door panels and run wire from the stock wire to the crossover wherever that may be. Why? Because component speakers have a crossover that sends signal to the tweeter and the woofer separately. This means you have to hard wire new wires to the factory wire than run that new wire to the input of the crossover.

If 2 is done you are going to have to solder or re connect the factory wires to the stock harness and hope that there is enough slack in the spare wire in order to do that from where they cut it.

If 3 is done you are going to have to do what was done in 1.

My recommendation? Leave the aftermarket system in there for two reasons. The aftermarket speakers are not going to sound anywhere near as good as they do now with a factory head unit powering them with 8 watts.

Thanks for all your advice. I really just don't like the look of the single DIN aftermarket headunit. Not only does this particular one look out of place, the lights are blue on an orange dash.

Is it possible to run an aftermarket amp and speakers with the factory head unit?

It is but you will have to wire in a LOC or something like a mtx re-q 5 in order to do that.

Get a double din head unit with the look you want and it will have features and sound that will be better than the factory. You can get it done in about a 1/2 hr.