93 Radio reception issue

[2 Th' Max]

Hi, i just picked up a 1993 GMC Sierra Z71 as a winter car and had a quick question.

 

Does anyone have any ideas why the radio has horrible reception? I checked the antenna lead and it's tight. I have a white and black wire hanging in front of the radio module under the dash but can't see where it should go. Thanks

[tackepj]

Hi, i just picked up a 1993 GMC Sierra Z71 as a winter car and had a quick question.

 

Does anyone have any ideas why the radio has horrible reception?  I checked the antenna lead and it's tight.  I have a white and black wire hanging in front of the radio module under the dash but can't see where it should go.  Thanks

 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

 

If it's anything like my truck, the AM reception is horrible, and I've eliminated just about every source I could think of. I thought it was ignition noise, so I replaced the plugs, wires, distributor cap, rotor, even the ignition coil. Truck runs great but reception was no better. I even ran the engine with the belt off for a few seconds to see if it was alternator noise--but the noise was still there. Cut the engine, though, and the reception is perfect. I added a low-pass noise filter and a ground loop isolator, with the same results.

 

I ended up taking it to Ovation (it was baseball season and I couldn't hear the games) to have them look at it. They said the antenna ground was OK and that it was a bad ground somewhere else on the engine. They ran a wire from the hood to the firewall and then to the wing nut on the top of the air cleaner box, apparently because the hood can act as a source of AM interference. It definitely helped the reception in my case, but it still isn't nearly as good as it is with the motor off.

 

The fix that helped the most was attaching an XM receiver.

[2 Th' Max]

Thanks - I dont want to spend the $ on XM since this is a winter car and something to work on the house with. I'll try checking the grounds and the antenna wire.

[Sierra 05]

Get a new stereo.

[mmmikkke]

AM reception is more severely affected by a bad antenna connection than FM reception is. Your antenna might be partly unplugged behind your radio. The FM can bridge the gap, but the AM can't.