Grand Rapids Business Daily

What would cause the radio in my truck to stop working one day?

I have a 96 dodge dakota and for some reason when I went out to start it today there was no power going to the radio. The clock didnt even work on it. I did check the fuse and it looked fine, so I just put it back in..What would cause the radio to just stop working? It is a stock radio and no I havent tampered with anything. Is there a fuse behind the unit possibly?

Public Comments

1. have you tampered with the wires any? is it a stock radio or aftermarket?
2. Loose or shorted wire somewhere.
3. some one may have tried to jack it. find use of a volt ohm meter and check that fuse again,I've had one look good and it burned in a spot that didn't show in the visible area. the reason I say it might have been jacked is these new vehicles have vin specific radios,requiring a dealer to reset the codes in the unit.
4. replace the fuse, sometimes fuses look good but it might have a small break in it, if it's not that I would look for a shorted or broken wire to the radio.
5. Many later model car radios have a fuse on the back of the radio itself in addition to the one found in the fuse box. There also may be more than one fuse in your fuseblcok for the radio. Sometimes, there is one fuse for the radio power, and another for the radio lights. You might start by cleaning the battery terminals at both ends to insure a good power and ground connection.
6. Pop your hood and look for another fuse box. Some vehicles have two fuse boxes. Also, you may want to check for an in-line fuse on the back of the radio itself. But I would check under the hood first. If there is one there it will be on the driver side and it's usually a long slender box.