WCAR

For other uses, see WCAR (disambiguation).

Radio station in Michigan, United States

WCARSimulcasts WSDS Salem Township

* Livonia, Michigan
* United States

Broadcast area| Metro Detroit
Frequency| 1090 kHz
Branding| La Explosvia
Programming
Format| Spanish
Ownership
Owner|

* Sima Birach
* (Birach Broadcasting Corporation)

History

First air date

| May 23, 1961
(64 years ago) (1961-05-23)

Former call signs

* WERB (1961–1966)
* WTAK (1966–1970)
* WIID (1970-1979)

Call sign meaning

| A reference to Detroit's automotive industry
Technical information[1]

Licensing authority

| FCC
Facility ID| 73397
Class| B
Power| 250 watts day
500 watts night

Transmitter coordinates

| 42°19′46″N 83°21′43″W﻿ / ﻿42.32944°N 83.36194°W﻿ / 42.32944; -83.36194
Links

Public license information

* Public file
* LMS

Webcast| Listen Live
Website| www.birach.com/wcar.htm

WCAR (1090 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Livonia, Michigan, and serving the Metro Detroit radio market. It airs a Spanish language format as a simulcast of WSDS in Salem Township and is owned by the Birach Broadcasting Corporation.

Because AM 1090 is a clear channel frequency reserved for Class A stations in Little Rock, Baltimore, and Tijuana, Mexico, WCAR must broadcast at a lower power and with a directional antenna to avoid interference. By day, it transmits 250 watts and at night its power increases to 500 watts.

## History

[edit]

For the history of the radio station formerly known as WCAR 1130 AM from 1939 to 1978, see WDFN.

### Early years

[edit]

On May 23, 1961, the station first sign-on as WERB in Garden City, Michigan.[2] It was co-owned with the now-defunct WBRB in Mount Clemens and aired a full service/middle of the road format aimed at the western suburbs of Wayne County. The original owner was Milton Maltz, the founder of the Malrite Communications Group (now Raycom Media). WERB started as a daytimer, required to go off the air at sunset to avoid interfering with other stations on AM 1090. In the 1964-1965 time frame, Gil Wuttke was the WERB radio station Chief Engineer and late afternoon/evening DJ, playing easy listening music.

Around 1966, WERB became WTAK, still under Malrite's ownership. WTAK was notable for being the Detroit area's first all-talk radio station. (The WTAK call sign referred to TALK.) The air staff included such Detroit radio notables as Tom Clay, Vic Caputo, and Paul Winter.

Following a sale to Wolpin Broadcasting in 1969, WTAK changed to WIID ("wide") in January 1970 and went back to a suburban-oriented MOR format. By late 1973, polka musician Big Don Martin was serving as WIID's program director, with much Polish (and other ethnic) music airing on the station. For years afterward, the bulk of AM 1090's programming (as WIID and, starting in 1979, WCAR) consisted of paid brokered programming, in foreign languages and some English-language talk.

### Children's radio

[edit]

On July 29, 1996, WCAR 1090 became the Detroit network affiliate station for Radio AAHS, a now-defunct nationwide radio network featuring programming for children. Then, after Radio AAHS shut down on January 30, 1998, it aired the Minneapolis-based dance music format "Beat Radio" which replaced AAHS overnights on all ten of the company-owned former AAHS stations around the country.

In the late 1990s, much of WCAR's programming had been simulcast on sister station WOAP 1080 AM in Owosso, focused on the Lansing radio market. The two stations aired ethnic brokered programming, along with religious content from Michigan Catholic Radio. (WOAP now airs an adult hits format.)

### Talk format

[edit]

In May 2009, WCAR and WOAP were sold to Birach Broadcasting. Michigan Catholic Radio ended its broadcasts on WCAR on July 31, 2009 when Birach took over the station. Beginning in 2009, the station aired a syndicated talk format with Imus in the Morning, Brian Kilmeade, Robert Wuhl, Jim Bohannon and Red Eye Radio, using newscasts from CNN, Fox News Radio and MarketWatch.

