Radios play a critical role in our lives of making us up-to-date with our surroundings as well as entertainment. Since most of us don’t sit on our home couch to listen to the radio, one may have a radio installed in his/her vehicle and still listen to favorite shows. However, this experience might be ruined whenever the radio starts to cut out.
This issue is devastating because you won’t feel like those people owning a portable radio. Today, I want to show you possible causes of this problem. Some of the suspects to the problem are bad antennas, dominant local stations, poor-quality radio stations, physical and manmade obstructions, rust antennas, and closed electronic devices.
After knowing the causes of bad radio reception, we will offer you a complete guide on how to fix the problem. Try to use this article to get yourself out of such an issue
Quick table
| Ultimate guide on how to fix bad radio reception in) | Function | Essential tools |
| Install a head unit that has analogue tuner technology | To allow you toggle to a specific frequency | |
| Replace the antenna | To spare yourself from other antenna issues | aftermarket antenna |
| Drive away from mountains or big cities | To enhance strong radio reception | |
| Clean the antenna | To remove dirt and rust | baking soda |
| Search another version of the same station | To tune to an alternative radio station | |
| Regulate usage of power electronic devices in your vehicle | To prevent RF interference | |
| Stretch out the mast | To tap string frequency | |
| Replace the head unit | To rule out faulty radio head unit | New radio head unit |
Reasons for bad radio reception in car
The following are some of the common reasons for your bad radio reception. They are the culprits to be held responsible for interrupted radio reception in your car. They include;
- Stronger or dominant local stations
Most car owners neglect this issue and end up struggling to search for other causes of bad radio reception. Yes, wherever you are heading might have some other powerful stations that affect your frequency: you will start hearing “shhh” in your vehicle. This issue occurs, mostly when you change your geographical driving area.
Listening to your favorite station in a different town might be difficult if there are powerful local radio stations within. The frequency will be interfered with and that’s when your head unit’s tuner will stick on the nearby and more powerful frequency. You will be forced to listen to another radio station or switch it off.
- Bad antenna
I don’t know the exact type of the antenna in your car, but most of them include window-mounted or flat ones. Window-mounted ones are the most preferred ones because it is not easy for them to be vandalized or damaged by the vehicle’s silhouette.
Despite all these credits, window-mounted antenna may become defective, making them operate like a mast or old-fashioned ship. Bad antenna will result in poor reception in your car radio, interfering with your entertainment.
- Manmade or natural obstruction
There are some man made activities like tall or large buildings that may lead to bad radio reception in your car. On the other hand, natural features like mountains or hills may block the signal to your radio, but sometimes they bounce off, reflecting in irregular waves.
Yes, the head unit of your car radio will struggle to capture strong frequency or signal. The tuner tends to develop “dead zones”, cutting off reception to your head unit and that latter may lead to multipath reception problems. Such issues include, “picket fencing” or fluttering where your tuner is forced to toggle to various versions of the same radio station.
- Rusty antenna
You may be struggling to search for other culprits yet your antenna is rusty. You can affirm that this is the exact problem when your antenna falls off. This is the visible sign, but sometimes the electrical wirings might be rusted or become corroded too over time.
Furthermore, the connections may become loose after a few years of usage. This happens, mostly as a result of vibration that may result in bad electrical connection. The end result will be bad reception in your car radio. This is because the tuner won’t have a strong connection to your antenna; radio reception will be automatically sacrificed.
- Poor-quality radio station
There are just some radio stations that aren’t strong enough, posing a bad radio reception in your vehicle. This issue has nothing to do with hardware or sound quality, but the hardware radio stations tend to utilize it to propel out tune in on the airwaves.
This implies that you will have to enjoy your favorite stations when you are around your home.
- Adjacent electronic devices
This problem is common and practical in our homes after you switch on a powerful electronic appliance. I don’t know if you have ever experienced “Fuzz out” television after turning on something like a microwave, hairdryer, vacuum cleaner, or a blender? That’s what we call (RF) Radio frequency interference.
Now that you are in your vehicle, one of your passengers may start blending juice at the back seat while you are driving.
- Manual whip antenna
If you own this type of antenna, sometimes it may be pushed in when you take the vehicle to the car wash. The attendant may do so to prevent damages, but end up forgetting to stretch it out.
- Faulty Head Unit
Head units in cars play a critical role with their resilient technologies. However, nothing good that lacks flaws, meaning that they may at some point go bad. You won’t get any sound from your car radio if this component fritz.
Ultimate guide on how to fix bad radio reception in car
Step 1: Install a head unit that has analogue tuner technology
Bad news about the problem of superior local stations is that you can’t control the neighboring radio station. Yes, you are out of control of their signal strengths. However, it is possible to install head units that are equipped with analogue tuner technology.
Such units are advantageous as they give you a chance to toggle to a specific frequency you intend to listen to. There won’t be any kind of electronic pixies around your vehicle’s head unit. Doing so prevents the radio from connecting and sticking to a nearby stronger local signal.
Step 2: Replace the antenna
If you have confirmed that you are having a bad antenna, initiate this action and see if it works for you. It is devastating to realize that you cannot tune to your lovely radio stations yet you have a window-mounted antenna.
To solve this, you may opt for a more reliable and suitable conventional aftermarket antenna for your car. While on the market, you will come across various antenna options, meaning that there is no need to limit yourself to a certain option.
Step 3: Drive away from mountains or big cities
After confirming that manmade or natural objects are the ones leading to poor radio reception, there is a simple trick you can do. Since this seems natural, the best thing you can do is to drive your vehicle aways from such objects.
To bail yourself out of this interference, move far from the tall buildings, hills or mountains.
Step 4: Clean the antenna
In case you come across corroded parts in your antenna, there is one possible solution you can opt for. This is none other than subjecting it to a thorough cleanliness. Under this step, you may use substances like baking soda to help you remove the rust. Care and precaution is a must while handling a rust antenna because you may worsen the situation.
However, if you realize that the condition of the antenna is bad, don’t waste your time cleaning it. Just replace it and see if it works for you. These items might become rusty after a long period in service and as a good manager; you should always check and address minor issues in advance.
Step 5: Search another version of the same station
Almost all radio stations are given license of operations, specifying the geographical area and the power to be used. Therefore, if you are trying to tune to a radio station that is found on a weaker side based on the transmission power or it is far away, probably you issue a weak signal.
It is difficult to curb such a problem even after installing a high-quality antenna and a head unit. But, searching for a different version of your station can be the best idea. Try this action and if it fails to work for you, don’t hesitate to move to the next step.
Step 6: Regulate usage of power electronic devices in your vehicle
You should check and make sure that nothing heavy has been plugged into the car power inverter. Sometimes even charging your phone via the inverter may lead to a bad radio reception problem.
Step 7: Stretch out the mast
Extending the mast is the best action you can initiate to fix this problem. Blaming the car wash won’t help, get out and stretch the antenna out for better radio reception.
Step 8: Replace the head unit
This should be your last action to troubleshoot bad radio reception in your car. However, the cost of getting a new radio head unit might be scary, though it’s effective. Say goodbye to bad radio reception by installing a new model.
Frequently asked questions:
- Can aluminum foil enhance radio reception?
Not really. Though, it depends on various factors like the frequency and antenna itself.
Conclusion
Bad radio reception should be a past tense to you. Everything has been put clear in this article and what you only have to do is to read the whole report. We have highlighted common suspects for the problem and suggested a complete guide on how to fix a bad radio reception in the car.
