How to Install the Blue Wire in an Aftermarket Stereo in a 2002 Ford Focus

Aftermarket stereos are equipped with wiring harnesses that allow you to integrate the receiver into the rest of the car's audio system. These will include wires for connecting speakers as well as power and other wires. Aftermarket receivers also have a blue wire that is used to turn on optional equipment, such as aftermarket amplifiers. The installation of this blue wire is the same for all vehicles with an aftermarket stereo.

Things You'll Need

• Wire strippers
• 16-gauge insulated copper wire
• Wire cutters
• Electrical tape
• Phillips head screwdriver

Instructions

1. Remove 1/2-inch of insulation from the end of the blue wire on the aftermarket receiver's wiring harness with a set of wire strippers.

2. Cut a length of 16-gauge insulated copper wire with a set of wire cutters long enough to run from the aftermarket receiver's installation point in your Focus to the optional device you'll be switching on -- this is usually an aftermarket amplifier mounted in the trunk. Remove 1/2-inch of insulation from each end of the wire.

3. Twist the bare end of the receiver's blue wire and one end of the 16-gauge wire together and wrap the joint with electrical tape.

4. Loosen the screw terminal marked "REM" on your amplifier with a Phillips head screwdriver. Slide the end of the 16-gauge wire under the screw terminal and tighten it with the screwdriver to hold it in place.

References

• "Car Stereo Cookbook"; Mark Rumreich; 2005