Episode 511 – Can You Waterproof a Jeep Stereo?

This Week In Jeep

Why Jeep Picked McIntosh to Power the Grand Cherokee and Wagoneers

In the home audio world, McIntosh is very well known. The Binghamton, New York-based company was founded in 1949 and has a long history and serious credibility on its side. And it’s now spotlighting a new long-term relationship with Jeep, blessed by the godfather of Fiat Chrysler himself. After a brief flirtation with car audio in the ‘90s that set the industry on its head, the McIntosh brand had mostly shelved its work in the automotive industry until it caught the eye (or in this case the ear) of Stellantis visionaries Ralph Gilles and Sergio Marchionne a few years before Marchionne’s death in 2018. They were convinced McIntosh was the right fit for the reborn Grand Wagoneer; adding it to the new Grand Cherokee L soon followed. Most buyers are familiar with mainstream brands like Bose, who have been outfitting the higher-end or premium line of automotive sound systems in a variety of car and truck brands for the better part of 30 some-odd years. Mark Levinson is matched with Lexus, Audi and BMW use Bang & Olufsen, Mercedes-Benz prefers Burmester, and Nissan started partnering with Fender, the company that makes kickass guitars and amplifiers, for its vehicles a few years back. When McIntosh showed up in the new Jeeps, some people were perplexed. Who the “F” is McIntosh? The audio brand’s CEO Jeff Poggi understands they’re the “new kid” in the world of modern high-end car audio, and that hearing is believing. It’s a well-known fact, the number one place people listen to music is in their vehicle, and McIntosh believes that if you’re going to spend that much time in a vehicle, you might as well have good audio quality. For those who think this is all much to do about nothing, you’ve never really heard good, clean, clear audio reproduction from a high-end system before. And trust me, there is an incredible difference that cannot be ignored. Comparing the stereo in 90% of the vehicles on the road to this McIntosh system is like comparing the difference between a glass of fine wine to a Mason jar of grape kool-aid. Back in the 1990s when McIntosh first dipped its toe into the automotive industry, it provided amplifiers and head units for the aftermarket. The trademark blue meters were popular then and started a craze in the early 2000’s that almost every manufacturer tried to duplicate in one form or another. Today, you will still see the iconic blue VU meters to show you how hard the amps are working. Inside the Grand Wagoneer and Grand Cherokee, an app activates a digital meter that bounces with the music, and the McIntosh name is prominently featured. For most car stereo systems you will have four speakers, maybe six to eight if you have component speakers (a mid-bass driver and a separate tweeter) in all four corners. But that is still a four-channel stereo system with 8 speakers, nine if there is a dedicated subwoofer in there somewhere. Each speaker set would have in the neighborhood of around 50 watts per channel, and maybe 75 for the sub, give or take, for a total system power of around 275 watts. Now, I’m not going to go into the semantics of RMS vs. Peak power right now, but just know these numbers are never absolute when it comes to OEM ratings. In the Grand Wagoneer, a true 1375-watt, 24-channel amp, 23-loudspeaker system belts out your favorite music with incredible range, clarity, and headroom. This basically means you can really crank this system to levels higher than what your ears can handle before something gives electronically anyways. Matched with metal ridged control knobs in front and toggle controls behind the steering wheel that are typical for Jeep products, this checks all the boxes. Make no mistake, though… This is not an inexpensive system and its high-end price is built into these new Jeeps, which for the top-level Grand Wagoneer can exceed six figures. If you are serious about sound, I highly encourage you to call your local dealer to see if they have a McIntosh-equipped Jeep on hand to demo for you, it will be an experience you won’t soon forget.

Here We Go Again – Seven Hills

It was just in Episode 509, in this week in Jeep, that I had a dumb criminal story out of a little town called Seven Hills, in Ohio. Four jerkwads, stole a Jeep, 3 promptly got caught, and one of them had to be tased. (heh heh heh)

That town seems to be fraught with a crime as this week, we have yet ANOTHER dumb criminal story out of the same little town. An officer of the Seven Hills Police Department observed a green Jeep Liberty with only one functioning brake light on Crossview Road. Prior to being stopped on Rockside Road, the Jeep pulled over to the side of the road and pointed to a side street before then taking off traveling 70 mph in a 25-mph zone. Is that like Babe Ruth calling the side of the field where he’s going to hit the home run? “Watch out copper… I’m going this-a-way” 

On Broadview Road, the Jeep nearly struck another vehicle before stopping suddenly, slamming the Jeep in reverse and ramming into the police car. The officer followed the Jeep, which was now traveling in excess of 80 mph, onto the Jennings Freeway. The pursuit was called off after the Jeep was seen swerving in and out of traffic before exiting on I-77. 

