I just requested a return authorization from the idiots at Crutchfield. I ordered a Kenwood KDC-X995 HU and Kenwood's Sirius sat radio tuner, along with an iPod cable this week. It was delivered yesterday (Friday). Shipping and billing seems to be Crutchfield's singular talent. Other than that they are a just another bunch of ***** selling stuff on the web.

THE big draw with Crutchfield for unskilled driveway installers like me is their master sheet with customized instructions for "your car". They seemed to know the Crossfire during the ordering process. I used their outfit my car tool which identified the Nav radio. When I selected the Kenwood 995, the website correctly noted that I would lose the nav capability with the Kenwood. And it seemed to be aware that our Infinity system uses an external amp as it noted that their harness would allow you to use the factory amp. Also, the online order summary as well as the confirmation email listed their custom "Master Sheet" as part of the stuff they were shipping. That gave me confidence that they actually knew what they were doing. Big mistake on my part!

What arrived was all the hardware I had ordered including the installation tools and connectors. BUT NO MASTER SHEET! They sent me generic instructions for EVERYTHING I DID NOT BUY. Subwoofers, Plug-n-play satellite kits, Amplifiers, tons of advertising and promotions, BUT NO MASTER SHEET for a Crossfire and its wiring harness.

I may as well buy from some grey market seller on eBay and save a few bucks. At any rate, I had this one weekend to install this stuff and Crutchfield screwed that up. They can have their stuff back and I'll keep my money and my newly acquired knowledge of Crutchfield.

People seem to rave about this company on the web but frankly, my experience puts them right down there with Walmart at the bottom end of the service scale.