radio randomly loosing power...

[LG96GT]

hey guys just picked up a 2000 Ford F-150. when i bought it the radio worked...got it home hit the eject button to get my cd out and it completely lost power...(truck was still running) said screw it went inside for the night...came back out the next day and it worked...2 hours later i adjusted the volume and sure enough it lost all power again... (its even loosing its presets as if the "constant" 12v+ is loosing a connection also) again vehicle running...this time since i was stuck outside doing a coolant flush i decided to look at my fuses....looked at EVERY SINGLE FUSE and they were all good so i was like wtf...figured the radio went bad...decided to install an aftermarket stereo and before i wired it in i checked for power.....wasn't power ANYWHERE in the harness....said screw it...maybe if i put it all together and install it i'l get lucky and my multimeter is just being weird...sure enough the aftermarket stereo worked...until tonight again it completely died no power anywhere again...no fuses blown...i cant figure this out....as easy as it would be to run a few new wires and make it switched to the ignition and what not it annoys me that i even have this problem...I'm wondering if anyone has ANY idea what it could be as there is no obvious cause of this random power loss...also...when i initially turn my key to start the truck my check engine light doesn't light up like EVERY other vehicle i own...plugged my obd II computer in to the truck and it doesn't even get power...anyone know why this is? my scanner should at least power up and not give a code...I'm confused..i haven't been stumped like this in a while...any help would be greatly appreciated.
thanks
luke.

[MN Probe GT]

The truck is possessed. You can either call an exorcist or sell it to someone out of state. If you sell it to someone in-state, the truck will find you.

[Speedy]

Check the wiring behind the radio & the atenna. If that seems sound, then the battery, make sure it's holding a charge.

If that's not it, then I agree with kirk, it's possessed... :p

[fordbroncodave]

sounds like a floating ground or a moisture problem. your ground might be sufficient enough to use for a while but will not take wattage or demand very well. on most stereos there is a threaded rod on the back side. run a wire from that to a known ground or to the cab under the carpet.

[LG96GT]

i think I'm going with Kirk so far...i've check and double checked and triple checked my wiring, tested ALL wires...traced them all as far as i could and cant find ANYTHING....i think I'm going to unplug my cigarette lighter and use the 12v+ line to run power to the deck for "ignition switched power" (its controlled by the ignition in my truck and i dont smoke and there's a "power point" also) and then run a wire from the battery for "constant" power and just add a fuse to both of them and run a new ground..

[jay]

i think I'm going with Kirk so far...i've check and double checked and triple checked my wiring, tested ALL wires...traced them all as far as i could and cant find ANYTHING....i think I'm going to unplug my cigarette lighter and use the 12v+ line to run power to the deck for "ignition switched power" (its controlled by the ignition in my truck and i dont smoke and there's a "power point" also) and then run a wire from the battery for "constant" power and just add a fuse to both of them and run a new ground..

is this an aftermarket radio?


my brother had the same problem with his 99 Ford truck and we just slapped in a new aftermarket radio and the problem went away.

I think its the radio itself.. OR could be a loose connection at the antenna area under the dash (passenger side) if I remember correct. also could be loose at the antenna as well too.

but you say its losing power so i dunno.

just a thought to check all the antenna connections.

[MN Probe GT]

my brother had the same problem with his 99 Ford truck and we just slapped in a new aftermarket radio and the problem went away.


He already did that.

[fordbroncodave]

if you plan on running it through your cig lighter and that gets turned off when the key is off, you might want to find a separate source for your presets in the radio. otherwise you are gonna have to reprogram it every time you use the truck

[LG96GT]

i think I'm going with Kirk so far...i've check and double checked and triple checked my wiring, tested ALL wires...traced them all as far as i could and cant find ANYTHING....i think I'm going to unplug my cigarette lighter and use the 12v+ line to run power to the deck for "ignition switched power" (its controlled by the ignition in my truck and i dont smoke and there's a "power point" also) and then run a wire from the battery for "constant" power and just add a fuse to both of them and run a new ground..

if you plan on running it through your cig lighter and that gets turned off when the key is off, you might want to find a separate source for your presets in the radio. otherwise you are gonna have to reprogram it every time you use the truck


ugh...i leave for a while, come back, and you still dont read....


is this an aftermarket radio?


my brother had the same problem with his 99 Ford truck and we just slapped in a new aftermarket radio and the problem went away.

