Date: Fri, 23 Jun 2006 11:57:29 -0400
Reply-To: Doug Fitz-Randolph <fitzr@SUSCOM-MAINE.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Doug Fitz-Randolph <fitzr@SUSCOM-MAINE.NET>
Subject: Heidelberg Radio question...
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Hi all,
No, this isn't the typical "Help - I disconnected the battery and now my
radio doesn't work" question...
Three years ago, for a radio-less friend, I picked up two Heidelberg radios
from the local junkyard, figuring that at least one would work. One was a
Heidelberg V, the other a Heidelberg VIII. I got them home, applied 12V and
- bonus - neither was dead. Both displayed "SAFe" on the screen, as I would
expect. I figured I'd get the codes from the VW dealer after I installed
the radio for my friend. Long story short, they've been sitting untouched in
a box for the past 3 years. I was recently in need of a radio, so I pulled
them out of storage. Of course, it just couldn't be easy for once. Here's
the puzzle...
Both displayed "SAFe" when powered-on three years ago. Now, the model V
seems to have lost it's security coding completely - it comes on and works
fine with no "SAFe" code. The VIII, however, now shows nothing at all on the
display. The only evidence of life is that the little red security LED
blinks when power is applied.
I have a theory about this, as follows: There is a battery in the radio
which maintains the SAFe code. When the radio is disconnected from 12V for
long enough, this battery dies. On the model V, when the battery dies, the
code goes away and the radio functions normally. On the VIII, which being
newer maybe has more "advanced" theft protection circuitry, when the battery
dies the radio ceases to function completely.
Can anyone offer any insights on this or any tips on bringing the VIII back
to life?
You might ask if one of the radios works, why do I care? Well, the volume
knob also functions as the "seek" button. On the V, it's so sensitive that
whenever I adjust the volume I change the station. It's driving me slightly
crazy. On the VIII, even though it doesn't turn on I can tell the knob is
less finicky. I want to keep a VW radio in there 1) because everything else
is bare bones original and 2) aside from not wanting to spend any $, all
the new radios you can buy look too much like video game displays.
Thanks,
Doug Fitz-Randolph
Freeport, ME
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