Hello to all!

My name is Chris and this is my first post to the message board so I thought to introduce myself first. I have a 1990 Volvo 240DL 5-speed manual (M47) 110K.
This is my second volvo, my first was a 1986 240DL wagon with M46 4-speed manual. It was given to me for free with 230K miles on it and it currently has 260K.

I still have the factory cassette player installed in the vehicle but for some reason I have no sound from the front right speaker ( I checked the connections ) I also get a poping sound when I turn it on and the bass/treble adjustments do little if anything to the sound. It appears to be a short of some type in the radio. I went out yesterday to Bestbuy and purchased an Awia Cd player. They supposedly had free install special but upon bringing it over I was presented with additional charges of around 100 dollars. He wanted to put in 2 wiring harnesses and by-pass factory amp etc. I honestly felt like he did not have a clue about volvos, this was evident when he said my air conditioning did not work (he did not know the A/C knob was above the ACC unit). I promptly, returned the radio and left the store. I wanted to see if anyone has some suggestions about installing a new radio or fixing the current one. I would be willing to install it myself if I had some direction. In fact, I would prefer to do it myself, that way I know it was done right.

I appreciate your feedback,

Chris

Chris and B.C. - The CR-718 radio will fit in either the top or bottom bay. The radio from the eBay auction is from a 740. It has a different mounting plate and a few extra clips and brackets on the sides. The one I put in our '88 244 came the same way. You would need to (i) remove the extra clips and brackets (use your old CR-712 as a guide, (ii) take off the 740 mounting plate (four small screws) and (iii) replace it with the upper bay mounting plate from your CR-712. The original plate will fit perfectly.

I should note that the eBay radio in the auction I cited is damaged. The bass adjust knob is missing.

Chris, like I said in my previous post, the difficult part of the switch is making up the adapter. If you or other readers are interested, I can give you a wiring diagram for making one up. This came from hard won experience. I had to open up the a couple of radios and trace pins to see which pin controlled what. Fortunately, the circuit boards are marked for some of the functions. "Ant," "Bat," etc. That's how I discovered the TD-613 had no speaker outputs through the 14-pin connector.

Remember, you need to have the 14 pin two-row connector for the back of the CR-718 in order to make your own adapter. Make sure that any radio you buy has that little plug. Not having to purchase the dealer's adapter will save you $10-$15.

Speaking of connectors, here's a little tip for you die-hard Brick Heads. If you try to use a 14-pin plug from a TD-613 connector, you will soon see that it does not have enough wires. It's missing the four wires for the front speakers, and either the rheostat wire (for dimming the lights) or the power antenna wire (I forget which one). Don't despair! You can disassemble the connector (it just snaps together) and add new wires. There is one other connector in a later model 240 that uses exactly the same wire ends: the ECU beside the passenger door. I got the one from our parts car, cut it apart with a cutoff wheel, and salvaged about a dozen pin fittings along with a run of about 4 inches of wire. The pin clips snap right into the radio's 14-pin plug.
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'88 244GL, '89 244GL, '90 244DL, '91 244, '92 244

Most curious - bought an Aiwa CD/mp3 player from Best Buy about a month ago to go in my 85 245DL and went ahead and had them (in Albuquerque) put it in. Two hours later (hadn't made an appointment) was only charged an extra $4. He had even replaced one speaker wire as he said with the newer radio it could short out. I have had no problem with the installation so far. A Sanyo AM/FM cassette player was in it before, so the previous owner had gone through the hassles of changing from a factory install.

If you are still wanting the Aiwa, I would talk with a higher up manager about that (to me) outrageous overcharge.

michael

Thanks for all the information!

If I had my choice, I would much rather keep the basic factory look and replace it with a CR-718. I read what another user posted, I am curious if it would be able to be mounted in the upper bay. I am not an electronics wiz, do you think that switching to a CR-718 would be to intensive for my modest skills? I do not want to get in over my head on this one!

Thanks again,

Chris
--
Volvo 240 DL - 5-speed manual

The top lines of my reply were cut off. Here's the entire post:

Chris - Your car has a CR-712 radio that is notorious for having an on-off/volume/balance knob that goes bad. One of the Board’s top contributing gurus, Art Benstein, has been able to fix the problem. See this post:

http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/index.htm?id=840431

As you can see from Art’s photos, it’s a nasty little job. I had a bad CR-712 from an ’88 244 and replaced it with another Volvo radio (more about that later). To see if I could reproduce Art’s feat, I desoldered the knob/controller (which is essentially a set of three collinear rheostats), removed it from the radio, and disassembled it. The job is just as tricky as Art indicated, but I did find the problem. There is a probably a 50/50 chance that I could have reassembled it in good working condition; however, I declined to do so since I had a working radio by then.

