so i found a diagram online and i mated up all the wires accordingly and i noticed that the only speakers that work are the 2 in the trunk could this be because i used but connectors and they might not be fitting very well

and the stereo shuts off whenever it wants too or if i put the volume all the way up. could this be a bad connection on the power wire?

 

If you think the butt connectors aren't right, redo them before concluding there is a more serious problem.
When the stereo shuts off, does it lose power entirely where the display goes blank, or does it just turn off?

 

yeah it shuts off completely and starts all over with the little opening graphics and everything..

is there more then 1 power wire? could that be the problem? i have a feeling some wires just didnt get full contact i'll re do them hopefully with some heat-shrink tubing

 

There are normally two power wires. One is usually marked "bat", and needs full-time power like from the battery, the other is often marked "ign", for ignition. That one needs to have power that's switched with the key.
You can run them both to the battery if you like, only problem is the stereo won't turn off with the key. Have to be careful to not drain your battery.

If you are using the red butt connectors, strip about 1/4" of insulation from the wire, twist it tightly so it fits into the metal ferrule inside the connector.
Then crimp the connector to clamp the wire in place.
I hate the things, they seem to always work loose eventually. I prefer to twist, solder and heat-shrink.

 

Your ground isnt good enough ground it right to some steel the factory ground is weak and i had same problem

 

how could i tell which of the 2 is which? are they color coated? cuz the one i connected already was black.. and yeah butt connectors are a pain i think im gonna go with that clip on thingamujig

 

Black is always ground. Power wires are usually (but not always) red (ignition), yellow or orange (battery). There should be a legend provided with the stereo, showing what wire colors are what.

 

I Agee with the other guy about it being a faulty ground. When you turn it up it takes in more power but with a faulty ground, it can't return the power properly. I'd connect a longer peice of wire ( the same or thicker gauge) to the existing ground wire coming off thhe stereo and then find a good ground such as the bolts for the fuse box, the metal behind the kick panel, or the brace for your automatic shifter if you don't have the 5 speed. All of which are good enough grounds for a head unit if you sand them down to bare metal! I have my head unit, cb, and iPod charger all grounded behind the kick panel and have had no problems for the year+ ive owned it and I'm constantly cranking my tunes.

 

Did you connect the black stereo wire to +12volt power? Black normally goes to ground. Check the legend on the unit. Some oddball units will actually power up and run that way depending on what else was connected where, but not well, and not for long.

 

I my self run all new wire, from the battery to the head unit. From the head unit to the speakers. That way I don't have to deal with splices or any thing else the PO might have done to it.

 

Better yet buy from crutchfield.com,they give you dash kit and wire harness just plug and go.also they give you great instructions just for your car and service and warranty are excellent

 

Sonicelectronix also gives you a free dash install kit with a wire harness and a plastic cage mount to keep the factory look

 

ideally yes there is... but in this case the stereo is a hand-me-down from my brothers camaro had some good time cruisin to that radio...

 

That's alright, Because I'm running two 1" tweeters in the dash, two 5.25 speakers in the front doors, Two 6x9 speakers in the rear hatch, One 10" sub in the rear passenger side pocket (all rockford fosgate speakers), A 1400 watt 5-channel amp under the rear seat. Three pairs of RCA cables from the head unit (in dash) to amp (under the rear seat) 10 gauge from battery to amp. And the head unit runs off the fuse box. 1 day just to install all the wiring, another day to put in the head unit, speakers and amp. But it sounds great, like a concert hall. And I love it. Just cause your out in the wilderness, doesn't mean you cannot have good sounding tunes.