A new afternoon drive time show featuring local legendary broadcasters Bill Bonds & Rich Fisher (Bonds & Fisher) debuted on October 3, 2011. The show was cancelled in late December 2011. The station considered retooling the talk format, but management decided to go in a different direction.

### All sports

[edit]

On February 1, 2012, WCAR switched from a talk format to all-sports, featuring ESPN Radio programming.[3][4] The change was mentioned by Mike Tirico during the Illinois-Michigan State basketball game on January 31, 2012, on ESPN. The flip signified the return of ESPN Radio to the Detroit market for the first time since 2007.

WCAR began locally produced sports talk programming in April 2012 with a one-hour Detroit Red Wings playoff show. That expanded into a daily afternoon drive time program with more local shows being added until the station was running local programming from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. on most weekdays.

The locally produced programming abruptly ended on May 3, 2013, and WCAR switched over to 100% syndicated programming.

At 10 p.m. on July 12, 2013, ESPN Radio pulled its programming off WCAR ending its relationship with the station, with the ESPN affiliation going to WMGC-FM as that station switched to a sports format. WCAR picked up NBC Sports Radio in its place.[5] WCAR began using 100% of NBC Sports Radio's national programming with no local programming announced.

WCAR is directly competing with WXYT, WXYT-FM, and WDFN as the four sports stations in Detroit. WMGC-FM was a competitor until June 2016, when it dropped the format due to low ratings. On May 9, 2014, WCAR announced it was switching from NBC Sports Radio to Yahoo! Sports Radio, effective May 12.[6] Yahoo! was renamed "SB Nation Radio" in 2016.

On May 7, 2018, the format flipped again, this time to hip hop and R&B music, as "The Switch."[7] This format was short-lived, as WCAR returned to all-sports in early June 2018, again carrying SB Nation Radio.

The station affiliated with Fox Sports Radio November 2020.

WCAR is currently simulcasting WSDS.

## Former logos

[edit]

## See also

[edit]

* Media in Detroit

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WCAR". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
2. ^ "Archive BC YB" (PDF).[dead link]
3. ^ "Detroit's WCAR to go All Sports ESPN Tomorrow".[permanent dead link]
4. ^ "Detroit to get full time ESPN Radio station tomorrow - Michiguide.com: Michigan's Guide to Radio and Television Broadcasting". www.michiguide.com. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012.
5. ^ "Post". Archived from the original on July 13, 2013.
6. ^ "Radio Ink Magazine". Archived from the original on May 12, 2014.
7. ^ "site cannot be reached". Archived from the original on May 18, 2018. Retrieved July 13, 2018.

## External links

[edit]

* Facility details for Facility ID 73397 (WCAR) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
* WCAR in Nielsen Audio's AM station database
* Michigan Catholic Radio - Programming Guide

* v
* t
* e

Radio stations in the Detroit, Michigan, metropolitan area

By AM frequency|

* 560
* 680/690
* 760
* 910
* 950
* 1030
* 1090
* 1130
* 1160
* 1200
* 1270
* 1310
* 1340
* 1400
* 1440
* 1460
* 1500
* 1610

By FM frequency|

* 88.1
* WBFH
* WHPR-FM
* WSDP
* WSMF
* 88.3
* WDTE
* WSHJ
* WXOU
* 89.1
* 89.3
* WBLD
* WHFR
* 89.5
* WAHS
* WDTP1
* WOVI
* 89.7
* 90.3
* 90.9
* 91.5
* 91.7
* 92.3
* 93.1
* 93.5
* 94.3
* 94.7
* 95.5
* 96.3
* 97.1
* 97.9
* 98.7
* 99.5
* 100.3
* 101.1
* 101.9
* 102.7
* 103.5
* 104.3
* 105.1
* 105.9
* 106.7
* 107.5

| LPFM|

* 96.7
* 100.7

|

Translators|

* 92.7
* 93.5
* 94.3
* 95.1
* 96.7
* 97.5
* 98.3
* 99.1
* 99.9
* 101.5
* 103.1
* 103.9
* 104.7
* 105.5
* 106.3
* 107.1
* W296CG
* W296DY
* 107.9

