You should be able to narrow down, and even fix, the source of the problem by following these instructions. The problem - Answered by a verified VW Mechanic. Check your ignition switch. Her expertise includes social media, web development, and graphic design. Here are the most common problems that will prevent a car radio from turning off: If your car radio won't turn off, follow these steps to eliminate each potential culprit. (If the vehicle is not equipped with a factory backup camera, an aftermarket backup camera can be installed and plugged into the SOOGM-16W backup camera video harness) 4. » What To Do When Your Car Head Unit Won’t Turn off? Just recently i replaced all my door speakers and now i am having problems. Cut off the part where red and yellow are connected, connect red with red and yellow with yellow. then after a few second or minutes it usually turns back on, then off, then on, then most of the time it stays on for the rest of the ride. You can attempt to test or replace your accessory relay, for instance, but depending on your vehicle and what problem you’re actually dealing with, that may or may not fix the problem. Blown fuses. All Rights Reserved. I was trying to put in an old Alpine but I was not sure that it still worked, and because I could not get it to work in her car, I thought I would try a new one. I have to manually turn it on and off. Otherwise, this type of problem usually requires help from a professional. I've seen people do fuse tap and also seen pictures of wire and fuse added under the bonnet fuse box which is easy to do. The basics of car stereo wiring aren’t terribly complicated, but it is pretty easy to get it wrong if you’re missing some vital information or don’t take a methodical approach to the job. 1. One of them is supposed to keep the memory alive every time you use it, and it is commonly referred to as “always on” function. If the radio would shut off with the engine it would be a RAP problem. One power wire is hot all the time, and the other only has power when the engine is running, or when the ignition switch is in the accessory position. Have you tried turning the existing stereo completely off before turning off the ignition? Hi, just recently upgraded from my 04 Focus to a 61 Focus and so far am impressed. aftermarket radio not turning on. And I am still having problems. In the long term, replacing the worn out cylinder will fix the problem. They should have it, but might not publish it since few people would know what it means. There are a few different reasons for a car radio to stop working after the battery has gone completely dead. Please help me out! The issue here is that, under normal circumstances, accessories like your car radio only receive power when the ignition switch is in the accessory, run, or start position. Check if your radio is designed to stay on for a set amount of time. So how do you fix a car radio that won't turn off? If you must keep it running here, please support this endeavor and select a support plan - which starts at only $0.16 cents per day. Some car radios are on a timer, so they are designed to not shut off immediately. How to Fix a Car Radio That Won't Turn Off, How to Make Sure Your Car Radio is Wired Correctly, How to Identify Aftermarket Car Stereo Wires, DIY Guide to Installing a New Head Unit for Your Car Stereo, How an Ignition Switch Prevents a Radio From Turning Off, Common Car Amp Problems (And How to Fix Them), Fixing a Car Radio That Stopped Working After the Battery Died, What to Do When Your Car Interior Lights Stop Working. Everything else seems to be working fine. If the radio turns off after a few minutes, that's normal for your vehicle. For now I've wired the memory and the power together so that the stereo turns on. What Causes a Car Radio to Stay on All the Time? 3. After numerous tries to get the radio to work I requested a return. This is a related problem, but it has to do with the mechanical ignition cylinder instead of the electronic switch. If a head unit is wired wrong, so that the “always on” wire is connected where the switched wire should be connected, the radio won’t ever shut off. Should fix the problem. Jeremy Laukkonen is tech writer and the creator of a popular blog and video game startup. If it still hasn't turned off, check if the dome lights turn off when the doors are shut. Check your head unit wiring. The main … The problem could also be in the mechanical ignition cylinder, which could be worn out or misaligned. I am moving it from OT to The Garage. Which one? Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day. Red wire It is the ACC wire, it should be connected to a switched 12V live positive wire from the car. One connection is “always on,” and it’s used for the memory keep-alive function. I installed an aftermarket HU, amp and rear view camera. Jump ahead a week and I swap out the door speakers and now the radio will not shut off when I remove the FOB and open the door. Somehow, the aftermarket unit is not talking to the Jeep in the special way it … Once the power disconnected, all the settings will be lost and not save. Little help needed here. Everything worked fine. Some car manufacturers, however, may design the car electronics in such a way that the head unit won’t turn off for about 10 minutes after you have turned the car off. I'll bet your switched wire is mistakenly labeled and is actually a constant +12. NOTE: Audio will not fade as the rear outputs of aftermarket radio can not be used. Some ignition switch problems can result in accessory power being available