[BryanNH]

Hey everyone, I just picked up a 2001 Rav4 ... and the stock stereo has to go ... I just need to know if anyone knows a good access point to get through the firewall? I did see a site that posted something about turning the steering wheel counter-clockwise, finding a tiny hole, going through a rubber nipple, and then into the cabin via the wheel well ... there HAS to be something more simple ... Any ideas?
For now I think I'll just drill right through, looks like there's plenty of space on the driver's side above the pedals... but not drilling would be easier! Any ideas? Thanks for the help in advance!
- Bryan

 

[BryanNH]

FOUND IT!

Hey everyone ... I wasn't happy waiting for a response (but thank you to those who may have known in advance) but I found a spot to go through the firewall.

If you look to the left of the battery in the 2001 Rav4, just below it and to the left is a wire harness that enters the cabin. On the other side of that, inside the cabin, behind the glove box and behind all the clusters of wire harnesses, there is a nipple next to the wires that enter the cabin.

I removed the connecting bolts/screws for the harnesses covering the nipple, but I left the wires in tact ... this gave me a little more hand room and a little light.

With alot of straining, I was able to cut the nipple, force through a wire coat hanger .. aka snake .. and it protruded through with a little force. I had to strip the 8 gauge wire I was feeding through, wrap the wire around the coat hanger (I actually braided the wire to the hanger) and then taped it up. I pulled back inside the car and NOW I have the wire for the amp inside the car! SWEET!

I hope this helps anyone else who may need to do the same ...

 

[Traded My MR2]

Actually, I just purchased an 05 Rav. I have everything built and ready to iinstall. My ONE problem is finding a suitable place to run 1/0 gauge power wire. I do NOT want to have to drill through the firewall, but I fear it may be my only option. I'd appreciate it if anyone has a good idea where I can run 1/0 gauge power wire.

Eight gauge shouldn't be bad to find a spot for...but the 1/0 is a different story.

Chris

 

[BryanNH]

Hey Chris ... I don't know where to exactly run that wire, but it sounds like you'll be doing a pretty heavy duty install with a 1 gauge wire! Take a look at the location I mentioned for running the wire ... you can see it just below and to the left of the battery in the engine compartment.

Maybe if you take the battery out, including the battery tray (if possible) there would be enough room to access the rubber area surround the wires, and then possibly cut through it, then seal it off after your wire is going through ... this just came to mind now, just not sure if its something that would be "do able" ... I know that 1 gauge wire is HUGE.

good luck!

 

[Traded My MR2]

Hey Bryan. Yeah, 1/0 gauge is pretty big.

My install is consisting of 2 Diamond Audio 10's, Diamond Audio Hex components up front, Diamond Audio Hex coaxials in the rear. One JL 300/4 on the components and coaxials and a JL 500/1 on each sub. At peak, I"ll be pulling roughly 140 amps on 1300 watts. Amps flush mounted under plexiglass, distribution blocks etc under plexi, blue neons to light everything. Whole system done in charcoal vinyl.

Ideally I should drill through the firewall, but I just can't bring myself to do it. I'm afraid of using a preexisting grommet b/c the power wire will be so big, I'm afraid I"ll introduce leaks etc through the grommet.

 

[BryanNH]

Doesn't sound like you have amuch of a choice but to drill! FYI I talked to someone about drilling through while at a local car parts shop, he gave me some winow sealant ... he said you put it around the hole, and it is pliable (sp?) ... you should be able to mold it around. You could always run the wire under the body of the car and then into the area of your installation ... ? I'll get the name of the stuff he told me about later, its WAY too early to look for anything now.
The system is gonna kick ass! ENJOY!

 

[808Rav4]

WHOA! Tha's some major juice you're gonna need. :shock: I wouldn't even dare try that on my battery & OEM alternator...

Have you considered adding a voltage regulator & running a 2nd battery for your system? If not, at least add a 10Mf Cap... This way it would reduce the chances of dimming lights & possibly lack of power.

 

[Jeff]

I have three wires running through the firewall, all located under the battery and sealed with rubber grommets. One is the power lead for the amp, another is the power lead for the head unit and various other accessories, and the third is the trigger lead for the fog light relay. My Rav contains a hodgepodge of wiring from installing stuff over the years, mainly because I never really have a lot of time to do it perfectly at the time of installation. I always tell myself that I will go back and do it nicely someday, I just never end up with the spare time.

 

[Traded My MR2]

WHOA! Tha's some major juice you're gonna need. :shock: I wouldn't even dare try that on my battery & OEM alternator...

Have you considered adding a voltage regulator & running a 2nd battery for your system? If not, at least add a 10Mf Cap... This way it would reduce the chances of dimming lights & possibly lack of power.

I'm actually going to be changing the stock alternator to a 160amp or POSSIBLY a 225 amp alternator. I hate the battery location. What was Toyota thinking? Anyway, I'm going to be drilling through the firewall with a unibit tommorrow afternoon. I'm most likely going to drill about 5-7 inches below the battery. If I can figure out how to get a yellow top optima to fit in the factory location, I'd like to put a yellow top in there.

