My stock CD player (not changer) on '04 3500 will not play CD-R's reliably. Frequently skips or locks up. Seems to work okay with commercial music CD's, but I need to listen to CD-R's as well. The vehicle owner's manual says that this could happen. Anyone know if there is a fix available for it? What are the chances that another unit might work better?

Mine plays CD-R's reliably. I'd try switching to another brand of CD-R. Some the Wal-Mart specials aren't real high-quality, and they could cause problems. Also, try cleaning your head deck.

....I'd try switching to another brand of CD-R. ....

yeah, exactly. I've had a few brands that would not even attempt to play but then you buy another brand and it works fine....if you find one that works well, though, you might want to stock up because I have seen the same brand and type of CD-R not work when the mfg made a slight change in the design.

thats your problem, cheap cds. i use Imation brand, they are fairly cheap if you wait for a sale (office max usually has a 100 pack for $20 every couple weeks or so) and have never had a problem with them not playing or getting a coaster while burning. not to mention, they are silver finish, not some gaudy looking design and text on em

Unfortunately, these are CD's that are produced by others, and I don't have a lot of control over what blanks they use. They do seem to work in every other player I've tried. I also tried a cleaning CD on the player, but have the same result. Seems to get worse as the player heats up. Guess I'll have to see if the dealer can/will swap it out and hope the next one is better.

make a copy of the cd they give you, but make sure you use a name brand disc.