Need Help With 2004 1500 Wt Radio Upgrades

Grande42xcom · September 8, 2007

Hey everyone,

I am new to the forums, but it seems that there is a lot of great folks around here who know a whole lot more about customizing and modifying their trucks than I do, so perhaps I can get an answer or two.

I own an '04 Silverado 1500 WT with the cheap AM/FM stock stereo (GM Part# 15131157). after three yers I am getting tired of NOT having a cassette, CD, MP3 or satellite radio options (where I live and commute, I am lucky if I get three or four FM stations, and their getting boring).

I decided to find a better GM OEM radio, and found one on Ebay. It is a AM/FM/CD/MP3 player unit (GM Part 15216905). I went ahead and bought the unit, along with a Sirius GM tuner kit (S1R-GM1) from the good folks at Crutchfield.

The other day I pulled my stock radio out, to see where I can tap in for constant 12V power and ground. To my surprise, I noticed that I had no 12-pin Class II Bus cable behind the stock stereo.

What I'd like to know is, will the new headunit I bought work in my truck? Should I plug it into the 24-pin harness and give it a shot before waisting more money to get it programmed from my dealer??

My other question is, where should I get the 12V power for the satellite tuner? From the factory harness? From the cigarette lighter? Or should I run a wire to my fuse box and tap a fuse for power?

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

~ Richard

SSN720 · September 9, 2007

Okay, I'm a former Colorado fans forum member, and have been reading this forum ever since I traded the Coly for my Silvy. Your question finally made me register.

Okay, unless there is some trick I'm unaware of, your Dealer will have to "unlock" your new head unit that was formaly in a Colorado or I belive Cobalt. (I miss having the MP3 option on my Colorado.) The H/U may think it's stolen and "LOCK" out, as it should appear on the H/U display.

Second the SIR-GM1 is awsome. I had it in my Coly, and removed it prior to trade in. After I got my new truck, it took no time at all to re-install the SIR-GM1 and it remembered all my presets. Unless your into style points, I tapped into the cig lighter, and grounded under the dash.

One down side is that the SIR-GM1 will not fit in the same stock location that the XM receiver fit into... Well...okay it will, but the harness will not reach. I "stuffed" it back into the dash in the rear left hand side of the H/U mounting. No rattling at all, and I did not bolt it down, it's just wedge in.

Also, many Colorado owners complained that routing the Antenna wire through the third brake lamp allowed water to get into the cab and cause damage. I came in from the front and mounted the antenna mag-mount near where the stock XM antenna would have been. Many don't like the look, but you have PLENTY of wire to get creative. Hope this helps...

Grande42xcom · September 9, 2007

Thanks for the input! I was wondering how to deal with the S1R-GM1 Mounting problem too. The T-harness is only about 10 inches long, and I'd need it to be over twice that long to reach the Factory head unit from the stock (XM) mounting location behind the glove box.

But this doesn't solve my problem w/ the 12-Pin Serial Bus Cable that I (apparently) don't have in my 1500 WT.

I will be getting the new head unit programmed by my Chevy dealership. Hopefully it'll work.