I have searched the forum but had no luck. I need some help hooking up my cd player in my 83. It had the standard Clarion cassette player, but I am trying to swap in a Pioneer CD Player. I got the harness from Electronics Express, and have only hooked up the power, ground, memory, and one rear speaker. I tried to start the cd player, but it won't turn on. I have checked the fuses, both on the cd player, and on the car, all are good. My radio before hand worked, but only when the parking lights or headlights were on. I tried with the key in and out of the ignition and with and without the parking and headlights on. No luck. If anyone can help me, it would be greatly appreciated.

James

 

Wire straight to the fuse box in a slot that's not switched so it's hot all the time. Mind you get one with correct amperage, too. If you have power and ground and it doesn't work, your new unit may be the problem.

 

I had way too much confusion going on when i was trying to put in a new head unit of my own... so i've just decided to pay one of the car stereo places in town to do it for me maybe consider the same so you dont wreck any of your electrics

a question too, are you getting an amp? what would you recommend? i want to get one put in, probably get it bolted down under the passenger seat.


GoT

 

Before I do anything with upgrading and adding subs or anything, I would like to get my cd player to work. I do have a sony xplod amp with a 10" kicker. Have to get the head unit working first though. I am not quite sure what you were suggesting, about the wiring straight to the fuse box. I think you are trying to have me wire up the unit without the harness? I didn't know if that would be beneficial or not as far as cutting out the whole aftermarket harness thing.

James

 

if the factory radio only worked with the lights on, i'd be fixing that problem before trying to install a new one. provided ur wiring the new radio by the instructions that came with it to the correct wires in the car, it should work. unless like mentioned in an earlier post, it's the radio.

 

Radio does work, but I had no power to the harness that the instructions said to wire it to.

James

 

When I was hooking up my CD player, I had to reroute the ACC wire from the harness to the fuse box's ACC, because the one in the stock harness didn't work. Don't know why, but it didn't. Rerouted the wire, all is fine now. Just take the wire that is requiring constant power, and ACC power, to run directly to their respective slots in the fuse box. If that works, then the wires in the car may be faulty.

 

I would help, but I don't know anything about stereo's.

 

Basically that is what I ended up doing. It works now, but I have to find a better slot for the memory, cuz when I turn my car and my headlights off, the memory resets on the head unit. If I leave the parking lights on, or the headlights, the memory is fine.

James

 

Do you have a voltage tester? The yellow wire should go to a wire that is always hot. The red should go to a source that is hot only when the key is on. The ground, obviously should go to ground. The wire that you have your yellow wire hooked to is actually to run the dimmer on the radio. When you turn your lights on it sends power to your radio to tell it that it is night time and it doesn't need to be so bright. A voltage tester is a very helpful and very inexpensive tool that is a must if you are trying to do any wiring in your car.

 

I am aware of the voltage tester, just left mine at work in my toolbox. I was kinda just wondering if there were any more people that have the same problem as me. It may or may not be linked to other problems I am having in the car. I did notice that other people are speaking of the same problems as me, but nobody has yet found what the solution to it was. I also posted in the thread about no light. I have the exact same symptoms as the guy in that thread. Just was curious if they were linked.

James

 

Just sounds to me like whoever owned the car before you hacked up the wiring to put a different radio in, and then hooked it back up wrong when they put the factory one back in. I don't remember the colors of the wires I hooked mine up to, the previous owner had a radio stolen and the wires were ripped out. Pretty easy to do if you have done it before, if you still have problems you might just want to take it somewhere to get it put in, shouldn't cost all that much.

 

Got the stereo working, but I still could no find out what was causing the cluster lights not to work. Just trying to see if anyone could help me with that now.

James