Josephine Spyder GST

[ipWitan]

This is the Build Thread for Spyder GST. Reply below.

 

[ipWitan]

Starting very small. I polished the front headlights with a 3m polishing kit. Next, I replaced the stock halogens with Sylvania Silver halogens, high and low beams. Since I had to remove the air intact to install one of the bulbs, this was my first modification to a car.

For the initial inspection, a mechanic replaced the plugs and wires, cleaned injectors, and performed a general tune up. Runs great right now. A few other basics will be addressed in the next few weeks. I have read the technical, maintenance, and repair manuals for a better understand of the systems. Good start for a noob.

 

[ipWitan]

The car has a mystery battery drain. A mechanic with whom my father spoke believed that something related to the emissions was causing a metal plate to heated and not turning off (or come on randomly). As a result, over night the battery can be completely drained. I cannot figure out what that would be exactly as Google and the manuals have not confirmed such a device. I will ask the group about this problem when my probationary status is lifted. The car gets hooked to a trickle charger each night.

 

[ipWitan]

Oh, and my father put some leds on the headlights. They act as running lights. Not my favorite but will leave them be for now.

 

[DogWhistle]

Nice looking car. Be sure to fill out the details of the car in your profile so we can better help you with questions. Has the timing belt ever been replaced? Even with low miles, a 23 year old belt is on borrowed time.

We had an electrical drain in our Spyder as well. I was able to trace it to the driver’s door lock module. There are a number of possibilities for electrical drain, but you are getting good advice on your other thread.

The leds under the headlights make your car look bedazzled, . You can always turn your fog lamps into DRLs if you want to change.

 

[EclipseOfTheHeart97]

The car has a mystery battery drain. A mechanic with whom my father spoke believed that something related to the emissions was causing a metal plate to heated and not turning off (or come on randomly). As a result, over night the battery can be completely drained. I cannot figure out what that would be exactly as Google and the manuals have not confirmed such a device. I will ask the group about this problem when my probationary status is lifted. The car gets hooked to a trickle charger each night.

You have to do a battery draw test. I believe it involves disconnecting the negative off the battery and connecting a volt meter between the terminal and the negative wire.
On milliamp setting, this will give you a reading of the amperage draw for whatever components are drawing from the battery with the car off. At this point, you would start removing fuses (and reinstalling each so as to not loose track) until you find the fuse that disconnects whatever component is creating this mystery amperage draw/drain. This will help you isolate/identify the mystery component. Make sure you don't start the car with the volt meter connected like this though, as this will literally fry the volt meter....so I've heard.
Hope this helps. You can google or you tube "battery draw test"

 

[ipWitan]

One of the problems with the phantom drain is that, as I was told, the draw comes on sporadically. Does it even make sense that there is some sort of emissions heating element that can turn on (and stay on).

 

[ipWitan]

Stereo update finished. Sounds pretty good. Louder than I can handle, and it bumps. Since there isn't much info on stereo installs, I will give full account.

Kenwood DMX4707 ($379)
Phoenix Gold RX 6.5 with separate tweeter (front doors/dash) ($320)
Rockfort Fosgate TMS69 6x9 (rears) ($400)
JL Audio 12w6v3d4 (DYI sealed, 11.5D x 14H x 16.5L) ($880)
Phoenix Gold MX800w 5 channel ($580)
Backup camera ($250)

The system was professionally installed. I choose the Kenwood based on features and price point. It has andriod auto (wired), and BT 4.1. It seems to work fine. I would have preferred a dial or physical button to adjust volume as the deck is somewhat hard to see and reach, so tactile response would be nice. The deck is impossible to see in direct light.

Speaker fronts were based on his recommendation. He installed 6.5 in door and tweeter in dash. The Rockfort Fosgates were selected because no other speaker fits in the back. These are made for a Harley saddle back. The issue is that specs say a 4in deep speaker will fit but larger diameter magnets will hit the sides at 4 inches, so you need a small powerful magnet. This was a costly upgrade. I had some issues with the sub recommendations. Prefab enclosures may have worked but I had issues getting confirmation from the installer. My brother (a hobby installer) pushed me to buy this high end sub and stop dealing with regrets. If powered, this sub will shake the car. Since convertibles can be notorious for obtaining output, I went with this sub as it isn't a wrong answer - just expensive. The installer wanted a ported box. My option was to built this simple sealed box, power it, and if not enough, build a ported box. The car definitely bumps, but if a ported box hits more, I may still build one. With a sealed box, I have 1/2 my trunk. The dimensions were altered from JL Audio specs but are still the correct volume. An ideal box would be trapezoidal, ported, and take almost all of the trunk, per JL Audio vented specs.

