Radio light

[Conn SVX]

I can't see the station # at night in my radio. Is there a bulb or a fuse or what ? If so how do I change it?

[dennyo]

if it's a factory radio(oem) you're sol. only half the lights on my radio/cd/tape came on and sometimes the radio lights alone would go out completely.if i gave it a rap they would come back on.i replaced it with an 02 wrx radio now i'm a happy guy.a member here sells harnesses so they plug/play.

[Conn SVX]

Thanks I will look into that now that I know the bulb is non replaceable

[Trevor]

Originally Posted by Conn SVX

Thanks I will look into that now that I know the bulb is non replaceable

Any bulb can be replaced, but some have pigtails which require soldering. However this does not involve any real problem.

[b3lha]

It's been a while since I had one apart, so I can't tell you how easy the bulb is to change.

What I can tell you is that the radio is hard to dismantle. The covers pry off easy enough, and the back piece and the faceplate. But the frame has fingers of metal that go through slots in the circuit boards and are then bent over and soldered to the board. You have to do a lot of unsoldering and cleaning in order to get the boards out of the case before you can work on them.

[CorSVXette]

My car seems to "eat" radios. I replaced about 4 radios so far because of the lights. I like the stock look so I look for radios for sale on this network and buy them. The price is usually good as a lot of people here replace them with aftermarket ones. Just make sure that before you buy one that the seller makes sure all the lights work. One of these days when I am feeling ambitious I will try to take 1 apart to see if I can repair the lights. I am waiting for Dave ( the radio doc) to come up with a way to "bench test" the radios to see which lights are working without having to install it in the car each time.

[Sean486]

I am planning on changing mine soon because the CD player is fussy. But the light in the radio are fine. When I'm done you can have the radio for free + the cost of shipping if you want it.

[CorSVXette]

Originally Posted by Sean486

I am planning on changing mine soon because the CD player is fussy. But the light in the radio are fine. When I'm done you can have the radio for free + the cost of shipping if you want it.

You see? This is what I am talking about. This forum is the best place to get parts for your car. The people on this forum are just great.

[Conn SVX]

Sean thanks.... when you are ready e mail me . . Now how do u remove the radio from the dash. I have the repair manual and it does not make sense . It says remove the VENT???

[SVXdc]

Originally Posted by Conn SVX

Now how do u remove the radio from the dash. I have the repair manual and it does not make sense . It says remove the VENT???

You don't need to remove any of the vents. One of the aftermarket manufacturers say that in their instructions.

See my SVX radio installation guide.

Originally Posted by CorSVXette

I am waiting for Dave ( the radio doc) to come up with a way to "bench test" the radios to see which lights are working without having to install it in the car each time.

Yes, I still need to finish that for you, but Christmas happened (and then I got sick). I'm going to measure how much current the radio draws, to see what size AC adapter would be required.


As for the bulbs, several of mine died. I was able to open up the radio enough to replace some of the ones that back-light the buttons without too much difficulty. Soldering in the new ones was the hardest part -- very fine work.

But I don't recall how much more you would need to dissassemble to replace the backlights for the LCD.

[Conn SVX]

I printed the install removal and saved it .