Per Stromgren wrote:

Old FM radios never die, they just fade away...

I have owned and used quite a number of ordinary table top (or
portable) radios in my life. All of them tend to go bad in the same
way after some 10 years or so: they do not "hold the station" and
distort from mis-tuning. You try to adjust the tuning on them every
day, although they have been tuned to your local station for a number
of years without a problem. The audio section typically works fine, as
I can conclude from the ones that has a line input. I usually throw
them away and buy new ones, but I would like to know what age do to
them. My radios all have had pre-selected tuning of the variable
resistor type. My current Philips kitchen radio is a 1991 model that
is on its way to the city dump...

I haven't noticed this effect with capacity/inductance tuned sets.

The most likely cause is changes in the resistance track and switch
contacts (if the readio uses mechanical switches) caused by ingress of
dirt or damp, as well as mechanical wear. A less likely fault would be
component failure somewhere in the power section, supplying the
voltage to the tuning controls.

None of the components involved are expensive and if you are otherwise
happy with the set it is well worth repairing.

--

rgds
LAurence

....Seven and a half million years and all you can come up with is 42?