Theres nothing worse than finding your favourite CD is stuck inside your stereo. Whether it’s a loved one shoving in another CD without taking out the other one, or a malfunction with the stereo system itself, it can be frustrating losing that cherished CD. Well fear not, we’re here to advise on how to remove a CD stuck in your car CD player. Please note some of these tips can damage either your CD or the car stereo itself, so proceed with caution. We cannot be held responsible for any damage you cause to your stereo or yourself. With the safety briefing out of the way, here are our top tips for removing that stuck CD.
Check your manufacturer’s CD player manual for troubleshooting
If you still have it safe in your handbook, then checking your manufacturer’s troubleshooting guide for ejecting stuck CDs is the first port of call. Each CD player has it’s own unique features so it’s best checking the handbook for next steps. If you can’t find it don’t worry, try our other tips on removing the stuck CD below.
Resetting the CD player system using the power and eject buttons
You can sometimes find that the manufacturer of your car or CD player have included a ‘reset’ feature to automatically eject the CD inside of the system. Make sure you turn off the ignition and then press and hold both the power and eject buttons for at least 10 seconds. Hopefully this will force the system to rectify itself and eject your CD with no harm to the player or the CD itself. If this doesn’t work, sometimes turning the car on and doing this can work too.
Remove the stuck CD using tape (caution)
This is a clever trick to remove a stuck CD from your car stereo. Find either an old business card, or credit card and apply some double-sided tape to one side of it – using anything that is flat and thin should do too but not too sharp – avoid using anything metal (risk of electrocution otherwise). Turn off the ignition and where possible disconnect all power to the CD player to reduce the risk of electric shock. Then holding the non-sticky part of the card, place the sticky part facing down half-way into the CD slot. Hopefully you’ll find that the CD sticks to the tape on the card. Then you can slowly remove the CD with the CD stuck to your card. Try not to be too forceful and if it doesn’t work after a couple of attempts then try another option.
Use a screwdriver and credit card to remove the CD (caution)
If all else fails, try our last method but be warned this will cause the most damage if you’re not careful. Just like the credit card and tape trick, get some double-sided tape and wrap it around one half of the card. Then find a flat head screwdriver (preferably the smallest screwdriver). Turn off your car and unplug all electrical connections to avoid electric shocks, or worse still electrocution. Then proceed by putting the card with the tape on (sticky side down) into the CD slot pushing it upwards into the slot so it goes over the top of the CD in the drive. Then grab the screwdriver and slowly push down on top of the card as far as you can go inside the CD slot. Essentially you’re using the screwdriver to push the sticky bit of the card onto the CD so that it sticks firmly. Then once you’re confident the tape has stuck to the CD, slowly and carefully retract the card from the CD player and you should find the CD comes out with it.
If all else fails?
If your car stereo is playing up or any other electronic components in your car we’d be happy to help. Based in Radstock near Bath, we’re available to fix any electronic issues with your car and can even provide a courtesy car during the repairs. Give us a call on 01761415501 today or send us an email.
