Radio antenna cutoff switch

[TC.Barky]

Hey guys. Been putting in a switch to stop the electric antenna for the radio going up when I don't want it. Found that disconnecting the plug from the back of the antenna relay stops it from going up which is all cool. Couldn't find any solid information on which cable to cut (found a thread on here that said blue cable, but no luck there) so I've done it by process of elimination and just crimped them back together if not the one I want. On the third try I found one that seems to do what I want... kind of. The antenna is not going up when turning on the radio but the relay is still getting power (clicking) and seems to be getting confused. When I turn the car off it tries to pull the antenna down (even though its already down - it only runs the motor for a brief moment til it works out its down) unless it hasn't been on for very long (clicks after about 10-15 seconds and after that will try to pull it down when switching off).

My question is, is there a better wire I could be using? Rather not keep going with process of elimination if there isn't any need. Ultimately I'd like it so that when I flip the switch it will pull the antenna down straight away (not massively important) without turning off the radio/car.

[Ian Sharpe]

i did the same by buying an aerial switch of Mitsu parts , & putting that in line with the original switch , so I have 2 aerial switches, one does the normal thing , ie half up or full up & the second one drops power to it all together & thus it goes down but the radio is still on.

You could do the same with any on off switch , you just need to intercept the power out wire from the original switch , I cant recall the colour but I can check in the morning for you.

[TC.Barky]

i did the same by buying an aerial switch of Mitsu parts , & putting that in line with the original switch , so I have 2 aerial switches, one does the normal thing , ie half up or full up & the second one drops power to it all together & thus it goes down but the radio is still on.

You could do the same with any on off switch , you just need to intercept the power out wire from the original switch , I cant recall the colour but I can check in the morning for you.

That would be bloody amazing if it's not too much trouble. That was the wire I was looking for but I've obviously found something slightly different I've got it wired up to a narva rocker switch currently. Not quite the right size though so I might have a look at getting one from mitsu - didn't cost you the earth did it? :P

[Ian Sharpe]

That would be bloody amazing if it's not too much trouble. That was the wire I was looking for but I've obviously found something slightly different I've got it wired up to a narva rocker switch currently. Not quite the right size though so I might have a look at getting one from mitsu - didn't cost you the earth did it? :P

it wasnt cheap bout $70 if I recall. But it looks original & you can hook up the lights to it as well.

[TC.Barky]

it wasnt cheap bout $70 if I recall. But it looks original & you can hook up the lights to it as well.

Gawd. I thought 23 was bad for a narva switch I'll prob check the wreckers heh

[Downunder35m]

I got sick and tired of breaking the antenna or forgetting to switch it down.
My easy fix was to put a thin wire in a L-shape around the windscreen and to connect that to the original antenna cable (which I cut off ).
So no antenna in the way when going bush and still really good reception at all times.

[TC.Barky]

I got sick and tired of breaking the antenna or forgetting to switch it down.
My easy fix was to put a thin wire in a L-shape around the windscreen and to connect that to the original antenna cable (which I cut off ).
So no antenna in the way when going bush and still really good reception at all times.

Yeah I thought about doing that but haven't done much (any) work with automotive wiring so thought I'd have a play and try to get this to work.

[Downunder35m]

There no real wiring needed
All you do is locate the antenna cable - or take the whole thing out.
Cut the cable so that it will reach the bottom corner of your windscreen - you have to get the cable through the guts of the dash for that.
Use a thin wire, preferable those paint coated copper what's used in a transformer. Don't go too thin as you need to be able to secure it some tape and you don't want to rip it.
Use a soldering iron to connet that wire to the centre wire in the antenna cable, leave the grounding mesh untouched and out of the way.
Enjoy you radio without the worry of breaking the antenna when going bush

[TC.Barky]

There no real wiring needed

That's why I went for the switch option, wanted to have a play! Chances are I'll move to one of those on-glass antennas at some point - used to have one on my Subaru and thought it was awesome.

[Downunder35m]

Jepp, they are great, the best so far are the old ones from Bosch, but they are really hard to get these days.
But with reception limited to build up areas (like they say ) and the MW antenne fixed inside the radio I could not be bother spending the money.
First I thought I would have to expect some problems because the wire is on the inside but it turns out that I accidently created a so called diversity antenna - they are able to receive horizontally and vertically, eliminating the ghost reception around tall buildings or areas of poor reception.
One other option is to use a stainless steel whip in the right lenght as a replacement for the antenna, but I don't like how they flex down on the freeway.

[Ian Sharpe]

hi mate,

I checked my wiring , the wire you need to intercept is green stripe on white.

Your wiring should be the same colour as mine, however if its not all you need to do is get a voltmeter & check which wire goes to 0 volts when you turn the radio off. make sure you have your lights off at the same time & that eliminates the illumination active.

I have tried the electronic aerials & they are good in town but marginal in the country. But it also depends upon how good your receiver is.

cheers

[TC.Barky]

hi mate,

I checked my wiring , the wire you need to intercept is green stripe on white.

Your wiring should be the same colour as mine, however if its not all you need to do is get a voltmeter & check which wire goes to 0 volts when you turn the radio off. make sure you have your lights off at the same time & that eliminates the illumination active.

I have tried the electronic aerials & they are good in town but marginal in the country. But it also depends upon how good your receiver is.

cheers

cheers mate, legend

EDIT: Just used that wire. Works perfectly, exactly what I wanted. Thanks again!!