Side Speakers Not Working

[Kriis]

Hi,I have a 1997 Toyota Camry CE. I recently bought this from my dad who bought the car used. Since he bought the car, the side speakers have never worked. It also came with one of the slots open like this http://www.cargurus.com/images/2008/...pic-22644.jpeg except that instead of a CD player, it has an cassette deck.I'm not sure what other information I can post, but my question is this:What would you recommend as steps to see what the problem is? I was thinking about removing the door panels to see, but maybe there is something I can do before. Any suggestions are appreciated.Thanks.

[dJcHiKo]

does your lighter work in ur car? if not it might be a melted fuse, if thats it then.. (radio & lighter fuses are the same in some cars)
check the fuse box to left of steering column, it is a pullout on the dash i believe.
check if the fuse is missing or remove the fuse from the socket (make sure the car is off) and check if the wire inside the fuses are melted
if you dont know which fuse is for the radio try searching up a fuse diagram for your year make and model of the car.

if its not a fuse then its probably just the wiring, maybe theres a short or its just not connected right, if you dont wanna mess it up even more you should probably take it to someone who knows about car audio components but if you wanna do it yourself check the wiring to the speakers which yes involves taking the door panel off.
good luck.
tell me how it goes.

[maclugnut]

I just had similar problem with my door locks. The wiring gets pretty crispy in the door after 13 years. I had to take the door off of my '96 camry and rewire to replace the damaged and corroded wires at the hinge point. The connector is under the left kick panel by the driver and can somewhat easily be threaded out of the car when you remove the door. Definately a two person job. the harness does not want to come out without removing the door.

[Kriis]

I don't have a lighter to test it on But are you saying that even though the back speakers do work, that the side speakers share the same fuse as the lighter?

[dJcHiKo]

im thinking the cords are loose behind your radio/cassette player because thats a good place to find the front and rear speaker hookups, you should check that out.. take the stereo out of the dashboard and look at the wiring behind there.
your speakers may even be blown themselves you know.. :P
thatd be funny lol

[touringcamry]

Have you tried the fader control?

The back speakers are on a separate harness, the amp for the front speakers could be dead. Rmove the radio and take an AA battery (or other 1.5V battery), a couple wires or jumper leads, and test the speakers. Connect one end of the wire to the + and another to the - terminal for a given speaker. Hold the wire connected to the - side of the speaker to the - terminal on the battery and then drag the + wire across the + terminal on the battery. You should get some static out of the speaker if the wiring to the speaker and the speaker is good. If this is the case, there's something wrong with the radio, either the fader is set to rear or some other electrical issue. From here you could either get the radio fixed or replace it (which would be my choice).