NOAA Weather Radio
frequency|

* 162.425
* 162.45
* 162.55

Digital radio
by frequency & subchannel|

* 560
* 910
* 1200
* 1340
* 90.9-1
* 91.7-1
* 92.3-1
* 93.1-1
* 94.7-1
* 94.7-2
* 94.7-3
* 95.5-1
* 96.3-1
* 96.3-2
* 96.3-3
* 97.1-1
* 97.1-2
* 97.1-3
* 97.9-1
* 98.7-1
* 98.7-2
* 99.5-1
* 100.3-1
* 101.1-1
* 101.1-2
* 101.1-3
* 101.9-1
* 102.7-1
* 102.7-2
* 102.7-3
* 103.5-1
* 103.5-2
* 103.5-3
* 104.3-1
* 104.3-2
* 105.1-1
* 105.9-1
* 105.9-2
* 106.7-1
* 107.5-1
* 107.5-2

By call sign|

* KDTI
* KEC63
* W224CC
* W228CJ
* W232CA
* W236DR
* W244DL
* W248CC
* W252BX
* W256EA
* W260CB
* W268CN
* W276DB
* W280EL
* W284BQ
* W288BK
* W292DK
* W296CG
* W296DY
* W300DI
* WAHS
* WBFH
* WBLD
* WCAR
* WCHB
* WCSX
* HD2
* HD3
* WCXI
* WDET-FM
* WDFN
* WDKL
* HD2
* HD3
* WDMK
* HD2
* WDTE
* WDTK
* WDTP1
* WDTW
* WDVD
* HD2
* HD3
* WDZH
* HD2
* WERW
* WFCB-LP
* WFDF
* WGPR
* WHFR
* WHMI-FM
* WHPR-FM
* WJLB
* WJR
* WKEG
* WKQI
* WLLZ
* WLQV
* WMGC-FM
* WMKM
* WMUZ
* WMUZ-FM
* HD2
* HD3
* WMXD
* WNIC
* WNZK
* WNUC-LP
* WOMC
* HD2
* WOVI
* WPHS
* WPON
* WPYF269
* WRCJ-FM
* WRDT
* WRIF
* HD2
* HD3
* WSMF
* WSDP
* WSHJ
* WTAC
* WUFL
* WUOM
* WVMV
* WWJ
* WXOU
* WXYT
* WXYT-FM
* HD2
* HD3
* WYCD

Defunct|

* W8XWJ
* WBRB/WWHK (1430 AM)
* WEBM
* WOPR (90.3 FM)

Nearby regions - United States
Ann Arbor
Flint
Fort Wayne
Lansing-East Lansing
Sandusky/Port Clinton
South Central Michigan
Thumb of Michigan
Toledo

Canada
Southwestern Ontario

See also
List of radio stations in Michigan

* * *

Notes
1\. Station has construction permit to change frequency to 90.1 MHz.

* v
* t
* e

Spanish-language radio stations in the state of Michigan

Stations|

* WCAR - Livonia
* WDTW - Dearborn
* WMJH – Rockford
* WSDS – Salem Township

See also
adult contemporary
classic hits
college
country
news/talk
NPR
oldies
religious
rock
sports
top 40
urban
other radio stations in Michigan

* v
* t
* e

Birach Broadcasting Corporation

Radio stations|

* KJMU
* KOLE
* KXLQ
* WBRD
* WCAR
* WCXI
* WCXN
* WDMV
* WEW
* WGOP
* WIJR
* WMFN
* WNWI
* WNZK
* WPON
* WTOR
* WWCS

Defunct stations|

* KIJR-LP
* WBVA
* WVAB

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