Factory 6 CD Player broke, cannot find exact replacement.

[jzeller]

Hello all,

I have a 2000 town car signature series Versailles edition that came with the factory 6 CD changer which broke last year (does not eject the CD changer and says error) and I wasn't able to find the exact part anywhere online or from any yards on Long Island NY.

Will another ford 6 CD player work in its place or would I have to get the exact part? I found a few online from other fords but they are not for town cars. (I don't mind if it doesn't fit perfectly in the original bracket, I can retrofit it. I just want one to work with the factory radio unit and steering controls.

I'm aware that it's more logical to replace with an aftermarket single CD changer, however I prefer to keep the car as originally functional as possible, and don't want to have the headache of adapting my steering wheel controls to an aftermarket unit. I also feel like single CDs are just lame compared to the 6 CD trunk player. It's so 90s.

 

[oktowncar]

You might try repairing it using a service like this

OEM Factory Car Radio Repair & Replacement Stereos Guide

At M&R Electronics, you can get some of the best car radio repair services with top-quality radio parts for nearly any vehicle. Browse our selection today!

www.mnrelectronics.com

 

[jzeller]

You might try repairing it using a service like this

OEM Factory Car Radio Repair & Replacement Stereos Guide

At M&R Electronics, you can get some of the best car radio repair services with top-quality radio parts for nearly any vehicle. Browse our selection today!

www.mnrelectronics.com

I will look into this. My local stereo shop had me convinced it was a waste of time and money to repair it so I hadn't looked into that option much

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

IMO your best bet will be ebay. It’s likely that particular CD changer was available over multiple years and offered in multiple vehicles.

Many ebay sellers will show the connections for the player. If you find one from a Ford, Mercury, or (especially) Lincoln that has the exact same connections as yours, I’d be surprised if it didn’t work.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

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[jzeller]

IMO your best bet will be ebay. It’s likely that particular CD changer was available over multiple years and offered in multiple vehicles.

Many ebay sellers will show the connections for the player. If you find one from a Ford, Mercury, or (especially) Lincoln that has the exact same connections as yours, I’d be surprised if it didn’t work.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

I actually just got a response from someone on eBay selling a similar player for a later model and they said it should work on my 2000 so I will give it a try!

 

[Action]

I actually just got a response from someone on eBay selling a similar player for a later model and they said it should work on my 2000 so I will give it a try!

I would want to make sure the connectors are exact.
And if possible, a matching Ford engineering part number match before bidding/buying.

Action

 

[jzeller]

I would want to make sure the connectors are exact.
And if possible, a matching Ford engineering part number match before bidding/buying.

Action

I unfortunately cannot find any in-stock matches for the part number but the one I purchased came from a 2002 town car, which is the same model year as mine, however I do know they made tweaks after 2000 so I made sure the seller offered a fair return policy for incompatibility.

 

[Action]

Let us know how that install works out.

Action

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[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

I actually just got a response from someone on eBay selling a similar player for a later model and they said it should work on my 2000 so I will give it a try!

Thanks for posting this thread! Perusing ebay looking for an answer to your post, I found one for my 2003 for a dirt cheap price!

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

 

[jzeller]

Hello all,

I have a 2000 town car signature series Versailles edition that came with the factory 6 CD changer which broke last year (does not eject the CD changer and says error) and I wasn't able to find the exact part anywhere online or from any yards on Long Island NY.

Will another ford 6 CD player work in its place or would I have to get the exact part? I found a few online from other fords but they are not for town cars. (I don't mind if it doesn't fit perfectly in the original bracket, I can retrofit it. I just want one to work with the factory radio unit and steering controls.

I'm aware that it's more logical to replace with an aftermarket single CD changer, however I prefer to keep the car as originally functional as possible, and don't want to have the headache of adapting my steering wheel controls to an aftermarket unit. I also feel like single CDs are just lame compared to the 6 CD trunk player. It's so 90s.

UPDATE: The eBay changer I ordered works!

It was listed for an 01-02 with part number YW1F-18C849-AD which was slightly different from my 2000's YW1F-18C849-AC. But sure enough it looks identical and plugged right in. (It likely came out of a junker because the cord seen in the listing photo was cut from the original car and still plugged into the changer)

I was worried at first because the cartridge would not eject and I noticed 3 of the CD slots were inserted into the player and stuck, but I took a gamble and disassembled the shell and was able to retract them and the cartridge ejects perfectly now. I tested it with some CDs and cycled through all of them and ejected it a few times and it seems to be working perfectly!

I had a feeling I didn't have to go with the exact same part number but I hadn't found one so similar to my original part number until now, so who knows if I would have had the same result with a different one.

I am aware that this functionality will probably be short-lived since motorcraft CD players are notoriously unreliable, but I'm just happy my car's audio is back to original working condition.

I am about to go on a long drive so I will see how it performs. (I am taking it on Ocean Parkway NY, which is notoriously "bouncy" due to it being a beach highway with warped concrete slabs, so I'm hoping the CDs won't skip.)

Thanks again to those who gave advice and insight!

P.S.: I got a free CD with it that was stuck in the player! Lol (see photo)

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

That’s great news! The one I snagged on ebay came yesterday – maybe I can get it installed in the next couple of days.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

 

[jzeller]

That’s great news! The one I snagged on ebay came yesterday – maybe I can get it installed in the next couple of days.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

Glad to hear, hope it works out for you!

I recommend peeking in the cartridge housing before you try it out in case there's a CD already in the player. It seems that these changers don't eject properly the first time after sitting for a while with a CD in the player.

Who knows, maybe you'll get a free CD too lol!

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[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

It seems that these changers don't eject properly the first time after sitting for a while with a CD in the player.

Say what?? Wish I had known that! I had the same problem with mine. I quit using it because I thought it was broken. I may have just bought a player I didn’t need! Oh well, it was pretty cheap, less than $75 TTL...

Any way to prevent that from happening? Maybe switching back to the head unit player?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

 

[jzeller]

Say what?? Wish I had known that! I had the same problem with mine. I quit using it because I thought it was broken. I may have just bought a player I didn’t need! Oh well, it was pretty cheap, less than $75 TTL...

Any way to prevent that from happening? Maybe switching back to the head unit player?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

My 2003 Cartier

When I looked in mine I noticed 3 of the CD trays were open, which was blocking the CD cartridge from releasing. All I did was take off the shell and use my finger to push them back in and it ejected fine! There's just 6 Philips head screws you need to remove to take the shell off, and the plastic front cover will pop right out of the slots