I have an 04 explorer with the 6 disc in dash HU. I am having problems with the RDS on my stereo, and I want to check the antenna connection before I take it to the dealer. Does anyone know how to remove the HU? It doesn't have the holes along the edges for a removal tool. I think I need to remove the trim around the stereo, but I'm not sure how and don't want to damage it. Any advice?

-Steve

 

What type of problems are you having with the RDS? In general, if you are getting good FM reception then the antenna wire is connected. There isn't a separete antennal for RDS, so either audio and RDS should both be good or bad. Keep in mind that depending on where you live, the number of stations that USE RDS could be fairly limited...

 

A few of the stations in my area broadcast the song name, artist, etc via RDS. On my car, the characters get scrambled quite a bit, and also it skips words. Some of the time, it won't even show the RDS data. I suspected it was because I was too far from the transmitter, but I've been in 3 other cars with RDS in my area, and they all worked flawlessly.

-Steve

 

I would take it to the dealer and have them replace the radio -- sounds like it is screwed up to me. I don't think a loose antenna cable would cause this.