UPDATE:
Truck info, 2006 Dodge Ram, 3500 Quad Cab, 4x4, 5.9 Diesel, chipped key, remote entry, aprox 535,785 miles.
What I've done: Before I bought it I did a lot of reading and talking to people at Crutchfield, and 1 Factory Radio about doing this and they just stuck with their disclaimers saying it wont work. The fella from Crutchfield said I could do all these upgrades with GPS, backup camera, DVD player, blue tooth, etc for only about $800, but I couldn't get a cassette player in anything. The 1 Factory Radio guy said they could refurbish my unit for $235. I didn't tell him they sell my exact unit refurbished on the site for $225. I've been a builder all my life and done some impossible projects, and maybe this one won't work but it won't be because I didn't try. I installed the rak radio and nothing happened. LQK the seller said it needed to be unlocked from a dealer, and someone else told me the dealer could just reprogram the ECM to the RAK like the RAQ. The dealerships don't know one said they can't do anything and sent me to Car Toys to get a module to interface the factory parts..... another said sure no problem it will be $170. I paid $75 for the unit on ebay.
After reading a post where a fella was trying to install an aftermarket HU with the factory amp he mentioned he used his factory unit to turn on the amp then unplugged it and connected the new HU and it worked until he turned off the key. Then the amp went off and wouldn't come back on. So I tried that, and it worked, but my amp seems to work when I turn the key off and back on...….. almost.... I checked out and programmed the am/fm buttons, tested the tape player, set the clock, and that all worked. The amp settings and Fade, R&L don't work. I'm also somewhat concerned about other unrelated items like HVAC controls. I know that sounds crazy but one of the things about this unit was the truck needed to have dual HVAC controls which mine does but this is on the CAN-buss so why would that be part of the equation?
I'm going to try the CD player now since I wanted to give it some time for the amp to go off line if it is going to and at some point I'll disconnect power to see if disables it.
Regards,
AF
If you drive a Contour you need a support group!
If you own more than one you NEED a therapist!!