Well, I finally got a chance to do some work on a brand new Wrangler Sahara. Since I've been seeing so many requests for various information on the 2012 and 2013 Wranglers, I decided to snap a few pics of the process and do a write-up on here for you all. All the information here should apply to any 2012-13 Wrangler with the upgraded Alpine system without factory navigation, though some of it will also apply to any JK 2007-13. Sorry for the poor quality photo's; I only had my phone with me...
First, you need to gather all the necessary installation parts. All prices listed are standard retail prices, some online shopping can get you better deals if you want.
Dash Kit - Metra 99-6511BB ($19.99) - Comes with both the single-DIN and double-DIN mounting brackets
Wire Harness - Axxess CHTO-013BB ($139.99) - Retains factory amp and creates Retained Accessory Power for your new radio.
AM/FM Antenna Adapter - Metra 40-EU10 ($17.99) - adapts the factory antenna plug to the aftermarket standard connector
Steering Wheel Control Module - Axxess ASWC ($109.99) - retains factory steering wheel controls with your new radio
The owner of this Wrangler decided on a Kenwood DNX-6190HD navigation stereo with HD radio, Bluetooth, and DVD/Video capabilities. He also had me run a back-up camera and connect a smittybuilt inclinometer. He had the factory connectivity package, but I was unable to interface with the factory microphone after a bit of testing; he didn't mind the new bluetooth mic, but beware if this is something you are worried about. There are also lots of other options out there for harnesses and steering wheel control modules... I would recommend the parts listed above for a few reasons:
Moving on to the benchwire of the harnesses. It's important to familiarize yourself with the manuals for the wiring harness as well as the new radio. I will go over a few pointers to keep in mind, but I will assume you know how to match wire colors and connect accordingly.
The CHTO harness/module. The two grey plugs are the vehicle ends; be sure to use the right one!
The CHTO module and the ASWC module plugged in and ready to be wired up
Getting there! The bare ends will connect to the Kenwood's harness
Benchwire complete and ready to be installed!
More to come...
First, you need to gather all the necessary installation parts. All prices listed are standard retail prices, some online shopping can get you better deals if you want.
Dash Kit - Metra 99-6511BB ($19.99) - Comes with both the single-DIN and double-DIN mounting brackets
Wire Harness - Axxess CHTO-013BB ($139.99) - Retains factory amp and creates Retained Accessory Power for your new radio.
AM/FM Antenna Adapter - Metra 40-EU10 ($17.99) - adapts the factory antenna plug to the aftermarket standard connector
Steering Wheel Control Module - Axxess ASWC ($109.99) - retains factory steering wheel controls with your new radio
The owner of this Wrangler decided on a Kenwood DNX-6190HD navigation stereo with HD radio, Bluetooth, and DVD/Video capabilities. He also had me run a back-up camera and connect a smittybuilt inclinometer. He had the factory connectivity package, but I was unable to interface with the factory microphone after a bit of testing; he didn't mind the new bluetooth mic, but beware if this is something you are worried about. There are also lots of other options out there for harnesses and steering wheel control modules... I would recommend the parts listed above for a few reasons:
- The CHTO-013BB has the ASWC harness pre-wired into it - there are no additional connections needed to get your steereing wheel controls to work with the new radio.
- The ASWC is auto-learning, so it doesn't need to be painstakingly programmed to your Jeep.
- The CHTO-013BB has a 4-channel input, meaning you will keep your fade control with the factory amp and an aftermarket stereo.
Moving on to the benchwire of the harnesses. It's important to familiarize yourself with the manuals for the wiring harness as well as the new radio. I will go over a few pointers to keep in mind, but I will assume you know how to match wire colors and connect accordingly.
- The CHTO harness provides a Reverse gear signal output, a Vehicle Speed Sense output, and a Parking brake output in addition to the standard stereo wires. I used the reverse gear output so that the Kenwood would display the back-up screen automatically upon shifting into reverse. The Kenwood unit does not have a VSS input, so that was not used, and I chose to wire the parking brake input of the Kenwood directly to ground to bypass the video interlock.
- There are two red ACC outputs on the CHTO harness - I used one for the Kenwood's turn on, and the other I split to turn on the ASWC and the back-up camera.
- The CHTO comes with two vehicle-end connectors - be sure you begin your bench-wire with the correct one for your Jeep. Take the original radio out first and verify which plug you will need.
The CHTO harness/module. The two grey plugs are the vehicle ends; be sure to use the right one!
The CHTO module and the ASWC module plugged in and ready to be wired up
Getting there! The bare ends will connect to the Kenwood's harness
Benchwire complete and ready to be installed!
More to come...