XM Antenna install

I've seen them strapped to the top of the roll bar. Most are low-profile enough that they don't interfere with the soft top at all. ymmv n.

Mount it on top of the center rollbar, underneath the padding. Neither the hard top nor soft top will impede the signal getting to it.

Jerry

Eric wrote:

Right on the dash, antenna and all.

Radio signals work great right through a Jeep hard or soft top.

Barry

Take out the lil' rubber in the change holder on the top of the dash drill ur mounting holes and holes for cables...then the channel that runs under the windshield pops out so you can feed ur wires through... it's at eye sight, easier to hear and makes for a clean install....also when it comes time to sell, take the radio out and put the rubber back to cover all the holes and you'd never know it was there... Good luck Jeff '95 ZJ '03 TJ VE1WWH (Worlds Worst Ham)

Jeff, I'd think that position would cause lots of signal drop-outs due to the rollbars or windshield frame getting in the way once in a while as he drives around. Afterall, that satellite signal is strictly line-of-sight as you are well aware. :)

Jerry

Jeff wrote:

Set it on the top of the dash board in the little paperclip cup. It should work fine there. I have mine (in my BMW) stuck with a small dab of SuperGlue to the dash board at the base of the windshield. It works great.

Thanks for all the feedback... I like the idea of the antenna under the rollbar padding. Still don't know what I'm going to do about the Roady2 unit (display unit). I need to find a better way to power it -- I use the cigarette lighter for my cell phone charger AND my CB... already have a

Eric did pass the time by typing:

If you have space use one of these.

PepBoys, Autozone, Canadian Tire, etc also carry ciggy lighters/12v outlets. Or you could build one that uses a 12v plug like I did.

another possibility is one of these

Drifter "I've been here, I've been there..."

There's more than one satellite, and in some cases, terrestrial repeaters.

I've used XM with the antenna mounted to the dash of steel roofed cars with excellent results. A roll bar isn't going to be a problem.

Barry

If you direct wire it, just remember that the Roady and Roady 2 are _6_ volt units. There's a converter in the ciggy plug cable.

For my company vehicle, I found a three-way that uses a 6 foot cable at Radio Shack. This moves the outlets where you want them, and unclutters the lighter area.

Have fun, Barry

I did mount it under my roll bar (top and center) and am getting HORRIBLE reception. I can't figure it out -- my wife got decent reception in her XJ (with it mounted on the roof, of course). That reception was nothing compared to what she's getting with the factory installed unit in the Equinox (I'd swear it's just as good as CD). I'm going to have to pull all the wires out and see if I can stick it somewhere else to get better reception. I've rotated through a number of frequencies and just can't get better reception.

By the way, I do have a soft top.

Eric

I did what twaldron said -- under the rollbar padding on TOP of the rollbar. Sorry, I said it wrong.

There's no short that I can see. And, like I said, I pulled it right out of the XJ (not hard... it was just tucked) and put it into mine. No crimping or problems I could see.

I guess I could try on the hood. If that doesn't work, I'll just sell it on eBay and go back to good 'ole FM and CDs. Just thought since we already owned it and were paying for the service...

Nope, no roof rack and have been driving all over the place for the past few days. In the city, out of the city, etc. Reception goes from ok to worse. Never great. Seems to be worse on some XM channels than others (which makes no sense).

I haven't moved the antenna just yet... .still under the roll bar. Using the "antenna aiming" on the roady, I notice I hardly ever get more than 2 bars on the terrestrial receiving and sometimes I can get 3 bars on the satellite. Odd -- my wife's XJ got great reception (and I set it up in the same driveway...).

Eric