USN_F35

Ok so im installing my Pioneer h/u and I went to best buy to pick up a wiring harness adaptor. The guy tells me that he has one thats $180 and will make everything work. I found a GM kit there for $25 and he says its not the same and that ill loose door chimes and my speedo can f up. I didnt believe him because Ive had experience leading me to believe that best buy sales people are morons. So I go to Cirquit City to talk to them and the guy tells me hes getting a $25 harness that work perfectly in tomorrow. So I go to Hi Fi Buys to check out what they have and they tell me the harness isnt out yet for an 06 Balt and that the stereo has "data retention" and affects other systems of the car? Whos telling the truth and what should I do? Should I just say screw the harness and splice the stock harness with my head units?

tremorz

stick with the guy at circuit city, the harness will cost $25 bucks at most, i have the pioneer system with subwoofer on a 06 SS/SC fully loaded (onstar, car phone, steering controls etc etc). i took out the stock head unit, plugged in a $23 harness from circuit city, wired my flip up tv head unit, AND EVERYTHING WORKS FINE. i only lost.....

1)my onstar...its wired in with radio for the digital read out when dialing.
2)my steering controls, which is wired to the radio specifically

you lose these options for obvious reasons.

but u will not mess up your speedometer, door chimes, or anothing else.

The reason you are being told you need the $180 harness is because the guy is assuming you want to KEEP the ONSTAR and STEERING CONTROLS. Unless you tell him otherwise...he does not know you are willing to lose those options. The first notion any employee working at a store like that would think is that you want a proper and complete install....which is having your aftermarket radio with all the options of the car.

However, if you are willing to lose onstar and your steering options, u can most definatly go with the $24 harness.

Furthermore....there are $60 adapters that you can wire up to have your aftermarket radio work with steering controls, and onstar as well.....your choice. Search for "PAC" at www.crutchfield.com.

ok...im done.

edit: i cannot speak for other cobalt models...but im assuming it can't be that much different in terms of having the door chimes, speedometer, oil life, trips, average speed, air bags, etc etc wired in with the radio...which i find rediculous.

NoleafClover

You loose nothing..accept onstar/steering wheel controls...if u have those options...all u need is METRA Harness 70-2301...says its for 04 malibu..works perfectly...$25..all u need..trust me

USN_F35

Well I got it running perfectly...I just have a base Balt so I didnt loose anything...except for the CD thats in my stock h/u...... But I just couldnt wait for tomorrow I wanted it now so my dad and I just spliced everything. Thanks though.

tremorz

i dont see the difference between plugging in the $25 circuit city wire harness into the factory wires or splicing the factory wires and tapping in the wires from the head unit harness....... except for the fact that the factory wires are now cut.

whether you plugged in the GM $25 harness or spliced....the end of the factory wire harness is not plugged into the stock head unit....the stock head unit is not there.

the install would of been cleaner and if you ever needed to put the stock head unit back in (to take it to dealer for example) it would of just been a matter of unplugging and plugging.

anybody else get what im saying?

plastiqmanb

guys i have also heard rumors of loosing our data center functions ie: the econ, oil life, temp, that stuff. Being unable to reset the values ive got a base LS. I have also seen this:

http://www.mobilcaraudio.com/catalog...79/1477128.htm
whats the deal? i need some help and input! thanks

StreetDreamz

DO NOT listen to the people on here. Listen to someone who does this for a living and is also certified for such...like me. There are SOME Cobalts that started in 05 with a data retention system that runs a lot of stuff through the radio (Oil life monitor, speedometer, gas gauge, idiot lights, etc.). Only problem is the car is hit or miss unless you actually pull the radio out to look. You could need it, you could not. Metra makes the correct parts/wires for doing this and the guy at Circuit City was right, BUT I would never go to Circuit City for anything in car audio. A place that calls their best sub/box/amp combo only costing like $200...come on. You could use a 70-2103 and mount the factory radio under a seat or somewhere it would fit, get the 99-3303 LAN interface kit, or you could cross your fingers and hope you don't need it.

tremorz

ok nobody needs to be a *****....first of all...there is nothing wrong with a $200 combo from circuit city....that says absolutly nothing at all about installing car audio....you gonna bash somebody for buying $200 combo because they dont have the funds for anything better? thats rediculous...

2nd of all....if your so certified how is it a hit or miss? it is either ur certified and u know it or not...if somebody tells you thier make, model, and package your gonna tell them "im gonna install a $180 harness and its hit or miss...go home and cross your fingers"... no way.

