It can be frustrating when your car radio display stops working. Rather than taking the time to find out what is wrong with it, many people just replace their car stereo system entirely.
This may seem like a good idea at first, but you will probably end up regretting it in the long run because of all the money spent on something that could have been repaired at home.
In this blog post, we are going to explore some possible reasons why your car radio display might not work and offer solutions for repairing it!
Reasons Behind a Car Stereo Display Not Working Issue
There are a few potential reasons why your car stereo display might not be working.
Fuse Problem
One reason could be that the fuse for the car stereo system has blown. If this is the case, you will need to replace the fuse in order to get your display back up and running.
Wiring Issues
Another possibility is that there is an issue with the wiring of your car stereo system. This can often be fixed by checking all of the cables and ensuring that they are properly plugged into their corresponding ports.
In most cases where the fuse is okay, you’ll see a connector getting loose or wires getting disconnected to make the stereo display unusable.
Dimmer Setting
If you have your car’s dimmer setting turned down too low, it could be causing the visibility issue with your stereo display. Though that won’t make the display completely invisible, you may misunderstand this as a bad display on a sunny day when the sun is beating hard.
In order to fix this, simply turn the dimmer setting up and see if that resolves the problem.
Bad Stereo Display
While it’s highly unlikely with a relatively new stereo, it can happen that the radio LCD display has gone bad which is causing the display not to work despite turning on the system.
To have a clear understanding of whether it’s just the display panel or the whole stereo unit is damaged, you’ll need to open up the stereo and take a look inside.
How to Fix a Car Radio Display that’s Not Working?
Whatever may be the reason behind the car stereo display not working, we have outlined some easy solutions that you can try to repair.
Replace Blown Fuse
If the fuse is blown, replace it with one of the same rating and see if that fixes the problem. From our experience, a blown fuse is the most common cause of a car radio display issue. So, check this out first before heading towards the next.
If you don’t have the fuse of the correct amps rating, you can get a pack of fuses with a different rating so that you can quickly replace blown fuses now and in the future as well.
Where is the Fuse for my Car Radio?
The fuse for the car radio is generally located in the fuse box which is usually under the hood of the car. You can also check your owner’s manual to see if there are any specific instructions on finding and replacing a blown fuse for the car stereo system.
On newer cars, the radio fuse box is somewhere under the dashboard or close to the center console.
In case you don’t know how to replace a fuse in the car, here is the process-
- Find the target fuse by matching the numbers written on the box cover with the owner’s manual.
- Take a needle nose plier
- Use that to grab the blown fuse and take it out of the box.
- Grab the fresh fuse with the same needle nose plier and put it in the right place.
- You may need to press a bit with your hand to make a good connection.
Solve Wiring and Connector Issues
Check all of the wirings for your car stereo system and ensure that they are properly plugged into their corresponding ports.
In most cases where there is a wiring issue, this will be an easy fix! If the wire is broken or damaged, simply replace that wire with a similar one. If the connector is loose, simply put some pressure so that the connection is snug.
Before starting to work with wirings, it is recommended to disconnect the battery so that there is no spark while you work inside the car. You know how dangerous it can be if a spark ignites any fuel!
Once you have fixed any potential wiring issues, test out your stereo display to see if it’s working now.
Correct Dimmer Setting
This is not a universal fix. Some new stereo models come with this feature where the manufacturer puts a knob to adjust the brightness of the display manually. If the dimmer accidentally gets to the lowest, it may seem like nothing on the display due to dimmed out backlight.
A simple solution is to turn the dimmer up and see if things go back to normal.
Replace Faulty Display Panel
In very rare cases, the display panel might be bad and it will need to be replaced. This can be determined by opening up the stereo and taking a look inside. If you see that the problem is with just the display, then this is an easy fix with a replacement panel. But it’s costly.
We recommend replacing just the display panel instead of buying a brand new stereo unit altogether unless the unit is too old to be running well for longer!
Replace the Stereo Unit
If the stereo display is broken and there’s no easy way to fix it, you can also replace the unit itself. This will be costly but if things don’t look so promising, it’s better to move on and get a brand new head unit with all the modern features!
Check Fixes for Other Car Radio Display Issues:
- https://www.carsumu.com/car-radio-display-flashing/
- https://www.carsumu.com/car-stereo-has-power-but-no-display/
- https://www.carsumu.com/touch-screen-in-car-not-working/
Why is My Car Radio Display Fading?
Fading is another common problem with car stereo systems. If you turn on the radio and notice that there’s nothing but a faded out display, this can be solved by following these steps:
First, check the material used on the car radio display. If it’s a plastic cover on the display, it is going to fade over time. However, if the display is of high quality and there is no plastic covering, check all the things we have mentioned above.
How to Fix a Car Radio Screen that Went Black?
If your car radio display went black, this doesn’t mean the end of anything. There are a few reasons why it can happen:
You may have accidentally bumped into something with the head unit and shifted to another source or even turned off the power supply for some time.
A faulty connection between the stereo system and its wires might be responsible for all of these issues. Check if there’s any loose wiring around! You should check both ends of each cable in order to see if there is an issue somewhere along that line; replacing bad cables will do wonders here!
A common problem is when you put new parts on but forget about connecting them together – simply connect everything back up again as they were before taking out those components from inside the vehicle.
Directions to Fix a Blank Stereo Screen on Car Radio:
1. Reset the stereo unit to check whether it’s a software issue. If it was a software issue, it should back up and running without any problem after the reset.
2. If the reset didn’t solve the issue, follow all the steps outlined above one by one. If that also didn’t work, we recommend taking the stereo to a professional to diagnose the actual issue.
Final Words
With these solutions in mind, you should now have a good understanding of what might be causing your car radio display not working issue!
We hope that one of these solutions works for you and fixes your problem so that you can enjoy your music once again while on the road!
