I have a 2002 Buick Rendezvous CXL with 46,000 miles on the odometer. (It has a factory installed radio with a CD player and a tape player).
Yesterday I drove to Iowa City (85 miles. Upon my arrival, I was amazed that my radio
would not turn off. Also the clock on the radio had stopped. The radio was stuck on the NPR station that I had originally chosen. The station would not change. Pushing on the (on-off) nob provided no response. The radio was stuck on the station and the volume and the station selector waere both stuck.
To stop the radio, I disconnected the battery cable. Reconnecting the battery cable did not retaart the radio. I referred to the manual to locate the radio fuse on the fuse block. There was no fuse in the slot identified in the manual.
Do you have any suggestions what causes this situation and how to prevent future similar problems.
Did the radio resume normal operation after you “rebooted” it?
Yes. After I reconnected the battery cable and turned on the radio it immediatly resumed normal operation. I then turned off the radio and the radio turned off without hesitation.
Just like your computer, it may need a re-boot on occasion.This is the second time the situation occurred. Both times required the battery to be disconnected. I now carry a wrench with me in case I have to disconnect the battery every time I exit the car to turn off the radio
There HAS to be a fuse you can pull. Obviously, it ain’t the one labeled “Radio”. Does the fuse chart in the owner’s manual give any hints as to which this might be? Some vehicles have one fuse that power all the accessories that require power when the engine is off, including the radio memery.
I asked the local Buick service manager about the situation. He told me the situation was completely foreign to him and that the next time the situation presents itself, bring the car right in. That was four days ago and the radio works OK sonce the last occurance.
The car has two sets of fuses. One inside and one in the engine compartment. I now have identified the fuse inside the passenger compartment. It is hard to believe there are so many fuses for one automobile. I will keep you posted on future problems.
Thank you
You need the Owner’s Handbook. For that year/model there is a “premium sound package” and a “standard sound package”. Also, some have back seat control of the radio. Some (all?) have radio controls on the steering column. There is a radio fuse in the center console, according to the wiring diagram.
As a last resort, you could pull out your six-shooter and shoot it between the eyes.
I have a 2002 Rendezvous CX that does exactly the same thing. Even with the car off and the door open the radio will stay on. I took it to the dealer once while it was happening and they could not find any computer code. They finally just pulled out the fuse for the radio, waited a minute and put it back in. Problem solved till next time. It happens periodically and I have learned to pull out the fuse and put it back in myself. This happens every few months. I have also had it happen with the back-up assist alarm. It will start going off and not stop but this has happened only a couple of times. Weird and apparantly not fixable as the dealer is at a loss.
That sort of thing is not limited to your Buick. My 1988 Mercedes-Benz OEM sound system takes a notion to just lock up every now and again, complete with greeking characters all over the digital display and an auto antenna that won’t retract when the ignition is turned off. Strange! Like you, I loosen the negative cable from the battery, wait a few seconds and reattach the cable. Antenna retracts. Radio et al works just fine then and will likely continue for 6 months or more, before its next episode. This has been going on for about the past 2 years or so. My M-Bz mechanic doesn’t know what to do about it, and it happens rarely enough that I’m satisfied to simply apply my usual fix, rather than pursue costly trial-and-error remedies.