Upgraded my single din car stereo into an equivalent of a 1.5 Din, the photos don' t do justice as I now have Apple Car Play on Bluetooth, etc. For those with eagle eye you will note that my 99 Sport now has a 04 center bezel with rounded edges. Yes the 04 center bezel does not exactly fit at the back but that is hidden; the top two screws under the top dash line up and the bottom two clips lined up - I had to cut off the middle clip mounts as they were in the way and did not line up. Also had to make custom brackets for the radio as the early model two holes are different to the late model 4 holes.
Attaching three photos of the process, first in the install with the early model center bezel which has square cut outs, and i am not great with a Dremel but had already modified it for the 3d printed switch panel from Custom Fab https://www.custom3dfab.com/collections/jeep-wrangler-tj-lj so I figured I had come this far so why not.
Was not happy with the result, so found in a salvage yard an 04 center bezel with the round cut outs on compared it front and back to an early model and noted it was achievable with minor modifications. That took about 4 hours to sort out as I am a bit OCD, and had to line up the stereo with measurements and lots of testing to achieve a good fit. Note the air conditioning controls for the early model then need about 10 mm spacers to push the panel outwards to have a seamless fit and not expose gaps. As this was a trial and error project, there was lots of testing and thinking. If it did it again with all the parts I would say only an hour, but I had to make the new brackets by bending and testing until I got it right.
Stereo was purchased online from AliExpress and was received about 10 days after ordering and comes in various options, this is a mid range option - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/400....order_list.order_list_main.47.316b1802EqMUJD
The stereo came with two USB cables which are currently routed into the glovebox, but have ordered cables with a plug that will hopefully fit the spare Carling ricker switch space - will update when they arrive. Tip - this radio is able to be connected to your Wi-Fi network at home for system upgrades but you need to make sure the connector with a yellow RCA and two small yellow or yellow and blue wires are installed as the yellow and blue or in my case yellow and yellow wires about an inch and half long are the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi antennas, I extended these both by about 12 cm / 6 inches and then when parked at my house my stereo (when ignition on) can connect with full strength to my home Wi-Fi and rapidly update itself or download maps, etc.
And yes the OEM style switches that are backlit utilize OEM switch hardware, but beware which ones you use as they are not all equal. That is another story!
The end results are below!
Questions welcome.
Attaching three photos of the process, first in the install with the early model center bezel which has square cut outs, and i am not great with a Dremel but had already modified it for the 3d printed switch panel from Custom Fab https://www.custom3dfab.com/collections/jeep-wrangler-tj-lj so I figured I had come this far so why not.
Was not happy with the result, so found in a salvage yard an 04 center bezel with the round cut outs on compared it front and back to an early model and noted it was achievable with minor modifications. That took about 4 hours to sort out as I am a bit OCD, and had to line up the stereo with measurements and lots of testing to achieve a good fit. Note the air conditioning controls for the early model then need about 10 mm spacers to push the panel outwards to have a seamless fit and not expose gaps. As this was a trial and error project, there was lots of testing and thinking. If it did it again with all the parts I would say only an hour, but I had to make the new brackets by bending and testing until I got it right.
Stereo was purchased online from AliExpress and was received about 10 days after ordering and comes in various options, this is a mid range option - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/400....order_list.order_list_main.47.316b1802EqMUJD
The stereo came with two USB cables which are currently routed into the glovebox, but have ordered cables with a plug that will hopefully fit the spare Carling ricker switch space - will update when they arrive. Tip - this radio is able to be connected to your Wi-Fi network at home for system upgrades but you need to make sure the connector with a yellow RCA and two small yellow or yellow and blue wires are installed as the yellow and blue or in my case yellow and yellow wires about an inch and half long are the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi antennas, I extended these both by about 12 cm / 6 inches and then when parked at my house my stereo (when ignition on) can connect with full strength to my home Wi-Fi and rapidly update itself or download maps, etc.
And yes the OEM style switches that are backlit utilize OEM switch hardware, but beware which ones you use as they are not all equal. That is another story!
The end results are below!
Questions welcome.
