Hi guys In may i bought my wife a 99 e36 m3 we both love the car. Resently she complained the radio comes and goes so i switched cars with her to see whats the deal. seams that the radio goes out intermittently {eather when playing cd,or just fm} but when you turn off the stereo or mono switch it plays only in mono mode. Drive for 10-15 min it starts working properly for a couple days.seams temperature does not make a difference but not sure. can i bypass the switch {in front off shifter} if i have an aftermarket alpine radio unit {came with car} Thanks Tommy
I have E30s, but as I understand it, E36s were the last 3 series with a conventional "head unit" and amp. No matter, the symptoms you describe seem to indicate an intermittent loose connection somewhere. I suggest you pull the head unit and just check all the RCA plugs. Something may be loose. If you have a separate amp in the trunk, check the plugs to that too. It might also be something inside the head unit (bad board, bad switch etc) and that would mean replacing the unit itself. Good news is that aftermarket head units are really inexpensive now (check Crutchfield.com) and you can get cool ones with iPod inputs etc. If you want to stay vintage, its tougher, but is sounds like that decision was made for you by the previous owner.
radio and amp problem on e36 with hk sound Hi guys. Well it took me a couple months to get back on my first posting of the radio-amp problem, so now i can let you guys in on the scoop. due to holiday season and less driving that was not a priority. so after replacing the radio {older alpine with ipod cap} with newer version it seemed it fixxed the problem untill a big rain storm it all started realy acting up. radio still worked partialy so i figured ill replace the switch next to the shifter {stereo-mono} ,it seemed to make a difference when i played with it. 80$ later no difference. now i wass pied off. pulled car in garage and started poring water on top an see whats what. As i was in the trunk i saw the colprat. A small hole located right above the amp connector was supplying adrop off water on and in the the amp wiring connector. The car had some left quater damage repair prior my purchase.{so i found out} The water was coming from the left lower corner of the rear windshield on to the cross bar and small hole in to my amp. The connector was full of corrosion so i had to remove battery becouse there is constant power going throu conector to amp {spark will fly if you try to clean it with tiny wire brush {experience speking here} So i reseled windshield, replaced amp, connector and the car streo sounds like a dream. Honestly i like to drive her car now more than mine. ssssshhhhhhhh This post may not mean muth to a lot of people, but i just felt its my duty to post it if i figured out a way to fix it my self. Thanks Tommy
Congratulations on troubleshooting this problem. Intermittent electrical problems can drive people nuts because they are so difficult to diagnose. Congratulations again.
