Since I bought my Dodge Durango in 1999, I have enjoyed using the standard stereo head unit that came standard. It always sounded good enough and (on the plus side) it had a tape deck. I know that sounds silly, but I had enough of those tape adapters with the wire that allows you to plug in an external source. They were originally made for portable CD players, but they also work great for mp3 players, and my Sirius radio as well.

So it was time to buy a new head unit. I had some bonus dollars on my credit card and got some free gift cards at Crutchfield. I’ve dealt with them before and have never had an issue. I picked out the head unit I wanted. This baby has all of the extras. Extra inputs, extra outputs, even USB connectivity. That will allow me to load my USB thumb drive with MP3s and listen in the car without bothering to burn a CD.

At any rate, I had the whole dash of the truck taken apart and I hooked up the new stereo. At first, all seemed well. Until I tried to use the external input. No worky. Not even a crack, pop, or even static when that source was selected. Crutchfield is extremely proud of their tech support, so that was my next bet. He had me run through a few things to test, and was surprised that I actually hooked everything up correctly. Apparently, most people are stupid and can’t read directions?

Yes, I was shocked too.

After all of that, he called the unit manufacturer and they are assuming that the whole thing is defective. They are shipping me a replacement and I should receive it soon. Which means I get to rip the dash apart again, and attempt to make the new unit work.

I really have the luck. Bad luck.