The radio turns off when the engine starts: possible causes and solutions

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:41

Motorists could repeatedly notice that in the process of starting the engine, or rather turning on the starter, the car radio turns off. The device goes silent for just a few seconds, and then turns on. Most often, this situation can be observed with non-standard devices. Let's find out what to do when the radio turns off when starting the engine.

The principle of operation of radio tape recorders

Car radios have long been an integral part of any car. Even options such as UAZ "Patriot", VAZ 2110-2114 are no exception. The principle of operation of any car radio is almost the same and does not depend on the model. When the driver gets into his car and turns on the ignition, all systems automatically start, including multimedia. Next, the starter is activated to start the engine. At the same time, the instrument lighting dims, and the radio turns off when the engine is started. When the motor starts,the multimedia system starts working normally again.

It is believed that one of the reasons for this behavior of the radio is that the engine is still cold after starting. As soon as the engine warms up, when restarting, the radio will not turn off. The starter is involved in the process of starting the car. It is a consumer of a large amount of electrical energy - at the time of starting a cold engine, the voltage drops sharply in the car's on-board network and the radio tape recorder is simply not enough.

Radio Protective System

For the driver, the main goal is to start the engines. Support for any other devices is relegated to the background. All the energy available in the battery is used to operate the starter. The radio does not have enough power, and it turns off. Many motorists are very nervous about this, but this is not a minus, but a plus. If the radio turns off when the engine is started, then the voltage is low, and the device on it, especially of Chinese "origin", may not work correctly. To prevent serious failures in circuitry or software, the system automatically turns off - this is how protection mechanisms work.

When the car has already driven a certain distance and the engine has been turned off, when you try to restart the radio, the radio will not turn off. The amount of energy increased by recharging the battery with a generator.

Manufacturers have taken into account these points: most radio tape recorders have a so-called threshold for the operation of protective functions. You need to take into account the statebattery.

Connecting a radio

One of the reasons why the radio turns off when the engine is started may be the connection, or rather the diagram of how to do it right.

If you connect a multimedia device in series according to the scheme proposed by the manufacturer, then when the engine is started, when the key is turned from On to Start, a power interruption occurs on the ignition switch.

You can solve this problem if you power your multimedia device directly from the battery. However, there are disadvantages in such a connection: the radio tape recorder will drain the battery. On a cold winter night, the radio may be enough to completely drain the battery.

Current leakage in the on-board network

If the radio turns off when starting the car, then the problems may lie in the so-called current leakage. That is, when the ignition is off, there are consumers that discharge the battery. During the night, due to these leaks, the battery can “sit down” completely. In order to solve the problem, you need to find the leak and find its culprit. It can also be a radio, alarm, central locking and other systems.

Wires

This is another reason if the radio turns off when the engine is started. The whole thing could be in the wires. Often, radios are connected with thin low-quality wires. They have insufficient performance and multimedia is unstable.

The solution to the problem canbe replacing the power wires of the radio with copper counterparts with a cross section of 2.5 mm. This allows you to forget about reboots and turning off the radio at all. Also, the music does not turn off when the volume is increased. This method can be used so that the radio does not turn off at startup, but it will only work normally with a relatively new battery.

Starter

Sometimes the battery may not be to blame at all, and the problem can hide in the starter. During the operation of the latter, its parts are subject to wear. If the starter bushings are worn out, then the shaft can jam in them and more energy must be expended to crank. Hence the shutdown of most electrical consumers.

To fix this problem, a starter revision is needed. It is necessary to check the brushes, the collector, replace worn bushings, lubricate the mechanisms. After such a revision, the starter will work like new, which means that it will need less voltage.

Finalization of the radio

Motorists modify their radios themselves, if they did not take this moment into account. To solve the problem, you will need 2 elements - this is a 22,000 microfarad capacitor with a voltage of 25 V, as well as a 10 A diode (the diode must be selected based on the fuse ratings in the radio). In this circuit, the diode will serve as a valve - it will not allow the capacitor to feed the on-board system of the car, but will only feed the radio.

The scheme is simple. A capacitor is soldered between the power wires of the radio. On the positive wire with the positive contact to "+"capacitor soldered diode.

How does it work?

So. When the driver starts the car, the starter takes on most of the voltage, so the radio turns off when the engine starts. A diode and a capacitor are used to prevent the multimedia system from turning off.

The main supply voltage of the radio goes through the diode and charges the capacitor. When the ignition is turned on, the voltage will go through the diode and charge the additional capacitor. When the starter is running, the voltage in the on-board network sags. Diodes do not allow the voltage in the capacitor to go into the network - the entire charge will go to the radio so that the radio does not turn off when the engine is started. For the latter to work for 5 seconds, a capacitor with a capacity of 470 uf is enough.

Other solutions to the problem

Experienced motorists recommend other options. You can purchase a high-capacity battery, and then you can forget about this malfunction forever. You can also purchase cheaper multimedia systems - they are less demanding on quality and voltage stability. If the radio with a rectifier turns off after starting the engine, then it may be worth checking the wiring for possible errors.

Conclusion

With the help of these tips, many motorists have overcome this problem. A capacitor and a diode help a lot. If the capacitor with the diode did not help, then you need to check the wiring, the starter, the operation of the generator and change the battery.