Aftermarket Radio Install Using a Factory Radio Bezel-'68 Charger

[challenger70]

I would like to put an aftermarket DIN size radio in my charger in the stock radio location.  I notice the factory bezels have an inset to them that may make it hard for the aftermarket radio to sit level and flush.  It seems even the radio delete panel has this concave in the middle.  Has anyone done a nice clean install and which bezel did you start with (ie. am, 8 track, delete)? Pics appreciated.

[WHITE AND RED 69]

On mine I went with a radio delete bezel. With the other radio bezels some of the original silver letters would have shown past the new radios surrounding bezel. There is still a little gap because of the concave bezel but it is barely noticeable once installed.

Only thing extra thing I added was a small brace off the existing radio bracket in the back to help support the radio.  

I'll post some other pics of it installed. These were the only ones I had on my phone.   

[challenger70]

That looks pretty good, did you angle it with the indent or flat with the face?  I wonder if a bigger trim piece around the din mount that covered the entire indent would look better.  I wish they made a completely flat delete plate, that would be perfect.

[Derwud]

Just playing around with some beat up parts.

[WHITE AND RED 69]

That looks pretty good, did you angle it with the indent or flat with the face?  I wonder if a bigger trim piece around the din mount that covered the entire indent would look better.  I wish they made a completely flat delete plate, that would be perfect.

It has a bit of an angle to it. Yeah it'd be nice if someone made decent a flat plate. All the flat aftermarket ones don't match the other bezels at all.

[darbgnik]

That looks pretty good, did you angle it with the indent or flat with the face?  I wonder if a bigger trim piece around the din mount that covered the entire indent would look better.  I wish they made a completely flat delete plate, that would be perfect.

It has a bit of an angle to it. Yeah it'd be nice if someone made decent a flat plate. All the flat aftermarket ones don't match the other bezels at all.

IIRC, I used a heat gun to flatten mine out a bit first........ the center bend I'm talking about.

[challenger70]

That looks pretty good, did you angle it with the indent or flat with the face?  I wonder if a bigger trim piece around the din mount that covered the entire indent would look better.  I wish they made a completely flat delete plate, that would be perfect.

It has a bit of an angle to it. Yeah it'd be nice if someone made decent a flat plate. All the flat aftermarket ones don't match the other bezels at all.

IIRC, I used a heat gun to flatten mine out a bit first........ the center bend I'm talking about.

Do you have a done/installed picture of this?  I am curious because I think you would have extra material making it hard to flatten.

[darbgnik]

Sorry, I don't. My car won't be home for at least another month or more I'd guess.

But I know what you're saying, if you straighten the "V" shape of the radio bezel, you think it should get longer, but it didn't significantly. I think when I get it back I will add the reinforcement around the stereo cage from behind as was already mentioned in this thread. In all honesty, I didn't put too much effort into this bezel, as it was already hacked up by the previous owner.

IIRC though, even though the bend in the middle was straightened, the crease that goes left to right(where the top line of the stereo ends up being) was still inside the cut out area, leaving the top of the new stereo not as flush as it could be. So if you look from the side, there is a gap that opens up towards the top.

[WombatLord12]

I recently installed a DIN radio using a slightly different method.  I welded sheet metal ears to the DIN sleeve so I could bolt the DIN sleeve directly to the dashboard sheet metal, same as a factory radio.  Locating the ears an inch back from the front of the sleeve turned out to be correct to have the DIN radio's trim piece flush with the crease of the radio bezel, leaving a fairly minimal gap at the sides. 

I elongated the holes in the ears so I could tailor the height of the installation to suit the radio bezel.  This also let me slide the radio up and down a tad along the curve of the dash structure to adjust the angle at which it sits; on my first mock up the radio sat wrong, ejecting CDs into the heater controls.  A no-CDs, USB stick head unit would avoid this challenge.   

Not wanting to cut up my original radio bezel I sourced a 1970 style bezel from YearOne; it cost less than a radio delete bezel and didn't have the white lettering, although I did have to add a 4th screw hole.  As the picture shows my cutting technique could use some improvement; however, the trim surround for the new radio covered up my wandering line.  I painted the DIN sleeve with black crinkle paint to make it less visible on the sides where the gap between the radio bezel and the new radio's trim surround is biggest.

The end product came out fairly sanitary although a flat Rallye dash radio bezel with a DIN cutout in it would be an excellent part to have.  I've seen them online for Roadrunners but not Chargers, and the Roadrunner radio bezel is too narrow side-to-side to work on a Charger (ask me how I know).