[Seadweller]

The stereo in my '98, which is the optional system with woofers in the doors and 2-way dash speakers, sounded terrible. Although it's clearly not an audiophile system, I suspected it couldn't really be THAT bad, despite everything I've read.

A member of the forum was kind enough to send me a replacement set of speakers that were originally part of a Bose system, and they were an exact replacement for the Nokia speakers, including the connector. I dropped them in today, and there was such a marked improvement in the sound, I sat in the car for 20 minutes listening to the stereo.

Looking at the back of the original speakers, I can see that the midrange driver surrounds had completely deteriorated. If your system sounds awful, and you're seeking a quick, easy improvement, a factory set of replacements might do the trick, particularly if you can get the Bose version, which has a beefier woofer and magnet structure.