Which stock radio do I have?

[Junior28]

I have a 2000 SSEi I bought used, so I would assume I have the stock Bose radio, BUT it doesn't say 'Bose' anywhere on it (just Delphi Delco Electronics). Is that normal? The amp and speakers are Bose.

Also, I was dealing with battery drain issues and I found the radio to be the culprit. If it's not actually a Bose radio, could that be the reason it was draining the battery (due to some type of incompatibility, etc)?

Whether it is or isn't actually a Bose radio, could I simply swap it with another radio from the junkyard (in hopes of getting rid of the battery drain issue)? Will that affect the security system/theftlock? My security light blinks when I open the door until I start the car, then it stays on solid while driving. No driving issues though.

I'm planning on installing an aftermarket radio soon, but money is tight (college student...), so another cheap junkyard radio is the plan for now assuming there won't be any problems with it.

Thanks in advance for the help.

[00Beast]

The HU has nothing to do with the Bose, it should say Bose when you start it up.

You'll need someone with a Tech II to unlock the radio.

[Junior28]

Hmm. I guess I should've mentioned that the screen doesn't work.

I saw this video after posting. Could I just follow this procedure to get the replacement radio working, or would I still need a Tech II?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AVQZk8-qs4

[00Beast]

That's a different style radio. The radio you have can't be unlocked by anything but a tech II.

[Junior28]

Dang it! I guess I have to either go that route or drive without a radio for a while.

Thanks for clearing that up though!

[bobgto65]

The light bulbs likely are burned out. Your radio has nothing to do with security and it should not cause a battery drain. I am sure you have to original radio or it would not work with the Bose system. What makes you think it is causing the battery drain? The radio is connected to retained assessor power that shuts off when the ignition switch is turned off and the door is opened or 10 minutes elapsed with the key in OFF. This circuit also controls the power windows and sunroof so if they still work with the key out and drivers door open, then the relay is stuck. (look at the rear fuse block under the rear seat). Try swapping it for another relay and see if the drain goes away. You can send you radio to Andrew at Bonnevilles Unlimited and he can replace the lamps. (harofreak00 is his user name). for I think $50. Or just google his business name.

[Junior28]

What makes you think it is causing the battery drain?

Ever since I had the car, the battery would drain after no more than maybe 10 hours. I took it to an auto electrical specialist and he determined it was the radio. I had suspected the radio was the issue after reading around online but my tests were inconclusive. What I did (before taking car to specialist) was put a battery from another car in my Bonneville to see if that was the problem, but it still drained. I then put the battery on an external charger, disconnected the radio fuse in the Bonne, and reconnected the fully charged battery. It still drained, so I was stumped (which is why I took it to the specialist).

I didn't tell the specialist that I suspected the radio was an issue, so he began looking into the issue without any prior knowledge. Long story short, after about a month of him testing, what he did was disconnect the radio and the current battery, THEN he put a new battery in with the radio still disconnected. The car started every day for five days in his shop without problem before we deemed the battery drain issue solved. Remember, as I mentioned earlier, I left the radio (and fuse) in when I FIRST swapped the battery. According to him, the radio was still drawing power even after the RAP shut off and this damaged the battery to the point that it drained itself even without the radio fuse in. I didn't have the money to get a new battery for the Bonne, so I kept the old one in for the time being and just disconnected it every night. I was reading on here that the radio controls the amp and I was sitting in my car one day (while it was off and the old battery still connected) when I heard a small thump come from the trunk every 20-30 seconds. Sure enough it was the speakers making the noise further confirming that I had a defective radio.

Phew! So yeah, that's why I think the radio caused the battery drain.

I put a new battery in the Bonneville about 12 hours ago for the first time since getting it back from the specialist (with the radio disconnected) and it just started up fine. Assuming it starts up later this morning (which I'm sure it will...) I'll know (again) that I'm 100% done with the battery drain issue.

This circuit also controls the power windows and sunroof so if they still work with the key out and drivers door open, then the relay is stuck.

Unfortunately, I don't have the sunroof (which could be a blessing in disguise given the common issues with them) but the power windows don't work with the key out and driver's door open, so I'm all good from that standpoint.

[bobgto65]

It is hard for me to believe it is the radio because there are 3 12 volt inputs from the dock and lock harness to the radio and when the RAP circuit is off, they all show no voltage. maybe there is a problem with the amp, just for giggles, try disconnecting that fuse and see what happens to your battery. The radio usually turns on the amp when the radio is turned on but there may be a short in the wiring. Or disconnect your amp connector and check the wires for voltage with the radio off. There should be no voltage going to it.

[Junior28]

maybe there is a problem with the amp, just for giggles, try disconnecting that fuse and see what happens to your battery.

Can I do this with the radio already disconnected (as it is now), and just test the battery before and after pulling the amp fuse? If there's no change in voltage, I wouldn't have to pull the amp connector then, right?

Or disconnect your amp connector and check the wires for voltage with the radio off.

(If I SHOULD still pull the amp connector even without a change in voltage>>>)How exactly do I check the wires with the multimeter? Which (color) wires do I check? And is it as simple as just touching those wires with the multimeter leads?

The radio usually turns on the amp when the radio is turned on but there may be a short in the wiring.

A short between the radio and amp? Is there an easy way to check this?



Finally, what if I just replaced the RAP relay? In my last post I know I said the power windows stopped working when they should but could the RAP relay still be causing issues with the radio/battery drain if it is a bad relay?

