I have a 1982 240D. The antenna is quite bent and it doesn't go down,
either by the electric motor or even by hand. I don't care about the
electric feature. Does anyone know if there is a replacement mast that I
can use by cutting off the current mast a few inches above the body and
screwing a replacement over the stub? That would be the simplest way of
fixing things. Otherwise I'd have to remove the panel in the trunk and deal
with the motor mechanism. I'm not against doing it, but I want to keep
things simple. Any thoughts anyone?
Peter
Replacing electric antenna is so easy it is rediculous not to do it. Go to
ebay and search for the Hirschman... get the generic one. I bought mine from
this guy...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Universal-Hirschmann-POWER-ANTENNA-Aerial-Best-Qu
ality_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742Q2em153Q2el1262QQcategoryZ33639QQihZ026QQit
emZ390011416754
He really is a great guy with great help.You can save even more buy using
live.com to search and click on the ebay link that said 25% off... for
cashback that you will get back in 60 days. Up to $200 back for each
transaction... 12 max.
runbiodiesel - 24 Nov 2008 19:06 GMT
I have a 1979 240D and am having problems with poor FM reception and
was told by the people who installed my car stereo that I need to
replace the mast.The existing mast is not electric and there is no
switch on the dash for a power antenna. Does that mean that this car
didn't have one? Was it an option?
If there was an original mast that was not electric, do you know where
I can find a replacement? And, finally, would it be difficult to
retrofit to a power antenna?
Thanks for any advice.
> Replacing electric antenna is so easy it is rediculous not to do it. Go to
> ebay and search for the Hirschman... get the generic one. I bought mine from
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> cashback that you will get back in 60 days. Up to $200 back for each
> transaction... 12 max.
Tiger - 24 Nov 2008 22:38 GMT
First thing first... In the trunk by the antenna area, pull out the trunk
side cover, is your electric antenna there? If not, is there wires hanging
around there? If yes, the car did have an electrical antenna.
It is not hard to hook up, electric antenna either... all you need is one
wire from radio (blue wire on aftermarket radio)... that is positive...
bring that back all the way to the trunk and hook it up to antenna.
It is best to get another fused positive wire to the antenna for the motor.
The ground is basically the car sheetmetal. That's it.
That MB switch for raising and lowering antenna is kinda dumb to modern
radio. Old radio's leave antenna up even when listening to tape... or CD...
but today's radio will lower them down when listening to CD automatically.
That guy GLG will tell you how to do it all. I bought two units from him.
Also, these universal antenna are super super super long, they pick up even
the weakest radio station clearly or stay on that station real long time if
you are travelling interstate. I love this antenna!
On my current car... the W124, the factory mast was super short even for
typical MB. This had cellular option... but in my area, the reception really
stink. With the new antenna, zero problem.
Peter Newman - 25 Nov 2008 00:25 GMT
Thanks, that's really helpful. I yanked out the old power antenna. As I
was getting into the guts of the motor, before disconnecting the wiring
harness, the motor started going. The switch on the dash wouldn't turn it
off - in any of the positions. So I'm thinking that even if I got another
power antenna I'd have to deal with an electrical problem. And I'm
perfectly happy lowering the antenna by hand when I go through a car wash.
But now that the antenna is out I see how easy it is to replace.
I take it the actually screw-in connector to the antenna is a universal one
and that any antenna will accomodate that cable and screw-plug, yes?
Thanks!
Peter
> Replacing electric antenna is so easy it is rediculous not to do it. Go to
> ebay and search for the Hirschman... get the generic one. I bought mine
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> cashback that you will get back in 60 days. Up to $200 back for each
> transaction... 12 max.
Tiger - 25 Nov 2008 03:39 GMT
Yes... antenna adapter is common and standard. Just mix and match the
adapters to make it work.
Peter Newman - 26 Nov 2008 01:07 GMT
Thanks. Crutchfield has the antenna but it has a Motorola plug. I've been
trying to locate the correct adapter. Most of the online dealers don't go
back to 1982. I think the Metra 40-VW16 works, at least it looks right.
One of the dealers is going to contact Metra and check.
Alternately, since I've got an aftermarket radio in the car that must accept
a Motorola is I could just run the cable directly to the radio. Does anyone
know the "route" that the cable takes from truck to dash? If it's just
through the back seat, under the rug, etc, it can't be that difficult.
Peter
> Yes... antenna adapter is common and standard. Just mix and match the
> adapters to make it work.
Tiger - 26 Nov 2008 15:25 GMT
Just go to Radio Shack and see what they have there. Or your local car
stereo shop.
> I have a 1982 240D. The antenna is quite bent and it doesn't go down,
> either by the electric motor or even by hand. I don't care about the
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>
> Peter
Generally speaking, you don't need to replace the entire antenne unit,
unless motor or gear is broken.
You simply loosen the nut on the antenna whip and let the motor drive
out the whip with cable and all. The new whip is installed with the
reverse procedure, i.e. have the radio on, stick the whip cable into
the gear, have someone to turn off the radio and the motor will pull
in the cable and whip. Finally, tighten the not.
It's so easy and cheap. 30 USD by the dealer (in Denmark at least)
and 5 minutes of work. Not worth a sticking antenna at all.
There is two versions out though (Hirchmann and Wisi), so bring the
old whip with you, when you by.
Jens - 25 Nov 2008 07:12 GMT
> > I have a 1982 240D. The antenna is quite bent and it doesn't go down,
> > either by the electric motor or even by hand. I don't care about the
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> There is two versions out though (Hirchmann and Wisi), so bring the
> old whip with you, when you by.
But of course, get the electical problem fixed first. Most probably it
is the connector pins oxidised. Just clean them with very fine grain
sanding paper.
Cordy - 25 Nov 2008 08:38 GMT
Jens ha scritto:
> But of course, get the electical problem fixed first. Most probably it
> is the connector pins oxidised. Just clean them with very fine grain
> sanding paper.
>
If I can add just a small hint: protect the parts treated with sand
paper with a light veil of contact grease... to avoid oxidation (or
simply rust) for the future.
runbiodiesel - 25 Nov 2008 18:22 GMT
Thanks Tiger and everyone. Tiger, I'm going to take your advice and
order the Hirschman antenna you recommended. Sounds perfect for my
area as I'm far from the FM sources. I'll let you know how it goes.
On Nov 25, 12:38 am, Cordy
<stefano.corderaNONMIpiaceloS...@tiscali.it.invalid> wrote:
> Jens ha scritto:
>
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> paper with a light veil of contact grease... to avoid oxidation (or
> simply rust) for the future.