CD player works only on battery power - auto eject with car running

[esachs]

Hi Everybody,

I'm new to the vibe life and to this forum. Was very glad to stumble upon you all as an amazing resource.

Here's the deal: I have a 2005 with single CD player and subwoofer / sunroof. The factory head unit works fine under battery power, but when I turn the engine on, only the radio works. With the engine running, it just ejects CD's all day. On Battery, it plays perfectly.

I also noticed, when trying out an aftermarket head unit that came with the car, that there was some static constantly present through the speakers when the unit was on, no matter if fm, aux, or cd.

I should add that there is an aftermarket remote start installed, and I'm wondering if that messed up something in the ignition switch? or might I be dealing with a bad ground somewhere?

any ideas or help would be appreciated for my radio woes.

thanks,
-evan

[zbyers]

I am of no help when it comes to radio (and wiring in general) issues. Just wanted to say welcome to the best group on the internet! Someone else with more knowledge should chime in with some info.

[Bookworm]

Honestly, it sounds like you have poor power. The CD drive, because of the motor, requires clean power.

I'd be checking the ground wires, including the main connections in the engine compartment. Do you notice lights dimming excessively, or pulsing? (if they're LED, pulsing usually means the power supply is failing, so only the incandescent bulbs, please). As the CD player is an electronic ejection, if the alternator 'pulses' the power lead, it may see that as the eject signal.

Edit - the battery, by definition, would give out steady DC current - so no pulsing possible. You may simply have a failing alternator. You could get just about any auto parts place to check it for you.

[esachs]

There does not appear to be any light dimming or pulsing at all.

For checking the ground wires, where are the ones I should check out in the dash and engine compartment? And how do I go about checking them? looking for loose connection or doing some sort of multimeter test?

[Bookworm]

Looking for rust, more than anything else. As to which ones, I'd have to go looking; I haven't had to get into that part of the car in a long time.

If you have a sensitive multimeter, you can start the car and put the meter on the battery terminals. At a steady idle, the voltage should stay within 1 tenth of a volt. If it's moving up and down, that's an issue.

Static through the system with the radio off... that's harder to say. that's a LOT of induction to come from another system - but the radio/amp is always powered when the car is turned on, even when it's "off".

[Caretaker]

Figured I'd tack on a question to this thread:

For the past two days, my radio display has gone haywire. I think Carol Ann is inside. I also think the Florida sun is overheating the unit as my car sits outside all day long with just a windshield sunscreen to block out the rays. The display flashes weird symbols, blinks in and out, and often lights up with unreadable characters over the whole screen. While the screen is busy freaking out, I cannot change any stations with the buttons. Once I have the AC on for a few minutes, it returns to normal and all is well. Both times this has happened at around 5pm. I would add that the car is not blistering hot as I do have the windows cracked and the sun shade up. Is the radio dying or is it simply the electronics inside overheating?

[Bookworm]

The answer is mostly yes.

It sounds like you have a connector that's gone marginal. Depending on the age of the car, it could be ROHS, which causes shattering solder joints. Otherwise, it could be a wire or connector that's loose.

I wouldn't put a lot of time or effort into troubleshooting it; spend that time and effort making a small amount of money and just buy an aftermarket radio with adapter kit from JC Whitney

[tpollauf]

I also think the Florida sun is overheating the unit as my car sits outside all day long

This is definitely a heat related issue. With the main radio display being a solid "liquid crystal display" (LCD) these displays are susceptible to extreme temperatures to where they will not properly work. Case in point, where I witnessed years ago when my car was outdoors at -20'f and the radio display (non Vibe radio at the time) would barely light up due to the extreme cold. It's also possible that at the other end of the spectrum, as in your case, where the extreme heat is affecting display performance. Id say it is normal for said environment

[Bookworm]

It's not the display itself. If it were a display problem, then the OP would be able to change stations, and use the volume control. Instead, it's a mainboard issue. (or connector between the main board and the front board)