1988 560 sl radio speakers question

[jimbo409]

I have a 1988 560sl and the radio and speakers a shot.does anyone know the best replacement radio and where are the speakers and how many are there,how hard to replace the speakers.thanks again

[timm9]

Hi Jim,

I no longer have my 1982 R107 but believe you only have two speakers. one each below the the HVAC vents. If you remove your OEM Radio I might suggest that you keep it in a safe place so that when the day comes you decide to sell you have the original equipment. Additionally, if memory serves me I had some issues with the replacement speakers and ended up sending them back in exchange for different speakers. Lastly, when you go to remove the stereo if it has not been removed previously it will only 'come out' a short distance then won't budge. If that happens reach around the passenger side under dash and remove a 'stud' that is screwed into the side of the unit (horizontally) keeping it from being removed. I'm assuming this was an anti smash and dash feature...

[jimbo409]

Thanks how do I get the speakers out,how do I remove the grill covers on the speakers

[timm9]

Jim,

If memory serves me there is one very small screw at the bottom edge of the speaker grill. I believe the top of the grill has a 'lip' that locks into the top edge of the opening. You may have to run your finger along the lower edge to find the screw.

[jimbo409]

thanks so much

[meltedpanda]

Critchfield audio will give you options and direct "refit" instructions of new speakers and radio/stereo options.

[KCM]

I second the Crutchfield site. Even if you don't plan on buying from them, they are a great place to research components and have very good sorting and filter tools to narrow your options. The radio is a single DIN, so there are a lot of options. They also have wiring adapter kits for the radio, so if your wiring hasn't already been butchered, these adapters make the radio an almost plug and play job by plugging right into the existing harness.

As has been said, there are only two speakers as standard, one in the left and one in the right side of the lower dash. I have not replaced the speakers so can't help you on getting them out other than the speaker cover comes off and you take them out from the front of the dash. As for the radio, I can tell you what I put in my car last year. It was the Pioneer DEH-X9600BHS. Told myself that I would never by another Pioneer after a button failed on the almost new radio the previous owner installed, but I couldn't pass up the radio due to all the features it has. Everything from CD player (hidden behind the removable faceplate) to Bluetooth to handsfree calling to dual USB inputs, and even Sirius if you use that. Probably not the cheapest on the market (I paid around $185 and you must shop around for the best deal), but I liked it enough to buy another for another of my cars. But like I said, if you don't like Pioneer or want something cheaper, there are a ton of single DIN options.

If you want to greatly improve your sound, might want to think about adding rear speakers. The fronts are pretty small and never designed for spectacular sound. The previous owner of my car added a pair of rear speakers mounted in separate enclosures that just sit on the package shelf. I liked that he did not cut holes in the shelf or alter the car to add them, but have seen pictures of others who mount them in the shelf. The sound in my car is very good, something I attribute to those rear 6x9 speakers.

[meltedpanda]

I actually have a set of the original front speakers in good shape if you need them

[zohar.melamed]

The speakers are easy to remove. The lower dash speaker grills are held in place by two small cross head screws at bottom and two metal tangs that keep the top in place as they slide under a metal arm.
Remove the screws and slide it down.

installation is greatly simplified by using a plastic card ( store loyalty or similar ). Slide it from the top under the metal bar , slide the grill tangs so the card sits between them and the grill body and gently pull the card out while sliding the grill up. Then screw into place.

Many modern speakers have a large magnet requiring some enlargement of the speaker cavity - especially the driver side one.

I used a pair of alpine speakers - sxe 1025s. They sound great.

To keep the period look I installed a refurbished blaupunkt cassette radio that has been modified to accept an aux connection.

Very pleased with the end result.

[zohar.melamed]

The two dash speakers are however pretty small and offer limited sound. The PO has already cut holes in the rear side panels so i enlarged those and added a pair of focal 130 ac2 - what a great sounding speaker! Couldn't recommend them enough.