I replaced the 712 with a CR-718. The 718 is a more modern radio with tape auto-eject and the capability of controlling a 6-disk Volvo CD changer (manufactured by Alpine). It looks great in the dash, especially with the instrument lights on. Unfortunately, it will not plug into your harness. You need an adapter harness (about $12 at a dealer). However, the Volvo adapter is not perfect. It dos not control the power antenna or dim the lights without modification. You can modify the Volvo harness, or make your own adapter to control these functions. I’ve gone both routes, and believe it or not, it is easier to build your own. You just need the 9-pin connector off a CR-712 and the 14-pin double two-row connector that fits into the CR-718 (I can supply pin connections if anybody is interested).

You can find 718s on eBay. I paid about $25 for mine. They came in 740s (and possibly some 940s – anybody know for sure?), so don’t limit your searches to just “Volvo 240 radio.” Do not purchase a TD-613. This radio works only with a 4-chanel amp. It has no speaker outputs other than those that go to the amp. It will work with 4-speaker 240s built after 91 or so. In fact, it came standard on these vehicles. The 613 faceplate looks almost exactly the same as the 718 with the exception of the bass and treble controls. Both the TD-613 and the CR-718 require an anti-theft code, which you can get from a dealer.

I connected a Sony trunk-mounted 10 CD changer to my 718. I added rear speakers using the much-denigrated Volvo two channel 15W/channel amp (sounds like your car may already have one). I picked up the amp NEW on eBay for $10. The CD changer cost $35, also from eBay. I added an antenna switch so that I could listen to CDs without the antenna raised.

Some people on the Board will counsel you to ditch the stock radio for a new unit from Crutchfield or some other vendor. If you are an audiophile, that’s good advice. However, the Volvo unit sounds just fine to untrained ears, and it is so nice to have an understated Volvo unit in the dash rather than a sterile modern Star Wars design.
--
'88 244GL, '89 244GL, '90 244DL, '91 244, '92 244

This is an example of a CR-718:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7919934042&category=38639
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'88 244GL, '89 244GL, '90 244DL, '91 244, '92 244

HI -
My wifemobile (1988 244GL) has a CR-4123 Volvo radio, and it is barely useable. Poor reception on some AM stations, eats cassettes, etc.

On looking at the eBay auction for the CR-718 it appears to be useable in a 240 only in the lower location. Is that correct?

I would be interested in knowing how you got the CR-718 into your 240. Upper (my preference) or lower? Special brackets?

Thank you,

Bob

:>)

Bob - I posted something later in the thread about mounting a CR-718 in the upper bay. That's where I mounted mine (I believe that lower bay mounts are just accidents waiting to happen). All you need is the 240 upper bay mounting plate (four small brass machine screws from the plate to the radio, four more screws from the plate to the dash). Just remove the extra clips and brackets from the radio that go along with the lower bay or 740/940 mount. It fits perfectly and looks great.

Some 240 radio upper bay mounts use a steel mounting bracket to connect the radio to the dash/firewall. I DO NOT use this bracket. It seems to be more for theft deterrence than structural support. The radio is not heavy, and the mounting plate is quite hefty.

Good luck.
--
'88 244GL, '89 244GL, '90 244DL, '91 244, '92 244

top contributing gurus, Art Benstein, has been able to fix the problem. See this post:

http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/index.htm?id=840431

As you can see from Art’s photos, it’s a nasty little job. I had a bad CR-712 from an ’88 244 and replaced it with another Volvo radio (more about that later). To see if I could reproduce Art’s feat, I desoldered the knob/controller (which is essentially a set of three collinear rheostats), removed it from the radio, and disassembled it. The job is just as tricky as Art indicated, but I did find the problem. There is a probably a 50/50 chance that I could have reassembled it in good working condition; however, I declined to do so since I had a working radio by then.

I replaced the 712 with a CR-718. The 718 is a more modern radio with tape auto-eject and the capability of controlling a 6-disk Volvo CD changer (manufactured by Alpine). It looks great in the dash, especially with the instrument lights on. Unfortunately, it will not plug into your harness. You need an adapter harness (about $12 at a dealer). However, the Volvo adapter is not perfect. It dos not control the power antenna or dim the lights without modification. You can modify the Volvo harness, or make your own adapter to control these functions. I’ve gone both routes, and believe it or not, it is easier to build your own. You just need the 9-pin connector off a CR-712 and the 14-pin double two-row connector that fits into the CR-718 (I can supply pin connections if anybody is interested).

