Ford Not Nixing AM Radio in 2024 Models after All, CEO Says

• All 2024 Ford and Lincoln models will have AM radio, according to a tweet by Ford CEO Jim Farley.

• While Ford planned to remove AM radio from new vehicles, Farley said that plan was nixed due to the importance of AM's emergency alert system.

• Since AM radio was already discontinued on the F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E, Ford plans to restore it via an over-the-air software update.

Despite a previous death sentence, AM radio will live to see another day on all 2024 Ford and Lincoln models. That's according to FoMoCo CEO Jim Farley, who today tweeted the company's decision to not nix AM radio in its new vehicles after all.

The demise of AM radio is something other automakers such as Audi, BMW, Volvo, and Tesla have already started to do, specifically on their electric vehicles. However, this has led to backlash from lawmakers and many others who claim AM radio is vital because it's accessible, free, and important for public safety. Just last week, a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation to mandate that automakers offer AM radio in new cars, per a Reuters report.

With Ford already removing AM radio from new F-150 Lightnings and Mustang Mach-Es, the next step was to remove it from the rest of the 2024 model lines. However, Farley's tweet says the company is changing course "after speaking with policy leaders about the importance of AM broadcast radio as part of the emergency alert system."

Farley also mentioned that Lightning and Mach-E models without AM radio will be able to have it restored via an over-the-air software update. Whether or not other automakers who have dropped AM radio will do the same remains to be seen. From the sounds of it, that decision could possibly be made by Congress.

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