Volvo 740 gets some audio upgrades

The Volvo 740 has been putting up with an ill fitting stereo and only one speaker for too long so today we do something about that
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[@GoldenCroc]

"Festival of the unacceptable" Man, you are a hoot as always.

[@AJC508]

Fond memories of doing the same thing on my first car. A (then) 13 year-old 309 my grandfather sold to me for 1 franc. No radio since new, so I had to wire the whole thing. Aaaah, the 90s. Fun times.

[@seancooke4127]

4 hours in the Volvo with your vibes restored to clarity. Exactly what this 740 was designed for. Long distance cruising in the comfort of the best seats in the business. Enjoy Matt, you most patient of Patient Men. Hats off to you.

[@AndyD070568]

I consider installing/upgrading car audio to be one of the most fun but most frustrating jobs you can do on a car and this video kind of proved it!

[@billgriffiths1685]

We've all been there Matt we feel your pain.

[@steveunderwood3683]

When that car was brand new it had 4 speaker grills in the doors; wiring for the 4 speakers; and a manual aerial. So, it was all nicely plumbed up for a stereo, but didn't have one. That's why the hole where the stereo goes has a plush lining, so it was a nice storage recess if you didn't fit a stereo. You either got the dealer to fit a Volvo stereo when you bought the car, or you fitted a third party one. I remember Volvo offered several stereo options, all overpriced. I can't remember what differentiated them. I bought a 740GL in 1985, and it was a very early one. So, the third party mounts for putting a standard sized stereo in that big hole were just appearing. The one I got, to fit a Pioneer stereo, was a bit crude, but fit a lot better than the one being used in the video. It sat back, and was well away from controls like the gear lever. This prominent one looks a mess. If that car had an electric aerial from new, it didn't come from the factory. I don't know if Volvo offered one as a dealer fitted option. The manual aerial was really good. I had that car for 7 years, and it never got troublesome and sticky like most telescopic aerials did. Having different speaker grills in the front and the back is not original. They were all like the ones in the back in the video, whether you got the dealer to fit a Volvo stereo or not. Maybe the front ones had to be replaced at some point. I remember it was a PITA trying to get speakers to fit snugly in the doors. Volvo used an unusual size for that time. I think I ended up with speakers a little under sized, with some fudging.

[@cmartin_ok]

... and some dealers had arrangements with nearby local car audio specialists to fit non-Volvo branded stereos into new cars for significantly less money than the "official" Volvo units

[@ashterfadgadget817]

Never have I hated, yet enjoyed a KZbin video so much. So much so, I only finished it at the third attempt!

[@danieleregoli812]

That is one amazing car mate. Good on you for saving it and showing it a bit of tlc! Well done.

[@alexdolling]

The door will cut through that wire pretty quick

[@furiousdriving]

On the door side it went though the grommet

[@HowardJacks]

Thanks for your video. I have had a 940 for nearly a year now. Whilst I am not a big car radio listener it is frustrating that it powers in but then does nothing, actually the most frustrating bit is the trim panel on the front being loose. I’ll get to it sometime and you video is great to see all the tough not quite fitting bits!

[@davidbrown6227]

Nice addition Matt. Great upgrade for the Volvo !

[@ash7990]

Your comment about the Rover Coupe being only 5 years newer surprised me. The Volvo looks ancient in comparison!

[@TheDutyPaid]

I had that same radio, it worked for two days. I hope you have better luck.

[@BITTYBOY121]

10/10 in patience ! That was a lot of hard work but it finally paid off and the new radio looks OEM and has some cool modern features which is a huge bonus ! Well Done Keep those great videos coming ! 👍👍👍

[@Strike86]

If this was an American car show this whole saga would be reduced to the line 'we installed an audio system'. Actual reality! Great work Matt.

[@giulianomarco]

Seemless integration, Matt! 😁

[@maxidyne]

Decent upgrade Matt, doesn't look bad at all. Has indeed that late 80s early 90s HI-FI look. Enjoy the music!

[@EnriqueLopez-hb5jn]

Awesome job, I bet you get better sounds out of the new, head unit.

[@Starlord85]

Good job mate !

[@mikemidulster]

Well done Matt! I know the new radio has bells and whistles, but what it hasn't got, which the original had, is a high quality class AB analogue audio amplifier. If you listen to speech or pop music you won't notice the difference of course, but the strains of Ludwig or Johannes will be now be truly strained :) When the Volvo 800 series arrived in the showrooms, they came with a fairly decent radio and as an incentive to buy the cars, Volvo included a free 6 disc CD changer in the boot. These were fitted at the dealers' workshops. Since the radio didn't have any auxiliary audio input connections, the CD changer was connected through a low-power FM transmitter which was connected to the aerial input (piggy-backed onto the existing plug), then it was tuned in on a blank part of the FM band. If your original radio had been working, this method could have been done to add mp3 and Bluetooth.

