Radio will not turn on

[molocono]

I have a '04 SR5 V6 with the basic stereo and I just followed this guy's instructions to remove my head unit:

http://www.castulucci.com/projects/carpc/oemnaviaccess/

...in order to install my Blitzsafe. I finally did, but my radio will not turn on now. Everything else works: hazard light, rear window control, middle display, etc. Right now I'm putting everything back together, so I'm wondering if I need to finish in order for the radio to turn on again. I know I didn't disconnect anything (or did I?).

When I pulled out the radio, I plugged in the Blitzsafe into the empty port on the back? Did I do that right or was something else supposed to go there? Do I need another power source?

 

[rando]

So all you did was plug int he Blitzsafe? What happens if you unplug it ... does the radio work again? Also, did you check ALL your fuses (under the dash and under the hood)?

 

[molocono]

Yeah, pretty much just pulled out the head unit and plugged in the Blitzsafe. Tried to turn on the radio and it didn't. If I unplug the Blitzsafe it still doesn't turn on. Before pulling out the unit (but after dismantling everything else) I drove the car to my local tool shop, so I dunno if that can be an issue.

I just checked ALL the fuses and they are fine. Our engineer at the station used his voltage reader and they are fine. Also checked the wires that plug into the unit. Two of them give a reading, but they are the smaller wires which our engineer says might be for the display and memory. The bigger wires (more specifically the RED and BLACK wires) do not give a reading.

I'm thinking two things:

1) Something got unplugged when I pulled out the unit or drove the vehicle, so no voltage is reaching the unit.

2) The radio itself blew out.

Does anyone know if the radio has a reset button or some kinda anti-theft thing that I should know about?

 

[sharp4runr]

Umm, try disconnecting the battery terminal for a few minutes? Maybe it's like a Windows product and needs to be rebooted? :

July

 

[molocono]

I was told in another forum that everything needs to be put back together in order for the radio to turn on. Could anyone tell me how this works? Are there sensors in there or does something need to be connected?

 

[rando]

Everything? You mean the trim pieces? If that's what you mean, then the answer is no. The radio will work as long as you have the power hooked up to it. Also, there should be a +12V (always on) wire going into the radio as well as one that comes on only when the ignition is switchedn. If you're not getting those, then you definitely have a problem ... blown fuse is most likely. Did you plug and unplug the cables with battery still hooked up? It's quite likely that you'd blow a fuse in that case.

The gray wire on pin 3 of the 10 pin connector (R2) is the switched accessory wire. It should come one when the key is switched to on or acc. Power for it flows through the ACC Cut relay and the 7.5A ACC fuse. If you don't get this voltage at the radio then you need to trace it back to the point that it fails.

The blue with yellow strip wire on pin 4 is the battery connection. It should read ~12V at all times. It's power flows through the 20A radio fuse.

There are other fuses up stream of these circuits but since everything else is working, it's unlikely those are an issue. All the connectors on the back of the 6 speaker radio are unique so it's impossible to hook it up wrong. It is possible that the blitzsafe adapter is incompatible ... I have no idea about that. Give your radio a good sniff. Can you smell any burned components? Also, take a look closely at the connections on the back of the radio. Are any pins bent? Look closely too at the connectors on the harness. Have any pins slipped out (or slightly out)? This is quite common.

Finally, consider the advice from above. Pull the battery and let it sit for 10 minutes. Reinstall the radio and then re-hook the battery. The radio does hook into the multiplex communications bus that runs throughout the truck. It's possible that it's somehow keyed and didn't like something that you did. (some sort of antitheft feature). Since you're the first to have this problem (and many have pulled their radios and even exchanged them for other Toyota/Scion units), I doubt this is the problem. But it's worth a try.

 

[molocono]

Thanks for the help. We checked all the fuses under the hood and the dash and they all seem to be fine. Unless I did something wrong, but I was with a person that knew what he was doing. Hmmmm, I'm getting worried now. I'm gonna try the battery thing and also see if I disconnected something further inside. Is it hard to remove the glove box? The stereo wires go in that direction.

 

[rando]

No, it comes out quite easily though you have to contort it a bit, if I recall correctly. Unless you were messing around back there, there is no reason to look in that direction. Just get yourself a $10 multi-meter at Radio Shack or Pep Boys and check the two wires I mentioned. If those are good then it's almost certain that your radio is dead (or bent pins on the radio or loose pins on the connectors). If they aren't working, then you have a something else wrong in your truck (fuses, loose connections, bent pins on the radio, bad relay, etc).

 

[molocono]

I'm stupid, hear me roar...

Ok, so apparently I disconnected the unit's faceplate a little bit and it wasn't making contact with the pins on the deck. I just put on the faceplate right now and *viola* it works. So sorry for being such an ass. I'll try not to do it again. But I do appreciate your help. This board rules!

 

[rando]

Re: I'm stupid, hear me roar...

Ok, so apparently I disconnected the unit's faceplate a little bit and it wasn't making contact with the pins on the deck. I just put on the faceplate right now and *viola* it works. So sorry for being such an ass. I'll try not to do it again. But I do appreciate your help. This board rules!

DOH, you never mentioned that you took apart the radio itself!

 

[molocono]

So here are some before and after pics. Now I have to order my mount. Any suggestions on a specific brand?

 

[molocono]

Need to get a mount...!