2005 Escape upgrade advice

[jaspras]

Hey everyone,

I've been scouring these forums and others for help deciding on audio upgrades for my Escape, but as a novice, I am a bit overwhelmed with all of the information. I'm hoping some of you might be able to help me with a little bit of guidance.

I currently have stock speakers/head unit. I do not think there is a subwoofer in this model.

I am planning on upgrading the head unit to something with Apple Carplay. Wireless is preferred, but those models are typically much more expensive. I have been fine with bluetooth for audio in other cars (for reference, overall I think the wife's '17 Tacoma TRD Offroad has a decent system for my needs), but I've also read that you may need to plug you phone/audio player directly in order to get the best sound quality. I'm looking at a few options, but I'm open to suggestions. I would like to stay under $500.

The bigger issue I'm having is in trying to decide which speakers and other upgrades to get. The folks as Crutchfield recommend just upgrading the stock speakers and seeing how I like the sound. This sounds like a good idea, but I'm worried about the fact that the double DIN units can't be removed later without removing the entire dash, and that this would make any future upgrades more difficult. Should I be planning a full out upgrade including an amp/woofer? Can I/would it be a good idea to just upgrade the speakers but run some additional wiring for future upgrades? I'm a bit lost.

I've listened to some sound comparisons and think I like the JBL Club 8622F. Crutchfield recommended Polk Audio DB 572 which sound good, but they leave me wanting a bit on the lower end (maybe this could be taken care of with a full upgrade including a subwoofer?). I'm hoping to pay around $100 or less per pair but am willing to raise this a bit for a quality set.

This is kind of all over the place, so if you have any other specific questions let me know.

Thanks so much!

[vpasla1]

With regards to changing the stock speakers, you wouldn't need to pull the dash. You would only have to pull each door panel.

But it seems to me that you want some connectivity with your phone, so I don't think you'd be happy no matter how good it would sound by only upgrading the speakers.

[jimmyrap]

It seems like your biggest worry is not being able to access the stereo at a later date if you want to change something later. As already stated, you should not have to access the stereo again once it has been installed. If it will make you feel better, change the stereo but do not pop it all the way into the dash. I upgraded my 2007 a couple of years ago. I was fearful of installing the stereo and then having something go wrong. I rode around for about six weeks with the stereo about a half inch from being all the way installed. The stereo fit tight and did not rattle around, but it was not popped all the way in place either. If you do this you can test the system for a while to see if it does what you need it to do and still have the ability to easily pull the stereo back out.

[Mikemike]

2005 are easy to change the head units in simple as popping the trim off and a couple screws. As for $500 that's gonna be a tough one. Especially wanting double din with bluetooth and whatever. Stock speakers arent to bad and would handle the power from a decent head unit as long as you kept your levels at a normal setting. My advice spend 200 to 300 on the head unit and then pick up a decent set of coaxial speakers. Pioneer work good off just the head unit.