Audio Systems: 2000 chrysler LHS Radio problem, factory wiring harness, 2000 chrysler lhs

Question
The (stock) radio in my car won't stop blinking.  It looks like it is turning off and back on continuously. It will come on for a second and then if I touch the volume or audio level it will start again.  Could it be shorting out/not grounded?  The lights on the Bass and treble controls still blink after I turn the radio off.  
My four disk changer (also stock)also does'nt work, but that could be a whole differnt story. Please help!
Dan

Answer
A poor radio ground would make the music intermittent, but if the audio is fine, it is likely a bad circuit in the deck causing intermittent operation of the lights/LED's.

This light problem is probably from a combination of poor radio manufacturing and age. The components are 'designed' for a mobile environment, but they will fail eventually from bumps, potholes and other vibrations found in normal use.
I would say that 6 years is a great lifespan for any factory audio.
It is probably time for a new setup, since repairs are not cost-effective for factory units.

You might want to 'can the changer entirely' and just get an In-Dash deck that allows the use of CD-R and CD-RW while supporting MP3 playback.
Then you can burn up to 256 MP3's per CD with your PC (or a friends PC).
A more realistic amount (for high quality sound) would be about 110 MP3's at 160k bitrate per CD. That is still a phenomenal amount of music (and you would not need a CD changer to have about the same amount of music available).

These MP3/CD-R In-Dash units can be found at Circuit City and Walmart starting at about 80.00 plus installation (C. City only). If you are inclined to do it yourself, they also offer factory wiring harness adaptors (no need to cut any factory wires) and installation kits (so it looks like it belongs in the dash). These are about $10 each.

If you need the lights to work properly, this is the least painful advice I can think of for you in this situation.
Consider that you would have a new warranty for the radio and plausible access to a lot of music and this 'replace it' idea is not such bad news. This resolve also looks forward to the future (a few years+), as it will only cost 80+ next time too. They will break, so do not spend too much on headunits.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,
Jmael