DIY 8th Gen JL Stealthbox installed in 2012 Civic Sedan (PIC heavy)

Bulkybear

Well-Known Member
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I'm going to make a quick little tutorial on what I did to install my JL Stealthbox as it's a little different than the 8th gen it was designed for.

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For starters, this is what the Stealthbox looks like, it houses a JL 10w6v2 dual 4 ohm voicecoil subwoofer wired down to a final impedance of 2 ohms. It can handle up to 600 watts RMS, so choose your amp accordingly.

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First thing you wanna do is mount the upper bracket to the box as shown with the included bolt and lockwasher, keep it hand tight for now as it will need adjusted later.
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The washer nut and bolt on the left side came with the box, but the nut and bolt on the right did not. I suggest going to Lowes and picking up one of these bolts with the flat heads on them and a nut with integrated washer that will screw onto it. This will be for the upper bracket, the bolt included simply screws into the hole a pop clip comes out of and it strips way too easy, so it's not really secure and will rattle a lot from vibrations of the box.

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One end of the bolt has an allen head on it, leave that end facing out so you can tighten it later. Screw the bolt into the bottom of the box leaving about 1 1/4" exposed.

Now remove the flooring of the trunk, there is a pop clip near the rear seats you need to pop out to remove the flooring completely.

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This is what the trunk liner looks like in stock form.


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You will need to use a razor and cut a whole in the trunk liner to allow the back of the box to fit. It doesn't fit into the stock mold.

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Remove the pop clips around the hole and around the seal of the trunk and fold the liner back to reveal the floor. Using a 3/8" drill bit, drill a hole in the second rib from the rear as shown. I recommend drilling the metal first, then laying down the liner and drilling through it so the hole matches up. Also take this time with the liner loose to run any wires you need under the liner.

Go ahead and put the liner back and secure it with the pop clips, then wire the stealthbox up, red for positive, black for negative. I tucked the excess wire through the hole I cut in the side of the liner.

Now insert your stealthbox into the car making sure to put the bolt sticking out of the bottom through the hole you drilled.

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Now take your drill with the 3/8" drill bit and find a spot for the top bracket to mount, drill through it, enlarging it's hole and creating one in the car. Then use the bolt with the flat head, lean the box forward and fit your hand behind it to insert the bolt from the rear. Before you do anything else now that the top bracket is lined up, pull the box forward slightly and tighten the bracket to the back of the box, as you left it hand tight before. After that, hand tighten the nut w/washer to the bolt you inserted.

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Now we need to tighten the bottom bolt. Put the provided washer then lock washer on the bolt and start the nut. Keep the nut at the end of the bolt and use an allen wrench to tight the bolt up hand tight. Then use a socket and ratchet to tight it up the rest of the way. I put significant force on this bolt and it didn't break the box, so get it tight but don't go overboard. Also I suggest putting a rubber washer (or in my case a piece of painters mat) in between the metal washer and the body of the car to prevent rattling. It's not necessary but it helps.

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After that just tighten up the top bracket, put your floor back in, tune your amp, and your done. The major part that differs with JL's instructions are with the top bracket and cutting the liner out to help it fit and secure better.

The pics weren't good enough to me, but this is my first DIY and also my first time posting pictures on a forum without tapatalk hosting lol. So I had to play with it a little bit. I also was told by a popup that I can only have 10 pictures so, I have to do my best with what I have. I'm hoping that this will prove that it's not hard to install one of these in our cars and if you want some bass, and to keep your trunk, there is a solution.
 
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