1984 Chrysler AM Radio Repair

[William R. Walsh]

Hello all...

Okay, I've got this 1984 Plymouth Reliant in fair shape on the exterior and
reasonably good on the interior. It has an AM radio that generally works,
but there are some problems. I already asked on the
rec.autos.makers.chrysler group and didn't get much help there.

First, the speaker was eaten by mice and no longer plays. I tried some
junkyards and struck out. Might anyone here have such a speaker? The radio
itself plays fine through another speaker. I just can't find one that fits.

Secondly, the radio does function. However, it's very difficult to make the
push buttons on the front do anything. If I do manage to succeed, they get
"carried away" and may perform the same functions multiple times. I have had
the set apart and found no obvious dirt problems with the buttons. They just
don't seem to work well any longer. I'd like to "renew" them if I could.

Finally, the display on the radio has gone whacko. It tries to work but
often ends up doing impossible things like displaying the time and station
being received all at once. When turned off, it works fine as a clock, but
the manual won't tell me how I should set it. I haven't been able to figure
it out short of connecting the battery at either midnight or noon.

This isn't high on my list of priorities. I'd just like to know if anyone
has fixed these problems with this type of radio, and if so, what I might
need to look at. I've got enough wire and equipment sitting around to
install a replacement stereo and speakers at very little cost. That's
probably what I'll end up doing.

William

 

[Gary Tait]

This isn't high on my list of priorities. I'd just like to know if anyone
has fixed these problems with this type of radio, and if so, what I might
need to look at. I've got enough wire and equipment sitting around to
install a replacement stereo and speakers at very little cost. That's
probably what I'll end up doing.

Yes, replace that radio with an aftermarket radio and speakers.

 

[Malissa Baldwin]

Hello all...

Okay, I've got this 1984 Plymouth Reliant in fair shape on the exterior and
reasonably good on the interior. It has an AM radio that generally works,
but there are some problems. I already asked on the
rec.autos.makers.chrysler group and didn't get much help there.

Of course not. Only on sci.electronics.repair do they even bother with
AM radio.

First, the speaker was eaten by mice and no longer plays. I tried some
junkyards and struck out. Might anyone here have such a speaker? The radio
itself plays fine through another speaker. I just can't find one that fits.

They were only good for mice food even when they were brand new. Just
Google for a replacement speaker.

Secondly, the radio does function. However, it's very difficult to make the
push buttons on the front do anything. If I do manage to succeed, they get
"carried away" and may perform the same functions multiple times. I have had
the set apart and found no obvious dirt problems with the buttons. They just
don't seem to work well any longer. I'd like to "renew" them if I could.

Finally, the display on the radio has gone whacko. It tries to work but
often ends up doing impossible things like displaying the time and station
being received all at once. When turned off, it works fine as a clock, but
the manual won't tell me how I should set it. I haven't been able to figure
it out short of connecting the battery at either midnight or noon.

This isn't high on my list of priorities. I'd just like to know if anyone
has fixed these problems with this type of radio, and if so, what I might
need to look at. I've got enough wire and equipment sitting around to
install a replacement stereo and speakers at very little cost. That's
probably what I'll end up doing.

William

That's probably what anybody with half a brain would end up doing.

Just put in an aftermarket unit and an Ipod with new speakers.

 

[JR North]

You can find oddball replacement speakers here:
http://www.jcwhitney.com/
JR

 

[[email protected]]

Hello all...

Okay, I've got this 1984 Plymouth Reliant in fair shape on the exterior and
reasonably good on the interior. It has an AM radio that generally works,
but there are some problems. I already asked on the
rec.autos.makers.chrysler group and didn't get much help there.

First, the speaker was eaten by mice and no longer plays. I tried some
junkyards and struck out. Might anyone here have such a speaker? The radio
itself plays fine through another speaker. I just can't find one that fits.

Secondly, the radio does function. However, it's very difficult to make the
push buttons on the front do anything. If I do manage to succeed, they get
"carried away" and may perform the same functions multiple times. I have had
the set apart and found no obvious dirt problems with the buttons. They just
don't seem to work well any longer. I'd like to "renew" them if I could.

Finally, the display on the radio has gone whacko. It tries to work but
often ends up doing impossible things like displaying the time and station
being received all at once. When turned off, it works fine as a clock, but
the manual won't tell me how I should set it. I haven't been able to figure
it out short of connecting the battery at either midnight or noon.

This isn't high on my list of priorities. I'd just like to know if anyone
has fixed these problems with this type of radio, and if so, what I might
need to look at. I've got enough wire and equipment sitting around to
install a replacement stereo and speakers at very little cost. That's
probably what I'll end up doing.

William

A speaker that fits perfectly shouldn't be a priority. Just use
anything that you can adapt with, say, a piece of Masonite. Car
speakers tended to be weird sizes, but you can easily compensate for
that; they're electrically about the same.

The buttons and the display are suffering from bad contacts, and these
are either easy or not. See if you can find some contact cleaner
solution--Radio Shack used to sell theirs in a spray can, and it's not
bad, or at least it was fine when I last fixed one of these twenty or
so years ago. Carefully remove the cover of the radio and spray the
hell out of everything. You may be able to access the other side of
the push buttons, and just spray the stuff inside. It won't hurt
anything. The display may use some sort of flat connector--not unlike
that in a computer--but be careful when unplugging these to clean
them.

