How Do I Get My Car Stereo to Match the Rest of My Dashboard?
Aftermarket car stereos are built to a standard. While this means they will fit almost any type of car, it also means they're not designed to match the style of any discrete make. Whether your new stereo is a DIN or double DIN fitting, fascia adaptors surround it to give it the same appearance as the rest of your dashboard.
Lots of people want the best audio experience for their car. Whether you want better sound quality, if you want to be able to listen to DAB digital radio on the go, get better reception or an integrated LCD screen, it can be an exciting purchase. But there’s a problem a lot of people don’t consider until they come to fit the stereo; it just doesn’t look right. To fit your new stereo you’ve had to take off the fascia that surrounded the old one, and now it won’t fit back on again. You need a fascia adaptor. They’re available in both single and double DIN sizes and will help blend your new car stereo into your old car dashboard.
“DIN” stands for “Deutsche Industrie Norm” and is, as as those of you who speak a little German will have guessed, the standard measurement for all aftermarket car radios sold in the UK (if you don’t speak German, keep up). A DIN is 2 1/8 inches tall and 7 /18 inches wide - the depth is dependent on the design. Other common measurements of aftermarket car stereo include the double DIN, which is twice the size and is generally the dimension used by the more showy car stereos boasting LCD screens, SatNavs, DVD screens and the like.
If your car head unit socket is a standard DIN, then, yay, happy days, enjoy your new stereo. If, however, it isn’t - as is the case with most retail cars - then you'll need a DIN adaptor kit/double DIN kit. These aren’t complicated; they fill in the empty socket left by removing your original car head unit, leaving a socket into which your new DIN or double DIN aftermarket stereo can be fitted. And there you have it. Your DIN or double DIN kit has left you with a spanking new stereo complete with LCD screen, iPod socket and everything else you could possibly want to blast out your Basement Jaxx on the Monday morning commute.
Only, it looks a bit odd. A bit sticky-outy, if you know what I mean. It doesn’t sit well with the rest of dashboard. You might have better sound, but you've cheapened the appearance of the rest of the car.
This shouldn't be too much of a shock. Your new car radio was designed to work with any car into which it might be put. While that gives the head unit itself a wide range of adaptability it also inevitably means it isn’t going to be uniquely suited to any one car design. This is where fascia adaptors come in. A fascia adaptor is simply a plastic frame designed to fit around the outside of the new head unit, blending it into the design of your car. The genius of the piece is its simplicity. It doesn’t obscure the display or controls of the stereo, but it does make it look smart. DIN and double DIN fitting kits allow you to fit an aftermarket car stereo without radically altering the appearance of your car’s dashboard. Fascia adaptors are available for a wide range of major car brands, including Renault, Nissan, Ford, Jaguar and Chrysler.
Please do note, however; some fascia adaptors will require you to buy the appropriate “cage” to hold your stereo and fascia in place. If this is the case, ensure that your fascia adaptor comes with the cage, as it could otherwise prove a headache to find a matching one. Quality suppliers of car stereo paraphernalia should offer this combination as standard where it is appropriate.
A fascia adaptor allows your car to have style, consistant design and the very best quality of music and audio. Like all great ideas, it is simple but effective. You don’t need any technical expertise to fit the adaptors, it’s a quick process and one even the staunchest of technophobes can perform with ease.
Lots of people want the best audio experience for their car. Whether you want better sound quality, if you want to be able to listen to DAB digital radio on the go, get better reception or an integrated LCD screen, it can be an exciting purchase. But there’s a problem a lot of people don’t consider until they come to fit the stereo; it just doesn’t look right. To fit your new stereo you’ve had to take off the fascia that surrounded the old one, and now it won’t fit back on again. You need a fascia adaptor. They’re available in both single and double DIN sizes and will help blend your new car stereo into your old car dashboard.
“DIN” stands for “Deutsche Industrie Norm” and is, as as those of you who speak a little German will have guessed, the standard measurement for all aftermarket car radios sold in the UK (if you don’t speak German, keep up). A DIN is 2 1/8 inches tall and 7 /18 inches wide - the depth is dependent on the design. Other common measurements of aftermarket car stereo include the double DIN, which is twice the size and is generally the dimension used by the more showy car stereos boasting LCD screens, SatNavs, DVD screens and the like.
If your car head unit socket is a standard DIN, then, yay, happy days, enjoy your new stereo. If, however, it isn’t - as is the case with most retail cars - then you'll need a DIN adaptor kit/double DIN kit. These aren’t complicated; they fill in the empty socket left by removing your original car head unit, leaving a socket into which your new DIN or double DIN aftermarket stereo can be fitted. And there you have it. Your DIN or double DIN kit has left you with a spanking new stereo complete with LCD screen, iPod socket and everything else you could possibly want to blast out your Basement Jaxx on the Monday morning commute.
Only, it looks a bit odd. A bit sticky-outy, if you know what I mean. It doesn’t sit well with the rest of dashboard. You might have better sound, but you've cheapened the appearance of the rest of the car.
This shouldn't be too much of a shock. Your new car radio was designed to work with any car into which it might be put. While that gives the head unit itself a wide range of adaptability it also inevitably means it isn’t going to be uniquely suited to any one car design. This is where fascia adaptors come in. A fascia adaptor is simply a plastic frame designed to fit around the outside of the new head unit, blending it into the design of your car. The genius of the piece is its simplicity. It doesn’t obscure the display or controls of the stereo, but it does make it look smart. DIN and double DIN fitting kits allow you to fit an aftermarket car stereo without radically altering the appearance of your car’s dashboard. Fascia adaptors are available for a wide range of major car brands, including Renault, Nissan, Ford, Jaguar and Chrysler.
Please do note, however; some fascia adaptors will require you to buy the appropriate “cage” to hold your stereo and fascia in place. If this is the case, ensure that your fascia adaptor comes with the cage, as it could otherwise prove a headache to find a matching one. Quality suppliers of car stereo paraphernalia should offer this combination as standard where it is appropriate.
A fascia adaptor allows your car to have style, consistant design and the very best quality of music and audio. Like all great ideas, it is simple but effective. You don’t need any technical expertise to fit the adaptors, it’s a quick process and one even the staunchest of technophobes can perform with ease.