2005-09 Ford Mustang Coupe
2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009
Overview
In 1964, the Ford Motor Company was in the midst of a head- to-head competition with Pontiac and Chevy to see who would divvy up the emerging youth market. Previously the marque’s performance offerings had come from larger vehicles like the Galaxie and Thunderbird, or the smaller Falcon coupe, but Ford’s competitors were winning the “style” battle for younger buyers. Ford needed to do something potentially risky to get into the game. What they came up with was the Mustang.
 2006 Ford Mustang coupe (Crutchfield Research Photo) |
Between the car’s roll-out at middle of 1964 and the early 2000’s, the Mustang’s size and styling went from small to big to bigger, and in the main became staid and generally un-compelling. But in 2005, Ford finally saw the writing on the ‘sporty’ wall again, and committed itself to a complete Mustang styling and performance re-do, that clearly respected the car’s original ‘64-'65 sports lifestyle focus. The Mustang is once again at the front of the American muscle-car herd.
Factory audio system
The 2005-09 Mustang coupe features a stereo located at the front of the car’s center console. The factory-installed AM/FM/CD receiver lives in a double-bay assembly, and Ford offered three options for audio systems in this version of the Mustang:
- 4-speaker system: Features 6"x8" speakers in the front doors and on the rear deck, powered by a AM/FM/CD receiver.
- Shaker 500 system: Adds two 8" dual voice coil woofers located at the mid-line of each door, powered by two amplifiers located in the driver's kick panel.
- Shaker 1000 system: Adds two 10" dual voice coil subs in an enclosure in the trunk, powered by four amplifiers located behind the enclosure, each powering a voice coil.
 Stereo in the Shaker systems (Crutchfield Research Photo) |
Replacing your factory radio
 Factory stereo removed (Crutchfield Research Photo) |
4-speaker system: The factory radio is fully enclosed by the console and several trim panels. Installing a new car stereo is fairly straight-forward, but it'll take a little time and effort.
You’ll need a dash kit to install a DIN (2" tall) or double-DIN (4" tall) radio. It’s possible to hard wire a new stereo to the factory wiring but getting a wiring harness will keep you from having to cut into the factory wires. You'll also need an antenna adapter that allows you to connect the Ford antenna lead to your new receiver. (Crutchfield includes the dash kit, harness, and antenna adapter needed for this installation free with most orders, along with our step-by-step instructions for your Mustang.)
To begin the radio replacement process, open the center console and remove two Phillips screws at the back of the unit. Then, using the pry tool, remove the gearshift trim, followed by the console trim. Next, pry away the side trim panels located on either side of the accessory stack, followed by removal of the six 7mm screws securing the receiver/climate control trim panel. Next, remove the four 7mm screws securing the receiver to the accessory bay. Now pull out the stereo and disconnect the Ford radio from the factory plug. The process takes a little time, but it's not complicated.
Installation Note: The mounting kit that trims out the new radio in the Mustang dash includes a pocket that protrudes a little. As a result, you can't install a car stereo with a fold-down face in this Mustang.
Shaker 500 and Shaker 1000 systems: You'll go through the same procedure to remove the radio in the Shaker systems, with one change. Unless you plan on gutting the entire system, you'll need a special adapter in order to connect your new car stereo into the Ford amps that run the woofers in the doors (and in the trunk with the Shaker 1000 system). You'll want to pick a new receiver that offers subwoofer RCA preamp outputs, because this special adapter has RCA plugs that connect to the preamp outs. This allows you to adjust the factory subs with the sub control on your new stereo.
Special Technical Note: If you experience a transient pop during turn-on/turn-off after installing a replacement receiver, it may be due to the factory remote lead employing 5 volts (instead of the normal 12 volts). You can eliminate this pop by installing a 12V-to-5V interface on the remote lead. The special adapter for this installation recommended by Crutchfield will also take care of this voltage conversion.
Tools needed: Panel tool, Phillips head screwdriver, 7mm socket wrench and extension
Steering wheel audio controls
The PAC SWI-RC adapter will let you continue using your steering wheel controls with a new stereo. And the PAC integration adapter that you need to install a new car stereo (mentioned above) is prewired to accept the SWI-RC steering wheel control adapter, so you can plug it right in, making installation quite a bit easier.
Replacing your speaker system
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4-speaker system
Front doors: You can install aftermarket 6"x8" speakers in the front doors, and you also have the option of putting 5-1/4" speakers in there with the help of mounting brackets. Your choices are restricted slightly by the factory grilles. Our vehicle selector will filter out the speakers that don't fit, so you can see your available options. Wiring harnesses are available to connect the new speakers to your factory wiring. (Crutchfield includes speaker harnesses and mounting brackets free with every speaker order).