You can find 718s on eBay. I paid about $25 for mine. They came in 740s (and possibly some 940s – anybody know for sure?), so don’t limit your searches to just “Volvo 240 radio.” Do not purchase a TD-613. This radio works only with a 4-chanel amp. It has no speaker outputs other than those that go to the amp. It will work with 4-speaker 240s built after 91 or so. In fact, it came standard on these vehicles. The 613 faceplate looks almost exactly the same as the 718 with the exception of the bass and treble controls. Both the TD-613 and the CR-718 require an anti-theft code, which you can get from a dealer.

I connected a Sony trunk-mounted 10 CD changer to my 718. I added rear speakers using the much-denigrated Volvo two channel 15W/channel amp (sounds like your car may already have one). I picked up the amp NEW on eBay for $10. The CD changer cost $35, also from eBay. I added an antenna switch so that I could listen to CDs without the antenna raised.

Some people on the Board will counsel you to ditch the stock radio for a new unit from Crutchfield or some other vendor. If you are an audiophile, that’s good advice. However, the Volvo unit sounds just fine to untrained ears, and it is so nice to have an understated Volvo unit in the dash rather than a sterile modern Star Wars design.
--
'88 244GL, '89 244GL, '90 244DL, '91 244, '92 244

Hi Chris... WELCOME

Before I get started: does nayone know if the None Amp Volvo's have the same connector as the later ones with the separate amp?

Is this the CR617 radio? I think it's 617, Your problem is typical on that radio. Many of us have pulled the radios apart in search of the cure. I literally soldered the two Circuit boards together that originally had a connector, that helped for a short time but then it was dead again. I think that perhaps the circuit board itself gets a broken trace. With the Radio open and pushing down on it I was abled to get it to play from time to time. I replaced it with aftermarket. Most of us have done the same.
There are companies out there that make interfacing conectors that will mate to the Volvo harness. You still need to match the radio outputs to the correct wires on this harness. you will also need a new front panel (Bezel). They sell kits so you can buy a DIN style radio and yet put it into the Volvo. The '89 Volvo doesn't have a secondary Amp so I'm not sure if the harness would be different. I'm sure someone will helpout there. Check one of my Posts from a few days ago.("PARTS"). I have a CD player with that Bezel attached. I took it out of a car that was just Totaled so I'm not positive it works but it has that DIN BEZEL on it and it is already wired to go into a Volvo without Amp.


--
'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwrd, two motorcycles, '85 Pickup: The '89 Volvo is the newest vehicle I own. it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me

In any given year group (e.g., the '88-92 model years), the factory wiring harness connection will be the same. However, if there is an amp installed, there willl bbe a subharness which connects the amp and the head unit to power and ground, the amp outlets to the speakers other than the dash, and the head unit to the two dash speakers. Pre-'88 and some of '88 had the nine-pin connector plus some individual wires; '88-92 had the 14-pin offset rectangle connector; '93-99 have a small 14-pin and a small 10-pin harness connector.
all the amps thru '99 use the 6-pin din cable to connect the preamp outs from the head unit to the input on the amp--i.e., if you are handy at reading the wiring diagrams regardinng the speakers, you can easily add a two-channel amp or a 4-channel amp.
in the '88-92 range, I kkinda like the CR-814; it's a decent tape cassette receiver, will control a remote CD changer, runs two speakers ( usually the dsh ) direct from the head unit, and takes an external amp for either two or four more channels. Used volvo amps are cheap, but if you buy unseen, try to make sure you get the din cable (separate cable after '88, integrated in the amp in the earlier ones) and try also to get the subharness bits so you can rewire with the right connectors for your use. If you can get to the junkyard, and want a lot of noise, go for the amp from a 960--it's 4 x 40,and with decent speakers sounds as good as stuff that you'll pay a lot more for elsewhere. (I'm currently running a 4 x 20 for the four front channels, and a 960 4 x 40 for the four rear channels, after rearranging the speaker wirng and putting in new speakers.)
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We have met the enemy and they is us. [Pogo] S70 T5 cop car : Rough Rider tires& suspension, Walmart fog lights, eBay speakers, ambiance by Pall Mall, trim by Le Duc d'Tape, 8-channel THD by OEM amps

Very easy --- I think the worst part when I did this was getting the factory radio out. It is held in there pretty tightly. There is a metal clip that holds the radio in place directly in back of the unit.

I ordered a unit from www.crutchfield.com, great service, comes with directions specific to your car, and it comes with a tech support number as well. I had the factory amp and found out that my new stereo just by passed it all together.

Good luck!

I don't blame you for wanting to do it your self. I installed a Alpine unit in my 88 240 this spring. I got the Volvo aftermarket wire harness and used butt connecters to attach it to the stero's wire harness. From there, I just plugged in the Volvo after market harness in to where the old stereo was pluged into and I was done. I don't think that I can help you in reguards to your amp,as my brick did not have one. Doing this your self is deafinitly a worth while project that I would recomend. Good luck and happy bricking. YOu have come to the best place for brick advice.