Radio buttons failing

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Audio and Electronics' started by PA, Jun 2, 2009.

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  1. PA

    PA Member

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    Well, my radio waited until it was about 4000 miles out of warranty before it started acting up. A few months ago I was listening to the radio when all of a sudden it got a little louder (no, it wasn't the ASL) - and the volume knob was unresponsive. It stayed like that for about 15 min. until I stopped at a store. When I came out, it was working fine. About a month later it happened again. Now it just happened twice this week. Only this time I discovered all the buttons on the radio dash were unresponsive - twiddle the knobs, push the buttons, nothing. Couldn't even turn it off! The good news was the steering wheel buttons still functioned OK, as did the MFD controls. The second time this week it actually cleared up after a few min. without turning off the car.

    Of course, even if it had been in warranty it would have started working fine as soon as I pulled into the dealer's lot.

    I suppose there's nothing that can really be done about it other than replacing the radio when it finally quits working. Feel free to leave your suggestions, thoughts, condolences, etc.
     
    #1 PA, Jun 2, 2009
  2. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    Time to "junk it" and install a real stereo with better SQ, USB/iPod, more power, x-overs, Bluetooth, and time alignment. ;)
     
    #2 F8L, Jun 2, 2009
  3. cycledrum

    cycledrum PSOCSOASP

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    My radio volume knob is a part timer as well. The steering wheel audio buttons always work.
     
    #3 cycledrum, Jun 3, 2009
  4. icarus

    icarus Senior Member

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    Mine have also started working intermittently. Of course they won't do it at the dealer... I've got lots of warantee left but I will note it with the dealer now.

    Icarus
     
    #4 icarus, Jun 3, 2009
  5. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    When it acts up break out the video camera and start pushing buttons on the deck. That way you can show them that it was failing. Makes sure to have the date on the video. :)
     
    #5 F8L, Jun 3, 2009
  6. 2009Prius

    2009Prius A Wimpy DIYer

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    I wonder if the contacts behind the buttons need cleaning. I heard of some kind of spray cleaners but never have experience using them.
     
    #6 2009Prius, Jun 3, 2009
  7. alanh

    alanh Active Member

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    I was able to reproduce it for the dealer -- he said that he's seen a lot of them with this problem.
     
    #7 alanh, Jun 15, 2009
  8. cycledrum

    cycledrum PSOCSOASP

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    My radio volume knob did not work some of the time after several months of ownership. It became worse and seemed to be temperature related.

    It took about 1.5 hours of driving / stopped couple times, to get a hard failure 2 weeks ago. I got a sharp service advisor who witnessed the failure and mentioned many radios have problems.

    The replacement took one week to arrive and I had it put in the next day. So far, so good, no failures. They replaced it in less than 1 hour.
     
    #8 cycledrum, Jun 16, 2009
  9. Boo

    Boo Boola Boola Member

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    Whoa, that's a distressing thought. I've never owned a car where this has happened. I'm approaching 3 years on my 07 and didn't really want to spend $1055 on the extended warranty (besides, I had already decided not to get the extended warranty, and spent the money instead on an aftermarket sunroof).
     
    #9 Boo, Jun 16, 2009
  10. Frayadjacent

    Frayadjacent Resident Conservative

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    You + ebay(search = Prius stereo) / $$ = FIXED!
     
    #10 Frayadjacent, Jun 16, 2009
  11. PA

    PA Member

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    So did they say what exactly is causing the problem? Is there a faulty chip on a circuit board somewhere that's causing it? I would be interested to know.

    I too thought it was temperature-related since it was hot in the car the first time, but the next time it happened when it was a lot cooler so I don't think that was it.
     
    #11 PA, Jun 16, 2009
  12. alanh

    alanh Active Member

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    They don't know -- something internal to the radio. Maybe it's the interconnect between the front panel and the main board.

    Anyway, got it replaced and it works fine now.
     
    #12 alanh, Jun 19, 2009
  13. PA

    PA Member

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    In this age of recycling it's a shame we have a disposable radio. Anyway, I knew it would be something like that. Thanks for replying.
     
    #13 PA, Jun 21, 2009
  14. Boo

    Boo Boola Boola Member

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    What did you mean by that :confused:
     
    #14 Boo, Jun 21, 2009
  15. alanh

    alanh Active Member

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    I think he means "buy another radio off eBay".

    The radio isn't trashed -- I'm sure they send it back where it will be refurbished and used as a warranty replacement for someone else. It's just not practical to do the electronics repairs at the dealerships.
     
    #15 alanh, Jun 22, 2009
  16. nikki&petey

    nikki&petey Junior Member

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    I didn't want to read this this morning. This is exactly what is happening with my Prius. I am out of the 3 year warranty so that isn't an option for me. Guess I will just keep using the steering wheel buttons until that fails as well.
     
    #16 nikki&petey, Apr 8, 2010
  17. smartalec89

    smartalec89 The Official Alaskan

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    You are pretty lucky to make it that far. My volume nob went out after 3 months of owning the car. I also just had the dealer replace mine. I quit using that one and now only use the steering wheel control so it doesn't break again.
     
    #17 smartalec89, Apr 8, 2010
  18. PA

    PA Member

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    Here it is almost a year later, and my radio is still hanging in there. I didn't have any more problems for the longest time until about a month ago when the dash buttons didn't work again during one trip home. There was also another time when I could have sworn I turned off the radio with the dash button, and it went off but came back on again a few seconds later. I may not have fully pressed the button so I'm not sure about that one ...

    ... However, I did have some other warranty issues two months ago, namely a faulty cell in the hybrid battery and a leaking water pump. The dash lit up like a Christmas tree, complete with exclamation points in many places. I looked up the warning lights and they all said "take the vehicle to your Toyota dealer immediately" ...

    ... So, my '06 now has a new battery pack (and water pump), both covered under factory warranty (thank goodness)...

    At least the brakes and accelerator still work properly ...
     
    #18 PA, Apr 9, 2010
  19. Rest

    Rest Active Member

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    Today the radio buttons on my 2007 Prius also failed, one second they were working fine then the next second they were dead. The round volume and tuning buttons on each side of them still worked fine and so did the radio buttons on my steering wheel. I did note that the outside temperature was in the high 80's, low 90's.

    I am upset because I bought my car in late 2006, so now it's out side of the warranty based on time, even though it doesn't even have 10,000 miles on it. In my 35 years of driving I have never had an issue with a vehicle's radio buttons failing.

    I am hoping to find a DIY fix to this problem, so if anyone has any solutions please pass them along.

    UPDATE: Tapping on the right side of the radio, on the vent panel, seems to have gotten my buttons working again....at least for now.
     
    #19 Rest, Jun 5, 2010
  20. Boo

    Boo Boola Boola Member

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    I've been having intermittent button problems as well.

    The most frequent problem I get is that the CD will not eject (Ejectile Dysfunction).

    The first time this happened, the CD would not eject for two weeks.

    The second time this happened, the failure only lasted for a day.

    I'm out of warranty. If the problems become persistent, I'm going to either buy a warrantied used one off of eBay for less than $100 (that's a lot lower than the approximately $1300 MSRP for a new one from Toyota) or spring for a fancy aftermarket one with navigation like usbseawolf2000 recently did.

    EDIT/CORRECTION: The CD player radio retails for around $1098. The JBL Six CD player radio retails for around $1463.
     
    #20 Boo, Jun 5, 2010
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