Different factory-installed radios

josephjacobs · 03-13-2006, 09:43 AM

*** THIS POST HAS BEEN MODIFIED FROM THE ORIGINAL POST ***

My wife's car is a 2005 Prius with AM/FM/CD, no cassette. She desperately wants cassette tape because of our library of books on tape. From what I have gathered, there are three factory radios for the 2004,2005 Prius.

Radio-A is AM/FM/CD only;
Radio-B is AM/FM/CD/TAPE;
Radio-C is AM/FM/TAPE/6CD-CHANGER(JBL).

Is it possible to drop in a Radio-C in place of the current Radio-A? Is the wiring/connectors the same? I know that the Radio-C JBL system adds an amplifier under the passenger seat, but what if you don't have the amplifier? Could Radio-C still power the speakers in a Radio-A setup?

Unfortunately, I do not have access to the factory service manuals to look up the connectors/wiring myself so I am hoping for community help. If I could get my hands on the few pages that show electrical wiring of Radio-A, I think that would answer my questions. I've found a car wiring/schematic diagram on the web for the Radio-C configuration but haven't found one for the Radio-A configuration Maybe somebody has a PDF of those Radio-A pages?

I have a Radio-C from one of the salvage yards and it's only the radio itself, without the under-seat amp. I bought it over the Internet last Thursday, not knowing about the JBL amp being seperate. I'd like to know if the C radio itself is acting as a pre-amp only (line out levels) or does it have a seperate set of outputs capable of driving speakers directly. There are a lot of connectors on the back of a Radio-C and I'm hoping that one connector, normally un-used, would provide some speaker-outputs directly from the radio; probably won't be the same power output/fidelity as the JBL amp, but usable. I am not a hi-fi maniac; I just want to be able to hear the sound and control the volume.

I figure that the dealer is called upon to upgrade/downgrade the radio from the factory when the customer wants a different radio than what the factory installed. They wouldn't send the car back to the factory to change out the radio. I can't see the mfr making it THAT hard to swap configurations.

Alternately, I am really interested in seeing any pix of the back of the Radio-A (AM/FM/CD non-JBL) that show the connectors. I ask this so that I don't have to tear-apart my dash twice, once just to see the connectors.

The Radio-C has a bunch of connectors and I am wondering if the Radio-C might also have speaker-drive capability (undocumented) for situations where there was no amp. Just a thought.

If anybody has the factory service manual that shows the connections to/from a Radio-A, I would really like to see them. Pictures of the back of Radio-A would also be great if somebody has them. It would save me tearing apart my dash for fact-finding if somebody has already done that. Thanks.

HELP!!!

BobR · 03-13-2006, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by josephjacobs@Mar 13 2006, 09:43 AM
My wife's car is a 2005 Prius with AM/FM/CD, no cassette. She desperately wants cassette tape because of our library of books on tape. From what I have gathered, there are three factory radios for the 2004,2005 Prius.

Radio-A is AM/FM/CD only;
Radio-B is AM/FM/CD/TAPE;
Radio-C is AM/FM/CD-CHANGER(JBL).

My question: Can I drop in a Radio-B or Radio-C in place of the current Radio-A? Is the wiring (connectors) the same? I know that the JBL system adds an amplifier under the passenger seat, but what if you don't have the amplifier? Would it (Radio-C) still power the non-JBL speaker setup?

Unfortunately, I do not have access to service information to look up the connectors/wiring myself so I am hoping for community help. Thanks.

[snapback]224198[/snapback]

I've never heard or seen radio B in a 04 -05 Prius. There is an option to add an external CD Changer to radio A.
I don't believe there is anyway to use Radio C in your Prius without adding the JBL Amp. This really would be cost prohibitive.

My suggestion is to get an aux line in, like the Aux Box or Vais SLU and use a portable cassette player.

Bob

MarinJohn · 03-13-2006, 11:11 AM

MY '04 came with D) am/fm1&2/ 6 CD Changer/Tape. Perhaps you could find a "junked" '04 with D and install it for her.

josephjacobs · 03-13-2006, 01:20 PM

Content added to original post.

tmorrowus · 03-13-2006, 04:55 PM

I only know about radios A and C. They are not drop in compatible since C uses an outboard amplifier (under seat) which splits the highs to the tweeters in front and lows to woofers in front. A connects essentially directly to the speakers.

hycamguy07 · 03-14-2006, 12:37 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by BobR@Mar 13 2006, 11:49 AM
I've never heard or seen radio B in a 04 -05 Prius. There is an option to add an external CD Changer to radio A.
I don't believe there is anyway to use Radio C in your Prius without adding the JBL Amp. This really would be cost prohibitive.

