GM Black Tie Radio Swap

[SilverStoneGP2006]

Hello World, Not exactly a newb, I was a member on this site from 03-08 as "95 BLKDOUT DropTop". VERY nice ppl might I add. But anyways I'm back and after several other vehicles of choice, I find myself behind the wheel of my second W-Body vehicle. As anyone that was a member on the site since 03 may remember, my convertible cutlass was completely custom as far as the stereo went and I do miss her (May she rest in peace). I haven't done a custom stereo in any of my vehicles since then and I really don't want my DD to be a custom sound machine. I have 2 third gen camaros for that. My problem is two fold; 1. I have a 2006 GP base with the factory single CD AM/FM radio (Sux BTW). It has no AUX jack or MP3 compatibility. Now I also have a 2009 Malibu with the GM Black Tie Radio and I absolutely love it (Its great to be factory). I don't know what year they introduced the Black Tie radio but I know the later Pontiac models do have them with the red back light but my GP just has the old model radio like the 04ish Grand Am. It has OnStar and the seat belt chime that goes through the LF speaker but the old head unit. My question is can I order a Black Tie radio like the one in the G5 or Solstice (Not G6, they have the DIC in the radio) and swap my old unit with the black tie unit? they are both double din but Im not sure if the harnesses are compatible, any ideas??

[SilverStoneGP2006]

Also, does anyone know if there was ever a Monsoon system with the Aux jack?

[jojeeka]

I kind of lost track of exactly which radio you want to replace with a G5 or Solstice radio (the GP or the Malibu or both and not sure if you meant you loved the Malibu or the radio in the Malibu) so hard for me to answer. One way to answer your questions though is ebay. If you search for a radio you like (e.g. search for: 1997 solstice radio) some times (like if it's a junk yard selling) they will give you a compatibility list. You can also search for a radio adapter or radio interface for the car you want to replace the radio on and the adapter compatibility will be displayed (e.g. search for: 2009 malibu radio harness or 2009 malibu radio interface) and you can see what other vehicles share the same connectors as your car. From there you might be able to figure out what other radios you can swap.

 

I did an ebay search to find that the solstice had a monsoon radio with aux. I saw by searching for "monsoon solstice" and looked at the one result and saw in the pic there is clearly an aux input in the bottom right corner. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/271033480366

 

It may take a little research (also you could go to PAC audio or metraonline.com and look for radio compatibility) unless someone on here knows off hand and can tell you, of course.

[jman093]

I kind of lost track of exactly which radio you want to replace with a G5 or Solstice radio (the GP or the Malibu or both and not sure if you meant you loved the Malibu or the radio in the Malibu) so hard for me to answer. One way to answer your questions though is ebay. If you search for a radio you like (e.g. search for: 1997 solstice radio) some times (like if it's a junk yard selling) they will give you a compatibility list. You can also search for a radio adapter or radio interface for the car you want to replace the radio on and the adapter compatibility will be displayed (e.g. search for: 2009 malibu radio harness or 2009 malibu radio interface) and you can see what other vehicles share the same connectors as your car. From there you might be able to figure out what other radios you can swap.

 

I did an ebay search to find that the solstice had a monsoon radio with aux. I saw by searching for "monsoon solstice" and looked at the one result and saw in the pic there is clearly an aux input in the bottom right corner. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/271033480366

 

It may take a little research (also you could go to PAC audio or metraonline.com and look for radio compatibility) unless someone on here knows off hand and can tell you, of course.

 

Those sites are only going to tell if the particular radio is the exact one for that application, not if it is swappable.

 

OP, My guess is that the radios would swap fine and have the same connectors, as they are the same generation of radios use the same GMLAN bus as 04-08 GP's, but I am in no way positive that they'll swap.

[Drummer]

Hello World, Not exactly a newb, I was a member on this site from 03-08 as "95 BLKDOUT DropTop". VERY nice ppl might I add. But anyways I'm back and after several other vehicles of choice, I find myself behind the wheel of my second W-Body vehicle. As anyone that was a member on the site since 03 may remember, my convertible cutlass was completely custom as far as the stereo went and I do miss her (May she rest in peace). I haven't done a custom stereo in any of my vehicles since then and I really don't want my DD to be a custom sound machine. I have 2 third gen camaros for that. My problem is two fold; 1. I have a 2006 GP base with the factory single CD AM/FM radio (Sux BTW). It has no AUX jack or MP3 compatibility. Now I also have a 2009 Malibu with the GM Black Tie Radio and I absolutely love it (Its great to be factory). I don't know what year they introduced the Black Tie radio but I know the later Pontiac models do have them with the red back light but my GP just has the old model radio like the 04ish Grand Am. It has OnStar and the seat belt chime that goes through the LF speaker but the old head unit. My question is can I order a Black Tie radio like the one in the G5 or Solstice (Not G6, they have the DIC in the radio) and swap my old unit with the black tie unit? they are both double din but Im not sure if the harnesses are compatible, any ideas??

 

Yes actually I do remember your cutlass and stereo, I remember buying your pioneer premier headunit for 77 bucks and sending you the money back in may of 08, but never actually receiving the headunit. Just wondering if you,ve forgot about it cause I havent. If you have any decency could you please refund me my money?

[jojeeka]

Those sites are only going to tell if the particular radio is the exact one for that application, not if it is swappable.

 

Sorry for the misinformation. I just thought if you went to metraonline and looked up the radio interface number for a particular vehicle and then searched ebay for that part number then you'd find some sellers with compatability list of vehicles with the same BUS and connectors. But I must have been mistaken. I can't find any ebay listings with compatibility info. Won't happen again.

[Senor PuffPuff]

You can always MAKE the harnesses compatible if you're willing to take the time to get out a multimeter and some tape and figure out what wire does what... But 90% of the time, the two HU's will have the same color wires, all doing the same thing. Still, it would be much safer to use the multimeter and then you know for sure.

 

I've swapped HU's in several older cars, but the new security systems are a bitch. That would really be the biggest issue.