How to remove a car radio

Only some radios need taking out at all. Here’s how to tell, and how to do it without marking the dash.

Try the screen first

Switch the radio on and hold buttons 1 and 6 together for a few seconds. On a good number of radios the serial scrolls across the display and the unit never has to leave the dash. Some older ones use 2 and 6. It costs ten seconds to find out.

Step by step

  1. Check the screen first. Switch the radio on and hold two of the numbered buttons — 1 and 6 on most, 2 and 6 on some older ones. If the serial scrolls past, the radio never has to come out.
  2. Disconnect the battery. Not strictly needed on most cars, but it costs nothing and it is the difference between a slipped screwdriver and a new fascia.
  3. Find the holes. Look along the ends of the fascia. Four small holes, two each side, means release keys. Two slots means DIN keys. No holes at all usually means the fascia trim has to come off first.
  4. Push the keys in until they click. They are springing a catch, not levering anything. If you are forcing it, they are in the wrong holes or the wrong way up.
  5. Pull the unit straight out. Straight towards you, not down or sideways. Keep a hand under it — they are heavier than they look.
  6. Read the label. Top, side or rear of the metal case. Photograph it rather than copying it by hand: 0 and O, and 1 and I, are easy to mix up.

Which method does your radio need?

Radios come out three different ways, and a fair number do not come out at all. Find yours below.

No need to take it out

These show the serial on the screen when you hold two of the numbered buttons, so the radio can stay where it is.

Eclipse ESN , Ford M-series (Visteon) , Ford V-series (6000 CD) , Ford Z / A serials (2008 on) , Honda sat nav , Nissan glove box code , Renault precode , Toyota / Lexus ERC (8)

Release keys into the corner holes

Four keys, one into each corner hole, until they click. Then pull the unit straight towards you.

Becker (4-number serial) — Numbers go up to 4 , Becker (4-number serial) — Numbers go up to 6 , Becker (4-number serial) — Numbers go up to 8 , Blaupunkt / Bosch , Chrysler / Dodge VP , Chrysler / Jeep / Dodge Panasonic TM9 , Chrysler / Jeep / Dodge button code — 5 numbered buttons , Chrysler / Jeep / Dodge button code — 6 numbered buttons , Chrysler / Jeep / Dodge button code — Serial of 4 numbers , Clarion (barcode) , Daewoo AKF-5073 , Fiat Philips , Fiat Stilo / Bravo (Visteon) , Ford Philips (early 1990s) , Ford TravelPilot , Grundig , Honda Philips (early 1990s) , Jeep Cherokee , Older Ford (3-number code) , Peugeot / Citroën Philips 22RC465 , Philips (other) , Philips own-brand , Renault Philips (1989–1997) , Rover / MG / Mini Philips , Subaru Philips (early 1990s) , Vauxhall CDR500 / CDR2005 , Volvo VC-series (Philips) (27)

Release pins into the fascia holes

Four thin pins or rods, one into each hole at the ends of the fascia, pushed until they click.

Fiat Continental VP1 / VP2 , Fiat Daiichi / 199 CD , Nissan’s own radios (3)

DIN release keys

A pair of U-shaped steel keys, one into each side of the fascia, until they click. They spring the catches that hold the unit in its cage.

Honda , Jaguar Alpine , VW group (Beta, Gamma, RCD, Concert…) (3)

What you need

A set of radio removal keys, which cost a few pounds and come in two shapes: flat U-shaped steel keys for DIN fittings, and thin pins for the units with small round holes at the ends of the fascia. A set with both covers nearly everything on this page. A pair of flat-bladed screwdrivers wrapped in tape will get some units out, and will also mark the fascia, so keys are worth the money.

Things worth knowing before you start

  • The keys spring a catch, they do not lever. If you are pulling hard on the keys themselves, they are in the wrong holes or upside down. Take them out and look again.
  • Some fascias have to come off first. No holes at the ends of the radio means the trim around it is hiding them. Those clips are usually plastic and unforgiving — go slowly.
  • Mind the aerial lead. It is the stiff one at the back and it will hold the unit six inches out of the dash. Reach behind and release it rather than pulling.
  • Photograph the label. Do not copy a fourteen-character serial by eye at arm’s length in a footwell. A photo takes a second and cannot misread an O for a zero.
  • Note which way round it went in if the unit sits in a cage. Cages are handed, and finding that out on the way back in is a bad half hour.

Do I have to take it out to get the code?

Not always. Where the serial is on the screen, you never touch the dash — that covers most Fords up to 2008, Renault, Toyota, Lexus and a fair few others. Where it is on the label, the unit has to come out far enough for you to read it, and then it goes straight back. Nothing is disconnected for good and nothing is reprogrammed: you are reading a number off a sticker.

Check which yours is with the free serial check before you buy any keys — if the number comes up on screen, the whole of this page is moot.