My suggestion is to get an aux line in, like the Aux Box or Vais SLU and use a portable cassette player.

Bob

[snapback]224210[/snapback]

Radio shack & JCWhitney used to make an add on tape player that mounted under the dash and spliced into the cars speakers..

Presto · 03-15-2006, 12:22 AM

AUX-Box and a walkman might be a path to consider as well.

03-13-2006, 09:43 AM	#1
josephjacobs Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 2 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	* THIS POST HAS BEEN MODIFIED FROM THE ORIGINAL POST * My wife's car is a 2005 Prius with AM/FM/CD, no cassette. She desperately wants cassette tape because of our library of books on tape. From what I have gathered, there are three factory radios for the 2004,2005 Prius. Radio-A is AM/FM/CD only; Radio-B is AM/FM/CD/TAPE; Radio-C is AM/FM/TAPE/6CD-CHANGER(JBL). Is it possible to drop in a Radio-C in place of the current Radio-A? Is the wiring/connectors the same? I know that the Radio-C JBL system adds an amplifier under the passenger seat, but what if you don't have the amplifier? Could Radio-C still power the speakers in a Radio-A setup? Unfortunately, I do not have access to the factory service manuals to look up the connectors/wiring myself so I am hoping for community help. If I could get my hands on the few pages that show electrical wiring of Radio-A, I think that would answer my questions. I've found a car wiring/schematic diagram on the web for the Radio-C configuration but haven't found one for the Radio-A configuration Maybe somebody has a PDF of those Radio-A pages? I have a Radio-C from one of the salvage yards and it's only the radio itself, without the under-seat amp. I bought it over the Internet last Thursday, not knowing about the JBL amp being seperate. I'd like to know if the C radio itself is acting as a pre-amp only (line out levels) or does it have a seperate set of outputs capable of driving speakers directly. There are a lot of connectors on the back of a Radio-C and I'm hoping that one connector, normally un-used, would provide some speaker-outputs directly from the radio; probably won't be the same power output/fidelity as the JBL amp, but usable. I am not a hi-fi maniac; I just want to be able to hear the sound and control the volume. I figure that the dealer is called upon to upgrade/downgrade the radio from the factory when the customer wants a different radio than what the factory installed. They wouldn't send the car back to the factory to change out the radio. I can't see the mfr making it THAT hard to swap configurations. Alternately, I am really interested in seeing any pix of the back of the Radio-A (AM/FM/CD non-JBL) that show the connectors. I ask this so that I don't have to tear-apart my dash twice, once just to see the connectors. The Radio-C has a bunch of connectors and I am wondering if the Radio-C might also have speaker-drive capability (undocumented) for situations where there was no amp. Just a thought. If anybody has the factory service manual that shows the connections to/from a Radio-A, I would really like to see them. Pictures of the back of Radio-A would also be great if somebody has them. It would save me tearing apart my dash for fact-finding if somebody has already done that. Thanks. HELP!!! __________________ 2005 Toyota Prius w/Pkg 4 Driftwood Pearl AM/FM/CD and Smart Key System Purchased USED with 380-miles on it

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Factory Installed AUX input	starkeef	Audio and Electronics	5	02-13-2007 03:19 PM
factory installed xm for 06 prius??	buckspaul	Audio and Electronics	20	08-30-2006 02:44 PM
Factory XM Radio INSTALLED	jenlynmc	Audio and Electronics	80	08-06-2006 09:00 PM
Factory EV switch installed	benighted	Prius Modifications	27	02-07-2006 10:33 PM
XM radio factory installed?	Doutt It	Prius Main Forum	0	12-12-2005 09:19 PM

03-13-2006, 11:11 AM	#3
MarinJohn Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 2,407 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 2	MY '04 came with D) am/fm1&2/ 6 CD Changer/Tape. Perhaps you could find a "junked" '04 with D and install it for her.

03-13-2006, 01:20 PM	#4
josephjacobs Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 2 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Content added to original post.

03-13-2006, 04:55 PM	#5
tmorrowus Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Posts: 425 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I only know about radios A and C. They are not drop in compatible since C uses an outboard amplifier (under seat) which splits the highs to the tweeters in front and lows to woofers in front. A connects essentially directly to the speakers.

03-15-2006, 12:22 AM	#7
Presto Has his homepage set to PC Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 1,187 My Car: 2005 Prius Package: B Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 3	AUX-Box and a walkman might be a path to consider as well.