Car radio Touch screen VENT!!!

Rule3

Rule3

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Anyone every have a car head unit touch screen go crazy??

Wife's 2018 Subaru Outback Limited with.a Harmon Kardon is possessed! Jumps from one setting to another, one station to another, the screen is starting to de laminate.

They had a class action suit a few years ago and gave a extended 2 year warranty but we are past that so the dealer says no help from them

If I replace it with a OEM from them is is over $2k!! And all that is a rebuilt screen and no warranty. Subaru of America will not help

I have searched the web and this a major issue and I think 2019 models have the same issues!!

So the solution is to get an after market unit from a stereo place and that is still over $1K. All for a freaking radio with Sirus XM. Crazy money!

So much for the LOVE!:(
 
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JET4 said:
Crutchfield is very knowledgeable and helpful.
Click to expand...

I wanted to upgrade my tunes in my 2018 Tacoma. Called Crutchfield, and told the girl who answered what I wanted. While she was talking to me she had me look up part numbers so I could see what she was talking about.

Ended up with a new head unit that put out 4 times more amps than my factory one, new 6x9 Kickers for my front doors, and new tweeters for my dash. I'm still holding off replacing the rear speakers.

Everything was plug and play. Plus all my stereo controls on my steering wheel works, and my rear back up camera.

I was hesitant taking apart my doors, but YouTube had multitudes of videos on how to do it.
 
Rule3 said:
So the solution is to get an after market unit from a stereo place and that is still over $1K. All for a freaking radio with Sirus XM. Crazy money!

So much for the LOVE!:(
Click to expand...

I bought a Kenwood head unit, 2 6x9 Kicker speakers, dash tweeters, and their plug and play wiring harness for $615.

I know you could get a nice new head unit for around $300 from Crutchfield.
 
Yes, I looked at Crutchfield, Not sure if it is something I want to do myself. I would feel better having someone else do it;)

Pretty good a DIY stuff but do not like taking a dash apart.;)
There are lots of videos online make it look so simple
Just ticked that I have to deal with this.
 
The worst thing the car makers foisted on us is the integrated infotainment systems.
Need to go back to the DIN style that you could replace yourself and was not part of the cars electronics.
Wife was not happy when we bought a new Mazda and found out we were stuck with the Cr**py factory unit.
No way to upgrade.
 
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Don't know how many of you can even attempt to listen to music in a car. I don't know if this is just a western states issue, but I find on most roads if the volume is high enough to drown out the road noise, I'm being deafened. This is true even in my Mercedes SUV of regular go-flat tires. The noise in the BMW on 5+ year-old runflats is ugly on some parts of I-15 hereabouts.
 
If not something you want to do yourself pick out the unit you like at Crutchfield, then look online at car audio shops near you and fine a shop that installs the stereo that you like , and have them install it. Also some audio shops will install your stereo for you.
 
I used to do my own car stereo upgrades. It's pretty hard to swap out head units now because they control a ton of car functions.

My last upgrade was swapping out speakers in Dodge Challenger (which I no longer have).
 
Repair of touchscreens in point of sale and ATM devices was in my job description on my last job. Deep in the electronics is the chip or chips that correlates the key depression on the screen with the memory location assigned to a particular key. If a touch screen won't hold a recalibration you're pretty much screwed. Putting these screens in cars/trucks where the ambient temperature can range from 120F to -30F and making the whole car's operation dependent on guarantee's planned obsolescence
 
Our last car buying experience was in 2015 when the wife needed new wheels. She'd found the car she thought she wanted online and we went to look/test drive it. Once we started the paperwork the sales guy started a canned speech, which I cut off when I heard the word "connectivity". I stated that we were there to buy transportation, not internet service.

There was a pause, then the sales guy thanked me, saying that was a required part of the spiel. We finished things up quickly, the guy did give my wife a quick lesson on how to link her phone to the car for hands free phone use.

I think, but I'm a reform Luddite, that trying to interest the youngin's in cars may have something to do with all this junk. However, long experience with production makes me think that the bean counters are likely to have massive influence. I heard decades ago that selling cars just keeps the doors open at dealerships. The real money is in service and parts.

I also think that letting the code monkeys/IT folks run without close supervision is at play here. I've rarely met an IT type who doesn't leap at the latest upgrade in whatever. However, the software design folks are the biggest part of the problem. Road & Track had Bob Lutz as a columnist and he always railed at having the radio not operated by knobs. I hope to drive my 2014 till death. Mine or it's.
 
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Read recently that several auto manufacturers are moving away from the touch-screen stuff, and back to knobs and switches, for a number of different functions. Apparently this is for two reasons: 1) The touch-screens are too distracting and are contributing to accidents. 2) Customers just don't like them.


I am definitely in the second category!
 
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