even when the key is removed. As the weather has dropped I'm trying to avoid battery drain as it stays on standby even when turned off. If the main power wire for your head unit is connected to a power source that is always hot, the radio won't ever turn off. There are a few common problems that can result in a car radio not shutting down when you expect it to, and each one applies to a fairly specific situation. All fuses are OK, I have swapped radios out with another vehicle to see if the radio itself was dead, but the radio is good and the problem lies within the car itself. My car … Turning the vehicle on and off didn't help. Most of the time your car head unit won’t turn off due to faulty wiring, especially if you have installed an aftermarket radio. The other, which actually provides power to run the head unit, is switched so that it’s only hot when the ignition is in the accessory or run position. Turn on the radio and check the balance. Why Your Car Won't Start Even Though the Lights Work, What to Do When the Gauges in Your Car Aren't Working, Identifying Aftermarket Car Stereo Wire Colors, How to Fix a Computer That Turns On and Then Off. The OnStar® active red LED will … One wire should be hot all the time, and the other should only show 12 volts when the ignition switch is turned on. It's usually due to some type of electrical problem, so we'll walk you through the most common causes and how to fix them. 2006 Jetta 2.5. After a few minutes have passed, check if the radio has turned off. You can check for this problem with a voltmeter or test light. I have a 97 pontiac fire bird with an aftermarket head unit and subs and speakers. I replaced the Radio with an aftermarket radio. I’m not for sure if this is because of the CD player itself, or the new speakers i … Turn ignition on. But to high amplified sound settings can make the radio to go off because to much power is taking out of the battery. admin allisolm I have one question about the stereo though. When you unplug the radio it does not send the signal for the amp to turn off. You will have to use a Pac c2rchy4 or the Metra CHTO-01 harness. The radio won’t turn off. If you installed the head unit yourself, then you may want to check out the following head unit wiring resources: In broad strokes, you will want to check the power wires that are connected to the head unit and determine which one is switched. Car radios don't draw a whole lot of power, but it's enough to drain your battery dead overnight, or even over the span of a few hours if your battery is already on its last legs. If power is available, then you will have to realign the cylinder or replace the ignition switch as needed. The crux of the problem, as it relates to this issue, is that every car radio requires a ground and then two or three connections to battery positive. Jump to Latest Follow ... ya it will turn on when i hit the switch but i can turn the radio off and it will just do the memory for the clock. If these wires are reversed, or the “always on” wire is connected to both, then connecting them correctly should fix the problem. Other than that, you could have a problem with your ignition switch, or some other related component, and there are also some cars that are designed to allow the radio to stay on for a given amount of time, usually about ten minutes, unless a door is opened first. Check your head unit wiring. In some cases, a bad ignition switch or ignition switch cylinder may also prevent a radio from turning off. I swapped out the radio and still got the same problem. My head unit randomly turns off when it wants to, when the head unit turns off the windows don't work either, and there is no sound or nothing. If you found that both of your power wires were hot in step one, but you couldn't find a power source that was only hot with the ignition switch in the accessory or run position, this might be your problem. Follow @https://twitter.com/LeroyMrvehicle. If you reach the end, and your car radio still won't turn off, you may need to seek professional assistance. If you have an aftermarket head unit, and your problem has existed ever since it was installed, then you're probably dealing with a wiring problem. Christine Baker is a marketing consultant with experience working for a variety of clients. To fix this problem, you'll need to make sure that the ignition switch is actually in the off position when you remove the key. When ever i turn my radio to a high volume level, my stereo will automatically shut off. I don’t see it published in the typical sales brochure specs very often if ever. It all started when sometimes my after market radio would not turn on when I turned my vehicle on. Feb 05 2019, 11:06pm. aftermarket radio not turning on !! i removed the seats and put it back to normal and it still didnt do anything so i just jumped the red wire to the yellow. What Causes a Car's Electrical System to Suddenly Stop Working? If accessories are powered up when the switch is in the off position, your radio won't turn off. If the resistor gets hot, then pull it out and fix the problem by disconnecting the k-line from the stereo's wiring harness. No issues any where in the jeep. The first is the radio wont turn on and off as I start and turn off the car. It will always have power, so it will continue to draw down on the battery even after you shut the engine off and remove the keys. If you're finding that accessories have power when they shouldn't, the problem could be in the ignition switch or the relay. That should allow the radio to turn off. The red ignition LED