[@trabali5168]

nice, all you need now are amps and a bass box!

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

Great little tinkering video Matt, I have been contemplating upgrading my headunit but dunno if I can do away with my CD changer! Looks a great little stereo and blends in with the Volvo dashboard.

[@furiousdriving]

haha, living the 90s dream! If you get an Alpine head unit do they still have AI net for the changer?

[@donmacdonald7758]

Nice replacement radio and speakers.

[@gryfandjane]

I did several radio swaps back in the day, one being stuffing a 1988 Mitsubishi stereo into my 1978 Midget… and it still works just fine. That said, your modern unit is pretty tempting, what with Bluetooth, USB, and the like. Might be time for an upgrade!

[@bsheedy7639]

Look forward to next video on connecting rear speakers.. Good stuff.

[@simonhodgetts6530]

There’s something very satisfying about new/old tech............looks like a decent little head unit - if Radio 2 could now broadcast old Terry Wogan and Johnnie Walker drive time shows, I’d start listening again! (Yes, I’m that old!)

[@davidvickers4228]

Looks good I’ve got a similar one to be fitted in my 309

[@bobbybridgeman2629]

Just a tip, when I used to fit car stereos back in the day we always put a piece of sponge behind and under them to make a snug and rattle free fit.

[@stevenjones19-m8i]

Hi Matt, great little radio,with the extras it's worth having.Alpine speakers are a good choice and fit a range of cars.sounds brilliant.

[@FixedByDuncan]

Excellent job Matt. You should try the heat shrink with solder blob already inside connectors, they make life a lot easier and neater too.

[@furiousdriving]

that sounds easier, Ill have to get some of those

[@mikehydropneumatic2583]

Nice job.

[@huwjones5879]

I remember back in the late 70's a friends dad had a 'Fully loaded' Volvo, 245 IIRC, the Volvo branded stereo actually had a dictation function so you could record all your letters for your secretary whilst driving to work. A real time saver for the thrusting MD, as it left more time to conduct the affair with her.

[@willwelch5700]

Recent upgrade to my 940 was a new head unit with Bluetooth and hands free. Kinda looks ok, but something like this would be better for me I think. I wondered if the rear speakers already had the wiring in as mines did and it was a case of cutting out the old door cards. Easy-peasy! Got the original stereo, but no code for it incase I sell it on and it's new owner wants it factory again! 👌🏻

[@Oyvind88]

Great upgrade and video, i had a volvo 740 and the stereo is fidly🇳🇴😀

[@vincentnichols402]

Who new the front Door speakers were fake, 🤣😂😅took of the Grille it wasnt even cut out i have a 92 740 W G N thanks so very very much for showing the box, your speakers came in imreplacing my rear door speakers didnt no what size 🇺🇸Long Live VOLVO Great Vidio

[@richardjohnson3463]

Another triumph Matt, an entertaining watch

[@mark_just_mark]

I’m sure I’ve seen very short little aerial extension leads before for exactly your problem!

[@furiousdriving]

These new CD-less units are shorter than the old full length ones, so theres probably a thriving industry in extension leads now!

[@aleksanderk359]

@@furiousdriving Should be plenty of slack in the dash. All of my volvos has at least 20cm more lead than you got there. You just need to find out where it's hidden :P

[@doktoruzo]

lol...'door cards are not very loud!' ... Nice one Matt.

[@fhwolthuis]

Hi Matt, good project! Maybe you need to use some shrink tubing the next time to cover the solder joints and vulnerable spots. To prevent rattle of the head unit stick some self adhesive felt between the unit and the frame. 👍

[@furiousdriving]

must get some, just lots of insulation tape for now! Yes some felt would help pad it nicely

[@michelswerissen6544]

Look forward to electric ariel installation.

[@aslandama]

Car stereo selection didn't bother me much till I got a few old cars, now I totally get the original idea. I need a Philips 22DC449/25S for my Alfa 145 if anyone out there has one!

[@furiousdriving]

Good luck, they dont turn up often, especially with the Alfa surround

[@volvo480]

That was an easy job. In my Volvo I have to remove the door card to get to the speakers and for the rear I have to remove the entire side panel which involves removing the back seats - the disadvantage of having a two-door car.

