What have you done to your wagon lately? (Let's keep the thread going!)

Sounds good.

 

Out with the new and in with the old. When I originally bought this Saturn wagon back in 2017 it just had a regular AM/FM radio. No tape or anything. I bought a good used CD player off ebay and swapped it in and pitched the old radio because I would never need it again. You'll notice the "Theft Deterrent" label on the CD player. Whenever it loses power you have to input a four digit code to unlock it. Back in the day there was an 800 number you could call to get the unlock code for your specific radio. That line was finally disconnected last year. If you buy a used one, you take the chance that it isn't locked. If it is, there isn't a way to unlock them. You'll also notice the broken volume knob. Someone knocked it several years ago. At first, just the plastic knob broke off, but the shaft still kind of worked. To input the code (or change the time) you have to press the shaft in while pressing another series of buttons to input the code or change the time. That stopped working a few months ago as well. Bottom line, I couldn't change the time, and the next time the battery was disconnected I wouldn't be able to unlock it. I don't recall the last time I listened to a CD (or tape, or MP3, or whatever format music comes in these days). I always just listen to the radio. I got sick of grabbing the volume shaft with my finger tips to turn the volume up and down and not being able to change the time was bothering me. I found a like new AM/FM with tape deck (and no theft deterrent) on ebay for $15. Problem solved. And now I have a nice little cubby to put my phone in while driving.

From this:


To ye olde trusty AM/FM radio:

 

I don't know when it was the last time I've seen a cassette player. At least, it should deter theft, the way manual transmissions deter younger car thieves.
If you someday get tired of your deck eating tapes or when the tunes you like are no longer available in tape form, you could always connect an alternative device to your deck, taking it with you, when you leave the car, using this adapter:

 

I honestly don't remember the last time I had an urge to listen to anything other than the radio while driving my car. If I can't find something to listen to I just turn it off. The radio in my wife's Thunderbird is off 90% of the time while we are driving. We are not what people would refer to as audiophiles.