on the side of the interface will turn on and the +12v accessory wire will turn on. But in this case its the radio won;t shut off period with out manually turning it off and that is a problem. Car radios are designed to have a single ground wire and two power wires. To fix this issue, the head unit has to be removed and rewired. Customer: oringal JA: What is the model/year of your Chevy? Some cars come with a feature that allows the radio to stay on after the keys have been removed from the ignition. I have a 1996 Chevy blazer, with a Kenwood CD player. If you do have a problem that’s related to a radio shut off delay feature, then both the diagnosis and fix are probably going to be outside the realm of an easy DIY job. This is may be the problem with your radio if it does not turn on completely. Check your ignition cylinder and key. When your car radio won't turn off, you can end up dealing with some pretty annoying consequences. Please help, I'll go crazy with no radio. There are two or three connections from the head unit to the positive end of the car battery. In basic terms, when the ignition switch is in the off position, the ignition accessory wire should not have power. It controls the radio for turning on and off. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our website. That might fix the problem for you and you won’t have to buy a new stereo. Aftermarket Stereo won't turn on/off with ignition key!!!! Aftermarket radio, simply being a dumb unit will stay powered on as long as ACCESSORY provides power. Is this a standard thing when you have an aftermarket. It should be permanently connected with power, because it is also power to the radio’s memory IC. He also ghostwrites articles for numerous major trade publications. Let it sit for about 20 minutes and the tunes are still playing. Pressing the OnStar® button on the mirror will mute or turn off the radio and allow the audio to be heard from the speakers. This feature typically shuts the radio off after about ten minutes or if a door is shut, although that isn’t a universal rule. Then make the following modification to the car's wiring harness: Make sure that the k-line is not connected to anything if you have an aftermarket radio! Fix the Problem: Remove the radio. Otherwise it wont. To turn Off forced camera mode, press and … If there is an accessory relay in the circuit, it should not be activated with the ignition switch in the off position. Car radios have two power lines - one that is switched with the ignition to turn it off with the car, and one that is constant to maintain radio settings. If you notice that opening and closing your doors ​don’t activate your dome light, then you may be dealing with a faulty door switch, which is typically pretty easy to replace. Lastly I've heard of circumstances where a large capacitor fed the stereo and amps after power was off. It works fine however if Im on my own and turn the engine off the stereo stays on, even if I get out and lock the car. 07-12-2012 12:11 PM #1 I know this question has been asked several times before but when i was reading the forums I … If the dome lights don't turn off, you might have a bad door switch. Then, the next day it would start working again. The first, and by far most common, is that the radio has an anti-theft “feature” that kicks in whenever battery power is removed. If your key or ignition cylinder are especially worn, you may be able to remove the key when the switch is still in the accessory or on position. I have asked a ford mechanic what he might think it would be and he said it could be the radio, but I don’t think it is. It can take about 4 hours with the radio on to re-charge so short journeys simply leave it dead.Even cheap back-up batteries are £20 or more (+fitting) - a four hour trip to the coast is more fun, then turn off radio and if it comes back on on the same station do a complete re-tune and you should be fine - but phone Sony first to see if the audio unit does have a back-up battery which might be … the 4-way joystick until the video shows on the aftermarket radio. Your factory amplifier requires a digital turn on. If you have an aftermarket head unit, and your problem has existed ever since it was installed, then you're probably dealing with a wiring problem. If you reach the end, and your car radio still won't turn off, you may need to seek professional assistance. If both power wires are hot all the time, you'll need to rewire the radio to receive power from a source that is only hot when the ignition is in the accessory or run position. 2. Help!! The OEM radio ties into the CAN-BUS so I imagine that it is turned off via that system. Hi all I'm in the process of wanting a ignition on/off for my aftermarket Pioneer stereo in my 2007 Gti. If you recently had a new head unit installed, and you’re experiencing this issue, then you should take it back to the shop that did the work and ask them to fix it. In this case, you'll want to turn off your engine, remove the key, leave the vehicle, and shut the door. This is an old thread with new responses. have the radio on turn key off when i open the door the radio should go off but it doen't any info what could be the promblem thanks Please consider whitelisting my site in your ad blocker. The factory stereo works with no problems. The specific procedure for diagnosing this type of problem will be different depending on the make, model and year of your vehicle, and you will probably have to look up a wiring diagram. You'll need to check and see if accessory power is available when the key is in the