[@paulie-Gualtieri.]

Looks good Matt very surprised about the lack of rear speakers. Must of been standard to have them fitted on the GLE spec. There's actually a nice looking silver 760GLE for sale on eBay in Scotland at the moment, check it out if you have time.

[@michaeltutty1540]

My 89 240 DL estate came with a 4 speaker Clarion AM/FM cassette player with amp as standard equipment. It was poor when new, and age has done it no favours. It is on my rather extensive to do list.

[@paulie-Gualtieri.]

@@michaeltutty1540 I had an D reg 240 GLE estate silver green with black leather B200E engine and auto. I kick myself daily for getting rid of it.

[@stevefreeman730]

I own 90 760 gle silver here in Canada. I swapped the radio in my 90 740. they are totally different animal. The 760 is 6 speaker system and 740 is a 4 speakers system. It work but the front speaker outputs are for woofers only, the tweeters are on the dash in the 760. No dash speakers on the 740.

[@scalecrawlnl]

An awesome square body Swede, great decor too with the pinstripe upholstery. Plans for Furious Driving attending HuBNut's upcoming social at the Motorist✌

[@zuyvox]

I use Alpine in my Renault Clio (2000) too. But I bought the SPG Series. It`s not much more expensive but sounds much better. I also had a Speaker without funciton, but the problem was just the calbe adapter inbetween the Speaker and the factory car cables, so I just bought two new adapter cables (4,99€) and I was happy. :-)

[@grayfool]

Looks OK. Makes sound. Got holes to plug stuff into. What more could you want. Sorted.

[@markonmotoring]

I looked at Alpine speakers for my car as they had the required 16.5 cm components I was looking for but they got poor reviews. I actually wanted Pioneer as I've had good experiences with those in the past but could only find 13cm or 17cm versions.

[@MF-fg3cg]

Seen on a TV prog a bloke who replaces the internals of original radios to dab or basic fm with Bluetooth etc.

[@mphmobiledetailingmph7912]

My 1991 Volvo 740 Turbo sedan (Genevieve) had dash speakers and rear door speakers stock. The front doors speaker area not wired! And rear shelf speakers can't find wires! Plan on having the 8 speaker areas fited with good speakers + 10 inch Infinity 1050 watts sub for trunk trunk. I haven't yet changed the deck but I have a Bluetooth JVC waiting to go in! Debating what speakers to run in it. Got Hertz UNO 6.5s & 6x9 for trunk shelf. But still deciding as I have 3 cars!

[@jonnygigs21]

Lovely to see more on the Volvo!! I’m still looking forward to your post lockdown road-trip in the old Dowager! In reference to that sticky mess on the ashtray, have you tried a bit of WD-40 to get it off?

[@furiousdriving]

not tried anything, its a bit melted so could do with a new one

[@robertfoster6070]

Do you have a service manual with wiring diagrams to help with the wiring? If not I can scan a few articles from an old Haynes manual for the 740.

[@furiousdriving]

Got the haynes manual, that should have wiring in it

[@d.c.Jones70]

Got there in the end although I suspect the wires in the doors are not going to last long. There are company’s out there that can take old radios and replace all inners with modern equivalent. Also I spy a MG ZS EV will there be a video on that soon.

[@andresemanuelruiz2524]

También lo tenes al volvo?para la venta!

[@lesklower7281]

I will be doing this job on my hi lux i have the original radio cassette player in it but i have another radio cd player to put in but the only poblem i have i have to pull the whole dash board to pieces to fit the radio cd player in

[@joshclarke6230]

Link for the new radio you fitted??

[@frothe42]

Well done! I would have never done this myself. Too bad you couldn't get the factory radio repaired. Or possibly you could wait until either Christmas or the New Year. Everything sorted in a matter of time!

[@michaeltutty1540]

The factory units were poor when new, not worth the bother now. I still have the original unit in my 1990. It is going in the bin when I get a new one in.

[@furiousdriving]

You can have modern upgrades hidden in old stereos but its not cheap, maybe one day

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

Lunchtime viewing sorted....

[@anthonyperkins7556]

I'd rather keep the standard Volvo stereo, I can just imagine in the eighties driving across Europe listening to Radio Luxembourg at night in English on 1440 kHz MW fading in and out, in this lavish luxury long distance cruiser. Apparently the estates were more popular than the saloons because of their brilliant load lugging abilities with the seats folded, and when you had that cracking Volkswagen sourced turbo diesel, it eked a good amount of miles out of every tankful of derv.

