Planning some upgrades for a new to me 2003 Eddie Bauer...am I missing anything?

[Aspen03]

This is my first substantial post here so bear with me. I just purchased a 2003 Expedition Eddie Bauer with the 2v 5.4. It has high miles at 206k but runs amazing, has no leaks and everything works. Rusted rockers are the only bad thing about this one. We had looked at some 2010-2013 models but couldn't find the right fit for us and on the way home stopped and were surprised at what we found and decided to take it home, sans a monthly payment and interest!

Anyway...its an '03 so its lacking a bit in the convenience, tech, and audio department. We have a few kids and well, it's pretty boring in this thing for them so I need to change that. Has anyone on here added extra electrical goodies? I browsed a bit before registering here and didnt see anything similar to my plans.

I'm looking to add the following:

• Remote Start - Viper DS4+ w/ SmartStart
• New HU with Android Auto/CarPlay
• Front and Rear Cameras
• Door speakers, possibly components up front (where did you place tweeters?)
  
• 4 channel amp (likely Alpine PowerPak or AudioControl ACM-4.300)
• Wireless charging under HVAC in cubby. Non smokers and no ash tray up there anyway

Mods I plan are somewhat custom to our needs but would likely be useful to a potential future owner as well.

• 2 extra 12V outlets at the 3rd row seating area (1 each side), fused at 30A for versatility.
• Flush mount USB ports in the trays that remove in the back over the wheels to handle tablet charging
• LED reading lights flush mounted in the side of the qtr trim to shine at lap level...we still have some real books and they would be less distracting while driving
• 400W Pure Sine Inverter. Need to figure out placement/mounting

For the power in the rear I plan to run an amp power install kit which will go into a distribution block to split into 2 power feeds. One will go to inverter and the other will go to a 6 circuit ATC fuse block like you'd see in marine applications. Each 12V would have it's own circuit and have access to the full 30A though it would be very unlikely to ever have something that demanding. USB charging source has yet TBD but will also have dedicated circuit to each side of the vehicle.

The wireless charging will likely come from disassembly of an existing Qi device with multiple coils. Power will be had at the switched 12v but I'll put a female pigtail inside the center console to hide all wiring. It just so happens the area is the precise size of my Note 9 with a defender so I'm convinced it was meant to happen.

I plan to retain the factory sub, its adequate for our needs and since we were in the market for an EL which wasnt available this far back space is at a premium already.

As far as controlling all of this I'm unsure as to whether to leave the receptacles in the back hot at all times or to install a green illuminated 4 switch bank where the ash tray would have been. Figured the green follows the rest of the theme of the vehicle and fords lighting choice as well. I'm torn on whether going to the effort of those switches however as I planned to keep all of the wiring for those extras in the back for ease of modification or removal if necessary.

Is there anything I might be missing to bring this up to 2019 standards? I'm doing the majority of this myself as I have experience in the 12v industry and have access to some great equipment deals. We aren't after any overhead video system or adding extra speakers. As nice as it would be I plan to own this for 2 years max and move into a 2015+ EL Limited and dont want the extra work.

 

[Aspen03]

Alright so we got to some of this work today. I started with the Pioneer AVH-W4500NEX head unit, paired up with the iDatalink Maestro SW steering wheel interface to add dual functionality to existing buttons. I now have the ability to answer and end calls, trigger google/siri, and quickly mute audio in addition to the original functions. The radio has customizable HPF/LPF crossover points and a 6-24dbi slope for front, rear, and sub channels.

Speakers were upgraded to JBL GX8628 all around and are being driven at 45w RMS by an Alpine PowerPak KTP-445U that is nicely concealed beneath the aftermarket radio inside the dash. Having control of the signal feeding the speakers and the factory sub has turned this into an entirely different animal I had to adjust source input level on android auto down quite a bit to retain a similar volume range to factory and not be difficult to get used to for alternate drivers or the kids. Before adjusting it a volume increment of 1 was equivalent to about 5 clicks before and it scaled up very fast.

An Echomaster CAM-TGL backup camera with dynamic guidelines was added and mounted to the license plate hardware. This allowed easiest adjustment/positioning as well as being low enough to not interfere w the rear glass release button. It can also be manually triggered at anytime from a hard key on the radio if you want visibility if you're sitting somewhere.