3rd...the advise given was for a 2006 ss/sc with pioneer system + sub. and the advise given above is absolutly true....im not boasting to be certified...but i did put it in with my own hands.

btw not bashing you, but for somebody trying to seem so professional you make pretty lame points in your post.

if you would like pics of behind my head unit right now...it is very simple....2 GM harnesses, both pluged into stock H/U...you dont need the smaller of the 2 (which is for onstar and steering controls) the bigger of the 2 is for the $25 harness from circuit city.....at the end of the $25 harness wire it to the harness leading out of your aftermarket H/U....and thats it.

Bandit2941

The bottom line is you need the $25 harness. I know you've already installed it and that's proof that the $25 harness would have done the trick. You don't lose the DIC, door chimes, or anything else on the Cobalt, except Onstar if you have that. You can use a small steering wheel interface device made by PAC audio to keep your steering wheel controls (www.pac-audio.com) and that's a simple install as well.

StreetDreamz

I will tell you now that the only cars you need it for are cars with OnStar, I just called Metra because of I am sick of always getting into this argument with people. Read this:

You do NOT need the kit for the Cobalt unless you have OnStar and want to retain it.

The kit is more specific for the other vehicles that NEED it. Glad this **** is cleared up.

iLLmaTic3s

the harness for the malibu, equinox and our car will work..ive worked on soo many cobalts. works every timelike a charm. incase you have onstar there is a dash kit i forget who makes it but it retains your onstar. the only think you will have to run is a new accesory wire because of the GM Lan System. Other than that is a simple install.

Steering wheel controls will be lost..yet you can get patch cables and find them in the car and tie them into the aftermarket h/u. its hard, but it can be done.

Bandit2941

You mean "you can get a PAC adapter to do it"

Good luck "patching cables" as the resistor network is in the steering wheel. When you push a button it lets the deck know what button you pushed by the voltage drop due to a specific value of resistor tied to each button.

iLLmaTic3s

those things never work...

Bandit2941

You're welcome to come over and look at my car to see one that works perfectly......you should know this since you've worked on "soo many cobalts"..............

StreetDreamz

They work flawlessly. If you can't get them to work then I would say it's programming/installation error.

PatDamanCobalt

https://www.cobaltss.net/gallery/sho...=3&userid=1798

made by turbo2 interface systems...not a cheap part however i spend 250 bucks to keep my onstar

iLLmaTic3s

ah no..dont say i blow at installing..i hate when all you gus hate on everyone. im a MECP Master Installer. i have had a problem with some of them being defective. im sure some do work..i just havent got a good one i guess. yes i have worked on a lot of cobalts, doing customs system and other work. let it be.

StreetDreamz

Hahaha. You're not an MECP master installer. Wait...you might be. Give me your real name and I will read over the MECP list by region. Which region were you certified in? Myself being first class (Now called Advanced) certified knows that there are only a handful of Master installers in the country. If you were a master installer you'd be making enough money to drive something nicer than a Cobalt LS. Lol.

Bandit2941

Thats what I'm saying.

As an aside, do you program yours with the engine running or the engine off? The first time I set mine up, I programmed it with the engine off. It worked but after 25 or 30 minutes of driving, the volume buttons would stop working. The only thing I could figure was that with the engine off the voltage was lower when it was programmed, and after that amount of driving the voltage got high enough to where the voltage drop across the resistor(s) was different enough to where the PAC didn't see it as a correct button push. I fixed the problem by simply re-programming it with the car running.

iLLmaTic3s

Currently there are no reprogammin programs for the L61 engine. i do have other bills to pay like a normal person. im just waitin for the new camaro to come out.

plastiqmanb

ahh just a quick reply here.... SOOOOOO i wanted to solve it for once... at least to myself here. I ripped out the stock radio and drove and drove with it. EVERYTHING WORKED tested good with the DIC (scrolling and resetting) chimes, blinkers (hey ever notice when ur seatbelt chime comes on try turning your turn signal on, betcha cant hear the turn signal once the ding comes on! LOL) and no error code/idiot light. Soo im settled on the 25 dolla harness and cheap azz dash kit.. but i think my sony wont fitttttttttttt >pissed<
thanks you people!

StreetDreamz

You don't need the special expensive harness unless you have OnStar and want to retain it. It was already cleared up.