98 jetta gl radio problem

Don't let the dealer hose you for big money. My dealer needed 15 minutes to
get my code and unlock the radio. Charges beyond that are, IMHO, a rip off.

Make sure you get the code before you leave, so you can do this simple,
routine job next time.

Tim Wohlford
'98 Jetta
'89 Golf



"edjohn via CarKB.com" <u30825@uwe> wrote in message
news:6c14a55eab6cc@uwe...
> Papa, thanks for the input, I will check with the dealer to see if i can
> get
> the code.
>
> --
> Message posted via http://www.carkb.com
>
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem 

Have you tried removing the radio fuse for a couple of minutes?
Did that shop/person disconnect the battery?
Is this a stock VW radio or entire system?

I had one radio that was "frozen" and I had to disconnect all power from it
after I pulled it out. Then reinstalled it, entered the code and all was/is
good again. That was strange!
Also I have had to repair a few '94-97 radios that would lose power over
bumps.

Good luck and let us know what you find!
later,
dave
(One out of many daves)
http://vwdoc1.tripod.com/



"edjohn" <u30825@uwe> wrote in message news:6c0a164722a69@uwe...
> Hi all,
>
> Trying to fix up my son's jetta for my daughter. The car recently had an
> ignition switch problem and had it replaced. This radio has a remote cd
> changer in the trunk. When the radio is turned on there is a display of
> 88.
> something FM. There is no sound, can not tune it, can not switch to CD,
> does
> just about nothing. Is it safe to say that maybe something was not hooked
> back up correctly. Is there a way to reset this (does not have the "SAFE"
> codes that I have seen here). Or is this thing toast.
>
> Any input would be appreciated.
>
> Thanks
> Ed
>
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem 

"edjohn via CarKB.com" <u30825@uwe> wrote in message
news:6c2b996c9e3cb@uwe...
> Dave,
>
> Thanks for the input, I wanted to stress one thing about this radio, it
> does
> not have the "SAFE" message on the display. When the radio is powered up
> it
> displays 88.3 FM. Thats it, will not tune makes no sound, can not change
> to
> CD. The car had the battery disconnected a number of times. Every time the
> car was reconnected the result was the same for this radio. This radio is
> a
> stock VW radio as far as I know. I do need to get a service manual.
> Unfortunately there are no manuals with this car, why do owners loose or
> not
> transferr owners manuals is beyond me. Leave the manual in the car when
> you
> sell it. So I do need to look at the fuse, but what leads me to believe
> it's
> not the fuse, it does power up with the above mentioned display. This car
> is
> going back to the mechanic who worked on it for him to fix a few things
> that
> he screwed up, (steering wheel reinstalled out 90 degrees, air bag warning
> light on, check engine light on, found out the check engine light is on
> because the distributer was reinstalled out 1 tooth). Anyway, maybe he can
> find out if he failed to hook something back up.
>
> Thanks again for the input, and I will post what the results were
>
> Ed
>

Your mechanic did all of those things wrong and you are going back to him?
Not a good idea.

By the way, you can probably find an owners manual on Ebay. I see them on
there frequently. Unfortunately, an owners manual provides almost no
technical information about your car. A Bentley service manual is what you
need.
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem 

I guess I would still remove the radio from the vehicle and unplug it.
It only takes about 2 minutes.

hmmm (scratching head) locked on 88.3 FM is interesting.
At least 2 power leads go to the radio, and it may have power leads coming
from it along with the radio being tied to the ECM.

Not sure if this is your problem but if too many incorrect codes are entered
into the radio it will lock up. If you leave the radio on for about 1 hour,
you can try again to enter the correct code in.

let us know what you find!
good luck!
later,
dave
(One out of many daves)
http://vwdoc1.tripod.com/


"edjohn via CarKB.com" <u30825@uwe> wrote in message
news:6c2b996c9e3cb@uwe...
> Dave,
>
> Thanks for the input, I wanted to stress one thing about this radio, it
> does
> not have the "SAFE" message on the display. When the radio is powered up
> it
> displays 88.3 FM. Thats it, will not tune makes no sound, can not change
> to
> CD. The car had the battery disconnected a number of times. Every time the
> car was reconnected the result was the same for this radio. This radio is
> a
> stock VW radio as far as I know. I do need to get a service manual.
> Unfortunately there are no manuals with this car, why do owners loose or
> not
> transferr owners manuals is beyond me. Leave the manual in the car when
> you
> sell it. So I do need to look at the fuse, but what leads me to believe
> it's
> not the fuse, it does power up with the above mentioned display. This car
> is
> going back to the mechanic who worked on it for him to fix a few things
> that
> he screwed up, (steering wheel reinstalled out 90 degrees, air bag warning
> light on, check engine light on, found out the check engine light is on
> because the distributer was reinstalled out 1 tooth). Anyway, maybe he can
> find out if he failed to hook something back up.
>
> Thanks again for the input, and I will post what the results were
>
> Ed
>
> --
> Message posted via CarKB.com
> http://www.carkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx/vw-watercooled/200701/1
>
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem 

"edjohn via CarKB.com" <u30825@uwe> wrote in message
news:6c51b41152106@uwe...
> Yea Papa he did not get it right, but he said he would take care of those
> problems no charge. I have had him work on my cars for years. Always
> honest,
> and will not screw you. Example, I had bought some front end U-joints
> years
> ago for my ford explorer, started the job and found it much too difficult
> to
> do the job. I brought it to him along with the parts and he put it back
> together for me, and one more point I had to make on this particular issue
> was originally this car was my son's car, and my son had disassembled the
> distributor initially and broke the hold down bracket on it. So we send
> the
> car up to Don's shop on the back of a wrecker with a box of parts. And he
> put
> it back together along with the ignition switch. So I will give him
> another
> chance to make it right.
>
> Thanks all the input.
>
> Ed
>
In that case, I'd stick with him too. Not every repair job goes right the
first time, even with the best of mechanics. And his willingness to fix
things at no charge speaks volumes.
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem 

On Jan 9, 1:02 pm, "Papa" <bikin... RemoveThis @my.fun> wrote:
> If all that was done was an ignition switch replacement, the radio, CD
> setting, etc. should still all work - but you may need to set the radio code
> (the dealer should have it).
>
> Hopefully whoever replaced the ignition switch did not also mistakenly
> by-pass or disconnect some circuits.
>
> Good luck.

Papa,
Sounds like you know Jettas, I have a similar problem as follows:
My radio all the sudden stopped working. We checked all the fuses and
all are ok. We put another radio in and it does not work either. We
had some problems with the ignition switch (key in ignition audible
warning not working) Could the ignition switch prevent the radio from
turning on? How can I check this, is there and OBDII code that will
check this? Thanks.
 >> Stay informed about: 98 jetta gl radio problem