Time for a new RADIO?

[Black_V6]

tiday when i went to turn on my car, everything starts up...i am listening to the music, then i look down to change the station. Then i notice that ALL my lights on my radio are out, and the buttons DON"T work!? is the damn thing dead?

i have a KENWOOD EXcelon, 809....the radio still flips and plays music, you just can't change station, or use ANY of the buttons...lol

Thanks GUYS!

[hockeyman]

I had a Sony CD Unit in my car with a flip-down face and it did the same thing with all the graphics going blank and the buttons wouldn't work. I figured out what was causing it after about a day or so. The electrical connections on the back got dirty over time so I cleaned them with Electrical Parts Cleaner found in most parts stores. I sprayed some onto a cloth and wiped the connectors down, the buttons and graphics worked great after that. Also, check to see if the connectors are making a good connection, sometimes they become stuck and over time they wear down a little, especially while your driving and hitting bumps. Just run you finger (lightly) over the connectors, you should notice/feel the bad one that isn't making a good connection.
-Marc

[ChameleonGreen]

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by hockeyman:
I had a Sony CD Unit in my car with a flip-down face and it did the same thing with all the graphics going blank and the buttons wouldn't work. I figured out what was causing it after about a day or so. The electrical connections on the back got dirty over time so I cleaned them with Electrical Parts Cleaner found in most parts stores. I sprayed some onto a cloth and wiped the connectors down, the buttons and graphics worked great after that. Also, check to see if the connectors are making a good connection, sometimes they become stuck and over time they wear down a little, especially while your driving and hitting bumps. Just run you finger (lightly) over the connectors, you should notice/feel the bad one that isn't making a good connection.
-Marc<hr></blockquote>

Yeah, what he said. The same thing happens to my Sony as well.

[Black_V6]

so i need to pull out my radio 1st, then check the wires that connect to it?


thanks i'll try it tonight!

Thanks again guys!

[Backfire]

I think what they were saying is look at the contants between the face plate and the head unit itself, not the wiring to the car. Since the radio is still playing properly, it probably isn't the wiring on the back of the player. Since both lighting and buttons are non-responsive, the suggestions above sound pretty likely. If you don't have a detachable face, then you may have some more difficult issues to fix, as those connections will be internal to the head unit.

[Black_V6]

OK, now i am confused. the radio is not a detachable face. i thought you were talking about the connections from the player to the car?! If anyone can clear this up, please do. I REALLY don't wanna have to pull the dash off!


thanks for EVERYTHING guys!

[hockeyman]

If your radio deosn't have a detachable face, it sounds like your problem is inside the radio itself. I would give you hints, but I know nothing about electronics. You'll probably save more money by getting a new radio then if you were to fix the one you have now. Oh, and pulling the dash apart isn't that hard of a project. The only problem I have is getting to that hex screw at the bottom on the glove box side. I hate that damn screw!!
-Marc

[Backfire]

The reason I don't think it is the rear wire harness is because a problem back there would result in poor playback/performance. If a power wire is loose for example, the radio would shut off randomly. Or a loose speaker wire would cause a speaker to go silent. But since playback is fine and it is just the face that is having problems I would guess that some internal connection is the problem. Probably not something you can fix yourself :(