what radios will work with the GTA SWC? any?

If not what other factory decks would plug direct aborting the steering wheel controls?

 

There might have been an adapter made somewhere/sometime to allow the SWC to work with other radios, but I have never seen it. AFAIK there is no other GM head-unit that is compatible with the GTA Steering Wheel Control.

Pretty much any head-unit from about 82-96 will fit in the hole and play music. There are some exceptions like a CRT screen from a Riatta, a Sumerset radio etc,..... The GTA specific radio is the 'limiting factor' because The GTA SWC radio will only activate when plugged into the GTA and unlocked with the Steering Wheel 'remote' control pad. The mid eighties Pontiac 6000 used the same set-up, at least I've heard it was the same set-up. ( I've never owned a 6000 ! ) Just getting the GTA radio to "unlock" is the big problem most guys deal with.

I've got a couple Bonneville radios that look like the GTA SWC radio, but plug-in and are fully functional in any GM of the same era. However; even though it looks like the GTA radio, they are NOT compatible with the factory GTA SWC. These are also DELCO-LOC radios,....... but I figured out how to "hack" a few of them.



P.S. Because the Pontiac instrument panel and console back-lighting are colored red,.... your best-bet is to stick with another Pontiac radio so it 'fits' with the rest of the interior.

 

AFAIK, None. Zero.

 

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/car-...termarket.html

 

There was a thread somewhere in which a member described hooking up a JVC head unit with some sort of converter that was programmable and got the SWC to work.

When I bought my GTA, the radio reception was often very poor, though the tape player worked well. I was going to buy another GM head unit to maintain something close to the original look, but I backed off because I know that having those buttons in front of me not working would just annoy me forever. So I ended up sending out my radio to M&R Electronics in Michigan. They re-soldered the connections inside which repaired the radio reception. While they had it, I had them also add an AUX jack so that I can plug in my phone for music. The cost was reasonable ($150 for the repair, $75 for the AUX jack) and it works great.

 

I searched PAC for everything they have for an 88 + 89 Trans am,..... They displayed a harness adapter and a aftermarket radio installation kit - That's it.

https://catalog.pac-audio.com/?fc=mo...=15773&submit=

As stated in the post that TravSpeed linked to: When I searched for 1990 trans Am products the SWI-RC and SWI-X were displayed. 86-89 was the first SWC design set-up,..... 1990 was the first year for the second iteration of Steering Wheel Controls for GM. I highly doubt anything rated for 90+ will work on 89 and earlier Delco head units.

Compatibility shows that the SWI-RC will not work.
Compatibility shows that the SWI-X will not work.

 

John,
you are very knowledgeable on these units, do you know if the tuner boards on the SWC radios is the same as other radios? Do they share internal parts?

 

I only know enough about them to have more questions than answers ! Unfortunately I don't have enough spare parts to be able to set-up bench testing for these things. I've learned how to 'trick' them to activate on the bench,... but as soon as they get unplugged from the bench they revert back to LOC.

No; I do not know of any other compatible receivers. I've tried connecting CDM receivers from just about every type of CDM radio I've had my hands on and have not found a single one that's compatible. I have found receivers that use the same exact case as the GTA head unit in 88 (or so ) GM Trucks and a Buick car or 2, but none of them have ever worked with the GTA radio. This picture shows 2 GMC truck receivers and how they appear to be made the same as the GTA receiver. ( They even appear similar on the inside )



The 2 receivers in the back of this pic with the "X" on them are from GMC trucks. If the part number wasn't on the case then it would "look" just like the GTA receiver. I circled the small 'window' in the case to point out that it's got a BLUE colored component ( a heat sink IIRC ) showing in that window. The head unit in front is a GTA radio with the receiver removed so that you can see in the small "window" of the case; the GTA receiver ( at least all the ones I've had) have a BLACK colored component showing in that window. I'm explaining this a some length because I've been contacted a few times in the past by people claiming that "all you have to do is check the case" to verify a GTA receiver - this is not true.

* Interesting side note; both of the GMC truck receivers internal parts appear the same - at least very similar to - the guts of a GTA receiver, and both of the ones in this pic share the same common fault as the GTA receiver,... Static on any and all radio stations.


AFAIK: only a Pontiac 6000 *might* have used the same radio AND Steering Wheel Control set-up as the GTA. It's been written as fact by folks on the internet and some part number books when trying to cross reference part compatibility - I've also heard that early Grand Prix CDM head units *might* work - but I am not able to test the theory to be true or false.

 

I guess the rollout of airbags made, 30 years later, GTA radios kind of a rare commodity since it eliminated the SWC in the GTA. Like you said John, I heard that radios from the 6000 (and some say the Bonneville and Grand Prix) with SWC would work in the GTA. But on eBay and other reseller sites, I rarely saw one that gave me much confidence that it was in perfect working order. And the prices were always high.

When I had reception issues with mine, I hunted around on eBay and elsewhere for a replacement. The ones that I saw were expensive and often said "not tested" or, my favorite, "works great, tape player broken." Not a lot of shops seem to repair these things anymore, but I saw some people on here used M&R Electronics for repairs. They did a great job on mine and it cost me less than a questionable used model from eBay. I love music, but wouldn't exactly call myself an audiophile and am quite happy with the old stock speakers. With those speakers, I can't see how a new head unit would make any improvement; a repaired 32-year old radio should (and does) work just fine.