[Junior28]

Alright, I have some interesting new findings. I decided to check the car out now and it's a good thing I did since it's really quiet outside right now (more on that in a bit).

Firstly, with the radio still out of the car, I pulled the RAP relay, and amp maxifuse. Absolutely no change in battery voltage. Then I decided to go ahead and connect the radio back up to the car and found something interesting. Since it was really quiet outside, I noticed the smallest static sound coming from the rear of the car (trunk deck speakers I assume?) when the car was completely off. I then pulled the amp maxifuse out and what do you know, the static went away and it seems as though everything was competely off. With pulling the maxifuse out, however, there was still no change in battery voltage (according to multimeter). BUT, what I'm thinking now is with the amp maxifuse in, the voltage was actually still dropping over time, just not quick enough for me to notice a change within the minute I stayed to check the voltage level. Maybe this explains why it took about 10 hours for the battery to drain to the point of the car not starting before. Would you agree?

With that said, do you think a defective Bose amp is the reason I'm hearing the static with the amp maxifuse in? If so, replacing the Bose amp (with a non-defective Bose amp) should stop the drain then, right? Or could it still be something in the wiring?

EDIT: I should note that with the maxifuse in, every 20-30 seconds (approx.) the static would stop for literally a second then the trunk deck speakers would make a sound (like a really small bass hit) and the static would continue. This happens multiple times until the maxifuse is pulled out again.

Ok, with the radio still in the car, I went back out to the car and pulled the small radio fuse with the amp maxifuse back in. No static. So basically amp maxifuse in and radio fuse in = static, amp maxifuse out and radio fuse in = no static, amp maxifuse in, radio fuse out = no static (obviously because there's no power to the radio, correct...). This could still mean it's just a bad amp then right, since the radio is what turns on the amp?

[bobgto65]

Possibly the amp is bad. Your amp may not be turning off. The connectors are easy to get to. I don't have the wiring diagram for Bose but on the Monsoon there are 2 connectors. On the 24 pin connector, A3 pink is 14 volt reference, A8 pink is radio on signal, A1 purple is the top left connector and is the amplifier present signal. On the 8 pin connector E is battery positive voltage (red). That is always hot. The other wires are inputs and output for the speakers. It sounds like the amp is turned on when the radio is off. The Bose is turned on differently than Monsoon so getting the schematics for a 2000 may be more helpful. The easiest thing to do is find another used amp and see if that does not cause the static. If the replacement amp is doing the same thing, then you can check the wiring for shorts and continuity from the radio dock and lock to the amp.

[Junior28]

Gotcha. I went to the junkyard today to try to get an amp, but it started pouring down and I didn't get it. Plus the trunk was filled with water so it was really hard reaching all the way in there trying to get the amp loose. I hope to give it another go before I leave for college in a couple weeks. I wonder if I can cut through the thin metal that the amp is sitting on?

In the meantime, one question. Let's say I never get this amp issue resolved. By putting in an aftermarket head unit, amp and speakers, will I bypass all the issues I'm having?

[haro1225]

Get in touch with Andrew (Harofreak00). He might have a couple of those amps so you wouldn't have to try to search the junkyard.

[Archon]

These are the connectors for the Bose amp.

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[Junior28]

Thanks haro1225. I still wanna try to get back up to the junkyard before I leave for college since I know I can get the amp for real cheap, but if I can't make it, I may contact Andrew.

Thanks a lot Archon!

[Junior28]

Okay, I am now officially at a loss! I let the car sit since Sunday (so about 3 days) and was about to start it 5 minutes ago, but I noticed that the door lights didn't come on when I opened the driver door. (Mind you, ever since Sunday I left the radio in but left the amp maxifuse disconnected.) So I connected my multimeter up to the battery and it was at 4.xxx volts.

So what now? I originally thought the radio was the reason for the battery drain, but with bobgto65 strongly doubting that (and making sense in his reasoning) I am now completely confused all over again. If I ran all new wiring (what exactly would that consist of?) for a completely aftermarket audio system (completely bypassing everything 'BOSE') does anyone think that would rid me of the battery drain if, say, there's a short in the current wiring. I wish I knew how to check for a short...

For now, I'm just going to jump the car, drive to recharge the battery, and let it sit again for a few days with the radio DISconnected. Any suggestions in the meantime are greatly appreciated.

[lilstrom13]

If you PM me the vin, I can check to see what part number came with the car, so you can verify the radio is the right one for the car. Thats about all i can do to help, lol.

[bobgto65]

Have you ever had water leaking under the carpets. That may cause a bad or shorted connector or wire. Disconnect the connectors at the amplifier with the amplifier fuse removed and radio turned off and see if a any of them show voltage. Look at the diagrams and let us know which one(s) show voltage. If you put in an aftermarket HU you may need to replace the speakers also because I think they are 3 ohms. And the ones on the rear deck are subs. The amp has 8 outputs for 8 speakers and the crossovers are built into the amp so everything will have to be re wired. You will need crossovers for the tweeter and mid range in the front doors and replace the subs with triaxial 6 x 9's on the rear deck. Your best bet is to look harder for the cause of the battery drain and maybe check some of the other circuits in the car that may be the culprit. If you have a DMM and clamp the lead to the battery cable, it will read current (amps) through the cable. Pull fuses and relays one at a time until you find the one that causes the current. Make sure you try this for the back and front fuse blocks.