For those of you who can't read the diagram and have a just a little *****, here's a dummy proof way to hard-wire a new head unit.

Factory Harness color ------> Aftermarket color
Tan ------> White (Left Front +)
Gray ------> White w/ Black Stripe (Left Front -)
Lt. Green ------> Gray (Right Front +)
Dk. Green ------> Gray w/ Black Stripe (Right Front -)
Brown ------> Green (Left Rear +)
Yellow ------> Green w/ Black Stripe (Left Rear -)
Dk. Blue ------> Purple (Right Rear +)
Lt. Blue ------> Purple w/ Black Stripe (Right Rear -)
Black (Thick) ------> Black (Ground)
Red (Thick) ------> Yellow (12V Const. Power)
Fuse Box (Use Sunroof or Wipers) ------> Red (Switced Power)

Again, as long as you dont mind cutting off the factory plug and splicing some wire, there's $25 back in your pocket.

 

umm why would u cutt of the fsctory harness what u gonna do if u need to renistall the factory headunit

 

keep the factory harness and re attach. according to the local chevy dealership, "black electrical tape" is considered "proper wire insulation" under warranty. btw, found this out through electrical problems 2 days after taking delivery on the car when everything was all stock. problem was caused by "improper wiring insulation." so being the smartass that i am, asked what they and chevy usa considered "proper." service manager's reply was "black electrical tape."

 

Yeah that works well, thats all I did... saved me $25 and I dont have to play with pins. If your running an aftermarket deck and RCA's then you just have to steal power, ground, switched power and the lan cable (green wire) if you have steering wheel controls.

 

I am considering putting in a different radio/cd player and the fairly reputable place that does the install wants to charge $100 for the harness!!!! Whats up with that? That cant be accurate can it? I dont have XM or Onstar. The unit for the steering controls is another $89 as well. Is all this necessary? I dont really know much about the installing and have no interest in doing it myself.

 

Get the Metra 70-2301...or any harness built for the 04 malibu should do, the 2301 is metras harness for the malibu....it will work fine and costs $25

 

cheap asses... spend the money so you dont have the hard time later on...

 

That's what I'm saying......

Sometimes you can get the place you're buying the deck from to throw in the harness too.......one reason I try to buy head units from Crutchfield (if they have what I'm buying); they give you the dash kit, wiring harness, and antenna adapter with purchase of the head unit.

 

lol i dont mind buying a harness i would actuall prefer it but damn i was told 125 for the harness alone

 

Amen Brother, oh and Id be pissed as hell to buy your car when you got rid of it with a black electrical tape job in the back. Oh, id burn someone!!

 

is it a perfect fit or do you have to repin it at all? did you have to tap for power? also where did you get it?