[@lucythemoggy1970]

cool ur going to f of the e! didnt know that! see you there!

[@NirreFirre]

For such a huge car you'd think space to work around the dash would be similar..but I guess every bit went towards maximizing the storage space 😅

[@michaelevans1658]

Perhaps a little foam tape round the unit will stop any rattles.

[@stevefreeman730]

My 90 740 has an factory amp so it has a din 6 prong plug. For now I took the radio out of my 760 which also has an amp. IT has a graphic eq built in but a separate cassette deck which there is no room. The radio is a 6 channel radio not a 4 channel like yours. My front speakers only play bass, since the 760 has dash tweeters and woofers in the doors. I can only play the rears door speakers, because the fronts sound like crap. The cassette has its own din plug to plug it in the radio. There isn't enough room for the cassette deck. The fuse panel is in the side of the dash on a 760. On ebay there is a din to rca plug adapter so I am going to put in a sony media receiver eventually. I am waiting for the plug adapter for the harness which is different than yours. 14 pin plug.

[@marklittler784]

A cross between a jigsaw puzzle and mechano set.

[@GrumpyToffee]

Nice job. You need sounds sometimes when out for a drive. One question though, what was that constant clicking noise each time you had the ignition switched on?

[@888johnmac]

IIRC a really annoying ' put your seatbelt on ' flashing light

[@furiousdriving]

Correct its the seatbelt warning!

[@kevinbaker1243]

You need a fascia panel to fit aftermarket head units get them from autoleads

[@furiousdriving]

Thats the Connects2 fascia panel

[@theobelcher1832]

We have identical cars 😂 and both seem to find the pcv system impossible seems to be the K jet engines make tbe pcv much harder to clean and sort

[@petersimpson5859]

I feel your pain. 😣

[@fredrikjacobsson25]

Original soundsystems in old Volvos are from Alpine.

[@furiousdriving]

Every days a school day!

[@fredrikjacobsson25]

@@furiousdriving yes it is we all learning everyday.

[@antonshoolheifer5383]

How do you get the old radio out ? I’ve lost the code battery went flat

[@furiousdriving]

I think you just lever it out with trim tools

[@cornishrider]

More successful than what happened to the Coach when Del Boy installed a cheap radio!

[@craigstaggs8597]

I run a audio install company so if you need any advice just shout !

[@iangascoigne8231]

I’m surprised you couldn’t get the original radio repaired. Though that’s quadrupled the value of the car.

[@michaeltutty1540]

The factory Volvo radios of that era were lousy. Clarion supplied them, and even the upgraded units were very poor at best.

[@furiousdriving]

what Michael said!

[@iangascoigne8231]

@@michaeltutty1540 If it were repaired you would still have the originality if that were important.

[@fhwolthuis]

How do you like your audio upgrade, Matt? Does it work well?

[@michaeltutty1540]

Good job, Matt. You will likely find yourself upgrading the rear speakers too. The factory speakers, made by Clarion, are not worth twopence ha'penny. They were crap when new, and unlike fine wine, time gas not improved them. I have the original 4 speaker AM/FM cassette with external amp that was standard fitment in my 90 240DL estate, and if anyone were foolish enough to offer me a farthing, they could have it. As things stand, it will be going in the bin for recycling.

[@RichieRouge206]

The Connects2 fascia is quite disappointing in practice, that’s a huge design fault indeed and sorry it fell short of expectations. That lighter headunit should help hopefully and it does indeed look like a Technics or Akai seperates unit... It seemed to be the later 1989/1990 facelift 740s that got standard rear speakers - in fact my grandad’s was a base.model yet had the rear speakers and the amp under the steering wheel. And I believe Alpine actually made the speakers too - the front ones looked very Alpine-esque. They were riveted in too as is common practice with Volvo now lol.

[@furiousdriving]

It think the issue is as much the shape of the dash, because it slopes any fascia is going to have to push the stereo forward

[@marklittler784]

Went to a fitting shop and they were saying the dealers speakers were designed for the cars acoustics, the speaker cover and the damping of the surround they're screwed to.

[@furiousdriving]

Thats true today not sure how much effort they put in back in the 80s

[@Adridebo]

I think the radio frame is upside down?

[@furiousdriving]

no its an odd sloping dash just there so has to sit like that, there are clips inside so with the angle it only fits one way

[@HarnasiejCiaho]

where is a stepper motor placed in 740/760, anyone?

