pbui3057 Posted January 26, 2005 Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 So I got a new stock stereo for my car with a cd player. It is this one actually http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7945437236&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEAFB%3AIT I plugged it in and everything worked wonderfully. I left it in over the weekend and didn't use my car. On Monday, my car battery was dead. I got a jump start and went to work. I unplugged the stereo completely. I plugged it in today and went to work. When I left work at 10pm, i noticed that my dash lights were on even before I opened the door. I know that my old stock stereo never had a problem with keeping lights on. Is there something wrong with this stereo? Could it be the wiring within the dash area? I am confused because my old stereo was just a tape deck and I never had a problem with my battery draining but now this new stereo keeps my dash lights on. The old stock stereo lights (including the time) work fine if the headlights are off. When I turn the headlights on, the display is EXTREMELY dim, almost nonexistant. As soon as the headlights are off the time comes back like normal. This happens with both stereos now. When I close my doors the dash lights usually stay on for 30 seconds and then turn off. With my old stereo in it would do this. With the new stereo the lights don't turn off and that is what is draining my battery. My Z34 did not come with the bose amp. There are 5 slots of pins on the back of the stereo. All of the slots are keyed so you can't just randomly plug wires in. I only use 3 of the 5 slots. My old stereo wasn't like that. It only had 4 slots. Is there something I am missing? Thanks for all the help everyone! Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digitaloutsider Posted January 26, 2005 Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 As far as the slots go, one is for the steering wheel controls, and the other is for the power antenna lead. The lights staying on sounds really weird though.. I don't have an explaination for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeZ34 Posted January 26, 2005 Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 I had this same problem with mine when I had my Lumina. It turned out to be something with the backlighting wire in the harness (light grey). I removed it, and it shut the lights off, but I also lost the lighting on the radio.. So it was a win lose situation. It was a long time ago, but all I can really remember well is that something shorted out and fried my backlighting circuit in the headlight switch.. Which resulted in NO interior lights at all (dash, dome, everything). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbui3057 Posted January 26, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 I had this same problem with mine when I had my Lumina.It turned out to be something with the backlighting wire in the harness (light grey). I removed it, and it shut the lights off, but I also lost the lighting on the radio.. So it was a win lose situation. It was a long time ago, but all I can really remember well is that something shorted out and fried my backlighting circuit in the headlight switch.. Which resulted in NO interior lights at all (dash, dome, everything). Did you end up replacing the headlight switch? The thing is, all of my other lights work and it is only the dash lights that stay on after I close the doors and lock up. I might just disconnect the gray wire to see if that works. By doing this did you lose the lights in the radio at all times or just when you turned the headlights on? Thanks. Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeZ34 Posted January 26, 2005 Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 I did have to replace the headlight switch. I tried removing the grey wire, and the lights went back to normal, but the radio lights were dead. I think in the other harness (the smaller, empty, vertical one) there is also a pin for the backlighting. I can't remember which one, but I remember seeing a grey wire going to that harness instead of the large, main harness on some of those radio's. Dunno if that helps any, but I think with some experimenting you can figure it out. Just don't let the grey wire accidentally short out on the radio's chassis like I did, that's what killed my headlight switch. :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbui3057 Posted January 26, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2005 Ok thanks. I now have a place to start. Now I guess I need to find a headlight switch! Paul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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