Throwing a Continental into a Mercedes
 

Gents, for the longest time I thought about ditching the Becker for an old-sku 80's to 90's era Blaupunkt to keep it German and period-correct. Now I'm thinking about forgetting that idea since I recently read someone's post about Contintental head units. Take a look at these head units, they are pretty nice, look pretty elegant, and are German made. Continental Automotive -Radios Here are a few examples: https://www.bergvillfx.com/media/cat...418ub-or_2.jpg http://www.benzworld.org/forums/atta...0750586566.jpg

Looks very nice sev!

I like them, although the first one had issues after about three or four months - the radio tuner sensitivity degraded to the point that the search function couldn't find stations, and manually tuning them in worked but they were weak and subject to static. Returned to the seller in Germany for a warranty replacement, but now the online store (CarAudio24.de) has gone silent and is not answering my emails.

Hello Mr. T (can I call you Mr. T?) Walgamuth. Those aren't my cars above. I forgot to finish my post. I was wondering what people thought of Continental radios, and what they thought of them in a w123 Mercedes? I'm still thinking about installing one of these units. But I have to first confirm they are good quality before I proceed to rip out German parts

Level 42? Period-correct? How old are you? :D

This would have been a super-clever post, had the picture above been of my car. Apparently the poster didn't read that it wasn't

Oh, wow. Did you buy the radio directly from their site, or from their eBay or Amazon UK/DE store? Do you remember which model you purchased? That way I know to stay away from that particular one. Also what car did you install it into, and how difficult was the installation? Do you remember if you were able to retain the front/rear fader option?

Me, super-clever? Rarely! I read the thread and knew it wasn't yours. I simply pointed out something I thought was funny, and the question was rhetorical. I am sorry the attempt at humor didn't work for you.

FWIW I too like how these Continentals look, and I appreciate how nicely they fit in with the rest of the interior. Perhaps eBay/Amazon would be "safer" places to purchase one. The few sellers I looked at have long histories.

Cheers! :)

I bought it directly from their online store in Germany, CarAudio24.de. Installed into an '87 wagon, the speaker wiring was a bit of a pain. I did run the front speaker wires directly to the front speaker, but ran the rear speakers through the fader switch so I've still got that function. The fade doesn't work exactly right - has a very sharp cut-off, but that's ok with me.

Those are gorgeous. I HATE aftermarket radios with their annoying blue screens and grain-of-sand buttons.

Are those actually made in Germany? The '80s, '90s Blaupunkts I've seen/had have been made in Asian countries - first Japan, then Singapore. They were cassette radios and were generally quite reliable. But the newer 2000-something Blaupunkt CD radio the PO installed in my Euro TD died soon after I got the car in 2008 - replaced by one of those '90s cassette radios.

Happy Motoring, Mark

I am planning on buying one of these in the near future to replace my Becker. They look really nice and the bluetooth makes me drool.




If someone has a tip on fixing the cassette player on a Becker let me know! I hate listening to regular radio.

My boys want one of 3 things from a car radio.
1. Aux cord
2. Aux cord
3. Aux cord

I didn't see an aux-input on that Continental, unless it's under the cover labeled 'USB'.
In my '96 Tacoma, I replaced the PO's DOA Sony CD-radio with a newer Sony unit from 'Pick-N-Pull'. It works fine, but I don't always want to hear CDs. So it's nice it has an aux-input to plug in my MP3 or Sony Walkman cassette player.

As to fixing a dead cassette-deck, often it's a rubber belt. A few years ago, I was able to order a belt from Becker for the vintage Europa cassette-radio in my '84 TD.
If you can't find and install a replacement belt, depending on your cassette's auto shut-off system, you might be able to use one of those cassette adapters to connect an external player.

Happy Motoring, Mark

No, made in China. The quality isn't terrific, but the price is OK and they are actually intuitive and easy to use, and don't become a driver distraction. The nice fit of the look / color is a bonus.