Car Stereos: 2002 chevrolet malibu aftermaket stereo, amp fuse, chevrolet malibu

Question
Hi Brian I come to you hoping you can answer this question. Now I bought an aftermarket stereo for my 2002 chevrolet malibu from a good friend of mine now the stereo does work but after we removed my stock stereo and replaced it with the aftermarket one the aftermarket ones display did not work but cd eject did, so we checked the stock stereo again, there was no display or cd eject nothing it was dead. We checked the aftermarket one again to verify and same thing....... id appreciate it if u can give me some input so i could do this myself rather then bringing it in to the shop

Answer
Hi,

The first thing I'd check is the 15-amp radio fuse, located in the fuse box on the end of the dash, on the passenger side of the vehicle.  I suspect that this fuse blew at some point while you were switching the head units.  

Your vehicle was originally equipped with a data-bus controlled radio. This means that there's no key-switched power wire in the factory radio harness--just a constant power wire, supplied through the 15-amp radio fuse.  The factory radio was turned on and off through the vehicle's data bus system, but your after-market deck needs a second power wire that's switched on and off with the key to make it work.  With only the constant power connected, the new head unit will load and eject CD's, but that's all.

The best option is to purchase an adapter module made for your vehicle, such as Metra's GMRC-01.  This will work with the vehicle's data bus, and provide an accessory power wire for the new head unit; it will also generate the vehicle warning chimes that would otherwise be lost when the factory radio is removed.

Otherwise, you'll need to find an accessory power source somewhere in the vehicle to connect to the new head unit's red power wire.  I'd suggest connecting to the thick, brown accessory wire in the key switch harness, which is accessible at the left side of the radio cavity.  If you tap this wire, be sure to put a 5-amp fuse on your head unit's accessory wire, as close as possible to the tap point.

Hope this helps!

Brian