[mrglass]

We had our '05 Prius for just shy of 5 full days when the traction control stopped our car on the ice, but not the lady behind us in the Benz. Not a major impact but upon restarting the car the CD player gives the generic "CD Error" message and won't eject or anything. The dealer says it needs to be replaced because it wouldn't reset.

Anyone know if there is a manual eject for the changer? Or is it a dismantling process?

Seems pretty fragile considering the CD player wasn't even in use at the time of impact. Maybe just dislodged discs causing the error?

Its all getting fixed by the other driver, but nonetheless, I'd like to know if there is a manual release for the CD's.

 

[KTPhil]

I don't think you can get the CDs out without taking the thing apart. The dealer (or their sublet shop) will do this, just make sure to tell them to remove the CDs and return them to you.

 

[jeromep]

We had our '05 Prius for just shy of 5 full days when the traction control stopped our car on the ice, but not the lady behind us in the Benz. Not a major impact but upon restarting the car the CD player gives the generic "CD Error" message and won't eject or anything. The dealer says it needs to be replaced because it wouldn't reset.

Anyone know if there is a manual eject for the changer? Or is it a dismantling process?

Seems pretty fragile considering the CD player wasn't even in use at the time of impact. Maybe just dislodged discs causing the error?

Its all getting fixed by the other driver, but nonetheless, I'd like to know if there is a manual release for the CD's.

The tollerances inside a dash mounted, in radio, changer are pretty tight. Not nearly as forgiving as a cartridge based trunk style 6 or 10 disc changer. If there were discs in the trays in the changer during your impact it is likley that they got dislodged and are basically jamming the mechanism. The disc trays are not much thicker than a small stack of paper, say 3-5mm and it isn't hard to imagine an impact pushing a disc off a tray toward the back of the changer.

Will the radio need to be replaced or not is a good question. I'm inclined to believe that it will not need to be replaced, just removed from the dash and opened up and the discs removed. However if the discs bumping around loose in there did damage to the changer mechanism it might need to be replaced.

I wouldn't consider the radio fragile. Most of the time, if you are rear ended you underestimate the forces involved in the impact. Lots of gs and momentum went through the car when you got hit, even at low speed and so this situation doesn't surprise me a whole lot.

I wish you the best. Please let us know the outcome.

 

[DanMan32]

Speaking of forces, tell me about it! What seemed to be a low impact rear-ender to my former Saturn, caused my rear-view mirror to flip up, and my seat back to recline backwards, totally disorienting me. This, even with the trunk collapsing to absorb part of the impact.

As for the CDs, the dealer should be able to get the CDs out, then the radio tested. It is possible that the CDs dislodged out of their slots, causing a jam. Then, as the mechanism tried to fight to move the CDs, the mechanism could have bent out of shape making things worse.

 

[mrglass]

Thanks for your input folks. I was not in the car so I can't say for sure how hard it was hit, just know from my wife's description and the visible damage.

We'll have it in for the repair next week. I'll let you know what becomes of the player, and the cd's trapped within.