Hi Marla,
I don't know your particular harness, but I can give you some general tips
on stereo installation.  First, you are correct that it is pretty simple,
but you want to be sure you understand the wiring diagram they gave you with
the stereo.  If you didn't get one, go back to where you bought it or call
Kenwood.

Normally there will be a pair for each speaker (as you stated).  There is a
positive and negative, and you will notice that in each pair, one wire is
marked with a stripe, ridge, etc.  It's not critical to get them on the
right way (i.e. you won't blow a speaker), but you should do them all the
same way, i.e. striped wire to negative, non-striped to positive on each
speaker.  The wires in your van are marked as well, so you can use that to
know which is which even when you can't trace the wires yourself.  Hopefully
the wiring diagram will indicate which one is positive.

There are often two wires for power--one is for powering the stereo itself,
the other is for providing power to the clock and presets when the ignition
is off.  The main power wire is usually red, and may have a fuse inline.
The clock lead is frequently yellow or blue, but check your diagram.  I
personally prefer to be able to turn on the stereo with no key, so I attach
both of these wires to a source that is always hot, i.e. works when the key
is off and removed.

The negative or ground wire is usually black, and can go to any good
grounding point.  If there are two, it shouldn't hurt to ground them to the
same location.

You mentioned an ignition wire, which I am assuming is the main power wire,
as addressed above.

Finally, on connections, you can solder if you really want to, but
heat-shrink tubing makes a really neat and compact installation.  It's sold
at hardware stores, usually in about 4-foot pieces.  Show them the wire
you're using, and they'll guide you from there.  You can twist the wires
together and cover them with the tubing, though I have seen the
"professionals" just stick both ends in the tube and shrink it down.  I have
also used tube-style crimp connectors, also cheap and very solid.

Hope that helps, good luck and have fun!
bmc  :)
Ben McCafferty
ben@volkscafe.com

Volks Cafe
1823 Soquel Avenue
Santa Cruz, CA  95062
831-426-1244
http://www.volkscafe.com

male end on it for it to go into the new Kenwood.  Is there some kind of
> adaptor I need to attach the single wires I have for battery, ignition, and
> ground to the pair that go into the Heidleberg?  Do I need to solder all
> connections to old wires or can I just use the plastic connector caps and
> electrical tape?
>
> Maybe I should just follow one person's advice from the archives and hire a
> professional to do it....arg - but it looks like it should be so simple!
>
> Peace,
> Marla
> '87 Westy GL Van "Morrison"
>
>
>
>
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> MSN 8 with e-mail virus protection service: 2 months FREE*
> http://join.msn.com/?page=features/virus