Steering Wheel Audio Control Issue

[agroves1988]

I recently purchased an 06 Mazda 3 hatch, but the audio controls on the steering wheel don't work. I tested the wiring, and the steering keypad puts out the correct resistances to trigger the car stereo. However, the car stereo does not respond to the steering column controls. This seems to indicate that the problem lies in the stereo.

Here's the part number for my stereo: BR9E66AR0

Can anyone tell me why the audio controls won't work? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[agroves1988]

Bump.

Does anyone have any thoughts?

 

[blacksheepms3]

did u buy an aftermarket head unit? if so, u need to buy a swi jac...it's a module that will allow ur aftermarket radio to be controlled by the steering wheel.

 

[blacksheepms3]

never mind. a quick search shows thats the oem radio. just tell your dealer about it. im sure they'll fix it under warranty

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

Unfortunately it isn't under warranty anymore. He thinks it's an internal stereo issue, but it seems odd because everything else works fine. Does the stereo have internal fuses or something of that nature that could have rendered the controls inoperative?

 

[GoFast]

did you do the resistance test at the connection to the radio?

 

[agroves1988]

I did the resistance test on the wiring that is connected to the steering controls, and each button put out the correct resistance.

Is there a way to test the resistance in the back of the radio?

 

[car46999]

I did the resistance test on the wiring that is connected to the steering controls, and each button put out the correct resistance.

Is there a way to test the resistance in the back of the radio?

IIRC the head unit outputs a voltage, the resistance changes that voltage, the other wire "reads" the voltage and performs an action based in the voltage/button pushed.

To me it sounds like the head unit.
Get one off ebay, they are usually cheap.
Good luck