Problems with 2010 radio turning off and on ... mystery!

Hi all,
I have a 2010 Taco with a ghost in the radio ;-) Seriously, it turns off and on by itself at random times. I can't find any pattern to it. I'll have the radio off and it will turn on. Other times I'm listening to the radio and it will turn off by itself.
It's an OEM radio - I have the one with the big bass speaker in the back of the cab (don't really like it but, hey, I bought the Taco used and the bass speaker came with). I've checked all the connections, replaced fuses - all the wiring looks fine. Battery is new. Mechanic is saying I need to replace the whole unit ($300+install for a used one from some poor wrecked Taco).
Has anyone else experienced this situation? Any ideas or insights or suggestions would be very appreciated!
BTW, I am grateful for all the postings here - you all have been a great help to me many times! Thanks for your help and advice!

 

As in the whole radio resets?

I was having that problem with my 2015. It turned out to be Bluetooth related.

Just saw that you’re in San Jose

 

Buy a HU compatible with your factory options from Crutchfield with the factory wiring adapters and install it yourself. It's literally plug-n-play along with great tech support.

 

Thanks Alex, I hadn't even thought about the Bluetooth! I have it on so my iPhone talks to my iWatch (which talks to my iBrain ;->). I'll turn it off next time I'm in the truck and see if that makes a difference. Great idea, thank you!

The whole radio doesn't reset, it just turns off. When I turn it back on all of the stations are still set. Weird...

Yup, I'm in the Bay Area too. Enjoying some days of clear air (finally!).

 

Thanks Uncle K! I checked out Crutchfield - what a great source! When the radio starts to drive me TOO nuts I'll look into my options for replacement. It looks like they make it pretty easy to do self-installation. I'm a fan of that option! Thanks again for your suggestion.

 

Remember the ‘83 movie Christine

 

Toyota didn't do very good with their radios. The factory one in my 09 got to where when I turned the volume knob, the volume would change, I just wouldn't know in advance which direction the volume was going to change, regardless of which direction I turned the knob.

 

My 2010 Taco does the same thing, but it’s fairly rare. It usually happens after hitting bumps, but I hit a lot of bumps and it doesn’t do it very often. The volume knob is finicky as well. It could go up, or down, or a ton, or not enough. I just turn it wildly in both directions until the volume happens to land where I want it. I think they did a recall on them that I missed.

 

i had a 2011 Offroad with the bass speaker and the premuim stereo that was integral to the dash panel. It would randomly not turn on, mostly in the winter when the cab was cold in the morning.

Dealer quoted me $1,100 for a new head unit. I never replaced it

 

Toyota used to have high quality stereos many years ago. They have since gone down the cheap road and they all seem to have issues. They last three Toyota vehicles I have purchased one of the first things I do is go to Crutchfields and get a replacement and install it. Much better. Then when I get ready to sell it or trade it in I install the factory unit back in it.

 

It’s happen to my 2010, I leave a Bluetooth portable stereo on the dash, and that sadly has better bass response than the stock speakers as well

 

Pull knob off, spray around shaft with a little plastic safe contact cleaner. Rotate shaft both ways, repeat. It fixed mine.

 

Thanks, good advice. I ended up replacing my head unit with an aftermarket one a while ago, so too late for me.