e36 Touring - How can I lay the wiring for the subwoofer?

You really only have two choices - down the center console or down the side of the car where the carpet meets the door hole.

I usually do the side, it's slightly easier than the center console.

I use 10 Ga wire for the power feeds and you have to run those as well as signal wires. If you have a very hight power sub you might need to run two 10 Ga wires for power. Some people connect subwoofer power to the chassis - I don't I run ground wires back to the battery.

DO NOT forget to install a decent fuse in the power wires.

My E36 is a convertible, but should be similar. I ran the wiring down the center, there was more room available. I put the subwoofer amp behind the passenger side seat back (the original BMW amplifier for the radio system was in a similar position on the driver side seat back). Power wiring was run back to the battery, which is in the trunk on the passenger side. I am not sure if the battery is also placed in the back of the vehicle on the sedan. I placed a 8" square subwoofer (msde by Kicker) in the space in the middle of the back seats. My understanding is that the sedan uses this space as a passageway so that skis can be put in the trunk and reach through between the seats. On the convertible, this is blocked by the seat folding mechanism, but there is a small space - a bit too small for optimum subwoofer, but still works well.

One advantage on the convertible is that the installation is totally invisible - less likelihood of somone doing damage to the vehicle to steal the subwoofer if it is not visible.

Jim

super, I am glad to hear that. I have bought a DIY manual for the e36 touring but it says nothing about running wires from front to back.

I guess i will try to pull apart the carpet from near the door and have a looksee!

thanks again

Richard Sext> > >Hi,