I bought a 2008 Astra last month and noticed that CD player was not working, so I replaced it with an identical one that is able to play CD. However I heard on and off buzzing noise from speakers and "program radio" on screen. I removed it and put the old one back and the noise was gone. I've already stored 9 stations in memory, what does "program radio" mean in this case? Any suggestions are very much appreciated.

 

stock stereo?

If so, the "program" message should be explained in the owner's manual.

https://my.gm.com/content/dam/gmowne...tra_owners.pdf

if you don't have the manual.

 

Thanks very much for the link. Unfortunately I don't see anything regarding 'program radio'.

 

is it the stock stereo?

 

No idea, it's exactly the same as the original.

 

Where did you source the 2nd one from and what was it advertised as?

 

I bought it from ebay, it said: 08-09 Saturn Astra Factory Radio CD Player 93357697Genuine OEM GM.

 

I found 1 post on the net from the English clan that drives the Vauxhall equivalent over there (thought it was Opel, whatever).

1)Seems the display in the dash and the radio must be "married" to one another using a tech II tool and multiple codes probably for the display that get programmed into the radio to match.
Otherwise, if not married, the Program radio message will keep popping up until they are and I would guess the display won't control it. Kind of a more obnoxious theft deterrent system that requires you to pay GM to make it work. I'm sure there is a way to do it yourself but I have no clue where to find out how.

BEFORE you go spend money on it::
1) is the crackling related to performing a certain function on the radio, like changing volume, button pushes, going over bumps in the road, or is it random, and will it occur idling in your driveway?
Could be anything from dirty contacts on a **** to ???

2) When the radio is pulled from another vehicle, it is supposed to be put into "Delivery mode", making it ready for programming into the receiving vehicle. Seems the seller ore prev owner has properly done that.

3) Unless you know someone with an up to date Tech II tool, you're off to a GM dealer. People report Chevy dealers are USUALLY most sympathetic to the plight of Saturn folks, but any GM dealer can do it. The codes maybe included with the original owners manual. Dunno.

4) the source of the cracking may be damaged wiring at the connector/harness or it may be internal. check the harness VERY carefully, and see if you can generate the cracking by wiggling the connector. After so many years of either sitting on a shelf or not being used, there may be corrosion on the contacts where they meet the connector. Or it may be internal to the radio. figure out which. If it i still under warrant from ebay and you have determined it is internal, notify the seller and return it.

5) does the original radio just reject CDs claiming the discs are unreadable, or does it not accept discs or not spin them once inserted> try it in ACC mode so you can hear what's going on and what's not. If it is spitting out every CD as an error, blow some compressed air into it; the lens is probably covered with dust and cannot read the CD's. I have been told this is something never to be done to a car CD player but I have fixed both of my 90's era CD players using this method. I your case, you have nothing to lose if the CD player can't recognize a disc. PERFORM AT YOUR OWN RISK. Use a red tube thingy to direct the air. Otherwise you cannot get enough force on the air to remove the dust. You're actually just moving the dust around in there so don't expect any to leave the CD player opening.

Please post back with your results

 

Update--the folks on https://www.astrakforums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=2377

indicate there is a software update for the buzzing. Dealer of course.

Said there are many threads on their forum about the topic.

Visit and search.