HAHA! Just fixed the radio/cd player in a used car I recently purchased. Can't believe what was wrong...

I was at the auto auction close by my house. I was wanting to find a car for cheap that I could toy around with in my garage. Found a 03 Honda Accord EX. V6 + 6 SPD = FUN! It has 165,000 miles and was listed by the dealer that put it in the auction as having "ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS - RADIO".

Never had seen that one. Asked the rep from the dealer and he said that the entire sound system could not be fixed on the car after trying all they could think of. Claimed that was the reason it was traded in. Said that since the car is set up to where the Navigation, Radio, Cruise Control, A/C Controls, CD Player, Fan Controls, and pretty much everything else in it is integrated into the sound system so an aftermarket one is not an option. So they were auctioning it without a reserve.

I could care less about a radio and bought it for $1,800! These cars sell at used car dealers for $6k!

I just now found the problem that no one else could and the reason it sold so cheap. I can see why no one else did.

There was a FREAKING DIME LODGED IN THE 12V ACCESSORY PORT that is hidden underneath 2 plastic panels in the center console! HA HA HA!! That is a new one for me after working on car electronics for years.

It was in there so well that it didn't rattle, my fingers couldn't reach it, and it is totally hidden from view. I had a friend messing with it after digging it out from under the console. Could insert an adapter into the port fully but it didn't light up. He stuck his freakishly long finger in it and felt the dime somehow.

The dime dropped from the change slots on top and got a hole in one! Someone who had owned the car previously had the 12V outlet hidden from view (due to switches he installed) to where if you didn't know exactly where it was you'd have not known it was there. The fuse it is on is also tied into the display pod above the navigation screen. Without that pod working, you cannot enter the anti theft code and unlock all of the controls.

Unbelievable! I am sure the original owner had the radio suddenly go out, try to fix it, and give up by trading it in. I can picture the team of guys from the dealer working on this car, pulling out their hair as they were replacing every stereo part, and running new wires to anything they thought of to fix it. I would bet they even checked out the 12V port and didn't find a problem.

I would've never believed it until seeing it myself. Always thoroughly inspect those damn 12V accessory ports. Find out where every single one is located. Something can get lodged in there so well that you cannot see it or feel it and it can disable the entire freaking car in some cases!