mschoenheider,
I wasn't going to waist your time by replying and saying 'I don't know, but... ', then I saw you have a '96. When I got a changer for my '96 last year seems like I remember Alpine didn't have a unit that was a direct plug in. You had to get an Alpine receiver for the dash (I guess what you're calling the head unit) to use any of their changers. This may very well have changed. I would contact your nearest Alpine dealer with the model number and ask. I ended up with a JVC RF changer that I've been happy with.