[@MeDicen_Rocha]

Sorry man, the radio still looks out of place. Im a bit curious as to why you cant get a bezel for the radio that slants with the dash and fits a regular radio

[@Rosbergen80]

now the big question is .. What music do you listen to ?

[@paultaylor9652]

Looks more like a Goodmans car stereo, your lucky not to have blood pouring from your knuckles doing that job Mat.

[@furiousdriving]

I was expecting more blood!

[@steven-vn9ui]

Radio is missing 3.5" floppy playback

[@furiousdriving]

and Sinclair 3"

[@richardmence966]

You can get an actual volvo 1988 radio from d and a autos Whitney.

[@furiousdriving]

they weren't that great though, maybe with a modern internal upgrade

[@jamesm90]

Those antenna cables are alway 6 inches too short!

[@eggy1962]

Lost count of how many times i have done this job, i could do with upgrading my 2008 note as its bluetooth is only set for phone use ie no music, so at some point its gotta go.

[@furiousdriving]

same as my Mercedes, so annoying not being able to play music over BT

[@Simon-ui6db]

Only problem with these cheap no name units is no RDS so constantly retuning the radio when traveling.... So thinking about it, does what the original did then :D

[@marklittler784]

Interesting

[@tommyolsen8224]

Very nice!

[@charliecoco2115]

Pity you couldn't buy an identical used Volvo radio from same era.

[@alancrisp1582]

Now that is a really good idea. -Why did I not think of that ? . In steed of trying to repair the original one..

[@marklittler784]

Yeah there must be some squirrel car breaker that stocks them like Silver lake Southampton, 10s of 1000s off the second hand shelf car parts with bargains always on offer..

[@michaeltutty1540]

The factory head unit made a good doorstop from new. Time has not improved them. They are not worth the bother. The sound quality is horrible.

[@furiousdriving]

They weren't amazing when new and lack so many functions so not money well spent fixing an old one to original spec, plus this is a really well looked after car so if this ones packed up chances are one from a scrapped car wont be far behind. The big job was the cables as they had broken in the door shuts

[@alancrisp1582]

I was wondering why you could not just find some one to repair the original radio player that come with the vehicle in the first place ??..

[@furiousdriving]

its an expensive repair for a not very good radio, and the speaker wires are broken in the door hinges

[@nigelrudd670]

ASC audio your not , volvo deserves a DAB 🤓👍

[@furiousdriving]

I put an aftermarket DAB in the P6 and it was only OK, not good enough to strip the dash for the antenna on this

[@mazambeliqbal3487]

old cars easy to do the wiring 😏

[@deheerdeheer]

Matt do NOT charge your phone from the USB on that Chinese radio. I did, ruined my battery.

[@tonys1636]

You should take the original radio to an expert and get modern electronics fitted inside it, original radio now in the 21st century. it is a bit pricey to do but worth it. After twisting the ends of the wires, before the connector was crimped on, a spray of contact cleaner is advisable on the ends as any sweat on them will cause corrosion of the copper in our humid conditions, with a possible dodgy contact in the future. Why did you not strip out the old speaker wiring, the new might have fitted through the grommet then. It is also a pain when checking out future faults if the old wiring is in place as difficult to work out what is what. If still live at one end possible fire hazard. More applicable to wiring carrying a greater current. Have a good trip to the Festival of the Unexceptional, and you listen to some good sounds there and back. Do BBC traffic bulletins still cut in if listening to another source? I think that depended on the make of and price bracket of the radio/sound system. Not much use if already stuck in traffic but at least the cause became known.

[@furiousdriving]

I thought about the modern internals route, but as you say its not a cheap option. I think it depends on the radio for the traffic but if you use the phone sat nav it will alert you

[@Stephenb033]

Do I spy an MG Presser. Is it OJJ?!

[@furiousdriving]

spoilers...

[@hassankhan384]

Love these old cars, great relible cars, also that car in the beginning next to your volvo with that changing cable, yuk looks ugly and just hidus thing to have, I rather have this volvo over that crap. 😅

[@toppledgod]

With those skinny wires that's going to sound pathetic...

[@furiousdriving]

Skinny wires? thats at least double the factory gauge

[@thedeadstig123]

festival of the unacceptable......haha

[@admiralalcatraz6080]

Have to honest, I bought that same cheap head unit and it was bloody awful.

[@jonp5641]

Do I spy an electric Mazda charging in the background?

[@furiousdriving]

not quite

[@jonp5641]

@@furiousdriving Doh!

[@adrianrowden8266]

Yes Festival of the Unacceptable is a much better name. My car qualifies.