Ford's putting back AM radio in vehicles, including EVs

Drivers will be able to tune into their favorite AM stations after all, at least in Ford vehicles. The automaker has reversed its previous decision to eliminate AM radio from all of their vehicles, including electric ones.

After after speaking with government policy leaders pushing the "AM for Every Vehicle Act," Ford's president and CEO Jim Farley acknowledged the importance of emergency alerts which are often broadcast on AM stations and vowed to include them in all 2024 Ford and Lincoln vehicles.

For any owners of Ford EVs without AM broadcast capability, we'll offer a software update.

Customers can currently listen to AM radio content in a variety of ways in our vehicles – including via streaming – and we will continue to innovate to deliver even better in-vehicle entertainment and emergency notification options in the future.

AP News:

Ford removed AM from the 2023 Mustang Mach-e and F-150 Lightning electric pickups after data collected from vehicles showed that less than 5% of customers listened to it, spokesman Alan Hall said. Electrical interference and reducing cost and manufacturing complexity also played a role.

The company also took it out of the 2024 gasoline-powered Mustang, but will add it back in before any of the muscle cars are delivered, Hall said.