radio lights

Today I noticed that the 3 and 6 lights on my radio are out. The 1,2,4,and 5 are lit up, but the 3 and 6 (which are on top of each other) are out. This seems very weird. I would think that there would be one light behind all the numbers. Any thoughts??? 1996 k-1500 LT Suburban, with standard AM/FM radio and casette. Also thinking about putting in a CD player. How much trouble is this and where do I start?
You all are so helpful...I know you'll have the answers.

Oh just run down to your favorite Circuit City or BestBuy and get a new unit.......it will be a better unit than the OEM by a long shot and it will be brand new......forget messing with whatever it would cost in time and money to work on the original unit. Besides, they don't fix that sort of thing per se.......they stick entire control boards into them and it will most likely cost you more than a really nice new unit. Go for it!

Oh man nice to see some one else had this problem, I took mine all apart cause I'm a man of the world, I can do this. Yeah right I broke it in multiple places :banghead: and had endure my wife's comments for a week and still had to buy a new one anyway. I would not/not go to BB or CC they have install free except for us because our opening is a 1.5 din. go on www.Crutchfield.com they send you everything you need for mounting and it really is easy to install.

The rest of the lights on the radio will probably eventually go out. That's what happened on my 98 model, it started with a few buttons but after a few months it was all black except for the backlight on the word "Volume".

Some have had luck replacing the LEDs for each button, I think the parts are available from Radio Shack, but it's going to be a pain to do it. Most people either (1) ignore it or (2) replace the radio. I ignored it since I didn't want to try to fix it or spend the money for a new radio. Factory replacements run around $300 with the integral CD player, much less with the tape player (say $75 used). Check out ebay for some used models, maybe you'll see something.

1. Forget fixing it. It's not worth it because it's not a very good unit to begin with.
2. Your time is worth something. Let the pro's handle it.
3. ANY aftermarket unit will be better than what you had plus it comes with a warrantee and free installation.
4. I am not sure what the disparagement was regarding BB or CC but for the vast majority of the populace they are just the ticket.
5. With all the complicated control module circuts in these vehicles it would be nice to have someone like BB or CC screw up things behind the dash rather than a private owner. Good enough reason for me to go with point #3.

not sure what the disparagement was regarding BB or CC but for the vast majority of the populace they are just the ticket.

Don't know if I'd call it a disparagement, maybe more of a disgruntlement. They advertised (both CC and BB) free install but when I showed up with my burban they wanted to charge me an extra 65 bucks for Kit. Vs. doing it yourself. But hey if you got the bucks go to it.

not sure what the disparagement was regarding BB or CC but for the vast majority of the populace they are just the ticket.

Don't know if I'd call it a disparagement, maybe more of a disgruntlement. They advertised (both CC and BB) free install but when I showed up with my burban they wanted to charge me an extra 65 bucks for Kit. Vs. doing it yourself. But hey if you got the bucks go to it.

Well of course they will charge you for the installation kit. The offer does not say free installation kit with every install.....it says free installation with every unit sold. 65 bucks for a kit and install is a bargain when you get to tearing down the nerve center of a 50 grand vehicle. My guess is stefy will go the scratch to have it done right.

I had the same problem with my '99, one bulb went out..then another..then another. I ordered a set of them from this website (http://www.corvetteradios.com/Page7.html) and soldered them in myself. Wasn't that hard to do, and certainly cheaper than a new radio. I need to order a couple more for the AUX CD player, as the "eject" button doesn't light up.

Just got my light bulbs from www.corvetteradios.com to replace my burned out bulbs in my 1997 Sub's radio and it was a pretty easy fix (for me anyway). :biggrin: Once on their site, you can check out the different style radios and pick the one which closely resembles your model. They also have a page which shows you how to do the light bulb change with pictures. I have the radio/ cassette player with the separate CD unit below the radio. They can also do the fix for you for a fee. Just send in your unit.

If your proficient with a soldering iron and can excersise some patience, you can get the job done in an hour or so. You have to be careful not to "bridge" the solder joints for each bulb or you won't get a good connection or a short in the system (ask me how I know):rolleyes: .

I had six out of ten bulbs burned out but I replaced all ten just so I didn't have to tear the unit out of the dash again if the remaining old bulbs went out. :rolleyes: Cost of the ten bulbs was 20.00 but I think you can find the same ones at Radio Shack for a few bucks less. I didn't want to mess around looking all day so I just ordered them online.

Good luck! :)

Does anyone happen to know the LED or light part number? I would like to try and replace mine but so far havent been able to find the part number although I noticed one reply mentioned getting them at Radio Shack.
Thanks

I ran across this company that will replace all the lights for $40. You send them your radio, they do the work and send it back.

May be something to look into, here's the link:

http://replacementradios.com/product_info.php?cPath=289_316&products_id=167

Does anyone happen to know the LED or light part number? I would like to try and replace mine but so far havent been able to find the part number although I noticed one reply mentioned getting them at Radio Shack.
Thanks

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=766876

Check out post number 7.