I have a 2002 alero that im installing a new deck in, the original harness was already cut off when i got it. all the wires are there but there is no switched 12v wire to connect to so it will shut off when i take the key out, is the a wire somewhere close i could tap into for that?
Check and see if the cig lighter has power when the car is off. If not, that will work. The power is on the back, not the side.
If you look on the left side of the radio cavity, you'll see the back of the key switch and its wire harness. The harness loops down below the switch then back up at the rear of the dash cavity to join the main wire group that runs across the top. If you look at the wires in the key switch harness, you'll find a thick brown wire. This is the accessory output from the key switch. You can tap this wire for your head unit's accessory power source. Be sure to put a fuse on the head unit wire, as close as possible to the point where you tap into the factory wire. A 5-amp fuse will be fine. This is to prevent damage to the vehicle if your new wire happens to get shorted.
