Audio Systems: motor noise heard when listening to A.M. Radio, 1993 geo prizm, geo prizm

Question
I am having trouble getting a good signal on my A.M. radio in my car. The whining and crackling is almost unbearable. When car is turned off there is crystal clear reception on all stations no matter the distance from the source. The car is relatively old (1993 Geo Prizm) with the original installed radio in dash. Do I need a new radio, antenna, or something else? Any input will be appreciated.

Answer
Hi Brian,

You've run into a wonderful thing about A.M. radio - it picks up all sorts of frequencies.  When mine worked, I used to turn  it on during thunderstorms - if you picked the right frequencies, the radio would pick up the radiation of A.M. waves from lightning strikes.

Odds are the computer in your car or some other unit is managing to send out noise over that frequency range, and there's really nothing you can do about it.  If it's only when the car is running, it's like the computer or some other electrical part, like even the fuel ignition system.  These problems are terrible to try and track down.

Sorry to say, but unless you get a different car, you might have to give up on A.M. radio.  Cheers, Wink