Hello everyone, I have a 2003 UL. Most of my speakers are blown (due to age or me just bumping it all the time) and I'm wondering what kind of options I have, I'm told it's hard to replace the sound system with it being a UL. Am I gonna be able to replace just the speakers with the factory head unit or will I have to install a new one in order to use new speakers, and will I also have to wire in a new sub or can I use the stock sub that comes in the car. ( I also have an issue with the sub just cutting in and out if anyone maybe has an answer for that) thank you to anyone that has any helpful input, have a good and safe day

 

Sub cutting in and out it's the hard one, could be loose wiring, bad amp? Most likely you have ml which will require 8 ohm speakers if you want to keep factory deck and amp. If you want to go aftermarket deck then just rip everything out and go full aftermarket

 

If the speakers are "blown" in the sense that the foam surround has torn, you can buy new surrounds for ~$30 each from SimplySpeakers or other such vendors of foam surrounds. It's a cheap and easy DIY repair to maintain factory original sound quality in the ML system.

For my 2002 UL, which I've owned for the past 14 years, I've done my 2 front door speakers once each in 2018 (TL-FSK-6bt Toyota, Lexus 6" Foam Speaker Repair Kit FSK-6bt (PAIR)), and the sub twice, 2013 then again in 2020 (FS-8M-Toyota 8" FOAM SURROUND 7.875 OD, 5.563 ID). Also buy the Foam Guard-Speaker Cone Edge Sealer White PVA MI-1291FG, I didn't do this the first time with the sub, may or may not have contributed it to the surround failing after 7 years.

My rear door speakers are still original, and dash tweeters still original.

Sub cutting in and out is likely a loose wire. Could be at the sub end or the amp end, check/wiggle to confirm and rebuild wire as needed.

 

Because you have the UL with the mark levinson system, the factory wires and amp will suffice for most aftermarket subs you'll put in. Door speakers are easy to change; just remove the door panels and the few screws holding the speakers in place, the factory head unit will suffice since you have the mark levinson sound system (standard in ULs). For the sub you have a ton of options but you should be able to use the factory wires for most applications, the mark levinson sub is trash when it comes to aging with the car, and most of the time the outer foam ring doesn't stay intact. The only speakers that are tricky to get to are the front tweeters (which are most likely working fine) the only way to remove them is to remove most of the dash.

Front speakers should be 6 1/2, and rear doors should be able to fit 5 1/4 or 6 1/2. Because the UL has separate tweeters for front and back, you may as well get some extra sound out of good one way speakers rather than ones with built-in tweeters.

As far as what brand you choose that's up to how much you want to spend, I spent a decent amount on speakers for my '06 UL simply because the car is so padded and insulated that decent speakers can sound really good. I always buy Focal RSXs and Auditors, they are unbeatable for the price.