I've had these BA component speakers for the longest time but they've been sitting in my closet because I don't trust myself to install them but I also don't know what shop I can trust with my car. I've been avoiding taking it to Best Buy or Circuit City. Or can I trust them? I know it's not rocket science but I dont want someone unfamiliar with the '06 door panel to break or damage something. Is it true that the sound guys at the big chain stores might be as careful as the small business owned car audio shops? Anyone in the area recommend somewhere?

 

I used to work at best buy. You can trust the installers they know how to hook stuff up, they are also insured. Or find one shop and always go to that one shop for all your audio work, so that they know about your car.

 

from my experience, bb and cc installers are, for the most part, beginners. i'd ask around your area on a reputable shop. no offense to you, 702Fairlady, just my experience dude.

 

haha looks like i'm back where i started.. anyone else want to chime in?

 

i wont let BB or CC touch my car, ever, i also wouldnt let a lot of the shops ot there touch my car...

i know all about installers who compenstate for lack of time, skill or experience by yanking and pulley and firing nails into places...

i am not saying there arent good installers working at CC or BB, but you better know one personally before you take it there

i would find a decently reputatlbe local shop to do the work...

 

ok so i've done some research and learned about sound advice in mission viejo, ca. if anyone knows any closer places that would be great.

 

don't be cheap, go to a real shop, spend the extra $15. it will be worth it.

 

if you're willing to drive to mission viejo...go to Audiotoyz corner of Oso and Antonio...they've done a lot of work on Z's and they're great! I've had my windows done by them and they're getting ready to order some audio stuff for my car!

 

go to the nissan dealership and ask them where they have their systems instakked nfor upgraded models. where i live al and eds autosound does it for qualiry nissan. any place that does a lot of z's and does them for a dealership would be pretty trustworthy i think

 

You gotta remind yourself. Its only a Z. Its a basic nissan car that is very easy to take apart. People onhere are starting to sound like corvette owners Bestbuy and circuit city both are insured shops. Take a picture of your panels before. When they get you your car back take a look at it if its not the way yo0u left it with them then they will cover it with insurance.

 

I would go with a big box store before a custom store, for a couple of reasons.

1. Most Circuit Citys will allow you to watch them work on your car. No installer will rip and pull on your car if you are standing there.

2. They are insured, and can NOT prevent you from filing a claim with their insurance company. Big business does have its advantages

3. Their installers are paid by the hour, NOT the job. There is no need to rush a nice car out of the bay.

4. Big box stores have very thorough check in procedures where they go over EVERYTHING on the car. If the car has no damage going in they won't be able to argue if there is damage when the car is on its way out.

I spent a long time installing for Circuit City and can honestly say it doesn't matter where you take your car, it matters WHO works on it. Even the best shops have installers who mess up, or who have bad days, and even the big stores have good installers. I worked near two very reputable custom shops and spent a LOT of time fixing their Christmas remote starts. They would throw them in, cover them up, and send them out. Then, when it quit working they would tell them they were booked and couldn't fix the car for up to 6 weeks. So, they would bring it to us, and pay us to reinstall it the right way. This is by no means the norm, but its what we did where i was (Toledo, Ohio).


If you are really nervous go in and talk to the manager. Get a price quote, a time quote, and ask him the qualifications of the person who will be doing the work on your car. If you request an experianced guy you should get one with no problems. Of course, just because he is experianced doesn't mean he is good!


The final thing I will say is that jdohman is right, it's only a Z. The door panels are hard plastic and very hard to mess up.

 

i worked for cc in concord california and ended my career their in the top 10% of installers in the nation, most of those gus get good hands o training and yes they are insured and as much as any installer hates it, they will let you watch your car, if your that concerned, take pictures of the interior and exterior of your car before yuo go in and let them know that youv taken pictures, the guys at my shop in cali were good, i dont know about the other ones though...good luck man...and dude was right, the 350z is a very basic and easy car to take apart. as an installer i preferred working on new car vs. older ones.

 

ok i've considered all your guys' advice (thanks btw!) and i'll probably end up taking it to a CC or BB near my home rather than driving 50 min south to Mission Viejo to get some speakers installed. I'll check out the place before they install it and if I feel uneasy or uncomfortable then i'll just go to the next one. I mainly just want these speakers in so I can finally use them. But i also don't want to notice something everyday to remind me of the install job. I think most of my fear is due to a bad experience at this place (during my college days) called Audio Express (on River and Oracle rd in Tucson). When I had my head unit installed in my brand new (at the time) civic it was such a pita. They a) broke my dash, b) installed the HU in the wrong slot (single din storage compartment/spacer was on top, not below HU ) c) set off the Airbag light and when i went to them to tell them to fix it they said it would cost me $35 out of my own pocket for them to turn it off. d) dashboard console that contained the center A/C vents, hazard light switch, radio, AC/defroster/recirculate controls, the whole plastic piece was sticking out of the dashboard about a 1/2 inch and you could move it up and down by pressing down on it, e) the gap below the HU was filled by electrical tape, when you put your hand in the single din storage compartment/spacer and gave it a little pressure the whole thing would move and f) they broke my air freshener, was broken in two pieces on the passenger floorboard when i got my car back. haha, i guess from my story i'll try my experiences at a big box store.

 

Ok.. I just called best buy to setup a time and they said it would take around 4-5 hours because it's such a "complex install" for the 350Z due to the wiring. I sensed a little BS so I asked again and he said it was because they didn't want to make sure the signal is going to the right speaker because i wouldn't want a blown tweeter. I told them I'd call them back. What's the real deal? Should I call somewhere else?

 

I got off the phone with circuit city, the guy there was cool as hell and he said it would roughly be about 1 1/2 hours, give or take. I felt more comfortable talking with him than the BB guys who i could hear whispering to each other while he covered the receiver of the phone. Anyways, I think I've decided to take it to CC later today. Thanks guys for all your help. I'll let you know how they did.

 

I took my new '06 to CC. They forgot to hook-up my hazard lights when finished, they left a hole in the firewall letting water leak into my car everytime I washed it or it rained. When I took it back to get the hole in the firewall sealed the installer closed my hood on a screwdriver he left sitting at the base of the engine bay. He slammed my hood 3 times before he realized it was hitting a screwdriver. I want to go back to file a claim but it's hard to tell if my hood is bent. From certain angles and in certain light it does look bent.

 

Well I got back from the installer. Overall it was a nice install job. Except my passenger door handle ended up looking like this..


also not sure if this is right..


I called them up and will go back on wednesday for them to take a look.

 

ouch that sucks they did a number on that door handle i have no idea how they could have even done that.. the doors on the z are so easy to take apart without damaging them.. hopefully they take care of you though...

 

i wouldnt even take apinto to bb or cc for car audio