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power antenna

Joined
16 January 2003
Messages
23
Location
Belgium
If you don't like you're antenna to go up when you're playing a cd or a cassette,I found a simple sollution:
Cut the pink wire with a white stripe located behind the drivers seat at the floor and put a switch between it and the problem is solved,hope I can help someone......
 
That sounds great, as my antenna goes up and down every time I switch out CD's. (aftermarket, assuming that has something to do with it) Tried disabling the antenna totally, but I lose too many radio stations. This sounds like the way to go.
Can you post a pic of your setup?

Thanks,

Tom
 
You can't see the color off the wire but i's pink with a white stripe (you can see this wire also at the antenne itself) just cut it in two and place a switch between it (I placed the switch in the dash) and you have full control of your antenna.......
 

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Great tip!!

How did you find out about this trick? It must be the hot wire to power the antenna. I did unplug the antenna connector in the trunk and reception was terrible. Now I need to find a switch and the location to mount the switch. Could you partially raise and lower the antenna?

Thanks,
Taj
 
I don't like the antenne,it's to big and I wanted a sollution so I did some surging and maybe I was lucky but you can not raise the antenna partially ,it's up or down.......Maybe someone else can?????
Greetings from europe......
 
Yes, great for those with factory head units, according to the installation instructions. Will it work with an aftermarket system?
 
tomc92bb000059 said:
Yes, great for those with factory head units, according to the installation instructions. Will it work with an aftermarket system?
I was looking for this post in some research for a fellow 'Primer & thought the last post deserved an answer:
The Smartenna will not work with an after-market head unit - it works by sensing the audio signal from the Alpine changer & electronically switches to interrupt the power to the antenna motor.
Most after-market heads these days however actually have a seperate o/p for the power antenna so it's only on when the radio is selected.
 
nsxtasy said:
Yeah, but some of us don't want the antenna up even when listening to the radio. There are only a few places I drive that I don't get good reception. It'd be nice to put the antenna up if I need it, but normally leave it down and let the window antenna do the work. Putting the switch in is a good tip.
 
By the way, does the pink/white wire go all the way to the head unit?

I'm taking my head unit out to add in one of those Blitz aux inputs. Might be a good and easy time to install an antenna switch by the cigarette lighter.
 
After I changed my radio to Kenwood 3050 that has multicolour display and front loading disc, the antenna only come up when I switch to radio.
 
I answered my own question. On page 23-234 of the online service manual, there is a pinout for the connector on the back of the stereo, listing pin A6 as connected to a pink/white wire labeled "radio-switched power (to antenna and relay)".

Cool beans.
 
Aiken Drum said:
I answered my own question. On page 23-234 of the online service manual, there is a pinout for the connector on the back of the stereo, listing pin A6 as connected to a pink/white wire labeled "radio-switched power (to antenna and relay)".

Cool beans.
Be careful - if you look at the cct diagram (& also as described by antenna and relay) you will see that the same pink/white wire where it leaves the connector that plugs directly into the radio also feeds the power relay to power the amps - if you cut into it here, by the plug, you will also be switching off the amps when you switch off the antenna i.e., it needs to be after the split to the relay (I'm not sure where that split takes place, but I know that the the harness indicated above by the drivers door is post-split) - there's only one pink/white wire leaving the plug at the radio, so it must branch further down-stream somewhere. Maybe at the relay connector? Doesn't help your local in-console convenient location however, you'll still have to run a wire
 
Ah, okay. Thanks for the tip.

Maybe I'll run it behind the driver's seat to the center console compartment. I'm considering installing the blitz aux rca jacks inside of it; it might be a good place for the switch too.
 
You can mount the switch in either location, just have to run two wires (one from each pole of switch) all the way to wherever you intersect the pink /wh wire. Put bullet connectors on each side of wire where you make cut, then you can easily put back to stock too, by just unplugging wires to switch & reconnecting the ends of the original pink/wh wire.
 
Do I need any kind of conduit to run wires from the location pictured above to the dash area, or am I okay with reasonably-well-insulated wire? This stuff starts out next to the firewall.
 
I installed the switch last night. I'm not as handy as I'd like to be, so it took a while, but in the end it worked out pretty well. I ran the wires forward along the inside of the door frame and put a little round rocker switch under the dash, above the hood release lever. Works like a charm. :)

A warning for anyone intending to do this mod: Space down where you get access to the pink wire is very, very cramped. It's hard enough finding the wire in the middle of the 50-or-so wire bundle, and then you only get about 1.5" of wire to work with.

---

As an aside: boy, every time I take something apart on that car, I see evidence that whoever worked on it before I owned it didn't give much of a crap about doing things right. One of the connectors on the rear window sill panel was gone and one was broken (leaving a total of one functional), another was broken on the rectangular rear trim panel, one of the screws was missing on the corner panel, one of the metal brackets on the corner panel was broken off and just sitting there like a broken plate your kid put back in the middle of the stack to hide it... bleh.
 
antenna switch

I would love to get the stock "half antenna" switch.
Would anyone in the right market give me a hand?
Does anyone know the part #?
 
Hi. I was referred to this thread researching some other info and have a few hints. There is a spot in the rocker right in front of the driver's seat that may be a little easier in accessing that pink/white wire. And a switch mount trick that I discovered is that a foglight rocker switch, like a KC HiLites for example, will snap right into the one of the cutouts in the panel above the pedals. No cutting necessary and it's very accessible. :smile:
 
Shaun Ray said:
How about a photo when you have it installed?

Will do. Probably get to it this weekend. I have Sunday off. No Steelers game :biggrin:
 
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