Ascona B Stereo installation - DOABLE

[gr_diver]

The Ascona B is a very difficult car for any kind of stereo installs. There are LONG discussions in other forums about how one can make a decent audio installation, and always people have to make significant compromises, except if they are willing to cut the hell out of their car, add expensive conversions to electric windows (to get rid of the winder) for front-door speakers, or make expensive custom fiberglass enclosures for the doors or kickpanels. Because lately I've seen more Ascona B owners show up on this forum, I thought I'd post my experiences on the subject.

Years earlier, when I first started to drive the car I wanted to fit a Radio-CD headunit, together with 4 decent speakers. The AM radio was just not up to my demands... I had visited several car-audio installers at the time, and none of them undertook the job due to the difficulties that particular car presents to any installation. The dash is not "deep" enough to accommodate newer DIN sized headunits, the only place that front speakers could be put was the rear end of the front doors (and 13cm, 5 1/4in the maximum size to avoid interference with the window mechanism), and no question about 6x9 on the rear shelf, because exactly below the right part of the shelf is the tank's vent tube going to the filler neck.

To give some hope to any Ascona B owners, I have to say IT CAN ALL BE DONE.

Since that time I have gotten much more into the car-audio world, and this is what I did to my car.

Starting with the heart of the system, the headunit. Once upon a time there were some GM adaptors available, that just made the headunit sit forward and hide the protrusion. Not very stable, and easy to steal the headunit. I found that most headunits with a depth dimension less than 160mm, will probably fit on their own. Small modifications to the headunit's anti-theft "basket" (to make new bent-tabs at the right depth), and by making the cable loom at the back TIDY, I now have a DIN unit, protruding only 1 cm from the dash, which is only visible from the underside, so none can see it. Also it is securely locked in place... You can make it sit completely flush, but serious hacking of the vent channel behind the dash is needed (a no-no for my taste).

Also with patience I managed to install 6x9 speakers (Pioneer TS-E6990) on the rear shelf, without any interference with the vent tube. I chose a pair with reasonably sized magnets, and then measured 10 times to find the sweet spot. When I was sure I found it, I measured another 10 times. I had to be careful with sparks there during cutting, the fuel tank is exactly below it. I made a pilot hole, and then used a pair of sheet-metal scissors to make the hole. A little tight for the hands under the rear glass, but 2 hours and 3-4 beer cans later it was done.

And best of all, I managed to fit 16cm (6 1/2in) speakers in the kickpanels. That was the most difficult of all, I had to find a speaker with "ideal" mounting depth. I chose a JVC pair (CS-HX635). Also some metal work was needed (just enlarging an already existing hole of the metal), and used generic angled spacers, that apart from the necessary clearance they helped A LOT with sound imaging, because I oriented the high side of the spacer towards the firewall, so that each speaker aims at the other side's seat occupant. Also foot clearance is only slightly compromised, because the speakers are slightly above foot level. Long rides remain comfortable for both the driver and the passenger.

So do not be afraid audiophiles, IT CAN BE DONE. You only have to be careful with the dimensions of the components you buy. I could even add amplifiers, but that would be too much for the car. I want it mostly stock, except for the things I can't sacrifice...

Some pics!

[tekenaar]

Nice work! . . . . always nice to have some tunes to help pass the time . . .