Since the Kenwood is always there I thought that (and still think that), all other things being equal, I'd like it on top. Once I got into it, though, I came to the same conclusion that both of you did re: Empeg would sit better in the wider space up top -- project less noticably. This will take some work. It was an incredibly tight fit. Yes, the frame of the Kenwood sits a bit behind the lip of the Empeg sled because it is the only way it would fit. However, in version 2, I may be able to fix the space problem by about 1/4" -- just enough -- by cutting the brackets. It's not visible in the pics, but the brackets each have a lip at the top that is intended to support/align the top of the factory head unit. By grinding these off and cutting into a plastic support brace inside the dash, I can raise the top unit up a bit, make it use more of the top of the bezel, and make the pair more flush.

A new bezel is $85, so before I embark on V2.0, I'm going to noodle this for a while. I may experiment with mixing some touch-up paint and try it out on the V1 bezel so I could gently paint the cut surfaces of V2. I may also reinforce the back sides of the new bezel with urethane or epoxy before I start cutting, too, so there's actually some rigidity in the piece when I'm done. I may also wait to get my hands on a tuner module (yes I'd conceivably stuff one in the car just to get automagic "personality" -- Eq settings, etc.)

In V2, I will also probably go ahead with the idea of welding nylock nuts to the brackets so that I could insert and secure the sled *after* replacing the bezel. This will take a lot of fit, but the lips of the sled would then cover some of the cut edges.

It may not be obvious from pic #5, but if I do raise the top (Empeg in V2) unit by about 1/4", I'll be cutting most of the painted, angled surface at the top of the bezel away, so I'd like to figure out how I'm going to paint/repair it before I start. Part of me is thinking I'll come up with a new paint color -- a slightly blue-tinted silver -- and paint all the silver bits to match rather than try to match the factory paint. I also thought of making a urethane casting of a vargin bezel and cutting/painting that instead. These are all jobs probably better left to a professional, but I'm on a budget!

Jim

Edited by jimhogan on 15/07/01 10:25 AM.