Dead antenna?

[Holmes]

I put a new stereo in the wagon yesterday and everything works fine, accept the antenna. It was working good up until now. It's not the stereo or the extender I bought. I can pull in a couple of stations real fuzzy. As soon as I plug the antenna into the extender, dead. No fuzz, just the tuner endlessly searching for nothing. Anyone have any ideas?

[EmmCeeBee]

I'm doing the same -- installing an aftermarket stereo -- so this caught my eye.

 

The only thing I can think of is that the antenna cable is grounded. Did you re-wire the speakers or anything along the driver's side kick panel? The antenna cable comes in near your left knee, then under the carpet and up into the center console. Slight chance you messed up the antenna cable....??

 

Or possibly, the extender itself is bad, with an internal ground.

 

If you still have your old radio, plug it back in and test the antenna, WITH and WITHOUT the extender. If it works, then I'm out of ideas :cornfuzz:

 

-- Mark

[heartless]

My car didnt have a stereo in it when I got it, so I had to put in an aftermarket...ended up having to replace the entire antenna/cable as somebody had cut the darn cable!!! found the half @$$ed splice job up under the carpet.

 

But before going to all the hassle of replacing the antenna I would follow Mark's suggestion of double checking with the old stereo, and looking for possible ground outs.

 

Took a little hunting to find a replacement for mine, as we dont have too many yards around here that have old Subies to steal parts from. Finally found one from a car audio place, had to special order the darn thing, bolts on a little different than the original did, but it works!

[Hank Roberts]

My car didnt have a stereo in it when I got it, so I had to put in an aftermarket...ended up having to replace the entire antenna/cable as somebody had cut the darn cable!!! found the half @$$ed splice job up under the carpet.

 

But before going to all the hassle of replacing the antenna........ I would follow Mark's suggestion of double checking with the old stereo, and looking for possible ground outs.

 

Took a little hunting to find a replacement for mine.... Finally found one from a car audio place,

 

OK, so -- how the HECK do you get into the roof pillar, to take out an old dead antenna? I will go look under the carpet and try to follow up the cable. I've been through three big books and found nothing. The Subaru glovebox book (for this 1988 GL wagon) at least tells me the antenna is supposed to pull OUT (it's a snapped off stub).

 

Hoping someone active here now can tell me how to dig one out before I or someone for me goes to a junkyard to try the dissection -- and find out how much cable to take with a replacement if one's found (where does it disconnect, at the antenna end I hope, rather than pulling the whole console out to get to the radio also?)