Boise Car Audio Stereo Installation, Diesel and Gas Performance, Bluetooth, iPod and Navigation all in one spot - Trax Customs

GMC Sierra Goes Dark

8/31/2017

Busted these out for a client in California really quick while he was on vacation.
He sent me his GMC Sierra headlights and unfortunately one of the mounting tabs broken due to improper packing methods....but I repaired that enough for him to be able to mount it again.

This was a fairly simple mod....consisting of a Full Black Internal Paint job and Switchback LED Turn Signals.

The owner then painted his front chrome grill black to make a very dramatic difference!

Suzuki Hayabusa goes on a diet and gets brighter

8/30/2017

Had the opportunity to work on another custom lighting project for a guy i've done some work with in the past.
This is on a strictly race bike Suzuki Hayabusa, where aerodynamics and weight is more important than safety features....yet the later is needed still for regulations.

TAILLIGHT:
Reduce the clutter and make it black.
So I separated the lens and got rid of about 3/4s of the material and electronics.
I fabricated an ABS panel that would house the 4 LED strips and then sealed everything the best I could without adding too much weight.

HEADLIGHT:
Removed the massively heavy projector and metal internal frame.
Mounted the overall structure to the exterior mounting plastic.
Retrofitted in Oznium LED pods into the upper and lower portions.
Blacked out the entire area.
Fabricated an ABS back panel and sealed up everything

RX8 meets Digital Designs

8/28/2017

Busted out this quick install for a good client of ours....his son just picked up this Mazda RX8 and needed some bumps, on the cheap.

So, instead of going super cheap, I convinced them to go with the new Digital Designs DM500 mini amplifier with a DD Redline 610 subwoofer in a ported box.

This sub got down and dirty for how small the package is......

You won't miss this Uber when it pulls up

8/18/2017

Local Uber driver needed some electronic upgrades so he can provide a safer ride for his clients as well as some insurance for him.

There were a few issues with this setup when the client brought the vehicle in:
Existing HIDs someone else 'installed' were malfunctioning and owner had to bypass them, nearly burning down the vehicle.
Wire strung up everywhere with Amazon DVR add-on kits and police-inspired strobe lights strung up everywhere.

Solution?

Hit up Trax Customs for the integrated, OEM look.

I fully rewired a new Morimoto 35w 6000k HID system with proper modules for MOPAR vehicles like this car....which most installers don't understand.
While I had the headlights taken out, I also installed some high powered Strobe Modules in the turn-signal area.....it's actually quite difficult to capture the strobe light features with pictures...but they are in there and they are bright!
I also wired in some strobe lights into the rear backup light housings....again, very bright, very noticeable. Biggest thing here....NO wires are seen anywhere...so it's an integrated look and feel, yet highly aftermarket and not cheesy looking.

After that, I installed EchoMasters DVR/Camera/Mirror combo, replacing the OEM mirror......now he's got Back-up Camera when he slams it into reverse, regular mirror features and the added bonus of a built in mirror DVR....all of which you'd never know was installed, because it appears OEM.

Now that's how you upgrade something without letting others know you've done any work to the vehicle.

Riggity-Ram gets some Liggity-Lumens

8/17/2017

Client dropped of his truck, since he's usually out-of-state working.....which gave me enough time to squeeze in this build.

He purchased the truck from someone that previously installed these lights as well as a bunch of other items....all of which never quite functioned normally.....so the first round of fixes for Trax Customs was Custom Lights and Performance Chip.

The Chip, which owner attempted to install, needed to be rebooted from the manufacturer (Bully Dog) and then needed some coaxing to get it installed correctly.....but we knocked that out for him no problem.

Next...the lights.......welp, the aftermarket junk that was installed, was not installed correctly and always gave him problems.....again, someone buying something off of Shamazon and not doing research and figuring out what was needed to make it work properly.

Here is what I did:

Morimoto 35w 5500k HID Sysem with MOPAR Bi-Xenon Heavy Duty Relay Harness
Bi-Xenon Projectors with 'Trax' etched on Clear Lens
White Panamera Switchback LED Shroud
Black Internals
Custom Black/White Painted Dodge Ram Logo on amber lens
ACME Black-Series Switchback Turn Signals bulbs

Taco can now see and winch

8/12/2017

Client brought in his Toyota Tacoma that he just installed this new badass bumper on.
He figured out how to wire up the winch....which is pretty simple....but the Baja Designs 20" bar that came with it was a different story....since it's got a few switches and somewhat complicated wiring harness.