The officer noted it appeared as if the Jeep’s registered owner’s husband was the driver. Police are still investigating. 

 

 

 

 

 

Microchip Shortage Continues, Plants Halt Production

Several Stellantis assembly plants are facing cutbacks in production in relation to the global chip shortage, making the automaker the latest victim of the manufacturing catastrophe that the whole world faces. In a report from Automotive News, several Dodge, Jeep, Ram, and Chrysler plants in the US and Canada are facing a downtime this coming week due to the said shortage. Primary of which is the Sterling Heights Assembly Plant in Michigan that makes the Ram 1500. The over 7,000-employee strong facility will be down for a full week. Meanwhile, the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois, which makes the Jeep Cherokee, is down for a week. There are at least two other non Jeep plants that are halting the production of Dodge and Chrysler cars. This isn’t the first time that these plants face hold-up due to the global chip shortage either.  The Sterling Heights Assembly Plant already faced similar downtime in July. The Windsor plant has only just resumed regular output from its delays back in July. Meanwhile, Jeep’s Toledo South Assembly Plant in Ohio fell silent during the first week of August, halting the production of the Gladiator. That is a ripple that is still being felt by many dealers. Two of Stellantis’ plants in France and one in Germany are currently at a standstill as well.

And they have limited production at one plant in Italy too. Needless to say, the global chip shortage has been causing a massive amount of upset within the automotive industry and despite some speculators estimates that we will start to climb out of this by the end of the year, many like myself see the writing on the wall, and are predicting effects of this shortage to last easily into the second or third quarter of 2022. 

Tech Talk with Jeep Talk

TOPIC/QUESTION: Protecting Your Jeep’s Stereo From Rain 

Last week, (despite technical difficulties) we wrapped up a segment on how to prepare yourself for wilderness wheeling. This week, we are shifting gears, and going to get back to answering the questions you have sent into the show. We recently received an email that has a topic I have not yet covered here on the show. And that is how to protect your Jeep’s stereo from the rain. Brent P wrote in to the show, and this is what he had to say:

“My CD head unit went out in my TJ.  (It was caught out in the rain).  I was thinking of putting in a double din, but is there a way to “water resist” a double din unit?  Can I add some type of shielding to the top and back to better protect it from the rain?”

Although I have already answered Brent’s question through email, I thought I would go into a little more detail here on this subject to help Brent more, as well as give some advice to others who may be thinking of, or needing to do the same thing. 

First off, The stock stereo size for all Jeep TJ’s is what is referred to as din and a half. 

Most aftermarket radios are single-DIN which have face dimensions of about 2 inches tall by 7 inches wide. A double DIN is about twice as tall and the same width. All aftermarket radios will vary in depth radically and it is very important that you know if the radio you want will fit in your dash. For example, I have in the past installed a single DIN radio into the 1.5 DIN opening of a Chevrolet Blazer, using a simple 1.5 DIN to single DIN adapter kit. However, the depth of the DIN radio was too long for the shallow cavity of the Blazer, especially using the recessed opening of the aftermarket kit for a cleaner look. I was able to solve this by reworking the air ducts behind the opening with a heat gun. Not something I would recommend for the novice installer. But I digress. The point of all that is, that not all stereos are built the same way. One of those units with a fold-out screen, onboard DVD player, etc, etc, … can get pretty deep. On The other end of the spectrum are the completely digital receivers with nothing else. No CD player, no fold-out screen, just a digital radio, and Bluetooth for device pairing. Most people listen to media less music, meaning music that is stored digitally, vs being embedded on a medium like a compact disk or magnetic tape. These kinds of stereos are only about 3” deep or less and can be put just about anywhere a hole can be cut big enough to fit it through. This brings me to the main point of Brent’s email, and that is that he is considering putting a double din stereo into a din and a half opening. It’s not going to fit. Certainly not without some trimming and some modifications. It’s not impossible, it CAN be done, Tony himself has done this very same mod on his 98 XJ that has virtually the same central dash face as Brent’s TJ does. 