To aid in connectivity I used a 2015+ F150 "knockout" replacement from Axxess, the AX-FDUSBAUX that allowed a flush mount installation with a panel of 2 USB ports that are sync/android auto/carplay compliant, HDMI, and AUX. We removed the plastic inner of the center console and cut a hole to mount, adjacent to where a factory 12v port would have been. Why there is an empty hole is beyond me... I'll add one later...or a light. Might be a better option. This location allows cables to feed out the front by the latch on the lid and keep clutter to a minimum and when not in use just toss the cables in there.

I didn't really get any in progress pics for wiring because there will be variation from some years, radio/amp you choose, brand of harness, etc. If there is something someone is curious about it takes me about 5min to remove the dash bezel and I can snap whatever is necessary. Speaker install is pretty straightforward so I didn't figure it necessary.


Look of radio while off. I wanted to keep a relatively stock appearance but not sacrifice any usability. I have the mounting kit angled just a couple of degrees towards the driver position to help with visibility and reduce glare from side windows.

I haven't had a chance to clean up from install so there's quite a few fingerprints and dirt on everything. Hopping in the car you'd almost never know anything was going on and it could easily pass for a factory setup which was my goal.

Radio input menu

Default Radio view

Backup cam view, quite clear. Excuse the mess...trash day isn't here yet. The field of view is pretty wide. The camera is about a car length from the garage at this point.

Ford "knockout" connections panel. Assuming that empty hole from factory was for a 12V outlet. I may use it to wire up a Raspberry Pi 4 to run RetroPi.

Mic for voice input/calls

Amplifier is mounted along the dash frame under radio, just below where the HVAC controller sits (it wasn't installed yet, forgot to get a pic at the time)

Cup holder assembly removed, wiring for the connections panel in console shown

Center console with interior removed

Inside view of the 2nd row controls if anyone needs it for reference.

Backup camera centered at the top of plate

 

[ExplorerTom]

Way too much reading with no pics to go with.

Can’t wait to see pics.

 

[Aspen03]

updated post with pics.

I did go a little in depth with what was in there but it helps eliminate questions and gives reasoning for why a particular piece was chosen, it's hard to find real world examples with our year vehicles as people dont seem to want to invest but rather just buy a new car w all the goodies. I put the models in to so you can easily search the pieces as in my experience third party links change to much and 6 months from now they'd all be dead.

It may look intimidating but everything done here is 100% removable and about as close to plug n play as you can get. The amp is wired into the aftermarket harness speaker outputs and power since it's so efficient and utilizes the factory radio accessory wire and ground so it simply unplugs if I ever want the factory radio back or to move the equipment. No factory wiring was cut/interrupted aside from the speakers because I intend to leave them forever and are compatible w the factory radio and would still sound better than stock. The JBL being 2.3ohm coils and having a 92db sensitivity would be noticeably more clear even at stock power levels. The adapter harnesses for speakers are notorious for either being wired wrong, coming loose, or both. If I ever had to reinstall I could simply solder the original connectors on. That's purely a personal decision and up to you how you would install. I dont like taking door panels off to re seat a connector so the goal was to make it not possible to come off by ordinary means.

The only truly permanent modification was a small hole in the plastic trim on the lift gate for wire to go to the camera. Easily concealable if I were to take it out or change the setup back there. The hole is vertical and sealed with 3m silicone so no water intrusion to worry about. I did notice o the back of that trim its bare plastic and has ribbed off quite a bit of paint behind it. The edges were treated to some foam tape to form a gasket and cushion it to stop further wear. Ford already has enough issues w the paint back there...

 

[SPE777]

Could use the pics, please. Thanks

 

[Aspen03]

Pics were there, odd, there are just X's in place now. I don't have them on my phone anymore. They're probably backed up on a drive but dont have the time to dig it all out atm.

 

[Donald Bell]

Check out my media. I have everything on mine including remote start, double din sony touch screen radio with wireless hook up for my phone to talk and do navigation, my mic is mounted just above the rearview mirror. I also have a back up cam installed on mine that's connected to the radio. Radio is connected to factory tv so whatever is playing on either or will play on the other essentially giving me 2 tvs. It's been lifted 2.5 inches in the front and has 2.5 inch spacers all the way round w/blacked out 2015 take [off wheels. A few other mods have been done. Let me know if you need anything