And it's just my personality. Having a dead bank of buttons sitting in front of me would have annoyed me to no end. I either had to get a compatible radio, or I'd have bought an aftermarket steering wheel. And I like the stock look.

 

So in theory I may be able to use internal parts from another radio to repair my broken circuit board? My radio is cosmetically excellent, functional but has poor sound quality due to a physically broken board. I could repair it, change caps and be good to go.

 

Mark; The well known Capacitor problem that kills the 1 or 2 speaker channels ( usually RR ans sometimes RF ) is a common problem with the "****" type radios used from 83-96 'Delco 2000' type radios because of the way the radio was designed. The Capacitors used on those circuits were built directly under the radio Heat Sink and those capacitors get cooked over time. While it can also happen to some CDM type radios, it's not too common. Just don't want you to think that the radio static is similar to the well-known Capacitor problem on a different style radio,..... I don't know that to be true.

Also want to be clear; While the internal components from those truck receivers look similar ( and the circuits boards even have the same "layout" as they do inside the GTA receiver ) a functional truck receiver will not work when plugged into a GTA radio. Maybe it's just due to the DELCO LOC, but I wouldn't consider removing parts from the truck receiver into the GTA receiver and hope they work to be a theory,.. more like wishful thinking. That truck receiver is the only CDM receiver I've ever confirmed to have similar parts and layout as the GTA radio. While I have found a similar receiver used for the 87-89 Buick Somerset and I'm betting it was a similar design internally,... I have never cracked that receiver open to view it's guts. I have never plugged a Somerset receiver it into a GTA radio; but I DID plug a "regular" CDM receiver into a Somerset head unit and it worked; meaning the Somerset receiver will not work for the GTA. My GUESS is that it is the GMC truck and Somerset receiver was the same & not compatible with the GTA. ( The internal parts from similar receivers *MIGHT* work as spare parts in a GTA radio - but I doubt it. )

** not relevant to GTA radios but worth mentioning: like all CDM receivers,... there appears to be an EQ and a non-EQ version. The ones I found in the 88 GMC trucks are EQ receivers, but as this pic shows the same style receiver paired with a non-EQ radio.




P.S. Ken, "GTA" radio you saw @ $300 on E-Bay that was 'not tested' was listed by a member here on TGO. It was a Bonneville radio and it was tested and known to have problems,... but that didn't stop him from selling it as a 'untested GTA" radio when he listed it on E-Bay. A Bonneville radio ( 89-92 tested and proven NOT COMPATIBLE WITH GTA ! ) will have a YELLOW lens on the Cr02 button. ( for GTA this button has a RED lens. )

 

Found the pic of my 88 Buick UT4; It too originally came with the GTA look-alike receiver described above. At first glance you might think it's receiver could be used with a GTA SWC radio because they are so similar. Nope; even this head unit needs a "regular' CDM receiver. (The cassette mech should be swap-able, might need minor mods. ) I modified this one by changing the case/wiring and installing a more common EQ CDM receiver from a 94 Chevy truck and it works normally.



'Rare' these days and "special" to most people that have the chance to use it -----> FOR SURE ! If there is ANY other radio that might be compatible with the GTA,... IMO it would have to be 87-89 vintage. I've only seen that style "case" on the very early CDM Receivers. After 89 the SWC plug on SWC head units changed to accommodate the second generation SWC design.

 

what's the difference between part numbers 16067693 and 16062322?

 

PN 16062322 shows up on my 1988 Audio Repair Service Manual ( Cassette mechanism schematics ) I *THINK* 16067693 was the part number for the 89.

 

Interchange info

 

I have tried, most later radios even with the correct plug, tried a 93 Boneville radio and it just locks up the radio. That style and the 93 TA still had the SWC on a separate plug, the later 4th gens moved the SWC wire to the main radio harness. On my 93 Trans Am I swapped the steering wheel to the later car, 2001, and repined the connector, it worked no issue then. Back to third gens I have the pig tail from that 93 Bonneville radio it plugs in to the U1A but would need to be repinned to the U1A slots, there is a brown and white wire in the radio side, dark green and light green, light being the data wire on the connector. I dont think the GTA steering pad will control that radio as the logic is specific to that radio. The GTA steering wheel controls will work with a PAC Box on an after market deck.

 

Thanks KSR! I reached out to M&R, sent them my radio and should have it back in the next couple days fully repaired and with an aux input added. I am very excited to test it and get this PIA issue behind me. I will update when tested!

 

He repaired my GTA radio, nice guy. Just got it back.

 

I just received mine back from M&R, quick turn around and the radio and Aux input are working!

The audio quality from these radios is not amazing but it is good to have tunes in the ride again... Now if I could only get my fuel pressure regulator to stop leaking!

 

Those guys do a nice job. Maybe the sound quality isn't amazing, but for me it's fine. It's not like I really spend that much time in the car, and sometimes I just like to listen to the engine. Maybe it depends on what you're looking for; I'm not expecting precise definition. These cars aren't exactly the quietest place to listen to music to start with. I'm really happy being able to play music off my phone through the AUX jack.