Desperate need of help with radio.

[z411811]

So my friend has a 99 ranger and was having trouble installing his new radio. I have done a couple so I decided to go over and help. When I got there I discovered he had cut off the factory radio plug and tried to splice those wires to the new radio harness. I have heard this works but is way harder. All he ended up getting was a blown fuse and cut wires.

So we go get the harness from an audio shop and I set to work reconnecting all the factory wires back to the plug. I set up the harness and everything seems good. But the new radio refuses to turn. I try a number of things (check wires, connections, make sure the cut area is flawless) and still nothing. Im searching all over the internet, thats how I found these forums, and come up with nothing. So we try to put the factory radio back in and It will not turn on either. You can push the clock button and it lights up, and eject cds and such, but nothing a real radio would do. I tested his new radio in my truck and it works fine, but neither work in his.

I cant figure out why it would display the time but not actually start up the radio. And how the factory radio worked and now It is broken. Do you think he should buy a new factory harness and try splicing that on instead of the old one? Or is it something to do with a signal not being sent to turn on the actual radio? Or maybe he shorted the wires and ruined them? Or could it just be the ground on the new radio that wont let it start up? I didn't ground it to anything on the body, just spliced it into the harness. I tried for nearly 8 hours doing various things but could not get anything to work. Please any insight is much appreciated. I feel like my head is going to explode.

 

[martin]

There should be two 12v feed lines to the radio, one constant and the other that comes on with the ignition. Sounds like you lost one of them.

 

[z411811]

There should be two 12v feed lines to the radio, one constant and the other that comes on with the ignition. Sounds like you lost one of them.

I couln't have lost one because they are all reconnected, there isn't a wire missing.

 

[MPRanger]

Be sure to check all the fuses in the truck. There is a fuse that operates the switched power for the radio. If he cut the wires all at once the constant probably back fed and blew that fuse.

As far as the new harness goes it won't help.

 

[adsm08]

I just dealt with something similar on an F-250. Do the power windows still work?

The windows and radio get power off the accessory delay relay. It gets fused power from the interior block. If it looses power the windows and radio quit but the factory radio will act exactly as you describe.

 

[MPRanger]

I just dealt with something similar on an F-250. Do the power windows still work?

The windows and radio get power off the accessory delay relay. It gets fused power from the interior block. If it looses power the windows and radio quit but the factory radio will act exactly as you describe.

Thanks adsm. I couldn't remember which block it was in.

 

[z411811]

There was one blown fuse that I found. Are you saying maybe this relay thing might have a blown fuse too? I checked the one that had the word radio in it and that was the one. Ill tell him to go through all of the fuses and see.

 

[MPRanger]

There was one blown fuse that I found. Are you saying maybe this relay thing might have a blown fuse too? I checked the one that had the word radio in it and that was the one. Ill tell him to go through all of the fuses and see.

There will be one for the constant power and one for the switched power. If the radio time will work but it won't actually turn on then he'll need to track that fuse down. Like adsm said it is in the interior fuse block.

They are listed in the owners manual.

 

[z411811]

The interior fuse block is the grouping of fuses on the left side of the truck under a plastic piece? Because we already replaced one from there and double checked all of them.

 

[MPRanger]

The interior fuse block is the grouping of fuses on the left side of the truck under a plastic piece? Because we already replaced one from there and double checked all of them.

I'm not sure which left you're referring to but it's in the passenger side kick panel. The fuses are #6 and 22 I think.