Bongo Fury

I've fitted new CD players in my cars for a few years now, the trick is to have a set of radio removal tools to fit. My Bongo was equipped with an upmarket motorised front CD/Tape player/Satnav unit which also had a TV tuner fitted and a switch for 'normal/tv' and miles of coax cable under the dash. There's a stick on transparent antenna on the windscreen. All very posh, and none of this worked in the UK.

I got my removal tools, pulled off the end plates on the fascia and shoved them in. No amount of wiggling or pulling would shift the unit. I took out the glove box to help, but it didn't. After an hour of cursing I slowly destroyed the radio fascia until I could get at the four 'claws' that spring out and fit behind a lip on the dashboard. My removal tools (coathanger) missed the claws, or slipped off them, hence the trouble.

With the fascia destroyed, there were no holes to guide the prods into, and every time one claw was moved out the others sprang back behind the fascia, locking the unit back in.

The only solution was to find four thin brass L brackets, move each claw out into the gap with needle nose pliers, and shove a bracket behind it to hold it. Shoving from behind eventually got the entire thing out as the claws slipped along the L brackets. Took two hours. (I think four of those PC slot blanking plates would work, too.)

Today I found the TV tuner box, a GPS antenna and a third antenna booster box behind the dash to rip out. Heaven knows how much the original TV and satnav cost. All of it appeared to be made by Panasonic.

What went back in was a JVC KD-R521. It has a remote control, so the CD receiver can be controlled from the back seat or the 'attic' which is proving very popular with back-seat drivers. USB slot plays memory sticks.

Bongo speakers sound astonishingly good, I will investigate further as I suspect they've been upgraded too.

i too was suprised how good the standard 4 speakers were when i recently upgraded to an average quality kenwood unit to drive them, but if you want to cheaply get it even better try 2 sets of tweeters mounted somewhere subtle-----super job.

I think some are harder than others. I spent ages on my Astra trying to get a Blaupunkt radio cassette out and gave up and grudgingly bought the proper tools. Literally 1 second and it was free.

Incidentally, my Bongo has an empty radio bay under the existing one. Anyone know what would have been in that? Mine is full of CDs and pens etc.

Was it a double-DIN unit? I put a pocket in to hold yet more junk on the spare slot on mine. It all usually flies out when I accelerate too briskly.

binky wrote:Was it a double-DIN unit? I put a pocket in to hold yet more junk on the spare slot on mine. It all usually flies out when I accelerate too briskly.

I think it is just a DIN. It has a plastic shell in it that holds about half a dozen CDs in cases. It looks unfinished though.

Some had a double din radio as standard - http://www.lushprojects.com/bongopartsm ... 4of04.html , some had a single din & cubby - http://www.lushprojects.com/bongopartsm ... 2of04.html - also shows a hole cover, but I think (from looking at the fixing points) that's instead of the cubby, not to go over the top of it, could be wrong though.

The only solution was to find four thin brass L brackets, move each claw out into the gap with needle nose pliers, and shove a bracket behind it to hold it. Shoving from behind eventually got the entire thing out as the claws slipped along the L brackets. Took two hours.

I wish that the b******s on the importing ships took that amount of care - instead of just using two large screwdirvers levered against the dash - probably only took 2 seconds but left me with 4 dents in the plastic

Grahame

I was a bit worried about gnawing holes in the dash. The van is in v.good condition, apart from the bits added by the UK conversion people.

It's great sitting at the back of the van with the remote control CD player though. I'm going to have get the van off the drive one of these days, too. Do people actually 'go camping' in Bongos?