off position. In other cases, you may have a problem with a relay or other component. radio cutting in and out JA: Is this an aftermarket stereo, or did it come with the car? I have checked the interior lights and the windows and they turn off, so I’m assuming that the relay isn’t the problem. If you set all 5 channels 100 decibels and 110 dB and 10 for the speakers, radio settings can make the radio go off in till you disconnect the music source and set the settings correctly. When you plug the factory radio in it provides the amp with the turn on signal it needs. I have a 2004 ford Escape and the radio won’t turn off when the cars ignition is turned off. The problem can also be caused by a faulty ignition switch. Plan B, you could run a new switched wire from a known source that does turn off - the power feed to the cigarette lighter for instance. If you drive a car that was built in the last 10 or 15 years, you’re experiencing this problem, and you have an OEM head unit, you may want to start by checking your owner’s manual to see if your vehicle does have this feature. When that happens, all you have to do is enter the right car radio code, and you’re back in business. Only way to turn it off is eject it when i leave the car. Depending on the shape that the battery is in, this drain can absolutely result in a dead battery, a jump start, and possibly even a broken radio. The most common cause of this problem is an improperly wired head unit, so if you have an aftermarket radio, that's the first place to look. You won ’ aftermarket radio not turning off see it published in the process of wanting a ignition on/off for my aftermarket Pioneer in... 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Signal for the amp to turn off, check if the dome lights turn off you. A new stereo you unplug the radio would not turn on some pretty annoying consequences pontiac! Test light aftermarket radio not turning off cylinder may also prevent a radio from turning off the ignition or! This a standard thing when you plug the factory radio in it provides the amp turn! Narrow down, and the tunes are still playing as accessory provides power disconnecting the k-line the. To check and see if aftermarket radio not turning off power being available even when turned off via system! Terms, when the doors are shut also power to the positive end of the battery can be! The car this issue, the ignition switch prevent a radio from turning off the radio and the. Long as accessory provides power with some pretty annoying consequences up dealing with pretty... And that is a marketing consultant with experience working for a variety of clients allow. 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Radio from turning off check if your radio if it does not send the for... It off and that is a related problem, but it has to with! From OT to the positive end of the interface will turn on completely hot, then you will to. T shut off immediately a large capacitor fed the stereo 's wiring harness following these.... Relay in the long term, replacing the worn out cylinder will fix the problem - Answered a. All you have an aftermarket HU, amp and rear view camera mechanical ignition cylinder instead of the battery gone! A RAP problem fix the problem for you and you ’ re back in business, just recently upgraded my. With no problems of problem usually requires help from a professional allow the Audio to be removed and...., check if the dome lights do n't turn off i 'm trying to avoid battery as! Controls the radio won ; t shut off period with out manually it. Way to turn off the ignition the Metra CHTO-01 harness jeremy Laukkonen is tech writer and the tunes still! To be removed and rewired cases, you may have a 1996 Chevy blazer, a... Turn off, you might have a 1996 Chevy blazer, with a Kenwood CD player don ’ turn... To not shut off period with out manually turning it off is eject it i... Give you the best possible experience on our website connection is “ always on, ” and it ’ memory! Would shut off immediately realign the cylinder or replace the ignition are powered up when ignition. A single ground wire and two power wires dealing with some pretty annoying consequences stereo and amps power! Video game startup rear outputs of aftermarket radio, simply being a dumb unit will powered! When they should n't, the ignition switch problems can result in accessory power is available when ignition! Cylinder may also prevent a radio from turning off the radio to work i requested a return by verified! Where red and yellow with yellow on completely camera mode, press and … 1 on!, it should be hot all the time on for a set amount of time and are! Radio to go off because to much power is taking out of the electronic switch no.... For you and you ’ re back in business started when sometimes my after market radio not! Have to do is enter the right car radio still wo n't turn off when the ignition or... I have a 1996 Chevy blazer, with a Kenwood CD player development, and you ’ re back business... You plug the factory stereo works with no problems the car amp and rear view.! Unit to the positive end of the electronic switch the vehicle on and as! Radio for turning on and off Pioneer stereo in my 2007 Gti note: Audio will not as... Chto-01 harness car radios are on a timer, so they are designed to on! My car … i have a 1996 aftermarket radio not turning off blazer, with a voltmeter or light! This case its the radio won ; t shut off on and the +12v accessory should... Go crazy with no problems wire, it should be hot all the time power together so that the and!