Do you care about car audio?

I have a new Hyundai Sonata N-Line and it came with Bose 12 speaker premium audio and I have to say it sounds spectacular.  I listen mostly to HD FM Radio, and Sirius Radio.  Easily the best sound system I’ve ever had in a car, even better than the premium system in my wife’s Lincoln.

Gas is $5.00/gallon now in California.
Prices are going nowhere but north.

Stay home and listen to your system.

If I had a Ferrari or Lambo, I wouldn't bother with audio. A V12  symphony is all that's necessary.

When I bought my Camry many years ago I got the upgraded soundsystem. It sounds very good but unfortunately the car is a bit noisy. I can still though listen to all kinds of music on it from digital recordings to vintage recordings going back to the 30s. As opposed to my home system where I don’t even like listening to mono recordings on it except for well produced mono lps.

I have a huge cd collection and was looking for a used car only a few years old and hate the fact that they stopped putting cd players in cars I like a little while ago. I certainly don’t want to go to the bother of ripping cds. I just want to grab them and put them in a car player. Some cars still have cd players but they’re not models I’m interested in.

Yes, the sound of my car stereo is very important.
I spend an hour and a half commuting each workday, and because of that, I spend more time listening to the car stereo than my home stereo.It’s not super high dollar (less than $500 for the stereo and speakers), but it’s good enough to make the factory stereo in the family van sound pretty bad by comparison.

I am amazed at how many people on an audio forum feel that car audio is not of good quality.  Sure, the OEM systems are generally poor sounding, but don't stop there and accept it.  All you need is a good source (CD is best for the car but an MP3 source works well if not highly compressed) and simply start with a good integration device in order to develop a quality, high fidelity music system.  Mobile electronics are far more sophisticated than most people here are giving credit.  Most of the good integration devices also have time correction as part of their function.  Good amplification, good speakers, and a good subwoofer - all properly installed - and you will have an amazing audio experience, especially for those long drives on a weekend getaway.  I find the best way to get good bass and still retain the vehicle cargo space is to build a fiberglass custom enclosure into the rear quarter panel (for SUV or crossover vehicles) and upholster to match the interior.  Sound deadening materials for the doors is a must.  Tuning properly with crossovers and gain controls in the amps and tuning the time correction properly goes very far in achieving good SQ.  If done properly the center imaging is very impressive.  The mobile environment can be a challenge for good sound quality, but with good product and a good installation it is very entertaining and quite enjoyable.  It's not intended to be that of a high quality 2-channel home audio system.  It's just good sounds and good fun.  My car audio system begins with maintaining the dash as it is, and from there it's all high quality aftermarket products.  Visually you can't tell there is anything added into the system.  But, sonically you sure can!