Sub+Amp in spare tire well

[caine0]

I know this subject has probably been beaten to death,and I have already searched the forums and learned some things, but I just want to do it right.

I have a 1990 lx and I want to try and fit both the sub and amp in the spare tire well. First off is this possible? Or will I only be able to fit the sub in there and have to mount the amp somewhere else? All I'm trying to fit in there is one 10" Kicker Comp Sub with a RockFord Fosgate Punch Amp.

I don't know the exact dimensions of the sub, but the amp is 2.38 x 9.85 x 12.07 .

Also. In the spare tire well there is a hook right in the middle (used to secure the spare tire to), and I was wondering what you guys did about this. I figure there are two options. Maybe some of you cut it off somehow, and others put enough fibreglass or something else to make the well flat up to that level so there was no longer a bump. So I was wondering about that.

And I think my last question for now is what options do I have besides fiberglass when building this? Has anybody built this box using something other than fiberglass? Or have a link to somewhere with instructions on using something other than fiberglass? I have looked at some sites with instructions and they say plan on spending $150US for the fiberglass and everything else you're going to use, which is alot of money to me since I live in Canada heh..

I want to do this for as cheap as possible. I only have my sub in my car to get some bass into songs, not so that people can hear me coming from a mile away. So I'm not looking for what setup will get me the most bass, I'm just looking for something that will get me what I'm trying to accomplish (trunk space in my hatch!)

So:
A) Is it possible to fit both amp and sub in the well, and if so how?
B) What to do about the spare tire well hook?
C) What else can you use besides fibreglass to get this setup?

Any pictures would help alot as well. Thanks guys.

 

[85GTlover]

If you have a box that fits in the spare tire area you could bolt the amp to the box, that would be one way.

 

[MyEarsHurt]

You can try and find out, but if not you can always get one of those new "flat" subs. I dont know who makes them, I want to say pioneer, anyway they are made for trucks, to go under the seat and they are not deep at all, maybe 3 or 4 inches, I am sure that would help, but I dont know how much money you want to drop on this project cause I think the flat subs are a little pricey compared to a regular 10" sub.

 

[caine0]

Thanks for the idea MyEarsHurt, but I want to spend as little on this as possible, that's the goal atleast. I already have my sub and amp, so I don't want to have to buy new ones just to do this.

Anybody else?

 

[KWIK9550]

Damn, if you didn't live in Canada, I'd build it for you and ship it your way. Fiberglass is cheap and easy to work with. Depenending on how exactly you do it, it shouldn't be a problem for a novice. I would just glass over the hump for hook, or cut it out if you want. All said and done, I would say materials would cost you no more than $70 at the extreme. Of course that depends on your desired finish.

As for fitting bot sub and amp in the well, I don't see why it wouldn't be possible if you have the room. Just make sure that the back of the driver is at least 1" away from the bottom of the enclosure. If not, it may block the pole vent on the sub, which could lead to possible damage of the driver and it will alter the Q.

 

[caine0]

Thanks KWIK9550. I think I've made my decision, after doing a couple days of research. I think I'm going to just go ahead and give fiberglass a shot. If I mess up, I mess up. I'll fill the well with 4 layers or so, and then make the top of the enclosure out of MDF and just put the 10" sub in there.

The problem I'm having now is my decision on the amp placement. After reading up a bit on the subject I found out that most people say you should have airflow going to the amp, or you'll have trouble. I am not going to try and run a fan in the tire well just to cool the amp, so I either have to get a confirmation from somebody that they have the amp in the well and have no heating problems with it, or mount the amp behind my left tire like in the pictures I'm attaching.

If I do mount the amp on the inside wall, how do people usually do this? I don't really want to do anything that if I ever take the amp off will still be there. Thanks

 

[KWIK9550]

An amplifier needs some form of cooling. The most common is air cooling. You can mount the amp anywhere or anyhow you want as long as it is kept at operating temperatures. You could very well mount it to the enclsoure itself as long as it is not totally enclosed, upswide down or the heatsink covered, unless you have some form of forced air or liquid cooling.

Mounting it in the location in the picture would require some custom fabrication or a bracket of some sort in order to not have to cut the panel I would think. Well, that is if it's done properly. That amp there seems to just be screwed into the plastic. Big NO-NO. It can easily come flyain at your head or somewhere else if you're involved in an accident.

