I need to replace the dash speakers on my car. I had found these - which seemed to be a good value but found a post from 2003 on 12volt.com where a 1977 Cutlass owner was unable to fit those in the dash due to the proximity to the vent and the size of the magnet. I do not wish to cut or bend the vent. Can anyone suggest a 3.5 speaker that would fit or offer an alternative solution. I appreciate any input from the community!

 

Have your original speakers re-coned. I have some Blaupunkt speakers in my 76 but had to clearance the dash parts you mentioned to make them fit. My dash was cracked so altering it didn't bother me. Now I have a mint used dash I'm planning on installing soon and I'm going back to stock with the original AM/FM 8 track and original speakers that I'm having re-coned.
http://freemantuell.com/
I've used these guys to re-cone some old Fischer Studio Standards and the work was outstanding and the price reasonable, especially since I'm local and had to pay no shipping. Of course the 77 dash speakers are quite a lot smaller so shipping isn't such a concern.

 

Thanks for the suggestion texxas! Unfortunately, in checking the model number (JBL GT0302), it became clear that this speaker was not stock. The other speaker works fine - I still need to check the model number on that but I think is may be stock. I did call Freeman-Tuell and they confirmed that it was not stock and that 3.5" speakers like that were not meant to be repaired.

So now I'm forced into finding a replacement. Either a pair that will fit in that dash or a single speaker to replace the one. It's not horrible right now so I have time to look around. The bad speaker doesn't put out mid-range but high and percussion seem ok. Maybe I'll hit up a salvage yard and get lucky. Also, I do need to switch the speakers just to rule out that it isn't the mini-amp I purchased that is the problem. I should have done that right away, I suppose.

Thanks for the input.