Hello Everyone,

I have been on this forum for a very long time gathering up other people’s advice and ideas without once myself contributing to the forum. So today I hope I can teach you guys something or give you some ideas.

Today’s walkthrough is going to be about taking the door panel off and how to install speakers that are to big for the door. A website such as Crutchfield.com will tell you if a speaker will fit in your door or not. Well, the reason why they tell you that is they measure the stock speaker against the aftermarket speaker. If the aftermarket speaker is deeper then the stock speaker then they will clearly say it will not fit. There is a way around this. Of course the speaker has to be 6.5”, but the depth is up to you.


Door Panel Removal

My Car Information:
2008 Lancer ES
4 Speaker Sound System

Tools Needed:
Door Panel Remover (Recommended)
Phillips head screw driver
Patience

I will explain this as best as I can.

Step 1:
Open one of the four doors on your vehicle

Step 2:
Locate the door handle. Inside the door handle will be a little cover the size of your finger nail. You might need light to be able to see it. With something thin pry it open. I used a thumb tack to remove it. Once the cover is removed place in safe place.

Step 3:
Now that the cover is now off you will see a screw. Unscrew that screw and again place in a safe place.

Step 4:
Using your door panel remover start from the left side of the door and pry the panel connectors. Take your time and don’t rush. Once you have gone all the way around you may think you can just take it off, your wrong. These things are on tight.

Step 5:
Once you pry it to the point you can stick your fingers inside it start to carefully rip it off. Don’t pull to hard or you may break the power window switch wire apart.

Step 6:
Once you have the door panel in your hand and just settling no longer connected to the door stick your fingers behind it and remove the power window wire from the door panel.

Step 7:
The only thing holding the door panel to the door is the door handle. Now look behind the door panel and you will notice a screw by the door handle. Unscrew that and place it somewhere safe.

Step 8:
Take the door handle off and now set the door panel on the ground. Take a deep breath the hard part is now done.

Aftermarket Speaker Installation

Okay, now for the main point. When you go to Crutchfield.com or other audio websites that tell you a speaker doesn’t fit don’t be discouraged. There is a way around it and I will tell you.

The reason why an audio place such as Crutchfield.com will say the speaker will not fit is because they measure the stock speaker to the aftermarket speaker. If the depth of the aftermarket exceeds the stock then they will say it won’t fit. Here is how to get it to work.

Here is what the inside of the door panel looks like when it is taken off.



Look where the speaker would usually meet up with flush. It is the circle on the door panel.

The circular plastic piece sticks out to far and is unable to house the aftermarket speaker so we need to modify. Using a knife or box cutter cut the circle to the base of the door panel. It will give you another inch or two for mounting depth.

This is what I am explaining you need to cut. If you don’t understand ask me and I will make a video.





Once you cut the circle plastic thing that sticks out mount your speakers to the door and put the door panel back on. There should now be no problem placing bigger speakers then recommended in your door panel.

I hope this has helped anyone out there trying to do this and I am sorry if this is a little blurry. I will make a view upon request if necessary.

Good Luck EvolutionM community and 08 Lancer owners.

 

Unless I misread something in your directions, there are actually three screws in total you need to remove before you begin step 4... the door grip handle, one by the door lock, and one on the side.

 

no there are only 2... door handle and door handle again.. the thing on the top right isnt a screw it just looks like one..

 

no, there are 3 screws.....on the outside of the door; its covered to make it look nice haha

Also- since the stock speakers are sooo shallow, you will most likely need spacers between the speaker and door in order for the magnet to clear when the window goes down....just a hint

 

The speakers dont go anywhere near the windows so dont worry about that... I custom mounted my speakers because they wouldnt fit in the car.. i cut out the mesh where the original speakers were mounted.. and it looked better because you can see the speaker and the grill

 

I'd like to see this.... Pictures?

 

If you have speakers with big magnets and install them in the stock location (behind the door panel) the window will fall right on top of the magnet. This is EXACTLY what happened to me, so I needed spacers....

 

soo many contradicting info!!!

 

The funny part is I was the one that made this walkthrough and I was the one that made custom slots for my speakers. Who else here has? If so show me pics!

 

It's too easy to cut out a hole in the door panel and screw the speakers in, but to mount aftermarket speakers in a stock location that requires custom mounting itself...now thats a feat!

 

your pics are not working :S, i want to get some aftermarket speakers for my new lancer.

 

I would appreciate if someone could share some pictures how the doors look under the doorpanel. I'm competing in carsound SQ and it would help me to plan the system in forehand.

 

I agree did you build custom mounts or just break the stock speaker?

 

i removed the stock speaker by twisting it (left, i think...) and pulling it out. I then had to cut 4 metal pieces off that held the stock speaker in. if you notice, the stock speakers magnet is only about 1.5" in diameter, whereas my aftermarket speakers i installed are about 3.5" in diameter. if you dont cut these 4 metal pieces, ANY aftermarket speaker will not fit in right. this is because, somehow, the stock speaker doesnt really have a basket; its a very odd speaker (although common for stock) and is actually relatively small. then, if your aftermarket speakers are big enough, you will need spacers between the speaker and door, so the magnet sits further away from the window when it closes. dont worry about space between the speaker and inside of door panel when re-installed, there is PLENTY of room there!


btw, sorry i havent looked at this thread in a very long time, i forgot about it!

 

anybody got links to the original pics from the first post in this thread? They don't appear to be working.