# just bought an 86 300zx, fm radio doesn't work



## harrisonk (Dec 11, 2007)

i searched my problem but didn't find any solutions. the am radio works fine but fm has absolutely no signal. i even tried using a portable fm transmitter to see if it would pick that up since it was right in the area, but still no luck.


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## nickz3188 (Sep 27, 2007)

is the antenna plugged in? and is the wire intact all the way to the antenna?


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## harrisonk (Dec 11, 2007)

i don't really know how to take the panel off to look at the wire


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## thezman (Nov 3, 2007)

*getting to radio is easy*

here is how you get the radio out.
1. remove ashtray 
2. there are 2 pan head screws on 1 on each side of ashtray opening remove
3. there are 2 10mm/philips screws above the environment controls (slightly recessed) remove
4. the plastic trim piece should now com off easily pull strait out on bottom first then pull down gently should come off easily. unplug the cigarrette lighter and various small light bulbs to completely remove.
5. there are i think 4 10mm/philips bolts holding the radio in remove them and it should slide out.

If you are inclined to just replace the stock unit the only luck i had finding a DIN adaptor for this car was at crutchfield.com it was pretty cheap and is a easy install how ever i wasn't able to find a wiring harness adaptor that was actually correct for my car the ones i found were all male plugs and the wrong shape to boot, i needed female plugs so i had to do it the old fashioned way cutting and butt connecting the wires together. a word of caution its not as simple as it looks on the stock wires solid colors are ground and wires with black stripe are hot (+) it also uses common R and L grounds for front and rear. blue is left, red is right, the wires with the white stripe are front if i remember correctly (the 2just right of center wires : on the plug i know are the front speakers). Also couldn't find a body ground so i had to ground to the mounting bracket. good luck to ya. 

if i were you i'd start checking carfiche.com for the manual to my car i've got mine from there it is free, a little annoying as they change what's availible every day just keep looking until you see yours i had to download mine 3 times before i got the full book. kept getting one section or another unreadably corrupted but hey it is a FREE OEM shop manual for your car i've found it to be much more useful than chiltons or haynes. they have poor upload speeds so just be patient it is well worth the hassle.


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## harrisonk (Dec 11, 2007)

Thanks for the detailed response, I'll check it out when I get some free time. The only thing I really want to do is have a way to listen to my mp3 player through the car stereo, either through fm transmitter of a tape adapter. A buddy and I tried using his cassette adapter and it would go in the tape slot but wouldnt go down and stay after it was in. I didn't see anything stuck in there but the tape just wouldn't click.


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## thezman (Nov 3, 2007)

well i don't know about yours but my radio was busted when i got my Z so i just stuck a DIN head unit into it. When i pulled the stock radio out it had a remanufactured 8/87 sticker on it my car is an 86 so appearently they had problems with them. you said something about needing to get to a antenna wire or some such is why i gave you the breakdown on how to pull it out. good luck


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## Joe D (Jun 12, 2018)

I have a 1986 300ZX 2 seat coupe with T-Tops, 5 speed manual car. Owned for 25 years. My radio has an equalizer. My radio light will come on and it will change channels, switch from AM to FM and will take and eject cassette. However there is no sound ! I cannot hear speaker buzz or anything. It used to make a scratchy noise when I turned the radio on and then play but now nothing.
Does anyone know what I can check ? I checked fuse. Speakers look fine and wires to them look OK. What other problems ? My antenna does not go up anymore and I am going to replace it but the speakers should make noise shouldn't they ?
I noticed in some illustrations that there is a pre-amp that they don't seem to make anymore, what else should I check ?

Please help if you can. Thanks

Also my car had a voice that used to come on and warn of a door being open, parking brake is on and low fuel level. It quite woeking. Does anyone know how to check and fix that ?


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## drjeckle (Aug 16, 2009)

If your AM radio is working your problem is not the antenna connection. FM will often pick up nearby stations even if no antenna is connected. At one time in my life I used to repair car radios and have the equipment to do it again if I choose. The problem is there are likely no schematics for these radios, so I would have to figure that out as I go. I installed a new radio in my car because there was no sound from the single DIN aftermarket radio that came with the car and I wanted to upgrade to Bluetooth and USB drive capabilities. The new radio had no sound until I discovered that one of the left rear speaker wires was apparently touching ground. When I first got the car there was a voice telling me to close the door because I don't have a door jamb switch to control interior lights and the timer (which I am looking for). That voice is now gone and I don't know if it was using the old radio or just quit.


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## Antonio.L (Nov 27, 2020)

harrisonk said:


> i searched my problem but didn't find any solutions. the am radio works fine but fm has absolutely no signal. i even tried using a portable fm transmitter to see if it would pick that up since it was right in the area, but still no luck.


I just got this problem in mine did you ever fix it


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