I bought my truck about 6 months ago, and when I bought it, stereo was fine. The display started to occasionally fade out for a few seconds and then come back to normal. Well, now it won't even come on. I flick the lights on and off, turn the dimmer switch, nothing. The truck is a 98 4x4 Ranger XLT, with the CD/CASS/AM/FM stereo. Anyone know of a fix for this problem? I've looked for stereo's on Ebay, and have seen a few from the Rangers, Explorers, etc but some of the auctions don't seem 'right.' (no info reguarding what vehicle the unit is from.) It seems to be a common problem. I'd like to stay away from aftermarket stereo too. I like the way mine looks and sounds, plus the money is a little tight right now. Also, does anyone know if the stereo has built in pre-amp outputs? I know some of the explorers came with a subwoofer in the back, with the same stereo as mine. Just curious how that works. I'd appreciate any info or fixes. Thanks in advance...
Brian J Wilson

 

The high voltage power supply for Ford stereo units have been dying for years. They frequently will operate only at certain temperatures. The power supply can $ometimes be replaced by a repair shop.

Good luck!


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[updated:LAST EDITED ON 06-Dec-02 AT 06:41 PM (EST)]Dose the radio still work? If it's just the display that won't light up, you may be able to do the fix yourself. I don't know the radio type you have, but in some of the older fords you simply remove the face plate (after you've removed the radio from the dash) and the light holder came out same as a dash light. You unplug the bulb and plug in a new one. Hope this helped.

Good luck

 

I've got that exact stereo that was used for only about a month if you decide you wanna buy one...

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 06-Dec-02 AT 07:32 PM (EST)]The newer radios don't have bulbs. The lighting is built into the faceplate and has a few wires running to the back of the radio. I thought I spotted a how-to somewhere for re-soldering a connection that is prone to coming loose inside those radios, but haven't been able to find it for a while.

 

The new stuf uses "Vacuum Flourescent" display parts. They tend to dim and go out with age.

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Thanks everyone. Come to find out, my aftermarket 'sucker' warranty just might cover repair for the stereo. Still $100 deductable, but it could be worse I guess. Reading through the warranty, it looks to me that it's covered. The guy at the local dealership said that it looked like it did. He called the dealership I bought it from and even those idiots weren't positive about it... I have to call the company that I bought it from on Monday. Meanwhile, I'll try to find out how much a shop would charge to fix it. That is, unless, I feel the urge to take it out and mess with it myself (doubt it)...

Brian J Wilson
1998 Ford Ranger XLT 4x4 4.0 5spd SuperCab

 

 

If you're looking for instructions on how to do it yourself with pictures, you might want to try: <p>

<a href="http://www.shareamemory.com/radio">www.shareamemory.com/radio</a> <p>

<img border="0" src="http://www.shareamemory.com/radio/2003_09_06.JPG" width="471" height="260"> <p>
The site has detailed pictures of the whole process to fix your display and also details on different scenerios you may run into while doing the repair. It worked for me.<p>
<img border="0" src="http://www.shareamemory.com/radio/02_12_connections.jpg" width="640" height="474">

 

why spend 100 dollars on getting your stock radio fixed?

you can go to circuit city and pick up a nice radio installed for about 150..they look nice and sound better than stock.



just a thought..

 

Couple pf reasons...
$150-100= $50 less that I would have to spend
I actually like the way the stereo looks. ( I don't, however, like the older ford stereo's like what probably came in your 91).
I like that it has CD and Tape, and the sound isn't too bad. Anything with better sound will be more than $150.
I HATE the way almost all new stereo's look, with multicolor displays and such, most of them just look like crap, and draw attention to thieves. I'm trying to keep radio gear that I'll be installing soon as low profile and out of sight as possible.
I have a warranty, and I KNOW some things are going to break soon (possibly hubs and water pump?) so I might as well wait until something breaks and get it all fixed while paying only one deductable (I hope!).
Oh yeah, don't really care for the way the dash kits look for regular sized stereos fitting into the bigger opening on the dash either.

Brian J Wilson

 

Brian,

I feel the same way. My stereo display went and a lot of people said just go buy an aftermarket unit and be done with it (not bad advice). But I like my stock radio (its the dual media w/subwoofer) so I brought it to an authorized Ford radio dealer (not Ford) to have it fixed (cost me $100). I feel it was $ well spent.

 

heh, I bought my girlfriend a Pioneer stereo for her Vovlo, for Chirstmas. I had found one that was okay, that looked good in her car. Anyway, stereo's been in there for a while now, and the dash kit FINALLY got installed today, and the stereo now sticks out of the dash about 1 1/2", not a big deal, just kind of ruins the look. Looks like crap. No way would I let that pass in my truck

Brian J Wilson

 

Hello, this is Brent at 1 Factory Radio. The best solution for display lights going out in Ford Explorers is to get a new DC to DC Converter, because this part was usually responsible for display malfunctions due to its own inherent deisgn flaws. We offer our own brand of DC to DC Converter for Ford Explorers and many other Ford vehicles from the late 90's to the early 2000's. Pioneer no longer makes these parts, but ours are 40% less expensive than the ones that Pioneer was selling. These are high-quality, newly manufactured pieces which have been specifically engineered to correct the design flaws which caused the originals to malfunction prematurely, and they come with a full-color instruction manual for easy installation. You can purchase them from our eBay site, Truck Radio, iPhone Input items in Car Radio store on eBay!, and also on the 1 Factory Radio website, www.1factoryradio.com.