I think its the radio itself.. OR could be a loose connection at the antenna area under the dash (passenger side) if I remember correct. also could be loose at the antenna as well too.

but you say its losing power so i dunno.

just a thought to check all the antenna connections.

stock stereo is when the problem started....put in an aftermarket, didnt have power when i hooked it up....said screw it cause i was going to swap in a new stereo anyways, wired it in and all of a sudden i had power again and it worked...driving the other day and it quit again...i've checked all connections including the antenna, added a new ground as i've seen some radios grounded through the antenna and still no go....i KNOW my radio is good, and the stock one was good also. i guess the reason i posted this is i was hoping someone would know about relays and know if this sounds like a faulty relay in the fuse panel...or something...i dont know jack about relays

[Toolchief]

... i guess the reason i posted this is i was hoping someone would know about relays and know if this sounds like a faulty relay in the fuse panel...or something...i dont know jack about relays

Radio runs on a fuse, not a relay, so there shouldn't be a relay issue. I am wondering if you used dielectric grease on the grounds when you installed it though. I use dielectric on everything in my car. Fuses, wiring harnesses, pigtails, sensor connections....all of it. Did you scrape the paint (if there was any) around the ground connection?

You said it only happens when you are messing with the face. Does it have a detachable face plate? If so, I am wondering if the contacts between the face and the head unit might be dirty. I have had this happen before myself. Use a little alcohol (or electrical contact cleaner) and a Q-tip to clean the contacts and you might have the issue resolved. Might actually be the accessory contact in the ignition switch itself. Try bumping the column or messing with the switch, when the power is on, on the stereo.

Just throwing a couple of ideas that sometimes get overlooked out there.

As for the OBD-II not powering up your scanner, that is a fuse or the power wire to the plug, or the power pin in the plug is broken or missing. I have it happen to me all the time at Autozone. And then people get pissed at me as if my scanner is the problem (and certain nationalities want me to fix it for them...uuuughhhhh:wtf: Damn cab drivers!!!!!). Anyway, check the fuse, and then make sure there are no wiring problems. If you find nothing, google images of the OBD-II port on your truck and make sure all of the pins are there.

[jay]

is it possible to have an OPEN ground somewhere? im thinking of a house maybe.. but dont know if it would affect a cars electrical system.

[Toolchief]

is it possible to have an OPEN ground somewhere? im thinking of a house maybe.. but dont know if it would affect a cars electrical system.

I don't think so. Not sure though. I suppose you could call a disconnected ground an "open ground". In theory, if it isn't making contact, the ground loop is open, therefore not allowing the energy to cycle through the component. I am by no means an expert on electrical though, just have a general understanding of it.

[LG96GT]

Radio runs on a fuse, not a relay, so there shouldn't be a relay issue. I am wondering if you used dielectric grease on the grounds when you installed it though. I use dielectric on everything in my car. Fuses, wiring harnesses, pigtails, sensor connections....all of it. Did you scrape the paint (if there was any) around the ground connection?

all my connections are good. i never use dielectric grease though...

You said it only happens when you are messing with the face. Does it have a detachable face plate? If so, I am wondering if the contacts between the face and the head unit might be dirty. I have had this happen before myself. Use a little alcohol (or electrical contact cleaner) and a Q-tip to clean the contacts and you might have the issue resolved. Might actually be the accessory contact in the ignition switch itself. Try bumping the column or messing with the switch, when the power is on, on the stereo.

the stock stereo did the same thing and that obviously never had a removable faceplate..i KNOW 1,000,001% its not the stereo...

Just throwing a couple of ideas that sometimes get overlooked out there.

As for the OBD-II not powering up your scanner, that is a fuse or the power wire to the plug, or the power pin in the plug is broken or missing. I have it happen to me all the time at Autozone. And then people get pissed at me as if my scanner is the problem (and certain nationalities want me to fix it for them...uuuughhhhh:wtf: Damn cab drivers!!!!!). Anyway, check the fuse, and then make sure there are no wiring problems. If you find nothing, google images of the OBD-II port on your truck and make sure all of the pins are there.

got the OBD-II to power up the scanner....weird but it works not...wtf..who knows...


breaking news....my odometer is electric.....today it decided it wouldn't light up....and then what do ya know it lights up...then quit...and then works....WTF...to top it off with all this fog i FINALLY found out you just "pull" on the headlight switch to get ur fog lights to turn on..they were working for like 5 miles, got about 2 blocks from my house and they just quit...switch doesn't light up...lights dont work...WTF...this truck is turning out to be an electrical nightmare...i think I'm going to tear the dash apart and inspect EVERY wire...there's gotta be something going on...bare wires shorting out or something...o and my dash climate controls dont have power for the lights...the bulbs are good...but no power=no light...wtf..

[fordbroncodave]

ford had some goofy wiring in the late 90's and early 2000's. notorious for ghost control effects lol

my moms 99 windstar has dumb wiring in it too. the car alarm will go off even if its not set or it even went off while we were driving. i gotta find that horn and snip the wiring lol.

it too will get a messed up stereo time to time but it only looses the presets.