I have a Mercury Grand Marquis 97. The existing radio is an
AM/FM/cassette, premium audio with autoset. No CD rom or controls for
remote CD rom. I bought a replacement radio and wish to wire it into
the existing speakers/power system. I don't intend to keep the car
forever, so I would like to retain the original wiring harnesses for
quick reinstallation of the original stereo.

My problem is that the current stereo in the dash is apparently a
headend that runs to an amp in the trunk. Connecting the new stereo to
the existing speakers/antenna requires working around that amp.

Several mobile audio installers have said that I need to run wires
through my dash, under the carpet, remove backseat etc., to bypass the
amp. That requires a considerable--seeming illogical--amount of work.

I have read several posts/pages on the internet for Ford Probes and
Explorers which describe a similar problem and prescribe a Metra
70-5514 (i.e. http://www.importmodifications.com/probeaudio.html) to
bypass the amp and hook to the existing wiring harness. Such would
eliminate the need to run wires to the trunk. But while this looks
very close to what I need, one thing that seems to be missing is an
antenna breakout from the wiring harness in the dash to the new
stereo.

Any insight would be appreciated. Please reply to the newsgroup since
this email address is not monitored.

I think you need a amp bypass harness Best Kit model # BHA5600.
This will have 2 harnesses that go to the radio 1 speaker plug and 1 power plug.
Then a third that will go in the trunk that will "bypass" the factory amp.

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Mike






"Mike" wrote in message om...
I have a Mercury Grand Marquis 97. The existing radio is an
AM/FM/cassette, premium audio with autoset. No CD rom or controls for
remote CD rom. I bought a replacement radio and wish to wire it into
the existing speakers/power system. I don't intend to keep the car
forever, so I would like to retain the original wiring harnesses for
quick reinstallation of the original stereo.

My problem is that the current stereo in the dash is apparently a
headend that runs to an amp in the trunk. Connecting the new stereo to
the existing speakers/antenna requires working around that amp.

Several mobile audio installers have said that I need to run wires
through my dash, under the carpet, remove backseat etc., to bypass the
amp. That requires a considerable--seeming illogical--amount of work.

I have read several posts/pages on the internet for Ford Probes and
Explorers which describe a similar problem and prescribe a Metra
70-5514 (i.e. http://www.importmodifications.com/probeaudio.html) to
bypass the amp and hook to the existing wiring harness. Such would
eliminate the need to run wires to the trunk. But while this looks
very close to what I need, one thing that seems to be missing is an
antenna breakout from the wiring harness in the dash to the new
stereo.

Any insight would be appreciated. Please reply to the newsgroup since
this email address is not monitored.

The easiest way to hook up the new radio is with a kit, there are two kits
available for your car, an amplifier bypass kit and an amplifier intergrade
kit.


In article ,
(Mike) wrote:
I have a Mercury Grand Marquis 97. The existing radio is an
AM/FM/cassette, premium audio with autoset. No CD rom or controls for
remote CD rom. I bought a replacement radio and wish to wire it into
the existing speakers/power system. I don't intend to keep the car
forever, so I would like to retain the original wiring harnesses for
quick reinstallation of the original stereo.

My problem is that the current stereo in the dash is apparently a
headend that runs to an amp in the trunk. Connecting the new stereo to
the existing speakers/antenna requires working around that amp.

Several mobile audio installers have said that I need to run wires
through my dash, under the carpet, remove backseat etc., to bypass the
amp. That requires a considerable--seeming illogical--amount of work.

I have read several posts/pages on the internet for Ford Probes and
Explorers which describe a similar problem and prescribe a Metra
70-5514 (i.e. http://www.importmodifications.com/probeaudio.html) to
bypass the amp and hook to the existing wiring harness. Such would
eliminate the need to run wires to the trunk. But while this looks
very close to what I need, one thing that seems to be missing is an
antenna breakout from the wiring harness in the dash to the new
stereo.

Any insight would be appreciated. Please reply to the newsgroup since
this email address is not monitored.