If your
subwoofer is blown and you want to keep the JBL systems
stock....
The 90 Super Coupe JBL uses a 6 to 6.5 inch round sub
woofer speaker that is rated at 6 ohms 75 watts. It fits
in the rear enclosure, E9SZ-18C804-AK which is no longer
serviced. I am told that a JL 6WO 4 ohm speaker will work
if you don't crank it up too much.
I found a perfect and easy replacement sub woofer at
Radio Shack. It's part number 400-1033 and it cost me
$21.54 with tax. It is a perfect fit where it mounts as
the Ford unit and is rated at 8 ohms. The Ford unit
measures 5 ohms. My stereo tech told me as long as I
didn't go BELOW the 4 ohm rating the amp and speaker
would work fine. I replaced the speaker in the JBL
enclosure and was playing with full bass in just a couple
of hours. I played it at high volume and had no rattles
and the amp didn't even get warm.
The enclosure is fairly easy to remove. Gently pull and
remove the JBL plastic cover from the end of the
enclosure that faces you. It is held in place with velcro
strips. Disconnect the plugs on the right side of the amp
then disconnect the plug from the amp on the left. Pull
gently and remove the female connector of the amp from
the metal brace arm so it hangs free. Remove the four
locknuts that hold the amp in place and remove the amp
from the trunk. This will give you the swing space for a
long socket and ratchet for the locknuts that hold the
enclosure in place and the amp has to be removed anyway.
Remove the four locknuts from the four cormers of the
enclosure and remove the enclosure from the car.
Place the enclosure on a work table with the speaker
opening down. With the amp removed, you now have access
to the four small 3/16 headed screws that hold the metal
frame to the enclosure. Remove the frame from the
enclosure and you will have access to all of the larger
screws that hold the halves of the enclosure together.
Remove those screws and gently pry around the edge until
the enclosure halves begin to separate. You will see that
the velcro piece on one end will act as a hinge. Just
open the enclosure and you will see the speaker and the
wiring for it and the fiberglas fill insert. Remove the
fiberglas insert and make note of which direction the
wires are positioned. Remove the four small screws
holding the speaker in place, remove the speaker from the
enclosure, and place the speaker face down on your work
area. You will notice the speaker wires are soldered to
the speaker. Cut the wires no more than 1 inch back and
make note which wire goes where with the speaker facing
down. I know sometimes it matters. Now place the new
speaker on the table face down with the contacts toward
you.
On the wiring harness you cut from the original speaker,
strip the ends of the wires and crimp a female spade
terminal on each end. I used a pair of pliers to squeeze
the terminal ends to make them fit tight onto the new
speaker. Connect the terminals to the new speaker with
the wires in the same order as the old speaker. I then
added some superglue gel to keep them in place. Now just
install the new speaker with the wires in the same
direction as the old speaker. The wires have to exit the
enclosure and have enough reach to plug into the amp
later. You will see a small cutout where the wires exit
the enclosure on the side and where the halves go
together. Reinstall the fiberglas insert and position the
wiring harness where it should be at the cutout. The
enclosure is sealed at the factory and the edges need to
have a weatherstrip adhesive or other sealing material
placed along the edge where the halves go together. Now
swing the upper half of the enclosure up and over and
bring the two halves of the enclosure together. Make sure
the wiring harness is where it should be and is not
crimped where the halves go together. Reinstall the
enclosure screws and then reinstall the enclosure frame.
Reinstall the enclosure in the trunk, reinstall the amp,
reconnect the three plugs and reinstall the main
connector clip to the enclosure frame rail. Place the JBL
cover plate over the end of the enclosure at the velcro
strips and push the cover into place and you're done.
I am very pleased with the way the Radio Shack speaker is
performing. The system sounds great with no rattles and I
can play as loud as I want without any rattles,
vibrations, or wear on the amp. The amp doesn't even get
warm at full volume. This was my solution. I hope you
find it helpful. L.M.
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