Is Your Car Ready For The DAB Radio Switch-Over?

Got a digital radio at home? Many people have these days, and you might be aware of the digital switchover that’s coming not later than 2015. By then all AM stations will have gone, and all FM content will be on DAB. No problem for your kitchen because DAB radios start at £30 this days, but what about your car? Only a handful have built-in DAB and it’s an expensive option on luxury vehicles. Here’s the problem; on most cars today the audio head unit is usually built into the dash. There’s no standard slot about the size of a letterbox any more. Such integration makes radios less nickable and allows smarter cabin design. But it also means you can’t just replace your stereo with a new one. Standalone in-car DAB radios are available – the Pure Highway is the best known – but they’re about £80. Here’s something else you probably didn’t know and which will have to be sorted. If you have a sat-nav system in your car that receives live traffic updates, it relies on an FM signal so you’ll need to buy a new one of those, too. The UK car industry and the Government know all this stuff and are working hand in hand to make sure everything happens as it should. But you’re still going to have to put your hand in your pocket at some point.