Strange car radio symptoms

I've got a 2003 Camry SE, with the stock Radio/CD player, 6 speakers. A couple weeks ago we had some unusually warm weather for January (I'm in the chicago area.) For a couple days it got up as high as 50 degrees, and very humid. At that time, my radio appeared to go south. The sound was full of static and distortion.

Adjusting the balance setting, I discovered that the left channel was the problem. While the right channel was perfectly fine, the left channel would either cut out completely, or be so full of static and distortion that it was unusable. This was when the radio was playing; AM or FM. When I switched to the CD player, BOTH left and right channels worked fine.

This tells me that it wasn't the speakers, or the wiring, but that it was the Radio/CD player unit that was defective. Somehow the left channel - of the radio portion of the unit only - was defective.

When the weather returned to the typical cold, dry January weather, the problem disappeared. BOTH left and right channels worked fine, for both the radio and the CD player.

It was too much of a coincidence that the problem corresponded exactly with the weather. So I'm left with no other conclusion that the root cause of this problem was the unusually warm, humid weather in January. Has anyone ever known of this happening? Any insight you can provide would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Reply to
HL0105
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Circuit boards can flex with temperature changes, and if there's a tiny crack, the flexing will cause part of a circuit to open and close. This is why technicians will sometimes use a heat gun to force this to happen during the diagnostic process.

There could also be a dozen other reasons for the problem. Don't take it to the dealer, though. They'll just send the unit to an independent repair place and probably charge you double what the shop charges them, plus labor to take out and reinstall the unit. Check your yellow pages for places that fix these things, and remove the unit yourself if you can.

Reply to
JoeSpareBedroom

EVERY Toyota I have ever owned except one had to have the radio replaced! This usually happens under the warranty period, however.

I would pull the dash bezel and have a look at the connector, and make sure it is seated properly. This may resolve the issue.

If not, you'll have to return the radio for a service fee, approx $175. You may be able to find a local shop to replace it. Toyota uses United Radio, for this area somewhere in upstate NY. You can try contacting them and pick their brains, or ask them for a repair estimate. (NOTE: They don't repair them...really. They swap them for one they have already repaired, if they have one in stock..)

Or, replace it with an aftermarket unit. You can get a plug at the eveil Wal*Mart that lets you plug the new radio into the existing harness with very little trouble...

Reply to
Hachiroku

There is a thing in the radio industry called a antenna null. That's when you located between the original signal and a very strong reflected signal. It can knock out one or both channels and most times messes up the main radio signal. I would try other locations it the city our out on the highway for a true test. As you know it's always best to use a strong FM station.

I had a '94 Corolla that lost it's FM. I was worried as I wanted to sell the car with everything working. The FM was so weak it has to be the antenna. Not easy at all but I replaced it the FM was some better but not like it was months earlier. I also noticed the lamp in the radio occasionally would go dim then brighten again. I got to checking voltages to the radio. I decided to rotate the fuse with another of the same value. Say, how about that, the FM nearly blew me out of the car. I saw the owner a few years later and ask about the car and the radio. It's nearing 200,000 and said it all works just fine.

Reply to
rburt07

What you discribe is called multi-path. That's where the signal takes two or more paths to the antenna and results in out-of-phase signals arriving at the antenna that cancel each other.

An easy way to test the antenna is to switch the radio to AM. If AM works well, the problem isn't the antenna. FM will work with antenna problems (shorts or opens) that kill AM.

Jack N8BSR

Reply to
Retired VIP

This is the only intelligent answer to this whole thing.

Better yet, just replace it with an aftermarket deck... or if you really need a stock deck, pick one up from a wrecker.

Reply to
Matt Ion

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