gyroakn Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Our toddler decided to practice his manual dexterity by putting coins into the cassette player of our '02 Subaru outback. Does anybody here know of a do-it-yourself way to get them out? If not, where could I go to have it repaired? Our local Subaru dealer/service said that they do not repair stereos, that they would only replace the whole thing for over $600. Not worth it, especially considering that the radio and 6-disc CD changer still work fine. On another note, the buttons on the stereo no longer illuminate when the headlights are on, so it makes changing radio stations at night rather difficult. This began before the coin feeding incident, so I don't think it is related. Unfortunately, however, our dealer said that this would not be covered by the warranty due to the fact that there are coins in the cassette player which indicates neglect. Sigh. All I want is a new light bulb in there. But the dealer says that they can't do that, the only thing they can do is install a brand new entire stereo at a crazy cost. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks! Annette Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtnman38 Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 Forget about useing the radio or Get an aftermarket cd plyer with install kit found at any local hifi shop or keep suby one for cd player pull it out of the dash and pull the screws out of the bottom of the cassette plate and dump the pennies out, or get XM all would work just depends on your capabilites. Most tock stereo's or not worth the price you could get a SUPA sweet aftermarket CD player for 600$ or down to 120$+ install +kit Good Luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subeman90 Posted January 8, 2005 Share Posted January 8, 2005 consider a replacement from ebay??? Might be cheaper then having a stereo shop pull the coinage and fix the bulb. I had a buddy (electronics degree) fix a bulb in a radio once.....very involved and a royal PIA. Ebay might be the way to go here. Matt PS helpful hint: Keep a cassette in the player (not in the whole way but just inside the door) so the kid can't put money in there. (atleast there isn't any in the CD player (that you know of)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 I'm assuming you havent tried inserting a cassette, thereby complicating the issue. We're not talking belly surgery here. If you were to replace the unit, you'd have to remove it anyway sooooo, take out the unit, open the cassette door and shake out the coins. If'n there's still some jangling inside, remove a cover or two and fish 'em out. Costs you nothing .... actually you net some change. Alternatively, drive the car off a cliff, open the cassette door and let gravity do all the work for you. There's always a solution. As for the kid, put velcro on his butt and attach him to the rear seat until old enough to use a real slot machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnuman Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 LA. . .Hmmmm. . .That'd be a days drive to go down there (assuming that you do not want to do the job yourself). . . I've got a kid of my own, and I know how fast a todler can be. . . I''l have to assume the kid did this while the car was parked and he got in to do this. Otherwise what was he doing in the front seat in the first place? Airbags can kill kids when they go off, if anything were to happen. . . OK, I'm off the soapbox now. . . (I think. . .) It is about an hours worth of work if you are good with tools to pull the tape deck and fish the coins out of it, than reinstall the unit. If you do not feel comfortable doing this, have a good car audio place do the work for you, or PM me and we can work out a fee for me to drive down (I'm near SF) and do it. As for the lights, that is more work, as I would have to take the unit completely apart to get at the faceplate lights, which may or may not be replaceable (well, without surgury). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coloradosubarules Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Try these on for size: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=64577&item=5743153010&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=48612&item=5741957013&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW http://motors.search.ebay.com/subaru-outback_Audio-Video-Electronics_W0QQcatrefZC3QQcatrefZC6QQcoactionZcompareQQcoentrypageZsearchQQcopagenumZ1QQfromZR2QQsacategoryZ38635QQsadistanceZ200QQsamotorscategorymapZ6028QQsbrftogZ1QQsocolumnlayoutZ3QQsocomparecolumnlayoutZ1QQsofocusZbsQQsopostalZ34983QQsorecordsperpageZ50QQsosortorderZ2QQsosortpropertyZ2QQsotrtypeZ1QQsotrvalueZ1 Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zefy Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 depending on what kind of coin...(copper pennies won't work) you could stick a thin magnet in the slot... be sure not to screw up any electrical when you go it though... not to sure about this... but i know for sure that a magnet can crew up a tape(because a tape gets its music recording ability through magnets... not going to explain for those of you who don't know how it works) but is their anything in the cassette player that can get messed up? i don't think so... good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaptain Kouta Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Unfortunately, most coins around the world are made from a non-ferrous nickel (I think), which means that they aren't magnetic. Add to that, a magnetic instrument near the play heads can magnetise them and damage their ability to play correctly, and damage tapes which are played in the player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brus brother Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Correct you are on all points KK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subarunation 713 Posted January 9, 2005 Share Posted January 9, 2005 Our toddler decided to practice his manual dexterity by putting coins into the cassette player of our '02 Subaru outback. Does anybody here know of a do-it-yourself way to get them out? If not, where could I go to have it repaired? Our local Subaru dealer/service said that they do not repair stereos, that they would only replace the whole thing for over $600. Not worth it, especially considering that the radio and 6-disc CD changer still work fine. On another note, the buttons on the stereo no longer illuminate when the headlights are on, so it makes changing radio stations at night rather difficult. This began before the coin feeding incident, so I don't think it is related. Unfortunately, however, our dealer said that this would not be covered by the warranty due to the fact that there are coins in the cassette player which indicates neglect. Sigh. All I want is a new light bulb in there. But the dealer says that they can't do that, the only thing they can do is install a brand new entire stereo at a crazy cost. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks! Annette Tell the kid to CHANGE their behavior! Sorry...I just couldn't resist :-) I am with the others, since you have t remove it to change it remove it and get the coins out. See who installs Best Buys radios and get a quote from them to take out the radio and dump the change out. There are only 6?screws holding in the trim and 6 screws holding in the radio. Not a major operation. Let us know the verdict, Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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