It took two dealers to finally figure out that the loss of my XM reception in my 2010 Prius was caused by MICE CHEWING THRU ANTENNA WIRES! TIP: When you park, CLOSE THE AIR RECYCLING VENT to keep mice out. P.S. The repair coat over $700 (not a warranty item.)
$700 ?! Seriously? I remember it was just over $100 for the labor to put a brand new built-in XM radio in. You'd think a cable replacement would be even less.
But regardless, I have been struggling with reception since day 1 which would indicate mice (unless they have viciously attacked as soon as I brought the car in the first night) had nothing to do with it. I think it's the antenna, the high-power circuits all around in the car and probably just the location. They've glued mine to the dash in the right corner, just below the windshield.
If you're driving south (which is the location toward any satellite on a geosynchronous orbit), you're fine. If you're driving north and the signal has to pass through the roof to hit the antenna, you're most likely out of luck. It may work but you lose connection as soon as there is any additional signal obstacle like a small bridge overhead or you're just passing a truck.
It may also have to do with the Bluetooth connection in this car - it's working at 2.4GHz and XM as far as I know is 2.3 GHz - kinda close, may interfere with each other.
Anyways, just wanted to put this out as a data point for other people struggling with XM reception in a Prius - mice *may* or *may not* be the culprit.
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