Shoving a double din into a din and a half opening is not going to leave much room for trim rings let alone the solution that will keep the stereo from getting wet. This is a tricky subject, because, by nature, electronics don’t like moisture, but hate heat just as bad.

Marine radios are built a little differently than automotive models because they inherently see more moisture. The circuit boards in marine grade electronics are protected by an electrostatic-safe epoxy called “conformal coating.” 

It’s a liquid that is sprayed onto the PCB at the time of manufacture, and when cured, hardens to protect the entire surface of the board in an impenetrable cover that “conforms” to every little chip and component. This protects the Circuit Board assembly from moisture as well as dust and other foreign particles that could collect, and eventually short out a circuit or part. Automotive-grade stereos also have this coating, but not to the same extent, as vehicles don’t typically see the kind of humidity that boats do.  (at least not for as long as boats do anyways.) You can’t very well take apart a double din stereo and give it the same treatment. The grade of conformal coating needed is typically not available on the open market, and not all versions of the stuff are safe for all circuit boards. That and the general public likely doesn’t have the right equipment to both apply, then cure the conformal coating properly. So what you’re left with is trying to “seal” the stereo to essentially make it waterproof.  This, in every case, is most likely going to lead to overheating. Unless you live in the Alaskan wilderness, it’s generally too warm inside the dashboard for an electronic device that generates heat to be suffocated like that. It may last for a while, but I assure you, on the first hot day, that stereo is going to give up the ghost. They make marine-grade stereo face covers called “splash guards” or “splash shields”, that the unit is installed into and that in turn is installed into the dash. For 99% of all automotive applications, this won’t work, as the bulbous surround is too large for most dash openings. They also are usually screwed to the face of the boat’s dashboard, and the cage that secures the stereo in place is then, in turn, mounted to that. Unlike most double din stereos that use brackets to secure it to the subframe of the dashboard. They do make splash shields for double din stereos, but again, you may not like how these are mounted. You may be forced to screw into or bolt these through the dash depending on what you get. You may also be forced to start hacking things up just to give yourself the clearance to mount this properly. You may have a splash-proof stereo at that point, but yeesh, look at the mess of the install. Have you ever seen that show “Nailed It” …that’s how this is likely going to turn out for many of you, depending on the size of the splash guard you end up going with. One option that really isn’t on the table for most, is going to be a full enclosure mounted under the dash.

These are essentially large plastic eggs with a front that opens and closes, that the entire stereo is installed to. A bracket loops over the top that you would use to mount the entire thing with. Most Jeeps don’t have the room for something like this, and it would look ridiculous anyways. I’m afraid the only other thing you are left with is resorting to the world of 3D printing. If you have one of those devices or know someone who does, they could “print” you out a custom fit cover that could be slipped on when the sky starts to fall. You likely won’t be able to see through it, but it may be a better option than what’s on the market for the marine industry. My advice to Brent would be to do some test fitting, maybe stop into your local car stereo shop and ask them to see if you can test fit one of those marine covers in the dash. What you’re looking for is to see if it will fit without too much hacking of the dash. If so, then go for it. My other advice would be to splurge for a marine grade single din stereo and mount it into the factory opening using a readily available dash kit. These stereos are generally a little more expensive than their automotive-only counterparts but will give you the moisture protection you’re looking for. Just be advised, almost all of them come in white only. So it may be a bit of an eyesore in the dash. You have options, but the path of most resistance will have a great payoff if everything goes perfect but will result in things that cannot be undone if they go sideways. And let’s face it, how many Jeep projects have you known about that went off without one single hitch? In the end, it’s always best to go with what is supposed to fill the hole. Trying to put a square peg in a rectangle hole is not always going to work out the way we want. Either way, I hope this helps or at least gives you some inspiration, and I wish Brent, and you the best of luck. 

 

 

 

Links Mentioned in this Episode

NEXEN Tires USA https://www.nexentireusa.com/

Trails 411- POWERING Your Adventure https://www.youtube.com/user/backcountrydriver

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