Terran

iTrader: (6)

Here's the problem: For awhile now the headunit and clock would just turn off while I was driving. Sometimes if I turned the car off then on again it would work again or sometimes I'd just have to drive home without it and then if it was left for awhile it would always work the next time. It was quite seldom so it didn't really bother me too much. Today while I was out playing with my new sirius PNP (I love it BTW) it happened once and I turned the car off then on and it worked, but t happened again..both times it happened over pretty harsh bumps which I hadn't noticed before. I tried turning the car off/on and it didn't work. I tried this a couple more times after driving a bit further and still nothing. So know I want to fix this.

Here's what I've done: I took the whole middle dash (storage pockets, HU, clock etc...you know the drill) apart. I've found an "Audiovox FM modulator." It appears to be made to allow a CD changer (which I have found the wire for in the trunk in the past so I know the last owner had one) to be plugged into the HU's antenna plug.

Here's the modulators wiring: It has a wire that goes towards the stearing column (or maybe the fuse box...probably just some switched power source), a ground. It also has one that is tapped into to the stock pink (w/ silver rings) by cutting and stripping the pink then sticking all three wires into a crimped thing (don't know what to call it). The pink wire goes to a yellow which says "batt/memory" and another yellow on the pioneer wiring harness which the packaging (yes I actually kept the packaging) says is the same thing. There is also a wire that is attached to the stock blue (silver tracer) in the same fashion then to white which says "left ft speaker +" and another white on the pioneer harness that says the same.

This is the only hack job I see in there, so I'm guessing this is probably it (specifically the pink wire) as "batt/memory" would seem to be what carries power to the HU. What I don't get is why this would effect he clock.

I have plugged the clock and HU back in since playing around in there and they do work, so this would seem to verify that this is the problem.

Do you think that this is my problem?

Also I think I'll rip out the audiovox thing as I have no use for a CD changer(anybody want to buy a used FM modulator ?), but how do I reattach the pink and the blue wires? I don't feel too comfortable soldering (especially on my car), but I do have a crimper and some of those crimp things (whatever they are really called). Would this be alright? Anything else I should do to make it work better?

Cliff notes: My clock and HU turn off sometimes. I've found something attached to the "batt/memory" and "left ft speaker +" wires by cutting them and sticking all three into a crimp thing (or whatever they're called). Is this the problem? How do I fix it?

Thanks alot!!!

Terran

iTrader: (6)

I went ahead and took out the modulator.

The blue wires seemed like they were crimped in there pretty good so I left them. It's only the for the speaker anyway, it should still work even if that's disconnected.

To get the crimp thing on I had to take off some electrical tape that was holding all the wires in a bunch right where the go into one of the plugs. Underneath I found that the pink wires insulation has a hole in it (I have no idea why), but the wires themselves are still intact.

I tried to see if it was working anyway, and it did. I even tried wiggling the wires around to make sure it was a good connection. This doesn't mean that was necessarily the problem because it had been working before too after I'd been playing around in there, but hadn't actually done anything.

I went inside to get some electrical tape and I taped the wires back into a bunch and then it wouldn't work. I then untaped the bunch and now only the pink wire is taped (over where its insulation is missing. It's still not working and it's dark now so I'll be driving to work without a radio tomarrow.

Any ideas?

Edit: I just though of another thing...I may have connected the wires incorrectly. With those crimp connectors, do the wires have to be touching. Can the electricity travel through the metal casing on those or is that only meant to be what holds them together?

2 Da Max

iTrader: (2)

uhm what head unit do you have?

2 Da Max

iTrader: (2)

i dont know but, the illumination wire is connected to itself on my adapter.

Terran

iTrader: (6)

Um, that didn't make a whole lot of sense but thanks for the bump.

I have a pioneer DEH-2300. I really don't think it's the HU because it used to do this when I had my stock deck in and went away for awhile when I replaced it...but its back now.

I really think I may have just made a bad crimp connection. Does anybody know if the wires are supposed to overlap in the connector or will the electricity travel through the conector?

2 Da Max

iTrader: (2)

once the connection on the wires are touching each other it should be good. if its a bad crimp job why dont you strip it and do it over?

Terran

iTrader: (6)

I plan to. It's dark out now though.

Terran

iTrader: (6)

Just wanted to give an update. One of the mechanics at work helped me out with it today. Using a test light we found that the HU power wire has no power. The fuse is fine. We checked the back of the fuse box and the wire we think is the HU power wire (though we're not certain) has no power there either. Currently we are using an unused power wire, but it is hot all the time, so the HU does not need the key in to work (which I kind of like) and needs to be turned off so it doesn't drain the battery. I'm going to test drive it for awhile and see how I like it. If I find that I can't remember to turn it off (which seems unlikely since it's blairing music at me) then we'll have to find an unused switched source. For now I'm happy though...I got the tunes back.