Manntis

Went and got a new stereo installed in my GSL-SE today. The installer, contracted by Future Shop to put it in, didn't even know how to hook up the power antenna!

Here's the problem: Driving home I noticed I had no dash lights. I put the headlights up and they won't go down again. I also now have no exterior lights. WTF?? Is there a fusable link that is in charge of all lights and the headlight retractors???

Directfreak

iTrader: (2)

yes.

Manntis

okay... where is it?

Directfreak

iTrader: (2)

Under the hood.



















On the left side (Driver's side)
by the Strut Tower.
RX-7's have one, GSL-SE's have two.

They are CLEARLY marked as to what they
are for. Headlamps and Retractors.
GSL-SE's also have them for ECU, FI, etc.

SilverRocket

Let me guess, Dashworks? Bad move

Blitz0309

I installed my own mp3 player, amp, ect... no shop touches my baby..... well, maybe a body shop...

Manntis

Some little shop 100% owned by FutureShop. Do they go by the name Dashworks?

SilverRocket

Around here they do... looks like you've already learned about their methods of operation.

Manntis

yup - my first concern was when I saw him jamming a 12 volt power supply into any wire he could find to see if it was the power antenna.

Can't see under the hood now - it's too dark. Is the fusable link for the dashlights the same as the headlight retractor?

SilverRocket

Sorry, I don't have a clue - haven't had to mess with those yet.

Personally, I can't stand that damn antenna flopping around. I didn't bother hooking up the motor when I did my last deck; I just stuffed the damn thing as far in as it would go and left it. I find the car looks much cleaner without that stupid thing sticking up. (can you tell I like the antenna lol?)

I find it interesting that you payed these guys to install your stereo, but now you're going to much more trouble to fix the problems they've created. What a joke that place is.

Keaponlaffen

It's not the fusible link - it's the fuse marked "Illumination, Tail lights," and something else I can't remember.... don't do any night driving, 'cause you have no side marker lights, or running lights. All you have right now are your brake lights (when pedal is pressed), backup lights, and turn signals (no park lights at all), along with no dash lights. I had this problem in my car, and it turned out a previous owner had wired in a second blade fuse, which had blown... It's just one fuse, not the fusible links... This means that when they were installing the deck, they didn't disconnect your negative battery terminal, and they shorted something out in the dash, which in turn blew the fuse...

Edit: if your fusible links were gone, the headlights wouldn't go up OR down... not just up and stay there... Disconnect one when you find one, and you'll find that nothing works when the middle one goes (car won't start or anything). If the bottom one goes, the right headlight won't work, and if the top one goes, the left headlight won't work.


Jeff

Manntis

Actually the install was free and I talked the sales guy into knocking off $300 for the stereo & speakers before any of this happened.

The store manager has already told me he'll pay for any wiring fixes as well as $50 for cab fare tonight (can't drive my rex with no running or dash lights @ night here) but I'm surprised they hire such monkeys in the first place. I mean, an installer not knowing how to hook up a power antenna?

My antenna doesn't flop and gets good reception even driving through the rockies so I'd prefer to keep it functioning

jr69187

they could have also connected it wrong i have had this problem i kept blowing dash fuses and no lights and after a few hours with a book and a meter i sorted the mess out. Then yesterday i hooked my fuel pump up to my cars remote wire for the amp. works like a charm.

dan good luck

Keaponlaffen

I never use my radio - the Mp3 deck in my car is all I need (300+ songs on a cd)... and if I do use the radio, it's just around town, and the signals are strong enough for my deck to pick up (but I've also got an AM/FM signal booster under the dash).

Jeff

Manntis

If they were only hooking up to wires that had run to the stereo, how could it blow dash lights, etc? Anyone know which wire is constant power in an '85 GSL-SE?

Oh yeah, and the new deck is a Sony MP70 - built in MP3 player, drawer loading, etc. so in theory I can do the 300 song thing too - if it breaks I'll just sing 'em myself

SilverRocket

Looks like Keaponlaffen just hooked you up

Sounds like you got a great deal on your setup, what kind of stuff did you get?

EDIT - I took too long to type this.

It's a good thing they provided you with some decent customer service, but it isn't gonna help them much when 50 people read this post. Even if the installer made a mistake, seems to me that he should have taken the time to check that things were working and fix the problem before he handed the keys back to you.

My antenna doesn't actually 'flop' per se, I just don't like it.

Keaponlaffen

Just trust me... check the fuse

Manntis

fuse box fuses are fine, and since it's all lights that are out I thought a fuseable link sounded like a possible solution... the conversion to a 2nd gen fusebox sounds like a plan.

Keaponlaffen

you checked all the fuses? It doesn't sound like a fusible link to me, but oh well... what do I know, right? I only had the exact same problem last week...

Jeff

Directfreak

iTrader: (2)

The factory stereo has an input for illumination.
(No 4 on the DIN plug)
]

That's the EXACT one I want for my SE. Any pics of the install?

Keaponlaffen

Ah ha! Pin number 4 on both Dins goes to ILLUM! Hehehe... I told you, check that fuse for sure, and double check it, and even if it looks alright to you, put a different one in (swap it from something else for a second).

Edit: AND the b terminal on the other connector on the bottom right of the image goes to ILLUMI!! Heh... yeah

Jeff

Manntis

That's the stereo, alright. It sticks out a bit from the dash, but that can't be helped because of the way the whole face slides down when opening the CD tray.

MANY thanks for that stereo hookup diagram, Directfeak!

Jeff, thanks for the very helpful info - is that fuse a 15amp? He blew a few of those but claimed to have replaced them and I was too busy tearing strips off the store manager to double check for myself before the sun went down. I'll check it tomorrow

RotorMotorDriver

iTrader: (1)

Dont some aftermarket stereos have a wire for "illumination" or something like that that will dim the deck when you turn on your headlights? I know Ive installed a few of those decks, but Ive never hooked the wire up . Maybe they were screwing with that wire and fubar'd something up?

~T.J.

Manntis

hey, anyone care to look at their harnes and tell me the colors of the wires shown in the diagram above?

Two reasons: The installer already chopped off the plugs for the harnes so I can't see what goes where, and I'm constructing a site archiving all this how-to stuff into sort of an online manual outside of basic repair. Suggested mods, reviews, stereo stuff (not often included in Haynes or even shp manuals) etc.

BTW - the main reason I selected this CD/MP3 player over other models was (a)the popout drawer makes it easier to change disks while driving (you can do it by touch without trying to jam a disk into a slot at a weird angle) and (b) you can set the illumination color - to orange! that's right, the display kinda matches the dash lights, unlike other blue or green lit systems.

MIKE-P-28

iTrader: (1)

I have been installing car stereos for 12 years, and i hear all kinds of horror stories. ITS very sad, a Rx-7 isnt a very hard car to do, i mean its harder than most cars. But its not like a newer Mercedes or a 5 or 7 series BMW, them cars are freaking nightmares, and thats just for a radio!

I got the Pioneer Premier DEHP740MP, it does MP3 too. I opted against the sony cause #1 I install stereos and I am taking a sony out at leastonce a week for service! Dunno if its something just with here, but their reliability at our store is just about even with zero