Price is always a factor when making any type of purchase. Seeing the words "SALE" often times sends us into a world of credit card hell as we swipe the plastic faster than we should. For this story, we'll show you how $1,000 can go pretty darn far when you buy the right products. The recipient was an '08 Chevy HHR panel, which we thought would be the perfect cave, we mean compact SUV, to turn into an audiophile's dream setup.
Several factors were involved in this build. First of all, we only had $1,000 to spend. Second, we needed the cargo area to still be useable and lastly, we wanted everything to sound and look good. To pull off this task, we contacted Al & Ed's Autosound, in Costa Mesa, California, for a full complement of MTX audio. Sam Habib, one of the senior technicians, handled the install for us and he had us in and out in two days. Included in our shoot was a MTX X Thunder 504X amp powering a total of four TDX6502 MTX 6-1/2-inch co-axial speakers for each door and a MTX 300XD amp powering a new MTX TS5510-22 10-inch square subwoofer. Our 10-inch sub was housed in a custom-built suede-covered box by installer Sam and allowed us to still use the cargo area as intended. The system was wired by a 4-gauge four-channel amp kit from Streetwires and a Pioneer Avic-D2 provided the input. An auxiliary input was also installed in the glovebox to play any MP3 device we choose. Check out the photos as we turned an empty HHR into an audio arsenal.
With the MTX audio products set on the cargo area of the HHR, we began to get excited thinking of the awesome tunes we would soon have in the Chevy. | 
After arriving at the Al & Ed's Autosound in Costa Mesa, California, installer Sam Habib began the install by removing the center dash surround and pulling free the factory single-CD head unit. |
Side by side, there really isn't much comparison between the Pioneer unit and the stock radio. The Pioneer has the ability to play DVDs, MP3s, it has DVD-based navigation, and is more powerful than the factory unit. | 
Sam simply ran the RCA cables from the back of the radio to behind the dash and then connected the Pioneer Avic-D2 with a GM-specific wire harness and mounted it with a GM installation kit. |
The aux input cable was run behind the dash into the glovebox for easy access and convenience. | 
After removing each of the four door panels, the small and cheap factory speakers were removed then each door received a sheet of Dynamat to keep the tunes in the HHR and keep them at their best fidelity. |