There it is, right in front of me. Thanks.
Not saying there's a pattern here, but here's a short story of my experience with my new Explorer ...after I took delivery last week I noticed that the HD and AM reception was terrible. Satellite radio was excellent. I finally realized maybe a look at the antenna was warranted. Well, there you go no stinger. I stopped by and showed the salesman that the plastic plug was still covering the attachment threads. It was immediately addressed and reception is now what I expect.
Just saying, the technology gizmos on the vehicle must have so overwhelmed me that I missed that the obvious on my inspection, the missing stinger.