Car Stereos: GM OEM CD radio, oem radios, internal amplifier

Question
I have an 04 Silverado I just bought. The CD player has ate a CD. It wont play or eject. It just clicks and then says check cd. Anyway, during search for another one, when you search on ebay or google, all the OEM radios cost $250+ if you search for a silverado radio. If you search in general for a GM radio, you find several radios for Impalas and Cavilers that are identical to mine except for the part #  my question is, will they still work. I understand they'll have to be programmed once they're iinstalled, but can they be programmed to work in my Silverado. Only reason I ask is because I know the issues with the chevrelets having computer connections with the radios which is why it cost more money to install an aftermarket radio.

Answer
Hi Scott,

I don't have a lot of knowledge of oem car stereos -- especially GM ones.

That said, I can pretty much guarantee that if they have different part #s, there's a reason for it.  It might be something like whether or not it has an internal amplifier (some vehicles have external amps), or how many outputs is has, or what other vehicle electronics pass through it.

So in short, unless you can find a record of someone having done the exact same thing you're hoping to do, I wouldn't waste my money.

Overall, I'd suggest putting in aftermarket; you can get better systems that sound way better for a fraction of the OEM price.

And they're less likely to eat a CD a few years down the road. :)

Justin