Electrical help please!
I had the same thought, it DOES look OEM but I never seen it before. His car is newer than mine thus all connections should be 100% like mine. Phone was removed in 94 I think. Also notice that the other 2 antennas share the same foam which isnt the case in my car. I'll be honest I'm a bit thrown off at this point. I wouldnt mind tracing the one I pointed out though.
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Yeah that antenna wire was just laying there when I pulled the stereo, and yes I connected the cig lighter, and I've made sure I screwed the ground. Idk what else is wrong unless I messed up the stereo itself?
Ok here is my last resort suggestion. Take one of the bulbs that dont come on out of the radio and you will see 2 metal connectors in the base, grab 2 thin wires and let each of them touch each connector (run it under the connector so it holds), touch one wire to + terminal on the battery and the other to the - terminal and see if it lights up. Lets see if the bulbs are working (which I doubt is the issue but worth the try). Simply pulling radio out shouldnt blow any bulbs even if it was a rough removal.
Car off, keys on the floor.
Just struck me... How is the dimmer doing? I know its a silly question but a couple of times I puzzled myself that way.
Car off, keys on the floor.
Just struck me... How is the dimmer doing? I know its a silly question but a couple of times I puzzled myself that way.
Wait the radio is completely dead? Wont turn on at all now? If thats the case I recommend re-checking the radio fuses with an electric tester not just visually. If you dont have a tester handy the radio fuse under the hood is 20amp/yellow, see if the wiper fuse makes it work (its in the kick panel). The kick panel fuse for the radio is 7.5amp (dark red/brownish) you can test using the trac fuse from under the hood. and see if that makes it work.
Also check if theres a penny in your cig lighter. (Did I say this before?)
Its worth it to check the cig lighter fuse in the kick panel, I forget what ampere it has but yeah its worth checking.
Also check if theres a penny in your cig lighter. (Did I say this before?)
Its worth it to check the cig lighter fuse in the kick panel, I forget what ampere it has but yeah its worth checking.
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Not at all. So I Swapped the wiper fuse and I used one of the spares in the fuse box under the hood and no power to the stereo. Although I did hear and see a spark when I put in the wiper fuse in the fuse box under the hood, and there is no coin in the cigarette lighter.
Last edited by michaelb20; Mar 25, 2012 at 01:54 PM.
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a couple of theories
ok so i have a couple of theories as to why my stereo isnt working, first off i believe the wiring harnesses may be faulty, second i believe some other fuse is out but i havent been able to look since its raining, and third and prolly a stupid theory is that when i took apart my stereo i didnt know what i was looking for at first and the face plate got in the way so i disconnected the face plate from the rest of the stereo. ive posted more pictures below.
I never owned a stock radio to look at but pretty sure that ram looking like board is what connects the harness to the radio. Inspect it for any potential damage and ake sure its mounted correctly.
Now to make sure theres power going to the radio, you definitely need a multimeter or voltmeter. There is one in autozone for like 15 bucks. Worth the investment.
Lets start testing the harness. This is what it looks like
Source
Set the multimeter to 9V battery mode and place (or tape) the ground probe on the grounding point I mentioned before (the screw). With the positive probe test the following:
Pin A3 should read 13V ~14V while car is on or in ACC mode, 0V while off
Pin A4 should read 13V~14V whether car is on or completely off.
If that checks out then there is power going to the radio from the harness.
Next test the board you showed in that pic, try to trace where do Pins A3 and A4 are mapped on the end of the connector and test the same way. There will probably be less voltage due to resistance but there should be some reading (12V or more) the same way as in the harness. If that checks out then there is definitely power going to the radio, and your radio is probably toast... or not. I cant really diagnose any further as anything else I say would be a blind assumption.
Hope that helps.
Now to make sure theres power going to the radio, you definitely need a multimeter or voltmeter. There is one in autozone for like 15 bucks. Worth the investment.
Lets start testing the harness. This is what it looks like
A-Harness Wire Color Guide
A1 pink with blue stripe and silver dots
A2 green (thick)
A3 gray
A4 blue with yellow stripe
A5 yellow
A6 blue
A7 red
A8 pink with green stripe
A9 white with green stripe
A10 no wire
A11 brown (thick)
A12 black
A13 green (thin)
A14 white
A15 brown (thin)
A1 pink with blue stripe and silver dots
A2 green (thick)
A3 gray
A4 blue with yellow stripe
A5 yellow
A6 blue
A7 red
A8 pink with green stripe
A9 white with green stripe
A10 no wire
A11 brown (thick)
A12 black
A13 green (thin)
A14 white
A15 brown (thin)
Set the multimeter to 9V battery mode and place (or tape) the ground probe on the grounding point I mentioned before (the screw). With the positive probe test the following:
Pin A3 should read 13V ~14V while car is on or in ACC mode, 0V while off
Pin A4 should read 13V~14V whether car is on or completely off.
If that checks out then there is power going to the radio from the harness.
Next test the board you showed in that pic, try to trace where do Pins A3 and A4 are mapped on the end of the connector and test the same way. There will probably be less voltage due to resistance but there should be some reading (12V or more) the same way as in the harness. If that checks out then there is definitely power going to the radio, and your radio is probably toast... or not. I cant really diagnose any further as anything else I say would be a blind assumption.
Hope that helps.
Last edited by Kalogerus; Mar 26, 2012 at 01:23 AM.
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Thread Starter
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From: California
Problem Solved!
ok so i dont know what exactly it was that was the problem, but the first thing i did was disconnect the harness connector, and put it back. and then i looked at one of the wires i soldered and it turns out one of them was touching the circuit board so i relocated it and my stereo successfully powers on.
the only problem now is the lcd backlight still isnt working...
ok so i dont know what exactly it was that was the problem, but the first thing i did was disconnect the harness connector, and put it back. and then i looked at one of the wires i soldered and it turns out one of them was touching the circuit board so i relocated it and my stereo successfully powers on.
the only problem now is the lcd backlight still isnt working...
They could be, I remember with the cluster simply twisting the bulb would burn em out. It only takes one of the hairline thin wires to move and its no good. Mind its 15+ years old.
Test them using the battery and 2 wires. If they light up theres a problem with the power reaching them.
Test them using the battery and 2 wires. If they light up theres a problem with the power reaching them.
Any 2 electrical wires long enough to connect the metal wire on the bulb base to either of the battery terminals.
Basically touch one wire to one metal wire on the bulb base, the other wire on the other metal wire and touch the other ends of the electrical wires to the + terminal and - terminal of the battery and see if it lights up. Electrical wires act as an extension to the bulb. Hopefully its just a bulb.
Basically touch one wire to one metal wire on the bulb base, the other wire on the other metal wire and touch the other ends of the electrical wires to the + terminal and - terminal of the battery and see if it lights up. Electrical wires act as an extension to the bulb. Hopefully its just a bulb.