Someone, somewhere, has an owner's manual for that year's Chrysler
cars, but under the worst circumstances you can usually sort of guess
your way through the clock-setting procedure. Usually it's done with
the radio off, and then you press two buttons simultaneously. On my
GM, you push a sort of universal 'display' button, and then use the up/
down tuning controls to set the minute and the hour.

It's worth trying to fix the thing, mainly because it's fun if it
works. Good luck. If you don't wish to invest in contact cleaner,
try any sort of WD-40 clone. I once used bug spray in an emergency.

M Kinsler

 

[William R. Walsh]

Hi!

Well, *finally*. Thank you for your post, I'm glad to hear from someone who
has something to suggest for an actual repair. I do plan to keep this set
and put it back in the car should I sell it at some point (which is a
possibility). If it could be in passable working order, I'd like to have it
that way.

I've got the Radio Shack cleaner, so I'll try your suggestion.

Someone, somewhere, has an owner's manual for that year's
Chrysler cars

I do. It's a little worn from use and eaten around the corners. However,
it is still quite readable and no pages are missing. Chrysler simply doesn't
talk about how to set the clock. I guess they think it would be obvious, but
so far it has not been.

It's worth trying to fix the thing, mainly because it's fun if it
works. Good luck.

Precisely, and that's why I am willing to invest the time and effort. And it
just might keep yet another something out of the landfill.

William

 

[Malissa Baldwin]

Hi!

Well, *finally*. Thank you for your post, I'm glad to hear from someone who
has something to suggest for an actual repair. I do plan to keep this set
and put it back in the car should I sell it at some point (which is a
possibility). If it could be in passable working order, I'd like to have it
that way.

Who are you going to sell the car to? Somebody on
sci.electronics.repair as they are the only ones on this planet that
gives a **** about AM radio.

On the other hand if you sold it to a normal person he would probably
discard it in favor for something with a cd player, or something a
little more 2000's.

 

[m kinsler]

Who are you going to sell the car to? Somebody on
sci.electronics.repair as they are the only ones on this planet that
gives a **** about AM radio.

On the other hand if you sold it to a normal person he would probably
discard it in favor for something with a cd player, or something a
little more 2000's.

Well, our local NPR station is an AM station, and an AM car radio is
great fun at night because you can get stations from all over the
country. AM stations are specializing in interesting stuff. We have
one in Nelsonville, OH that plays splendid antique country music, and
in many cities there are old-time radio shows, e.g., The Shadow and
them. Digital tuners make AM radio quite nice in a car, and an AM car
radio is generally far more sensitive than an AM household radio.

M Kinsler

The AM in my car's AM-FM radio works much better now that I've gotten
new tires. I'll leave it to my readers here to figure out why.

 

[William R. Walsh]

Hi!

Well, our local NPR station is an AM station, and an AM car radio is
great fun at night because you can get stations from all over the
country.

Precisely! And in the case of this radio, it would pick up WWV at the bottom
of the (digital) dial. For a factory set, it wasn't bad at all...

I have done as you suggested and cleaned the hell out of the buttons with
contact cleaner. And it did bring some improvement in operation. I think
that what I'm going to do is use it as a workbench radio in the garage and
install a stereo in the car. I am using an old plastic enclosed boom box
speaker with the radio now. I haven't made any headway on setting the clock.
Perhaps the functionality that once allowed it has failed. In any event,
turning on the power to the radio at noon solved the problem. (Never before
have I been so soundly defeated by any electronic device.)

I realize that AM programming is terrible in many places, but there are some
decent stations broadcasting here as well. One of them does indeed play
country music (old stuff--a market that was completely unserved after a low
power FM station in the area changed its format to rap, which you could then
and can now find at several points on the dial) and I'm glad they do. I'm
also hoping they can make it work, as I like to listen to it on my antique
radios as well.

The AM in my car's AM-FM radio works much better now that I've
gotten new tires. I'll leave it to my readers here to figure out why.

I'm going to guess--based on things I've heard discussed on the 'net
before--that this might have something to do with grounding or the steel
belts in the tire. Am I close?

William

 

[m kinsler]

The AM in my car's AM-FM radio works much better now that I've

I'm going to guess--based on things I've heard discussed on the 'net
before--that this might have something to do with grounding or the steel
belts in the tire. Am I close?

William

It was indeed static from the tires. I don't think it has anything to
do with the steel belts, for both original and replacement tires have
those, and they're not grounded. But the conductivity of rubber
varies quite widely, even among similar products. I believe my old
tires had low conductivity. Therefore, when I'd be on asphalt
pavement for a long period, static charge would build up on the car
body and discharge to wherever it discharged to, presumably the road,
and make lots of electronic noise doing so. On concrete, the static
sound would disappear.

I found that on asphalt (British use is 'macadam,' I think) roads
whose cracks had been sealed with whatever black compound Ohio uses
for the purpose, I found that the signal improved when the car rolled
over one of these networks of sealed cracks; presumably the sealer is
conductive. On rainy days, the signal was fine except for
interference from lightning.

I got so used to compensating for the various signal levels in my
daily drives that I couldn't quite figure out what had happened when I
replaced the faithful old wheelskins at Wal-mart one day and never got
a whisper of road static thereafter.

M Kinsler