Restoring the stereo in a 1971 MGB

Updating a classic — for the second time

There’s an old adage that Hank learned early on — when he first started restoring classic British roadsters back in the '80s. “Save all your documents and receipts, you never know when you'll need them,” he said, adding with a chuckle, “just never add them up!”

Recent retiree Hank has put a lot of time, money, and sweat equity into restoring his "Little 'B." It's all worth it when he's cruising around, drumming along to his Rush albums.

Over the years, Hank and his wife have enjoyed zipping down to their Carolina beach house in their fully restored '71 MGB. But when the below-dash Sony cassette player he bought from Crutchfield in 1996 started skipping and causing problems, he searched his records and found his old invoice.

He was looking for the vehicle-specific dissasembly guide that Crutchfield had included at the time, but found something just as valuable. He noticed the name of the expert Advisor he worked with: Zac.

After a quick search of our website, Hank said, “I saw that Zac still worked at Crutchfield, and right there was his phone number. I thought maybe he could help me figure out how to switch out the stereo.”

"You just pick up the conversation where it left off."

A few times a day, you can catch Zac at our on-campus dog park giving his shih tzu, Shadow, a much-needed break. This year, as Crutchfield celebrates its 50th anniversary, it is Zac’s 30^th year with the company.

Zac (shown at our company dog park with his pup Shadow) is a longtime Advisor, supervisor, and avid kayaker, known for his level-headed demeanor.

Zac models a patience that reassures customers and co-workers, alike. He guides with a seen-it-all steady hand that infuses calmness into every conversation — and makes even the most difficult problem seem solvable.

As Zac corralled Shadow through the Woofer Park gate, he was asked if he remembered Hank from way back in 1996. “It’s funny. If you had asked me that before he called [earlier this year], I wouldn’t have," he said. "But often, when I hear a familiar voice or see an order right in front of me, the recollection comes back, and you just pick up the conversation where you left off — especially when it’s someone with a story and personality like Hank.”

Learning the ins and outs of a 1971 MGB

If you ever talk to an owner of an early '70s MGB, one of the first quirks they'll tell you about is the electrical system. “Lucas was the manufacturer of the electrical components for [that era of] British cars, and they're known as the 'Prince of Darkness,'" said Hank. "Because, you know, it just fails all the time."

Back in the mid-90s, when first restoring the car, Hank completely replaced the wiring loom. He described it as one of many "might-as-well" projects he completed during the initial restoration. “I started by replacing the engine, and after you’re already in there, it becomes 'might as well' do this, or 'might as well' work on that," he said. "One of the most involved projects was replacing the whole electrical system and wiring.”

Soon, the next task on the might-as-well list was upgrading the sound system. After all, with the top down on the MGB, Hank needs a steady soundtrack of classic rock to compete with whipping wind and engine noise. “It doesn’t have overdrive, so it can be an adventure on the highway,” he said. "And really loud."

Hank installed a Sony cassette player in his MGB back in 1996. It served him well for listening to his classic rock tapes until very recently. Photo from Hank's personal collection.

He bought and installed the Sony cassette player and some Infinity speakers. A drummer “in a past life,” Hank especially loved when the percussion hit hard. Neil Peart of Rush was a personal favorite and he even had some of his own old demo tapes he'd play from time to time. "You can crank it up loud and get the whole car shaking," he said. "And everybody sitting around you at the traffic light gets to listen to it, too.”

In recent years, Hank has taken the MGB out less and less. He’s had to go through a whole other round of restoration — and many more might-as-well projects to keep it on the road. He recalled one road trip a few years back when he and his wife didn’t make it to their destination. “Right then on the side of the road, she told me she'd rather us take the [regular family] car from then on," he said.

So it’s a rare and special occasion when he pulls out the convertible — and he started to notice the battery draining more often between starts. That notorious electrical system acting up. He soon isolated the problem to the older cassette player drawing too much power. And while he still has solid collection of cassette tapes, he had long moved to listening to his tunes from his phone.

How do we have as much inside info on a classic British roadster — with a notoriously finicky electrical system — as we do a modern minivan with snappy, state-of-the-art iPhone® integration? Our vehicle research team goes beyond the dash.

He also wanted a stereo that played Bluetooth like in his other vehicles. The Sony receiver was mounted under the dash, and “secured by four screws.” He remembered there was a trick to getting it unfastened but he couldn’t recall the exact details — and didn’t want to force anything. That’s when he reached out to Zac.

Decades of Crutchfield car research at Zac's fingertips

“I had Hank’s order information up right away when he called,” said Zac. “Those specific instructions for removing the stereo from his MGB were a little more than just a mouse click away. But I was able to track them down rather quickly for him, though."

We've built our deep knowledge base by taking apart the dashes and doors of all types of vehicles. Our vehicle research team documents each step in the removal and replacement process with detailed, step-by-step notes, measurements, and photos. We have over 37,000 vehicles in our database, ready to be served up to Advisors like Zac — and our Tech Support specialists.

If you hit a snag during installation (or, say, 28 years after you buy a stereo), give us a call. Our Tech Support specialists, like Chibi, can talk you through it.

After finding the removal instructions, Zac and Hank could start talking about replacements. "He gave me some ideas," said Hank. "And, you know, we probably talked for 45 minutes. By then I had pretty much picked out another stereo.”

He landed on a Kenwood Excelon digital media receiver. It didn't have a cassette — or disc — player, but had all he needed with Bluetooth. And it would mount under the dash of his MG, similarly to his old stereo.

Zac helped Hank pick out a new Kenwood digital media receiver. It won't play cassettes (or discs), but he can listen to his favorite tunes just fine via Bluetooth.

"Crutchfield has always been my go-to source for electronics. The information that Crutchfield Advisors have available has grown with the technology,” Hank said. “Plus, you have some cool stuff.”

Hank plans on taking the MGB down to the beach house this summer and fall. He looks forward to cruising on the Carolina coast with tunes streaming from his phone, fingers drumming on the dash to keep up with Neil Peart. And he'll have his toolset with him, just in case any might-as-well situations arise.

But his wife has made it pretty clear: she’ll be driving down separately, in the newer, more reliable family car.

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