2009 XM receiver problems??

[nascrlvr]

As I have posted elsewhere on this forum, I have had problems with XM reception in my 09 since I purchased it in January. The dealer has moved the antenna about 1 inch closer to the center of the dash with no improvement. Now it seems Gulf States Toyota thinks the receiver might be bad. They want me to bring it in and they do a test for receiver strength. Has anyone had to follow this "yellow brick road" to get the inevitable outside antenna fix that is necessary for good reception? Please help, fellow Prius/XM lovers. I am waiting for the service manager's call back to schedule this test. Thanks!!

[snead_c]

Originally Posted by nascrlvr

As I have posted elsewhere on this forum, I have had problems with XM reception in my 09 since I purchased it in January. The dealer has moved the antenna about 1 inch closer to the center of the dash with no improvement. Now it seems Gulf States Toyota thinks the receiver might be bad. They want me to bring it in and they do a test for receiver strength. Has anyone had to follow this "yellow brick road" to get the inevitable outside antenna fix that is necessary for good reception? Please help, fellow Prius/XM lovers. I am waiting for the service manager's call back to schedule this test. Thanks!!

My new 09 Prius dealer was very cooperative when I pointed out that the XM antenna was receiving poorly and would be better placed on the roof behind the fm (I found this out on a thread here on PC). It is the recommended install location on the Sirius radio installation that was available till late 09. My reception improved 90% with the move.
Good luck

[nascrlvr]

Snead.....thanks. I will keep all posted on this very common problem....

[nascrlvr]

Just an update.....the dealer placed an outside antenna right behind the FM antenna today. The "receiver test" was actually the service manager driving the car under some trees and finding that the signal was lost. So now, hopefully, all is well. The service manager and service advisor were awesome and hopefully this will be the last post for me on this issue............

[nascrlvr]

As stated over and over on this forum, the outside antenna is "the fix." Reception is now immensely improved and very rarely drops off. So............now that the 2010 has the exterior antenna, this problem should end!!

[nathan]

i am having the same problem on my 07 that i just got xm in. they have done everything but move the antenna outside, including replacing the entire unit. the dealer tells me that the antenna cannot be mounted outside because it is not weather-resistant even though it is a car antenna & magnetic. is this true? will it hurt the current antenna to be outside? i know of no other xm car antenna that cannot take the weather. if this is true, however, can you buy an aftermarket outside antenna to go with it? if so, anyone know of one that works with the oem receiver that i can buy & take to them to install? mine works decently until i start heading east (exactly half of my commute), at which point the satellite must be getting blocked by the huge dome that is the roof of my car, & anything over a shrub on the side of the road makes me lose reception. if it is ok to use the antenna that came with it outside, i am ready to tell them to go ahead & do it & i won't hold them accountable if it gets ruined, but they really don't seem to want to do it. any input on this is greatly appreciated. thanks,

[snead_c]

Originally Posted by nathan

i am having the same problem on my 07 that i just got xm in. they have done everything but move the antenna outside, including replacing the entire unit. the dealer tells me that the antenna cannot be mounted outside because it is not weather-resistant even though it is a car antenna & magnetic. is this true? will it hurt the current antenna to be outside? i know of no other xm car antenna that cannot take the weather. if this is true, however, can you buy an aftermarket outside antenna to go with it? if so, anyone know of one that works with the oem receiver that i can buy & take to them to install? mine works decently until i start heading east (exactly half of my commute), at which point the satellite must be getting blocked by the huge dome that is the roof of my car, & anything over a shrub on the side of the road makes me lose reception. if it is ok to use the antenna that came with it outside, i am ready to tell them to go ahead & do it & i won't hold them accountable if it gets ruined, but they really don't seem to want to do it. any input on this is greatly appreciated. thanks,

I don't know anything about their antenna...that said personally I'd have a magnetic based antenna installed on the roof behind the fm in a heartbeat. Put an extra wrap of black tape around the exposed wire that extends from the antenna to the hatch. There are Sirius installation directions posted (somewhere, I'll find them if you can't) that show the routing. Please let us know how it goes.

[snead_c]

Originally Posted by snead_c

I don't know anything about their antenna...that said personally I'd have a magnetic based antenna installed on the roof behind the fm in a heartbeat. Put an extra wrap of black tape around the exposed wire that extends from the antenna to the hatch. There are Sirius installation directions posted (somewhere, I'll find them if you can't) that show the routing. Please let us know how it goes.

Try this for antenna instructions...p7...

http://priuschat.com/forums/attachme...structions.pdf

[nathan]

thanks. did you just use the antenna that came with your car that they put on the front dash & move it outside? has it withstood the weather ok? i guess that is my question.

[snead_c]

Originally Posted by nathan

thanks. did you just use the antenna that came with your car that they put on the front dash & move it outside? has it withstood the weather ok? i guess that is my question.

YES
Original parts were :
1 86180-0w031 XM Receiver $179.10
1 PT546-47060 FITKIT, XM, Prius $90.00

When I requested the antenna be moved from the dash to the roof the technician wrote on the work order:

"moved existing antenna to roof"
No other parts were listed.

I had this done 8 months ago...I just checked the antenna and it looks new and works the same as ever. Heavy trees, tall buildings, and mountains still cause some dropouts but the reception improved from intollerable to good.

By the way