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What would be the most likely stock radio for a 1971 Chevelle Malibu trim car? The car no longer has it and I MAY go back to it.
1971 Chevelle Malibu Radio???
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If you can find the build sheet it will tell you. I understand that close to 80% of all 71 chevelles got the push button am radio. If you have a stereo dash pad then it would have an Am/fm radio and maybe even the 8 track tape. I understand that no stereo am radios were available but I could be wrong. I do know that even an am/fm radio was available with mono speaker.
Try here...stock looking but more punch http://www.casmfg.com/Chevelle_Nova_Radios.htm
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My dash pad is orig, has stereo speak set up.
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As for a build sheet, never found one when it was redone by my father in law.
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It really shouldn't be referred to as a "stereo dash pad".
Just because you have a dual speaker dash, doesn't automatically mean the car came with stereo equipment.
1970-1972 Chevelles ordered with A/C automatically got a dual speaker dash pad and two front speakers, even if they were ordered with an AM-pushbutton radio.
There are a lot of clues to go by to figure what radio was used, but if the car has been previously "re-worked", all of those clues could easily be gone.
Just because you have a dual speaker dash, doesn't automatically mean the car came with stereo equipment.
1970-1972 Chevelles ordered with A/C automatically got a dual speaker dash pad and two front speakers, even if they were ordered with an AM-pushbutton radio.
There are a lot of clues to go by to figure what radio was used, but if the car has been previously "re-worked", all of those clues could easily be gone.
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Well I have AC, ant in the with window. What are the signs to what you may have had?
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Tim,
The first thing to look for is any evidence of rear speaker(s). Check for wiring that would have run down the firewall on the passenger side, down the passenger side floor pan and into the trunk. It would have exited behind the rear seat back on the passenger side.
For reference pictures:
Scroll down to nearly the end of the page for Jim's survivor car resto:
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=345298&page=6
A picture of the exit area on my custom wiring that mimics how the factory installed rear audio wiring:
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=482425&highlight=
A single blue wire or blue and black wire would indicate a right rear speaker (optional U80 rear speaker). This would have ONLY come with mono radios (am pushbutton and am/fm-non stereo).
A three conductor black/blue/brown would indicate stereo equipment (not necessarily FM though!!! i.e. AM combination 8 track player).
Okay, so let's say you don't find any evidence of rear speakers. You can rule out AM/FM-stereo, AM/8track and AM/FM/8 track as they ALL were installed with 4 speakers.
It also rules out optional right rear speaker with mono FM and am pushbutton radios.
Now, if it is down to AM/FM (non stereo) and AM radios, you could check under-hood and see if the purple blower motor power wire that comes from the harness is directly connected to the blower motor under the passenger fender.
AM/FM cars got a "noise filter" installed in-line with the power feed of the blower motor. It looks like a condenser found inside the old points distributors, only difference is, it has a mounting bracket on the side of it, and a wire coming out of each side.
Now, like I said, if a car has been "redone", all of the "evidence could be long gone" and the only true way to find out what the car came with is the build sheet.
:beers:
The first thing to look for is any evidence of rear speaker(s). Check for wiring that would have run down the firewall on the passenger side, down the passenger side floor pan and into the trunk. It would have exited behind the rear seat back on the passenger side.
For reference pictures:
Scroll down to nearly the end of the page for Jim's survivor car resto:
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=345298&page=6
A picture of the exit area on my custom wiring that mimics how the factory installed rear audio wiring:
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=482425&highlight=
A single blue wire or blue and black wire would indicate a right rear speaker (optional U80 rear speaker). This would have ONLY come with mono radios (am pushbutton and am/fm-non stereo).
A three conductor black/blue/brown would indicate stereo equipment (not necessarily FM though!!! i.e. AM combination 8 track player).
Okay, so let's say you don't find any evidence of rear speakers. You can rule out AM/FM-stereo, AM/8track and AM/FM/8 track as they ALL were installed with 4 speakers.
It also rules out optional right rear speaker with mono FM and am pushbutton radios.
Now, if it is down to AM/FM (non stereo) and AM radios, you could check under-hood and see if the purple blower motor power wire that comes from the harness is directly connected to the blower motor under the passenger fender.
AM/FM cars got a "noise filter" installed in-line with the power feed of the blower motor. It looks like a condenser found inside the old points distributors, only difference is, it has a mounting bracket on the side of it, and a wire coming out of each side.
Now, like I said, if a car has been "redone", all of the "evidence could be long gone" and the only true way to find out what the car came with is the build sheet.
:beers:
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Good call. :thumbsup:
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I know this threads a little old, but I could use some help figuring out my original radio configuration that would've came in my 71 SS... I did just replace the carpet and found the original rear passenger speaker wire, just blue/black, so I know that it had a single dash speaker and a single rear right speaker, so from this thread I'm assuming a mono radio, yes?... So that just leaves if it was an AM or AM/FM non-stereo radio, correct?... From what I've seen, looks like the Am radios just have a single row connector with usually 5 wires on it, my original dash connector has two rows, 5 on top and 4 on bottom, would anyone know what exact radio this pigtail would go to?...
Joe?
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