 

[Traded My MR2]

Ok. My power wire is ran. I'm so used to driving a manual, that I forgot about something. My RAV4 is automatic, which meant I had a nice little little space in the firewall where a clutch mount would be if it were manual. I just drilled through the space where the clutch would have been. I ran the 1/0 gauge down the driver side door paneling. It fit nicely. No bulges or bumps. So, my power wire is ran now. I didn't like the location of the battery at first, but now that I see how far away it is from the alternator, I love the location of the battery. I should have ZERO battery wine/alternator noise. Anyway, just thought I'd follow up and let you guys know my power wire is ran. 1/0 gauge, no problem.

 

[BryanNH]

Thats awesome that you found such an easy spot to go through ... was there something covering up a hole where the clutch would have been, or was it just a guess on the location?

Thanks for the follow up ...

- Bryan

 

[Traded My MR2]

was there something covering up a hole where the clutch would have been, or was it just a guess on the location?

It was covered. I can take a pic if you want me to. But, this is how you find it. Underneath your carpet is a layer of cloth/foamy type material. There is a cutout in this material in the shape of an elongated diamond right where your clutch pedal would be mounted (IF you had a stick/manual). The diamond shape is about 4 inches long and 2 inches tall. Just look underneath your carpet where your clutch pedal would normally be mounted. YOu can't miss the cutout. Just pull the cutout off. You can put it right back after you pull it off. Then go look in your engine bay at the firewall. Look at the part of the firewall....oh nevermind...let me go take some pics....I'll be right back...

 

[Traded My MR2]

was there something covering up a hole where the clutch would have been, or was it just a guess on the location?
- Bryan

Ok. Sorry about the 10 minute delay. I had to take the pics and then resize them. Sorry for so many...but different angles work better for different people, so I'm posting all the angles I took. The location of the wire in the firewall is on the drivers side just behind the shock mout pillar where the clutch would normally go. If you care to know, I routed the power wire from the battery to the drivers side by drilling 2 SMALL holes through strut tower brace, one hole on each end...and then ziptied the power line up underneath the strut tower brace with sipties tied throught the small holes I just drilled. The holes are TINY...so it should not compromise the integrity of the strut tower brace. If you need more pics...let me know. If you need bigger pics, let me know. It was kind of hard getting the pics in the engine bay because of the location. Larger pics look much better, but I didn't want to be posting huge pictures. Here...hope this helps...

 

[BryanNH]

One word ... AWESOME!

 

[Traded My MR2]

One word ... AWESOME!

I went to my local audio shop and asked their opinions on locations to drill. They told me that this is an ideal location for large gauge power wire. They said most people with automatics never consider the clutch location. I said, yep, you're right, I never even considered it. So, I went home, pulled out the unibit, and drilled. The sheet metal is maybe an 1/8th of an inch thick. Drilled through with no problem. I should have taken pics of how I routed it down the driver side floor. The way I routed it conceals it perfectly. There is ZERO bulge, etc that you sometimes get with large power wire. Now, I need to go work on my fiberglassing. This is the first time I've ever messed with stuff like this by myself. So, I'm having to take my time and plan things out. I want this to be perfect and look like Toyota put it all there from the factory.

 

[Traded My MR2]

Oh, by the way, the great thing about putting the wire there is that this location was meant to be drilled through. It would have been drilled for a clutch if you had a stick. So, it's nice to know you're drilling through an area that was meant to have a hole.

 

[bngski]

hi, newbie to site, a lot of info......, been having a hard time looking where to run wires for fog harness, and future amp install, great job on firewall drilling

 

[machman]

I drive a 5spd model and just poked a hole in the existing gromet that the wire harness goes through on the passenger side of the vehicle. It's just behind and below the battery when it's removed. It was super easy although I did need to use a flashlight to see where the hole was. The easiest thing to do is to just remove the gromet, put a light through the hole from under the hood so you can see where it enters the cabin. Then poke a hole in the gromet for your 4ga wire, push it through giving yourself the length you need in the cabin because once it's mounted it doesn't pull through easily. Then push the gromet back into place, reinstall the battery, etc...

 

[Traded My MR2]

I drive a 5spd model and just poked a hole in the existing gromet that the wire harness goes through on the passenger side of the vehicle. It's just behind and below the battery when it's removed. It was super easy although I did need to use a flashlight to see where the hole was. The easiest thing to do is to just remove the gromet, put a light through the hole from under the hood so you can see where it enters the cabin. Then poke a hole in the gromet for your 4ga wire, push it through giving yourself the length you need in the cabin because once it's mounted it doesn't pull through easily. Then push the gromet back into place, reinstall the battery, etc...

Two problems with this for some of us. First, it's not a good thing to poke a hole in an existing grommet. Granted, often times it ends up being ok...but there are times when it doesn't. I hope you atleast sealed that hole with silicone or something similar. Also, my install is done using 0 gauge wire. Trust me, you would not have been able to fit 0 gauge wire through there.

When you use anything larger than 4 gauge, the best thing to do is give the wire it's own grommet.