Intermittant radio problem
 

Infrequently, maybe every two or three months, the Becker Grand Prix radio in my 1989, 300e, does not come on when I start the car. Usually if I turn off the car and restart it, the radio responds as it should; however just turning the radio off and on does not make it work. Several times, but not always, I have had this problem right after the car was in the shop for an oil change.

When this problem shows itself, usually the display on the radio has many strange characters. Yesterday when the radio did not come on it only had two very small lines (almost like a couple of apostrophes) on the display.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

jude, found your post most interesting. i too have experienced this problem. unfortunately, i can offer no help. i await a response from the knowledgeable individuals that make this such a wonderful site.

Re: Intermittant radio problem
 

Hi,
This is Cleeve with La Jolla Audio Repair. I thought I would try to help you figure out what to do. It seems that the radio internally is starting to fail. There is a battery inside your radio that has probably dropped below normal operating voltage. This will sometimes cause the radio to forget what it was doing after the engine is shut off. You could wind up with 4 dashed lines across the display window (----) and then need to have the dealer decode it. My suggestion is to contact me directly and see about getting an Exchange Unit that we stock. It's just old and needs to be fully serviced like the Exchange Units we have. Fresh parts, Battery,caps, rollers, gears, belts, etc.

You can contact me via my Web Site: www.lajollaaudiorepair.com

Cleeve Morrison
Repair Manager