Radio "Surround" Bezel ?s

[DartGTDan]

Do all A-Bodys have a radio "surround" bezel? I've seen some with the woodgrain "surround" and some with a silver/black "surround".
I have a dash frame from a 1970 Duster, can a radio (either factory or aftermarket) be mounted directly into the metal dash frame?

 

[dingo77]

i would say yes. in order to put an aftermarket head unit in my 70' dart i had to cut the dash to put the cage in. i altered the stock dash bezel so that it would fit around the deck. sine the heater controls are also part of that bezel it was easier to do that and not use the trim ring that came with the deck rather than cut that part of the bezel off to use the trim ring. just be sure you add some brackets to support the head unit under the dash.

 

[2 Darts]

Yes, the factory radios all had surround bezels. There is a bar on the bezel that separated the dial from the pushbuttons. If you are using a 2 post radio, you can mount it directly to the dash. There is a brace on the side of the factory radio that connects to another part of the dash to keep the radio from wobbling around on the dash.

If you're using a radio with a DIN chassis, you'll need to cut the dash to mount the slide in cage as Dingo77 says. If you want to keep the ruse of a factory install, you'll need to trim the interior of the factory surround bezel to allow the radio to slide through it as well. Since the surround was originally secured to the dash with the radio shafts, you'll need to figure out a way to secure the DIN adapted bezel. I'd suggest velcro or carpet tape.

 

[player1up]

Do a search for shaft radio and you'll find something that will fit
I used to have a stereo similar to this kenwood in my 75
item number 130266072645 on ebay.

"Dual" and Jensen still make shaft style car radios but they are a little on the cheesy side

 

[dingo77]

another option you have is if you would like to avoid cutting the dash and bezel to fit a new style head unit is to install a shaft radio (something like player1up suggested) but for just cosmetics, then do a custom install in a different location for a more modern radio. its a lot more work involved but if keeping the car more to factory design its the only way to go.

 

[2 Darts]

The "Dual" is on the cheesey side, but bought one anyway for my '73 Dart Custom. I modified the shafts to accept the stock control knobs and discarded the bezel that came with it. Also installed connectors on the wires to allow it to run through the fuse panel without additional wiring. Other than having to cut the bar out of the middle of the trim opening (deluxe dash), it fits my '73 without a problem. (The Demon has a DIN chassis CD unit.) I'll see if I can get a photo in the next few days.

The thing I like about it is that not only does it play cassettes, but it has a front mini-phono plug that I hook a CD player (or iPod) into, and it also has a pre-amp output that allows connection of an amplifier.