2000 beetle aftermarket stereo install

[Predator04]

ok so i got the old radio out. and now i have a jvc hd radio i want to install.. so i get all the harness' ect.. but theres not enuf room for all the wires and the radio all to fit. how can i remove the whole piece were the radio is? i cant get my jvc to install! someone please help! thank. also i tried searching the forums and found nothing.

[noR]

You... can't. it's part of the dash. You can get the cover off, but if you wanted to get to the back of where the readio would be, you'd have to do ALOT of removal.

You sure the wires aren't just bunching up and getting in the way? There's not a whole lot of space for the stock headunit either.

[noR]

You... can't. it's part of the dash. You can get the cover off, but if you wanted to get to the back of where the readio would be, you'd have to do ALOT of removal.

You sure the wires aren't just bunching up and getting in the way? There's not a whole lot of space for the stock headunit either.

[Predator04]

the wires are in the way thats the problem. has anyone installed a aftermarket radio with all the adapters in this thing?

[afinley]

yeah take off the controls for your heated seats, and you can pull most of the wiring down from there, as you push the new HU in.

[boogety boogety]

You have to work at it, but it can be done. You may need to push wires in (or pull through the heated seat controls like the previous poster did) to get the head to seat... that's what I had to do when I put in the (pretty large) wiring harness for my Parrot Bluetooth control unit back there. Use a parts grabber thing (available at most larger hardware stores, it's a long, ~2-ft. coil-looking thing with a plunger at one end and four prongs that come out and grab whatever you want to grab on the other) and you'll curse minimally. Keep at it!

[Predator04]

there is no heated seats in this beetle.. so i dont have that option. thanks tho!

[boogety boogety]

Don't care if you have heated seats or not... the trick is to go in from below where the a/c controls are. Go out to your car and look and you'll see what afinley means... don't be so quick to quit!

[Predator04]

well its not my car its my gfs.and i wasnt giving up :P but i thought the heated seat controls was were the radio was. i guess i was wrong. i see what you mean. under there is 2 screws which i can take off. after that does the unit pull out? or is there something else i need first. and thanks for all your everyone. hard to find a forum were people really help

[Evanrude]

The long way that mine had to go...

In my case, with my Pioneer DEH-P690UB, The dash had to come out.

Unfortunately, the illusion of "space" under our massive pizza-delivery sized dashes is JUST that. An illusion. When I had my first deck installed, a Blaupunkt, it fit better than the stock deck, but it was defective and I couldn't get another one, so I got the Pioneer (and in the long run, I'm very happy with the Pioneer).

Anyway, due to the amount of cables and adapters and such that come off the deck, we had to remove the center dash cover up top.

In order to remove the center piece, the center rectangular piece by the windshield slides forward towards the glass. Be careful so as not to scratch it OR crack your windshield. It just .. slides forward and pops out.

Once you have it out, you'll find several torx screws holding the top of the center piece in. They need to be removed. As well, there are several on the bottom front under the A/C control area. That little panel removes as well. And if I remember correctly, the bud-vase piece pops off and there is a screw under it as well.

And you'll need the factory stereo out first before that can happen

BUT, then you can easily put the harness in and *carefully* tuck it up near the air-vents. BUT, make sure the wires do not get in the way of the paddles that control the vent movement. So as you tuck them, maybe tape them in place like we did. That way you can still open and shut the vents

Then as we slid the dash into place we carefully made sure nothing got pinched, and voila. Stereo installed.

[Predator04]

In order to remove the center piece, the center rectangular piece by the windshield slides forward towards the glass. Be careful so as not to scratch it OR crack your windshield. It just .. slides forward and pops out.

so your talking about the peice thats just behind what i can see in the picture correct? behind the radio by the windshield. so theres no screws to unscrew b4 removing that peice?

also under the ac controls theres 2 screws.. once i remove those will the ac controls come out?

[Evanrude]

Originally Posted by Predator04

In order to remove the center piece, the center rectangular piece by the windshield slides forward towards the glass. Be careful so as not to scratch it OR crack your windshield. It just .. slides forward and pops out.

so your talking about the peice thats just behind what i can see in the picture correct? behind the radio by the windshield. so theres no screws to unscrew b4 removing that peice?

also under the ac controls theres 2 screws.. once i remove those will the ac controls come out?

Correct, the piece by the windshield. No screws. That squareish / rectangular piece just slides towards the glass.

And , (thinks) yes, the 2 screws under the AC controls should release the bottom portion. And as I said I *think* thier might be another one behind the bud-vase plastic. That little piece just pops out of the dash.

[Predator04]

hey thanks alot for your help. seeing how the car is at my gf. i have to wait until tomorrow. ill let you know if i need any help or if i got it

[Plummkrazy]

I put an Alpine deck in my car and needed more space for all the wires, from adaptors, to Ipod connections and all that stuff. I had the center dash piece out and if you look at the back side, there is this metal bracket that starts kind of under your heater ducts and goes down to a lower bracket. It is basically the back of the pocket where your radio would slide in and I think it has like a rubber nub or something on it that the stock deck slid onto. You can remove that bracket and the little extra piece of plastic and it will then give you plenty of room behind the deck.

I did this and havn't had any problems with the radio moving around or anything not working correctly.

- Jeff

[Yurko]

after a couple ins and outs with my HU I found that it is much easier to situate all the adapters and such if you have all the cables connected to the car, get it all tucked back, and have just enough coming out to plug into the HU. that way all the plugs on the adapters are already out of the way.