2005 Cavalier Radio Swap

I want to change the factory AM/FM radio in a 2005 Cavalier to one that will also play Mp3 CD's. Either a OEM takeout or aftermarket Mp3  in dash players.

 A salesman at an Electonics store tells me the Factory radio will have to stay in the car for (security, diagnostic, and airbags?)

I have installed many car radios going back before 8 tracks but none in the last 25 years.

Is it really that complicated to switch one now?

Alot of the newer GM vehicles have a Class II Data Bus system, in which when you remove the factory HU, you lose some of the factory features ( door chime, on-star, factory alarm) due to the fact that it is interfaced into the HU.

There are a couple options on how to go about this, there is a harness that will retain your factory HU in the somewhere in the vehicle. I usually put it under the passenger seat. Alot of installers elect to put in in the trunk. Either way is suffice. It will not power up or affect your new head unit, its just there as a data device after removal.

There are also a couple companies that put out an interface, that will enable you to retain your factory features without having to keep the factory HU in your car.

You will also need an antenna adapter. All of this can be purchased at your local stereo shop.

Your vehicle is indeed more complicated than a standard vehicle. Removing the factory radio will NOT affect the air bags but will affect all the systems chad listed above. As he said there are two ways to do this properly, either relocate the factory deck or use the interface module. Its not nessasarily a diffficult thing to do, just takes a little more time than usual, and costs far more money than a standard vehicle would.