# Do you leave your MP3 CD in the Car Stereo's Tray? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 3, 2014, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885 "2014-06-03T01:05:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2014, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/21 "2014-06-03T20:10:02Z")
I appreciate people sharing their personal experiences with cd players. I feel much better leaving the cd in the tray. I will bring it into the house during the hottest days of summer. It can easily reach 125 degrees in a closed up car in July and August. That kind of heat isn’t good for the cd. It is just a copy and I easily burn another one. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2014, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/22 "2014-06-07T19:02:28Z")
I did this with my old player. Which is now **Mrs. FtG** ’s “new” player. I upgraded to one with a USB slot and a 32GB SD card stuck in it. A CD is tiny by comparison. I am surprised anyone looking to play mp3s in a car would buy a new system that didn’t have a feature similar to this. CD mp3s have been eclipsed. “Mechless” (no CD player at all) systems will be the future. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2014, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/23 "2014-06-07T21:49:41Z")
My last two cars that I had in the 90’s (car-free in the city since 2000) both had after-market multi-CD players. The first one was a disc changer in the trunk, it held 12 discs in a cassette that could be switched out for another cassette full of 12 CD’s. I had three cassettes that I switched around, and all of them just stayed in the trunk at all times. The second one was a three-disc changer that lived in the dashboard. Never had issues with any of them, and I had a case full of CD’s that stayed under the car seat with no problems. The only time you’ll run into heat being a problem is when leaving CD’s in direct sun, like on the dashboard - that’s a no-no, but just leaving them in a case under the seat or in a visor holder, or in the player, really not a problem. I car share these days, and any of the three cars I regularly use I can either plug in or use Bluetooth with my phone. I play music with the phone, and run GPS with turn-by-turn directions, so the Google lady interrupts the music and “talks” to me through the car’s speakers. Regular phone calls come through that way, too, so it’s all hands-free. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2014, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/24 "2014-06-07T23:32:32Z")
Since this is a hardware question, moved to IMHO (from Cafe Society). ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2014, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/25 "2014-06-07T23:57:23Z")
I use mp3 CDs in my car. Leave them in all the time. Even this past winter. Turn the car on, the CD starts to play. No problems. ---
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/26 "2014-06-08T01:21:06Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Since you put it in the poll, I don’t listen to CDs in my car, even though it can play MP3s and WMAs. I plug my iPhone into it and never, never, have forgotten to take it with me when I leave the car. > > **Flatlined** has been ranting about her car CD player eating library audiobook CDs, but that’s been while they’re playing, not when she shuts off the car. Still, may be a good reason to at least eject the CD when you shut off the player. When I listened to cassettes, I always ejected them. Actually…it was when I tried to eject them. The CD player wouldn’t give them back. I don’t know if that’s important, but yeah, I was playing them, not when the car was parked. Due to TWO newer vehicles eating library CD’s I will never EVER use vehicle CD players again. My last car always gave the CD’s back, but it was over 10 years old, so maybe CD players have changed. I’ve never had a CD warp in the player, and I used to live in Arizona. During the summers, after a day at work, I had to be careful just touching the steering wheel lest I got burned. No problems with the CD’s playing. Now, I have a little portable CD player that I plug into the aux port. If that dies I can still open the lid and recover the CD. I don’t use it much. I can download the same audio books to my phone and plug that in to the aux port. That’s much better IMO. I don’t have to fumble around with CD’s while I’m driving. ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/27 "2014-06-10T02:40:32Z")
My Mazda 5 has an original equipment in-dash 6 (regular)-cd player and I leave faves in it all the time. CD #1 tk 1 is set on the start of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 overture so I can compete with the adjacent bassers at stoplights. The cannon bursts make them smile or close their windows. Many of the cd’s pay for over an hour. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/28 "2014-06-10T15:31:02Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > My car stereo has a USB port so I just stick a flash drive into it with all my music on there. Even easier than a data CD. I chose my stereo based on it’s ability to handle files and folders through the USB port. I use one of [these](http://www.amazon.com/elago-Mobile-microSDHC-Memory-Reader/dp/B002HGFKR8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402412611&sr=8-1&keywords=elago+micro+sd)with a 16 gb chip. It looks like another button on the stereo when plugged in. I also use the CD player. I have a series of books on tape ripped to CD. So I can rotate through the radio, CD, or music. I greatly prefer the USB port to my phone as it doesn’t require recharging. and if anybody is considering ripping books to mp3 you’ll need a program to renumber everything enmass or it will play out of order. The trick for my car stereo was to start the numbering at 1001. This is required because the books had more than 100 sections and needed 4 digits to cover it all. I numbered the name, track number, and title the same because I found that the stereo read the CD’s different than the USB port. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/29 "2014-06-10T15:43:30Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I have been playing mp3’s through my old factory stock Am/Fm radio for several years. Some gadget you plug into the cigarette lighter plug that transmits FM. Works ok on the highway after finding an unused frequency. Too many radio stations in my city to use it here. I get interference every time I make a turn onto a new street. > > Finally got fed up enough to spend a couple hundred for a better radio/cd player. > I may even get a wild hair up my ass and buy a smart phone. _Maybe Someday_. 😉 > My cell phone does what I need for now. you can buy a pretty good smart phone for $60 without a contract. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/30 "2014-06-10T19:07:10Z")
I’ve been reading the thread again. I feel much better about leaving cd’s in the car during the summer. One issue with my player is the way the folders are displayed. Displays folder 1, folder 2 etc. I need to type up a index of the cd listings folders and album titles. The folders have descriptive names on the cd but that doesn’t display. I should be able to print what I need on index cards. Theres only 8 or 9 folders on this cd. I can index several cd’s on one index card. A cheat sheet. 😉 This may be my own fault. Can folders be given mp3 tags? The player may need that information to display correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/31 "2014-06-10T20:18:10Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I’ve been reading the thread again. I feel much better about leaving cd’s in the car during the summer. > > One issue with my player is the way the folders are displayed. Displays folder 1, folder 2 etc. I need to type up a index of the cd listings folders and album titles. The folders have descriptive names on the cd but that doesn’t display. I should be able to print what I need on index cards. Theres only 8 or 9 folders on this cd. I can index several cd’s on one index card. A cheat sheet. 😉 > > This may be my own fault. Can folders be given mp3 tags? The player may need that information to display correctly. I named my folders and the stereo reads them fine. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885/32 "2014-06-10T20:22:56Z")
Its probably a limitation of the cd player I bought. I think it does display the song title. It scrolls across in a small display window. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-leave-your-mp3-cd-in-the-car-stereos-tray/689885.md?page=1)