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1996 f250 powerstroke. Radio is on even with key off its lit up and no longer works at all. voltage gauge swings,dash lights pulse with gauge swing, truck Is starting to idle erratically please help
Maybe try pulling every fuse in the box one at a time and see if the radio goes off. That will give you an idea to what circuit to start looking at for a short. Also, you might pull the headlight switch out and make sure the back of the switch and plug are not burnt or melted. That's a common problem and good place for wires to get melted together.
Decommission the radio itself, then test again. If everything works normally, reinstall the above fuses and test yet again. If all is still normal, radio is miswired.
Is there a "crossover" harness between the factory radio connector and the aftermarket radio, or was the factory connector cut?