'02 replace speakers and subwoofer

I have a 2002 Exp. EB, I would like to replace the oem speakers and the subwoofer which doesn't work anymore. I heard if I use after market speakers and subwoofer this could cause damage to my radio system. any truth to this.

Well there is...some.
The factory amps are not powerful enough to drive the aftermarket speakers and sub....they'll work, but u'll blow your new speakers in a big hurry, so u'll need some new amplifiers.
Just a mental note: U can kill a speaker in no time by under powering it. If u upgrade, buy amps that put out 2 times what your speakers can handle. It might cost a little more but it will cost less in the end cause u won't be blowing speakers all the time. If u change out your factory amps u'll have to change out your head unit. U'll need to find one that is compatable with your CD changer (if u have one) I think Kenwood manufactured the stereos for Ford after 98. Don't let a stereo shop tell u that u need to change out your CD changer...that's not true. If it is Kenwwod, then ANY Kenwood head unit with CD changer controls will work. Just find out the manufacturer and buy the same head unit. I have a 98 EB Expy and Clarion made it's stereo....but i'm pretty sure they changed in late 98.

Being that it is an 02 do u have any warranty left??
If u do, take it in, it's covered, unless u really want to upgrade and shell out some $$$
For a complete replacement with new amps, speakers and head unit look to spend around $2000

Thanks, can i just change out the rear sub-woofer (aftermarket) without replacing the head unit.

I don't think so....and only because of mounting depth of the speaker. U might wheel on into a stereo shop though and see if they can find one that will match it's depth but I don't think u'll have much luck. Factory speakers are pretty cheap and small, u'll get a good laugh when u pull one out and compare it to a aftermarket one. Honestly I would just get a new woofer from Ford. It's matched to the amplifier and will drop in with no problems. U can buy a whole new enclosure that mounts right into the factory hole and upgrades from an 8" woofer to a 10" but if u don't change out the amp u'll risk blowing it up.
Hope that helps.

[393stroker]

what can i do to get my amp and woofer to work? my truck came with an aftermarket head unit and the cd changer is broke, will my factory amp and subwoofer still work or do i need the factory head unit and disc changer in order for it to work? thanks
email me with any help strokin393@yahoo.com

[KU40]

Originally Posted by RamblinRob

Just a mental note: U can kill a speaker in no time by under powering it. If u upgrade, buy amps that put out 2 times what your speakers can handle. It might cost a little more but it will cost less in the end cause u won't be blowing speakers all the time.

just so nobody else reads this and thinks it's true, I'm here to tell you this is a large pile of BS. You absolutely cannot blow a speaker by underpowering it. The problem comes when you buy, for example, a 400 watt amp for a 500 watt sub and crank up the gain to try and compensate for the lower powered amp. if you keep the signal clean, the sub will play all day every day. but if you think oh, my amp's power is not enough for the sub, I'll turn the gain way up to compensate. This clips the signal and can send up to twice the RMS power of the amp to the sub, effectively making it up to 800 watts. That's when you blow speakers with an underpowered amp, and that is user error.

Also, you should not necessarily buy an amp that puts out twice the rated power of the sub, as this makes it even easier to blow the speaker. If you set the gain to match the input voltage from the head unit, what happens? you're getting 1000 watts to that 500 watt sub. poof. So you have to keep the gain low so that the output power matches the sub's power handling, and you'll be fine.

So in either situation you can get yourself into trouble fairly easily. the best idea is to just know what you're doing, and if you don't, read up on it. Learn to be able to listen for the sub stressing from too much power. And to be really safe, measure the output voltage of the amp and use the power equations to make sure you're matching the amp output to the sub's handling capability.