No problem for us......this is what we do!

So I re-wired the winch wiring, to make it look more OEM-ish...then started wiring up the relay harness.
He wanted an OEM-ish look for the switches, as well as in a location that makes sense....so I fabricated a bracket to fit into an OEM pocket by the steering wheel and installed the very Non-OEM switches.

Fit and finish of everything was exactly what he wanted and now he's got full control of his winch and light bar.

That's not a camper....this is a camper mate!

8/11/2017

Had some new clients bring in their massive Camper/Truck for some upgrades right before their bomber-trip to go pick up their new boat they purchased 3/4s the way across the United States....and we only had a few days to bust it out for them.

They've owned this setup for over 6 years, and throughout that time, they have had some issues with the existing equipment that was wired into it.

Existing Equipment:
Rear Add-A-Bag Air Suspension with Manual Tee Fill-up
OEM Satellite Radio (never got reception due to Camper)
Backup-Camera that Never worked

New Hotness:
On-Board Air-Lift Heavy Duty Compressor with Automagical Fill
Pioneer Bluetooth Touchscreen Multi-Media Unit in-dash
Backup Camera wired on TOP of Rear camper for Boat Monitoring
Satellite Radio Antenna wired on TOP of Camper

So....as you can imagine, the backup camera and sat radio antenna had to be re-wired and lengthened due to the massiveness of this beast....so I had to extend each cable (which sucks because they are both sensitive cables to begin with) and then fought the battle fishing these wires from atop the Camper, through existing-ish channels inside the camper, then underneath the beast all the way to the front.
There were plenty of curse words used and plenty of blood drawn....but we finally got it wired up.

Customer had all his Auxiliary Switches un-used from factory, so I tapped into Switch #4, since it's the least amp output, so now he can turn on his rear camera whenever he wants....super convenient.
The Sat radio now has no issues connection because it's the highest thing on the vehicle with no obstructions.
The new Pioneer unit gives them multiple inputs, including Bluetooth, Auxiliary and USB....so their roadtrips will be full of music and books-on-tape.

The Air Lift compressor upgrade went smoothly as well....the old system was antiquated and was super inconvenient for the owner....now at the press of a button, he can raise or lower the rear whenever he wants. We installed the gauge and remote fill buttons in the center console/dash area.

This was a bomber install, as we only had a week to get parts and install before they left....but also, both Ryan and myself were leaving town a few days before these owners left as well....so we busted it out and everyone was happy!

72 Chevy C-20 now has das bumps

8/4/2017

Returning Client brought in his beautifully restored 1972 Chevrolet C-20 Pickup Truck. This beast is wicked.....only thing it needed to finish it off was a nice stereo system....which entailed quite the list:

Retrosounds Hermosa Motor2 Bluetooth Headunit
Retrosounds Din-Repair Kit with custom faceplace and knobs
Retrosounds Quadraphonic 4 Ch Amplifier
Retrosounds 8" Powered Subwoofer
Retrosounds 6.5" Coaxial Speakers
Retrosounds Chevy 6.5" Kick Panel Adapters
Retrosounds Hide-away Amplified FM Antenna

First things first, the previous owner had cut in a DIN style radio and removed the old radio with the knobs...which isn't necessarily a problem....especially now that they make face plates to cover them up....though not as nice looking as if the knob cutouts were still there....but the faceplate matches perfectly with the existing dash in the truck.
The Hermosa radio gives you everything you'd need in a classic truck like this; Am, FM, (2) Aux Inputs, USB and Bluetooth. I installed the Bluetooth cable into the glove box without cutting any holes anywhere.

Next in line is the Quadraphonic 4x45 Amplifier that's got a nice hide-away design. Made some custom brackets to mount it behind the radio, up and out of the way and tuned it so the customers gets clear highs and mids at all volumes.
That powers the new 6.5" speakers in the kicks and the existing speakers in the dash....which when setup with a high-pass crossover filter, these work together as a quasi component system.

To fill in the bass, the 8" powered subwoofer fit under the bench seat without a single issue and provides plenty of bass in this single cabin area. There is a bass-knob I put under the key solenoid so that his keys will hide the fact that he's got bumps underneath until he turns it up.

Final Thoughts:
Without going completely aftermarket with no budget, this Retrosounds package is exactly what music should sound like at the budget range you're in. Yes, it could sounds better....but it could definitely sound worse as well.
If you want really good sound and have it look like it came that way from the factory, then this is the route I'd suggest.

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