2016 Porsche Macan S - stealth SQ build

Howdy all,

I have a new vehicle and I'm back to my old addiction. I feel the need to gut this sucker and refine the stock audio system. Meet my latest project:
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It looks like there is ample room to place subs and amp(s) in the rear hatch:
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The hatch floor is recessed almost 2" below skid plates. This could come in handy for building a false floor:
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A reasonable amount of space under the hatch:
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Even more space with the 8" plastic factory sub removed:
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Unfortunately I don't believe this sucker is going to fit.
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Just too deep if I want to recess it. Also, the diameter is too big for a good fit.
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I'm thinking two 10" drivers or three 8" drivers would work well. More on that in a bit.

Props go out to phroenips for giving me some ideas and inspiration to work on this vehicle.

Ge0

That's a nice ride you've got there. Welcome to the forum :thumbup:

Thanks BigAl205. Many of you know me from another site. I'm old and crusty around there. But, a fresh start here.

Unfortunately it is f'king snowing here in metro Detroit again today. No inspiration to go outside and screw with my vehicle. That and there's germs out there look'in to get ya.

Ge0

Hey @Ge0,

I finally finished my subwoofer, in case it gives any inspiration: https://www.caraudiojunkies.com/show...ll=1#post58180

Quote:

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Originally Posted by phroenips

Hey @Ge0,

I finally finished my subwoofer, in case it gives any inspiration: https://www.caraudiojunkies.com/show...ll=1#post58180

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Thanks man. I've seen your post on 3 different forums. Great job. Please visit the Macan place and review my comments.

Ge0

Its still cold, raining and/or snowing here in Southeast Michigan. So, I have not been outside a lot to mess with my car. However, I have done some planning.

Thinking about sub-woofer options. Look's like I can fit two 10" drivers or three 8" drivers. I'm siding more towards a set of 10's. My idea is to create a false floor and mount the drivers to it. The picture here is a single 8" driver sitting on the sub-floor of the cargo area:
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Now onto other things. The front doors have stock 8" mid-bass drivers mounted to the door sheet metal and 3" mid-ranges mounted to the plastic door card. I'm thinking about keeping this configuration but swapping for improved drivers.
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The front dash has a set of tweeters to the far left and right sides plus a center channel. Once again, I plan on keeping this configuration but replacing with upgraded drivers. Yes, I plan on running a center channel and hope that Helix has a decent center channel algorithm.
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The rear doors are currently configured for 6.5" mid-bass drivers and 1" domed tweeters. However, there is unused space to mount a 3" mid-range as well. I plan to eliminate the rear tweeters. I will start by trying out the 6.5" drivers as L-R rear fill. I'm not sure this is the best option. I may disconnect the 6.5" drivers and add 3" mid-ranges to take over rear fill duty. Those of you who know me know that I feel real strong about using this rear fill configuration to help widen the listening space and increase the over-all room depth.
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I also have another possibility for adding rear fill that I may experiment with. There is also room for mid-ranges in the D pillars behind the rear seats. Hmmm... Maybe place rear fill drivers there instead?
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Hoping to make my first modification this weekend if temps climb above 40 degrees and it stops raining. I'm going to install a set of these in the dash to get rid of the shrill Bose plastic dome tweeters. This may tame the "totally sucks" factor out of the factory system until I can make further mods:
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These tweeters are older but still one of my favorites.

Ge0

OK. I figured I need to start somewhere. May as well pick the easier tasks first while the weather is still cold and nasty. Time to do the tweeter install. While not a terribly complicated job it did have its tricks. Doing things in the wrong order can damage the vehicle. So, I decided to document the process step by step.

Remove fuse box cover on both sides of the dash. These are easy enough to remove by hand. Just pace your finger in the access tab near the red arrows and pull outwards. If you don't want to chip your nail polish then you can use a plastic trim tool :).
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Next, let's tackle the A-pillars. This is perhaps the most difficult step. I've read about folks cracking their windshield trying to get these out. First, remove the access plugs labeled AIRBAG in the upper A-pillar. I found this easiest to do using my finger nails. My plastic trim tools were a little too wide to wedge in there. I didn't want to use a metal trim tool since I didn't want to scratch the plastic finish. Once removed you need to extract the torx head bolts. This is tricky. Loosen the bolt so it is almost out. Then reach in with needle nose pliers to pull it out. Be careful or you might drop the bolt inside the a-pillar.
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The next step is important. Pop the upper portion of the A-pillar trim loose by pulling it away from the A-pillar towards the center of the vehicle here (white arrow). Don't try to pull it free. Just pop it loose.
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Next, pop the bottom portion of the A-pillar trim loose here (red arrow) then gently push up (green arrow).
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You should now be able to remove the a-pillar trim by carefully pushing up the bottom and pulling the top free from the vehicle. Careful, it's rather flimsy in the center where the two pieces are bonded together (red arrow).
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Finally we can remove the speaker grill. Some say wedge a plastic trim tool between the speaker grill and dash here:
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However, I found it hard to wedge my trim tool in there without risking scratching the dash board. I found it easier to grab the rubber piece here (red arrow) and pull up on it (green arrow). This lifts a corner of the speaker grill so you can get your trim tool in there:
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Remove the grill and set it aside. Take note how the rubber part of the trim seats into the dash channel prior to popping the grill back in.

Next, popping the tweeter out is kind of difficult. Push the metal tabs outward away from the tweeter here (red arrows). You can then get a trim tool under the tweeter to pop it up and out. There are no hidden latches in the tweeter connector. Just grab by the connector body and give it a firm tug. Just like your mom always said, don't pull it loose by the cord!!!
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Love these type of detailed, instructional posts.

Please keep them coming :)

I didn't feel like cutting the wire harness on a $65K car. There was not enough length to crimp on quick disconnects in the tight space between dash and windshield. Therefore, I decided to sacrifice the cheap factory tweeters to make my own OEM connector.

This job was somewhat easy. The connector body was glued on to the back of the tweeter. Just de-solder the connections to the tweeter then pry the connector loose with a Xacto knife and flat head screw driver. Next, trim off the excess plastic with a pair of wire cutters then solder on some pig-tails.
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Ironically, the body diameter of the new tweeters was very close in size to the factory supplied ones. The factory installed metal clips hold the tweeter in nice and snug. Installing the tweeters could not be easier.
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The factory trim was snapped back into place without interference
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Ge0