2014 Ford Explorer and AM radio static except for ONE channel
Asked by Do Aug 23, 2022 at 01:11 PM about the 2014 Ford Explorer Limited 4WD
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I have a 2014 Ford Explorer with Ford Sync. The FM radio is fine but the AM
radio only has one channel without static. In Mpls, even the big station, 830,
has static. It has essentially been since the beginning but the dealership
dismissed it so I am way past the warranty
I have unscrewed and re-screwed the antenna in. Outside of that, I can
figure what to do.
Any Advice would be helpful
4 Answers
FM basically uses the entire vehicle as the antenna while AM just uses the mast, this really sounds like you may have a broken coax cable somewhere from the radio to the antenna. Testing for this will be tricky cause you cannot disconnect any of the radio main harness but you need enough room to unplug the antenna so you can ohm out both ends of the cable, if it shows open then then you will have to thread in a new antenna cable.
In the old days a noise suppressor was on the alternator, ignition coil, and sometimes even the wheel bearings to eliminate static when AM was the only option for a car radio. Does the static follow engine speed, vehicle speed, or it's just constant? If you can, substitute a known good radio and see if the static is still there. If it's not the problem is with the radio itself. Hope that helps! Jim
I will look into both. It does not get worse or better if I hit the gas. I just find it odd that only one station has zero static - I mean clear (out of the major 5 in the local area). The others are basically unlistenable. Thanks for the insight
You're welcome. Glad to help! Please keep us posted, I'll be curious to know what you find out. Jim
