Radio change: connection fits, but doesn't power on?

cormie

Hey folks,
I'm trying to swap the included head unit on a 2013 Mercedes Sprinter, with an aftermarket one from another van. The Sprinter head unit works in both the Sprinter, and the other van, but the aftermarket radio only works in the other van, even though the connection adapters are the same size, although the wiring looks different.

From looking on ebay, I see this: https://goo.gl/J4cHW6

So it looks like an ISO to ISO adapter and I'm guessing that will sort the issue, but is there any quick and easy ways to get it working without that harness I wonder?

Any feedback would be great

joujoujou

Did you try crossing red and yellow wires?

Yellow is used to power the logic and retain memory. Red is used to power the amplifier circuit and also to detect the car ignition switching on and off. Occasionally they are switched.

cormie

Thanks, I'm not really sure how to check for this, I don't want to mess anything up so I might just go with the adapter kit from ebay

iamthemanwork

If the radio will not power on , swapping the Red and Yellow wires will not make any difference.

cormie

The radio powers on in the other van though, so I don't think it's the radio at fault, just whatever wiring there is. I think I'm probably safest just to get the converter/adapter like this:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mercedes-Benz-Sprinter-Stereo-Radio-Fitting-Kit-Fascia-Panel-Adapter-Single-Din/371525936836?hash=item5680abe6c4:g:15kAAOSwKtlWoNhX:rk:3:pf:0

or this:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Car-CD-Stereo-Fascia-Fitting-Kit-Wiring-ISO-Aerial-For-Mercedes-Sprinter-2006/350873387121?hash=item51b1af0071:g:rKYAAOSwao1bI9ju:rk:3:pf:0


The harness adapter in the first link looks different to the 2nd, the one in the 2nd seems more like the connection ont he back of the Sprinter radio... unless the adapter in the 1st link can still take the connection, but it just has room for more stuff too?

cormie

I got this back from the seller in the first link above:

It may be that you need to wire the new radio with a separate 12v power so it has its own power feed this is usually needed when fitting aftermarket units.

Should you require any further assistance then please do not hesitate to contact us.

I mean the Lidl radio works perfectly in the other van by just connecting the same shape plug that is on the sprinter radio, and the sprinter radio works perfect in the other van.

Maybe I should just take a gamble and buy the kit and hope for the best!

cormie

Well I got the adapter and still the same problem

JohnBoy26

cormie wrote: »

Well I got the adapter and still the same problem

Look at wires to see which one isn't maching up on the connectors

cormie

Can they just be pulled straight out then, or how would I match them up?

JohnBoy26

cormie wrote: »

Can they just be pulled straight out then, or how would I match them up?

Connect the head unit connection to the vans connection and see if all the wires are matching and do the same with the other van and compare. Sometimes a wire can be in the wrong slot on the head unit connection and will need to be swapped to another pin.

cormie

Thanks again for the reply... something very strange happened... having accepted that the head unit just wasn't working, I decided to keep it in the slot, still plugged in. I was sitting in the van and turned the ignition off and then a few seconds later, the radio comes on There was no sound from the radio or CD, but he speaker interference did alter as I changed tracks etc, just no "music"... as soon as I turned the ignition back on, it powered off and stayed off again