 Rear deck speaker (Crutchfield Research Photo) |
Again, the process of replacing your speakers is straightforward, but somewhat time consuming. You'll have to remove the front-window sail panel, then disconnect the electric door controls. Next, remove the center door-latch trim, pry away the internal arm-rest screw panel, and remove the two T30 Torx screws. Pry up the power option panel, and remove all of the 7mm Phillips screws at the bottom and side of the door panel. Finally, go back to the options panel, unclip the door latch cable, disconnect the options panel, and lift the door panel away from the entire assembly. Once the factory speaker is accessible, remove all of the T20 Torx screws that secure the speaker, and disconnect the internal wiring harness.
Rear deck (2005-2006 models): 6"x8" speakers will drop right into the rear deck openings, and wiring harnesses are available for this location. You also have the option of installing 5-1/4" speakers in mounting brackets. There's plenty of room back here, so just about any speakers will fit. To replace the factory speakers, begin by prying the grilles up from the rear deck. Once you have the screens off, remove all of the Torx screws that secure the speakers, and lift each unit from its respective bracket. Disconnect the speakers from the internal wire harness, and discard the factory units.
Rear deck (2007-2009 models): In these later models, the rear speakers require a little more work to remove. The grilles are integrated into the rear deck, so you have to remove the deck material to get to the speakers. This involves removing the trim panels beside and above the back seat. Once again, it's not that hard, especially with Crutchfield's instructions, but it will take some time.
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Shaker 500 system and Shaker 1000 system
Your options for replacing speakers are the same as with the non-Shaker system. The front door and rear deck speakers in the Shaker systems are still powered by the factory radio. Harnesses are available for both locations, as well as brackets for 5-1/4" speakers if that's your preference.
Tools needed: Phillips screwdriver; small flat blade screwdriver; panel tool; socket driver with 7mm, 8mm, and 14mm sockets; T20 and T30 Torx drivers; drill and 1/8" bit
Bass options for your Mustang
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If you have a Shaker system, you can replace the factory woofers in the doors, or in the Shaker 1000 system's trunk enclosure. But there are a few issues here: 1) the factory amps for the door subwoofers are designed to drive low-impedance subs, so you'll get reduced output if you replace the factory subs but not the amps; and 2) you'll have to drill new screw holes for any sub, as well as enlarge the factory cutout for some large frame subs. You'll also want to use Dynamat on the doors to keep high-performance subs from rattling.
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To make a long story short, we recommend checking out some of the subwoofer enclosures made specifically for the 2005-09 Mustang. You'll get great performance from any of these options, without the headache of trying to guess which subs are going to work in the factory enclosures.
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JL Audio Stealthbox: This Stealthbox enclosure houses a 13" sub, handles up to 750 watts, and installs in the passenger side rear corner of the car’s trunk. |
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MTX ThunderForm: This option comes in two versions and can be installed in the passenger's side of the trunk:
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More options
Security systems
Adding an alarm system to the Mustang is a straight-forward process, but unless you're familiar complex installations, it's best to have an alarm installed by a professional. If you want to add remote start capability, then you'll need a transponder bypass. We suggest the FlashLogic FLCAN because of the extensive firmware mapping FlashLogic has done with the Ford transponder system.
Digital signal processor
If you want to upgrade your stereo, but don't want to modify your Mustang, Helix has a great solution. You can use the Helix PP50DSP digital sound processor to make a dramatic improvement in the sound of the base factory system. It works like this: you buy the processor, along with a vehicle-specific cable and a plug-in powered sub. The cable plugs into your factory radio's plug, connecting the processor/amp to your factory speakers. Next, go to Helix's site, download your vehicle’s audio parameters onto a microSD card, then load that info into the amp/processor. The PP50DSP is now ready to use equalization and time alignment to make your factory speakers sound great. Add in the bass from the optional Helix sub, and you've got a total system upgrade with minimal work.
iPod® adapters
If you're keeping your Ford radio, you'll have some options for connecting an iPod. You'll have to remove your radio to install any of these adapters because they connect to the back of the radio.
- If you don't have the factory satellite radio option in your Mustang, then you can use this USA Spec adapter to connect an iPod to your radio.
- If your Mustang does have factory satellite radio, you can use this iPod adapter instead and keep the satellite radio tuner.
Auxiliary input
If you have another device you'd like to connect to your Ford radio, you can use this auxiliary input adapter. If you have the factory satellite radio tuner, it won't work once this adapter's hooked up.
Good, better, best
Good: Ford speakers are relatively high quality, so replacing your car stereo first might be the best course of action. Almost any car stereo will fit in that opening, but there's no denying that a big touchscreen receiver looks great in the Mustang's dash.
Better: Next, you should replace the Ford speakers. If you're keeping your Ford radio, you'll want to pick some efficient speakers with superior tweeters. The speakers sit pretty high up in the Mustang's door, so you'll get really good high-end details from a nice set of speakers.
Best: If you're into big bass, add a sub enclosure made for the Mustang with some serious power, then add an amplifier to power all the door speakers.
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