1999 528i Audio Questions

[KHoeks]

I may be purchasing a 1999 528i in the next few days, and really know very little about the setup of BMW's stereo system.

The car only has an am/fm and cassete in it, no CD Player. I am looking for some help on how hard it is to get a new Head unit in. If I am not going to do it myself, can I go anywhere and have an in-dash cd player installed? If so, do the big retailers like Best Buy and Circuit City know what they are doing with BMW's, or should I go to a dealership??

Also, anyone who knows the sounds system well, what else should I eventually look at replacing? Does anyone have a recommendation for in-dash cd players??

Thanks for your help!

[jllphan]

The e39 5ers are not fun to work with from an audio stand point. The head unit is next to impossible to replace with an aftermarket head unit. It can be done, but it would take A LOT of time and money.

Your best bet would be to add an oem changer to the existing head unit, and add an amp and sub for low end.

If you wanted any more than that, you could use a LLC or hi level inputs to add another aftermarket amp to feed new speakers.

[KHoeks]

It seems more and more like that the Head Unit will stay in. Call me crazy, but I kind of like the way it looks, and goes with the whole car.

So my first step will probably be to be an aftermarket changer. Can you buy any changer for the car? Do you need anything else special to connect the changer??

Is this a project that I could figure out myself, or should I have professionally installed?

[jllphan]

Your oem HU should have changer controls, you just need to add the oem changer designed for it (sorry, don't know which one, should be easy to find).

It should be prewired, with a DIN cable terminating in your trunk near a label that says "prewired for cd changer". It's pretty much plug and play.