Chumley

I picked up a nice original radio awhile back and upon attempting to install it, found that the plug is different from my wiring harness connector. I bought the radio which was said to have come from a '71 Cutlass. Mine is a '72. Is that the difference? The radio fits the dash like it was meant to be, just the connector is different. Also while on the subject, there is no info in my '72 wiring diagram for radio or speaker, although it does show the wiring for things like the clock. Is the green wire with white stripe for the speaker or what? I could not find a loose connector wire under the dash that might have gone to the dash speaker (which is not there). I assume the yellow wire is for power, since this was removed from the radio connector and rerouted to the power input of a cheap AM/FM cassette player someone installed.

Chumley

texasred

71 and 72 radio wiring is the same. My car's in the paint barn or I'd eyeball it for you.

You didn't say if it was AM/FM. The 70 (and maybe other earlier years) had a two piece stereo multiplexer. They had some weird wiring connectors. Maybe you have an earlier radio without the multiplexer?

C.J.

Chumley

Yes, it's just a plain Jane AM radio. I took a picture of the connector on the wiring harness, but can't download to my computer ( the program stopped working correctly) Anyway, the connector is not shaped like an elongated rectangle like the radios port (which is on the back, right side on the bottom) The plug on the harness is about the same width but has a protruding part in the middle making it somewhat like a flattened T-shape. Maybe it originally had AM/FM? As for the speaker wire, it dissappears into the wiring, so I assume it is for rear speakers. Anybody have an old dash harness with the correct connector so I could do a swap? Thanks for your input.. Chumley

texasred

71 and 72 AM and AM/FM harness and plug are exactly the same...power and front speaker wires. Rear speaker is a single wire seperate plug. I did a direct swap from an AM to an AM/FM. Plugged right in and worked like a champ.

Again, don't have the car on hand, so I can't give wire color/plug shape specifics.

C.J.

Chumley

Thanks for all the info, the only conclusion I can come to is that the radio is not from a '71 or '72. I have no reason to believe that the under dash harness was ever replaced, so I guess I have a radio that will be finding it's way to Ebay again. (I really wanted a AM/FM anyway)

Chumley

texasred

Try taking a look on ebay and see if you can match it up to pics of other ones for sale (not that anything is EVER mislabled there! )

C.J.

Chumley

Your right, I see entire CARS there where the seller has no idea what year or model it is. Radios and clocks seem to come and go in little droves every couple of weeks or so. I'm there almost every day looking at parts. Thanks for all your help and suggestions.............Chumley

texasred

DANG, Oldsfan...you seem to have specs for EVEYTHING! Got any computer-based lists you'd like to share?

C.J.

ozoneblue

I am with Tex Please share

Chumley

The label that has the numbers is torn off on one corner( of course the corner where the model # is located) It starts with 03 then the next digit looks like it might be a 7 ...the rest is missing. The product # is 7312373 if that helps. By the way, do you have a source where you can look up a part # and it will tell you what it is and the year/application? I have some mystery grilles that don't fit right and have the wrong part #'s for the application. These are all over ebay. Guess I need to do more homework before buying parts.....Thanks for your help. Chuimley

Chumley

In addition to the preceeding reply, I came across the order sheet from the car when it was new, and it lists U63 Deluxe Radio. Was this AM/FM? Also some of the options listed have asterisks next to them and some don't, but the car has or had everything listed. Chumley

Chumley

Thanks for your help, I was told by a seller on Ebay that the plastic moldings on '72 grilles had different numbers stamped on them than the actual part number for the whole grille. Could this be the case? It would sure explain a lot. Do '73 radios look a lot different from earlier models?
Chumley

Chumley

Thanks Paul for all your research on this. How did I miss that radio on Ebay? Must have been listed somewhere other than where I look, which is almost daily. That radio is EXACTLY what I have. On looking at the label on the back of mine, what I thought to be a "7" indeed looks like it is a capitol "A". As for the plug on my harness, there is no other component in the dash that this could plug into. I forgot the color of the wires, I will get under there today and check again. I will also post a picture of the plug if I can get my downloading program for my camera to work again. Like I said, there is no other plug under there in the vicinity of the radio. I will check to see if there is wiring going to the rear deck to indicate it once had rear speakers. This is really boggling my mind, but I'm tenacious and will figure it out. By the way, what is JWO? Can I get my hands on this publication? Thanks......Chumley

Chumley

The connector has two wires, a black one and a dark green w/white stripe. I'm not sure now either if this is the radio plug, but I can't find any other plug under the dash. Here is a picture of the connector.......

Chumley

I got ahold of a '72 wiring diagram, I'll examine it some more to see what that connector could possibly be. There is a yellow wire(power) that was hooked up to an aftermarket radio. If I plugged that in and provided a ground for the back terminal on the radio, would that be all I need to do ( in addition to hooking up a speaker) to test this thing? The three prongs on back are labled GD(ground) SPK(I assume speaker) and 12V(power wire) There is a blue wire coming out of the radio for what I assume would be the dash speaker. What is the terminal on the back of the radio for? Rear speaker? I'm just wondering why the plug which would fit into the rear of the radio is apparently missing. Wouldn't the yellow power wire be part of this plug? I am suspecting that this car sat somewhere for awhile and was stripped of parts, as the history of the car lists abandoned car fee on one of the DMV records I got from the seller. I'm starting to feel like Columbo, solving this 35 year old mystery. In anut shell, what wires do I need to connect to that terminal on the radio to get some sound? Thanks again for your help on this......Chumley

P.S. Again,what is JWO?