has anyone taken their old radio, and upgraded the equipment inside of it so that it maintains its original appearance?
There are afew companys that make modern stereos with the classic look for older cars so they can still have that origanal look. here is one of them: http://www.retrosoundusa.com/
Those retro radios are nice, but besides being a little expensive, they don't always have the one needed for a particular application. I believe the oldest I found on that site was for a '63 and up Wildcat, but of course those would be the same for the LeSabre and Electra also. My idea was to use one of these (http://bit.ly/tfL7Z8 ) mounted out of sight or under dash for FM and MP3 playback via an SD or USB stick. A remote is included which would be ideal for this situation. My AM radio still works fine so it could be used for listening to anything desired on that band.
what im doing is upgrading my am sonomatic in my electra to am fm delco then relacing the speakrss for an original system then putting a stereo and amp all remote in the trunk with 2 in the kickpanels and 2 on the backseat (convertible) so as to not cut. remote on the front seat with me,marty
I retro fitted one several years ago from Am to AM/FM. worked pretty nice, it was a one speaker system, but none the less it was alot better than plain ole AM. Plus it looked original. Go to Hemmings and you can find a number of places that will make the swap, or try Electro-Tech in MN 877-780-2861 www.turnswitch.com
Nice looking, but this is even more expensive. Granted it would be nice for those who are in the show class, but obviously not for everyone. What about using later model radios in earlier model Buick? Is there some kind of chart somewhere which might indicate which radios work with which years? For example, the '61-'64 cars share a lot of parts, are the radios one of them? IIRC, '63 was the first year for AM-FM radios in GM cars.
Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) Dear AirForce Guy and V-8 Buick audiophiles, Over a decade ago, I went the custom-fit, aftermarket stereo route in my 65 wagon. At the time I went with Custom Autosound unit. Now there are at least two other stereo manufacturers that claim to make custom fit radios and the reviews on V-8 Buick seem favorable. Another mousetrap is to have a company "replace the innerds" of your radio so that it really does look period authentic - cuz it is! :grin: One company mentioned here is S&M Electro-Tech, Inc. Some V-8 Buick members have been very pleased by their work. If that idea appeals to you, try searching for the company on V-8 Buick and see if you can find some of the other member's reviews. Cheers, Edouard :beer
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) I am thinking of having the "innerds" replaced and utilizing the original case, thanks for all the input
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) what i'm having done is taking the guts of the radio, it will be show only, so it lights up and look as though it's on. I have an amp installed and new speaker and just use my i pod, this way i can also hook up my sirius sat radio. hope that helps Will
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) I am going to use a radio delete plate and put a new unit in the glove box.
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) was it hard to put air suspension on? what company did you go with?
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) I doing the same thing. mine lights up but I'm hiding another modern radio with ipod interface under the dash. I want my interior to look totally stock.
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) I have an Air ride tech system cost was about 2400, i had it installed, cost about 1500 in labor, so yeah it was easy lol
Re: Either upgrade the "innerds" or the whole thing (Re: radio upgrade) Here's this; http://forums.aaca.org/f162/radio-upgrade-321651-2.html#post997067 Demo videos of the RediRad classic car AM radio adapter - in use
A friend of mine in the GTO club just had his original '68 radio upgraded. From what he told me, the guy he used took the original faceplate and controls off the radio, rebuilt it with a new amp (or put the original face on a "new" radio, can't remember) and also added an auxillary jack with cable into the glove box. Now he's got a real small mp3 player plugged in. The guy doing the radios is in NJ. I'll post the website tonight after work. ~Danny
