XJ CD-Changer installation....

Hey All,

Was wondering...are the metal "dividers," which close off the rear underseat area from the rear floorboard, in an XJ mind you, important, structurally speaking? Installed a 12 disc CD changer and new head unit (JVC, very nice setup) in my girl's XJ. Merry Christmas Babe!! Anywho, it fits under the rear seat in the aforementioned "divided" area, but once installed (facing the rear, in stock location), the CD magazine will not come out due to the upward arc of the floorboard...unless I install it facing the front of the Cherokee (Eureka?!). I consulted god (factory service manual) and the chunks of

18-ish gauge metal, seemingly just tack welded in, don't appear in it anywhere in the frame section, but unibodies (haven't seen the frame yet, where is it?) scare me anyway...one never knows...I think...or not...hmmm...ouch...stop throwing stuff...so,

My plan is to cut out the "divider" so that the disc changer comes through it, facing forward...it is temp installed right now in a very visible location(behind passenger seat), which is not necessarily good in my neighborhood.

So, in addition to wondering if the "dividers" are important, does anyone have any other ideas on install locations. I have seen quite a few (thanks Google!), but additional suggestions are very welcome.

Reply to
Joseph P
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Hmm. I have a 6 disc changer under the seat facing rearward. The cassette comes out no problem. I'd try adjusting the mounting, shimming under it, mount it on a hinge, etc. I would definitely NOT cut the divider. XJs are pretty flimsy in a bind as it is (liftgate binds up and won't open, doors rub, etc). The divider may be trivial, but I still wouldn't cut it.

If your changer has side mounted brackets, bolt the brackets to the floor and just use one fastener on each side of the changer near the divider leaving the rear end free. This will let it rotate up so you can get the cassette out. Under the XJ seat, you could probably get away without any fasteners at all. Especially with a 12 disc. I'm surprised that even fit, my 6 disc is tight and contacts the seat ever so slightly. If you were to go without any fasteners though, be sure to put in a ground wire since you won't have a natural ground through the case. You might also remove the carpet under there to get another hair or two.

PS, if you leave it under the seat with no cutting so that it is completely out of site, be sure to tell your girlfriend to only change the cassette in the garage or in some other out of site location. If it takes her 10 minutes to take all the junk off the back seat to get to the unit and should someone see her carrying a changer cassette, it might as well be right out in the open.

I always used to hate it when my girlfriend would wait until we parked somewhere to decide to put her purse behind the seat. And she'd even ask if it were ok - while the windows were down and someone could hear her ask! Why not just announce to the world exactly where the goods are! (ok, off rant).

Reply to
Clap Trap

Hey,

Thanks for the input, but here is the problem...the magazine in it pulls straight out from the front of the unit, while most (I am not saying you have this....) CD Changers that are designed to go there, the magazine pops up like the hood of the darn car. Being it is a 12 disc, there is no room to play with, as far as shimming and whatnot, b/c it is about 1 inch taller than a "standard" 6 disc, as far as I can tell from the five 6 disc changers I got to look at. It fits perfectly, it is just where the floor curves up to the level of the cargo area that there are problems. And all this is with no carpet installed. As for the security, she is well versed. The place I live is about 3 blocks from the "wrong side of the tracks." I had my last nice head unit stolen out of my Wrangler, her whole Jeep was stolen and found deep in some woods by a guy hunting, with the wheels gone, the jumper cables gone, and my 150 CDs gone, and most recently my $300 grill was stolen out of my backyard. It is time to move, but that is another issue.

As far as the binding up goes, I know, but she won't be doing any ORV anything, it's 2WD. And as far as it holds up in a rear end collision, I was impressed. She had a kid (16-17?) in his daddy's yellow Mustang hit her at 55 MPH, she was at a dead stop. Needless to say, she had to actually drive off the stang while a wrecker held the stang in place, and needed a new back door and bumper. And yes, the back door still opened. All I had to do to drive it from the scene was to kick the exhaust pipe off the drive shaft. Pretty neat, huh?

So, any more ideas or thoughts on the previously mentioned "dividers?" TIA.

Reply to
Joseph P

BTW, it is a JVC CH-PK220.

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Reply to
Joseph P

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