[Johannvb]

I just had my windscreen replaced and like mentioned so many times before on this forum. The windshield is only available with an antenna.

Because I am anal, I don't want to see a piece of wire dangling from my windshield. I briefly thought about removing my roof mounted unit, but that's not going to happen. I don't feel like having the roof resprayed (yet)

So what do I do with this dangling piece of wire? Do I just cut it off? I am worried that If I do that, I risk potential damage to the windscreen from corrosion.

Let me hear your thoughts.

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[flash]

if i had a hardtop, and had the option, i would run it into the cabin and tee into the antenna cable

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[Johannvb]

ANd have two functioning antennas? Does that work?

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[flash]

i'd sure like to try it

since one is dipole, and the other is not, and they are far enough apart, i think they should work well together

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[DaveN]

Won't work. This is a passive circiut. You will create a 3 dB loss (min) by ruining the Z (impedance) of the cct and thus your reception will be crap.

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[flash]

i was not sure if it was active or discrete, which is why i said i'd like to try it - the car has an antenna amp, but didn't know if it was a simple signal amp or an active circuit

i'm going to have to do some homework on this one - my thought is that you could create a diversity setup though, using the two antennae, assuming the tuner has the capability

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[DaveN]

You would have to rework the impedance matching RF front end of the amp. Also, diversity is an active decision element of a transceiver. Switching is done dynamically to the best antenna and they are not both "online" at the same time. The same goes for polarization and spatial diversity.

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[flash]

yup - some tuners have the capability to work with diversity antennae, though i'm not sure if it works in the fm band, or just the tv band

obviously these are not the best antennae to play with for such a thing, and i have no idea if it could be made to work, but it would be an interesting project

lol - yeah - that's what i need - another project

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[Johannvb]

And then I connect it al up in the djigaconverter and have it orchestrated by the zippazappa. This stuff is WAAAYYYY over my head.

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[94SilverCab]

Really! Hide the wire behind your dash...Sheeeeesh!

Jay

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[Johannvb]

Jay, I would love to be able to do that, but something inside me won't let me. I have a very deep desire to cut the wire [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wacko.gif[/img]

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[flash]

if i had to choose between the 2, i'd hook up the windshield antenna, and lose the roof antenna - i hate things sticking up off of the car - until just recently, i always changed the pole types to retracting ones

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[94SilverCab]

Johann clearly stated that he didn't want to remove the roof antenae at this time.

It doesn't always have to be rocket science...if my grandmother had balls she could be my grandfather.

Jay

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[flash]

lol - i understood that, as well as the original issue of not wanting to snip the thing if it could be useful - i merely indicated how that issue would point me in a different direction

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[ds968]

cut the wire, that's what I did.. I'd think there is no corrosion risk at all to the windscreen, the open space left after cutting the wire is microscopic, but you could always brush a bit of superglue on that spot to seal it up, for peace of mind

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[Johannvb]

Thanks for all the advice guys!

I must admit that removing the roof mounted unit will make me very happy. I have never been a fan of the bee stinger look, but I just don't think I can justify the investment. I wonder if there is a plug available to temporarily fill the hole for the roof mounted unit. This way I can postpone repainting the car for another year or two

I will resist the urge to cut the wire for a couple of days more...it's going to be very hard [img]style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.gif[/img]

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[Jamie '92 968]

Johann,

Can you replace the bee sting antenna with a sattelite radio or GPS antenna?

Or you can replace it with one of these or something similar:

   
http://www.stubbyantenna.com/detail3.asp?k...na_SF-509_Black
It's completely non-functional and attaches with double sided tape.

You can also get one with a flashing rainbow LED!

Jamie



A bit off topic, but I just replaced my antenna mast with an 8.5" version from this company.
http://www.stubbyantenna.com/detail.asp?ke..._Antenna_RA_8.5
It's only $12 on their web site, but even cheaper from them on e-bay.

Looks great, and they also have a 16" version at the same price if you prefer.

I noticed the "non-functioning" line of antennas while I was brousing, and didn't think of a good application until now.

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[rxter]

Another option.

   

Cut the wire!!

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[ds968]

I replaced my OE antenna with a much shorter one which I beleive may have been made for a VW ( unsure because Ron aka "midblue" sourced it and got the last two available ) - the fit / screw portion is identical to our OE one and there is no difference in reception at all between the two.

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