The amp was selected by the installer. It fits under the seat. I grossly overpaid for the backup camera. But it does work and has a wide field of view. As noted, you cannot see the screen in full sun rendering it pointless sometimes.

The system is very loud. I am still figuring out how to adjust the sound field to maximize bass output without distortion to the rears and fronts. Crossing over everything sounds easier than it is. The installer altered the gains to make the fronts and rears match, and selected amp controlled crossovers. The sound is very different between standing still and driving at 40 miles per hour, all with the top down. With the top up, it sounds incredible.

For improvements, maybe adding a dedicated amp for the sub and powering the hell out of it. I don't need that and it would cost another $300-400 and take up more room in the trunk.

So far, the car doesn't seem to rattle too much. I feared that the windows and/or the trunk would vibrate like crazy. The box / speaker is facing forward, per the installer who tested both options. The lights dim a little on very loud bass heavy music. Right now, it isn't an issue but could be. The installer recommended a capacitor...and a better battery.

The radio reception is terrible. I am planning to take it back to the installer to make sure he hooked up the power correctly. The antennae doesn't extend all the way (it didn't before either), but the old radio had far better reception. Maybe I need a new power antennae.

 

[ipWitan]

Update to stereo.

The installer (and everyone else) said that I needed a ported box because a sealed will not be loud enough and that you will need that added volume for a convertible. I built the sealed anyway as it was my first box, it looked easy, took up less space, and thought it would still sound good. I elected to purchase a high quality sub to compensate for the lack of dbs. The sub hits very tight and is impressive with the top up. But with the top down, the system didn't seem to really hit the low sub 30 hertz notes. Moreover, the super strong EDM type songs didn't pound like I thought it should. The system was certainly louder than I could withstand; the bass end didn't match the rest of the sound stage.

Since I had the materials, I decided to build a ported (vented) box. JL Audio support helped me shape the box from the spec design to accomodate the trunk size. The box is 29.5x14x11.5. The vent is 1.75 wide and runs from the side and across the entire back, leaving a 1.75 gap all the way around. Absent making the shape trapezoidal, this is likely the biggest box for this type of speaker. The box is tight and only fits with the speaker facing the rear. Once the box clears the opening and slides past the odd shaped back panel, it can rest on the floor and slide back 3 inches. Thus, the speaker is about 3 inches from the back of the trunk. I installed a few spacer boards to keep the box from slamming into the back. The box is about as wide as possible. If it were wider, it will need to be narrower given the trunk shape. And if narrower, the back of the speaker would hit the back of the inside wedge. Thus, if one considers a wider/narrower box, make sure the sub depth clearance works.

So how does it sound? It freakin' hits! The driving bass notes will massage your heart - top up or top down. The car can be intolerably loud with the top up. Strangely, even at high volumes it isn't that loud outside the car. Surprisingly, it isn't rattling the car too bad. With the top down, it is pretty loud - entertainingly loud in a parking deck. In all fairness, it really isn't neighborhood disturbing loud, which is good, no matter how loud it is inside the car. While both boxes were tuned to 33 hertz, the ported box has much stronger low end. A song like "bad guy" by Billie Eillish sounds different between the two designs.

Using a simple phone app, the bass end is about 3-5 db louder with ported over sealed. Lowering the top reduces sound by about 5 db as well. As another example, the car has a bass volume dial. The difference between sealed and ported is about the same as going from 4 to 10 on the dial, but with more output on the sub 30 hertz spectrum. Sound is hard to quantify or "visualize".

So in sum, sealed sounds good, but ported is definitely the way to go. In a single sub car audio situation, this is probably always the answer. And since the trunk of an eclipse is so limiting, I cannot imagine something hitting harder that remains stock (shout out to the guy who put an 18 inch sub in the back 1/2 of the car.

While I have been warned about posting info about stereos on forums, I am guardedly optimistic that no one truly cares. But if someone does intend mischief, please don't damage the car in your removal process. Please also considering smiling once or twice at the open and hidden cameras.