Panasonic CY-VMD9000u

Hi,

I recently bought this unit used on ebay.  The seller ensured that the unit was operational before removal in his vehicle.  It included all the wiring and the brain unit.  I downloaded the instructions from Panasonic and just to test the unit before wiring all the wires; I connected the red (ACC power), yellow (12v), and black (GND) wires.  The unit seemed to turn on but was unresponsive when pressing buttons, the lights on the unit were active but nothing would work.  I inserted a cd inside just to test and the unit did take it and start spinning as if it were playing but would not eject the cd and all other buttons remained unresponsive.

I tried to connect the wires directly to the battery as well as another test, but I got the same results.  I have searched this forum and have seen someone else with a similar problem but with no resolution.  The unit seems to be in good shape so I'm wondering if it's something I've overlooked.  The only other thing that I can think of is the parking brake cable, the directions indicate that the unit should still respond with the 3 wires connected so I don't think the parking cable is necessary yet.  However, I was willing to try anything at this point.  I tried to ground out the wire but it didn't seem to have any effect.

Has anyone here encountered this problem before?  Anyone have any ideas at all?  Help!

Thanks.

Aargh, I'll be slightly annoyed if that's the case.  The seller seemed pretty trustworthy, I even spoke to him on the pphone and he explained how he disassembled the unit out of the car.  His explanation seemed to indicate that he had given me all the wiring and that he had removed the unit with care.  He again reiterated that it was in working order.  The only thing he mentioned was that he pulled the brake wire off and it snapped off its connector, which didn't seem like much of a problem to me.

If I do open the unit, I think it would void the warranty, correct?  Any other ways to determine if it's a dead unit?

Thanks.

Of course the unit would still be working BEFORE it is removed. The question is, will the unit still work when you re-install it ?  Most of the time the person removing the system takes note that the unit is in operational condition before the removal, but did he test the unit again after removing it ?? It's not like he lied to you or any thing, but to the best of his knowledge the system was probably working as he stated BEFORE removal.

As far as warranty goes, it the unit was bought a a box store then you probably can get warranty with the original bill of sales, but if you don't have that, your SOL because no one that I know of will take a warranty item in without the original bill of sales.

Aside from what I told you to test for, all units should still react when you attach those 3 wires together. The GREEN brake wire is only needed for video bypassing to see the monitor while driving. Nothing to do with the initial function of the unit

sh*t, it seems more and more likely that it might be DOA.  After speaking with Panasonic reps they also indicated that  the unit should play with those wires connected.  They then advised me to bring it to an authorized repair center, but ofcourse couldn't provide me with an estimate as far as cost.  This is very frustrating especially after spending $675 for this thing.

Since the unit still performs those basic functions you mentioned above, do you think it may be a fix that I might be capable of doing.  I haven't opened it yet but am considering it, I'm hoping it may be a simple fuse as you said.  But, I would question why a fuse would blow inside the unit yet the fuses that are on teh wire harness are still good.

I'm going to take this unit to an installation center tomorrow morning as my "last resort" before I open it up and inspect it myself.  Thanks for your help, if you have any other ideas let me know. 

Since the unit still performs those basic functions you mentioned above, do you think it may be a fix that I might be capable of doing.  I haven't opened it yet but am considering it, I'm hoping it may be a simple fuse as you said.  But, I would question why a fuse would blow inside the unit yet the fuses that are on teh wire harness are still good.

Opening up the CPU will not harm anything. If there is a glass fuse inside the unit, you should be able to test this to see if it's blown or not. If the board is anything like a PS2, then the fuses will be board mounted ones and will require the removal of the fuses off the board itself ( a pain in the butt ). The fuse rating on the board is ALOT lower than that of the fuse on the power line. If the short occured somewhere other than on the power wire, then the inline fuse would still be good as in your case.

Just curious, and your name seems to imply that of being a shop, have you ever installed any of these units before?  Curious if you have any experience with the actual wiring of them?  After doing some research through google, I noticed that on the wire harness from the dvd unit (CY-VMD9000u) there is some kind of adapter connected to the ACC and GND wire.  On the harness I have here, that adapter is not there, instead it seems that the previous owner wired his own device.  The adapter is a small square black box but I don't have it on my harness.

I will attach a picture of the device that the owner made here if you allow me to?  I suppose I'll question him about it too tomorrow.

Velocity Motors wrote: Sounds like you may have bought a DOA unit off eBay  Lots of those around and more to come unfortunately.

The bad thing with that is people keep buying stuff like this from the web, instead of supporting their local dealers. You would think after hearing a horror story or two like this one people would wise up. As for your problem, I would take the advise of the Panasonic rep and have it looked at by a professional. Yeah, it will cost you some money, but will be fixed right and you really got a decent price on it to begin with. When buying anything off of the internet the phrase "Buyer beware" comes into play. Have you bothered to contact the seller of the item yet?

I'm unsure if you're referring to me but eBay can be a viable venue to obtain products at a fraction of the "local dealer" price.  I took as many precautions as I could to ensure that I'd be purchasing from a legitimate seller.  I haven't contacted the seller today but I had spoken to him numerous times yesterday when attempting the install.  Right now the unit is at an install center being "bench tested" for a nominal fee. 

If it turns out to be bad, I will send it back and receive my $ and have only suffered the frustration of having to wait a few more days to put a dvd player into my car.