 

[quik87]

i'm going to try to help you out.....i'm going to post up this site.i had a whole crap load of links....but they all got deleted. i hope this helps.
http://www.sounddomain.com/member_pages/view_page.pl?page_id=193435

you were asking another way to fit subs in your tire well...i saw this done....and it worked perfectly. take 3/4" or 1/2" mdf and with a router...cut notches about an 1" or so around the peice of mdf.take the mdf and you can bend it to make to curve of the tire well. hard to explain but best i can do. i fiberglassed my tire well...kept the hook....just f/g over it. i'm not using it at all.....so if your interested....pm me and maybe we can work somthing out.

 

[caine0]

Alright KWIK9550. If I can't find anyway to mount it in my spare tire well with it getting airflow or keeping cool, then I'll try to properly mount it behind the left tire so I won't get wacked in the head lol. Does anybody have any ideas yet, though, on how I could align both the sub and amp in the well .. without the amp overheating?

Thanks for the link quik87, it was helpful in giving me some ideas. The link also made the process look easy, if you take your time. I don't fully understand what you're talking about with building the whole thing with MDF. I thought that if I did this it would have to be entirely square? I wasn't aware that you can bend MDF. Then again I've never worked with it before. I think shipping would be too expensive as well, otherwise I would take that fiberglass enclosure off your hands. (I live in Canada).



OFFTOPIC: Didn't there used to a smiley guy holding the canadian flag in this forum before? All i can find now is the american flag.

 

[caine0]

Getting Closer

Well I'm cleaning everything up and getting it ready for the fiberglass. I have a couple more questions though. Hopefully somebody can help.

I'm attaching a picture with a couple of numbers in it. I was just wondering if covering up number 1 and 2 will effect anything. What are they exactly? Number 1 is a plug that you can pull out, but what is it's purpose. Number 2 is sticky stuff that I don't really want to pull off to find out what's underneath. So what are these.

And number 3 is a bolt that won't come unscrewed. I tried unscrewing it, even tried yanking it out... but it won't come out. Should I just cut the rope that's attached to it and leave the bolt behind? Or is there a trick to get that bastard out?

Also, where should I put MDF? Should I cut a piece to fit into place near number 3 along the back of the car (between both sides of the wheel well)? Or is it near number 1 that people usually put MDF across the well? Any pics you could supply would be awesome... I usually have trouble understanding without pictures.

Thanks.

 

[alanw6]

From the pic, don't worry about 1 and 2. 1 is most likely a drain plug and 2 is probably a piece of deadening material intended to stop a squeek/rattle when the spare is in place.

In mine, cut a board that fits almost over where your 2 is, maybe a little closer to 3. It's easier dealing with the front of tire well than the back due to the contours of the rear panel under the hatch latch. Just cut a "wall" that spans the tire well and follows the curves. Exactly perferct cut is not as crucial, since the fiberglass will fill/seal any imperfectoins.

I'm well aware of what you're about to go through, this has been my nightmare (joking, of course) for last year or so on and off.

I work on it when I can, which is almost never. Just need to finish the trim panel and get it wired up and working. Then the door panels, etc, etc.

Good luck on project!

Alan

 

[caine0]

Damn that is going to look awesome when you're finished with it alanw6! Does the green paint on your subs match the outside body paint?

Thanks for the tips

 

[alanw6]

Damn that is going to look awesome when you're finished with it alanw6! Does the green paint on your subs match the outside body paint?

Thanks for the tips

Hope the tips help you out. let me know if you get stuck on something, I can try to assist you the best I can.

Yes, the paint is the same color as the exterior of my car, deep jewel green.

This is another, earlier shot of all the fiberglass work prior to painting. The trim panel will be wrapped in vinyl that is dyed to match the grey factory plastic panels. It should look good, but man does it take forever to do when you don't have much free time! Thanks for the compliments.

Alan

 

[Josh97GT]

screw the amp to the back of the rear seat.

 

[caine0]

Nah, I don't really like the way that looks

 

[Josh97GT]

saves some space, for people who actually want to be able to continue using their trunk.

 

[caine0]

I plan on putting it either in the well with my sub, or behind the inner plastic wall behind the left fender if I can find a way. So yah, I'm trying to save my trunk space as much as I can, I just don't like the way a single amp would look on the back of one of the passenger seats.