Community Forums

delcirose · 12-12-2011, 04:54 PM

Hi folks,
I have the factory installed xm antenna on the top of my Travel Supreme. I have looked all over under the dash area and behind the panel where the radio is installed and I can not find the wire end of this antenna or where it comes out so that I can use it for an installation of a XM Satellite Radio. Has anyone had any experience with this?

slabman · 12-12-2011, 09:46 PM

How about pulling the panel behind the steering wheel and checking the frt. pillar. If it's routed under the dash it should exit at the base of the pillar.

delcirose · 12-12-2011, 11:32 PM

I got down and removed the kick panel on the left side where the 120V power outlet is and I could see at the base of the floor an access hole with a group of bundled wires as big as your arm. It is a very difficult area to access and due to the shear number of wires it is difficult to separately identify what is what. My reasoning took me to the panel where the radio is figuring that is the area where an antenna should be found. I had no luck. The radio that is installed now is a Alpine unit and I am pretty sure this is not the one that came from the factory. The one on the outside first bin back from the door is a Pioneer unit. I think the original was also probably one. Any way I was hoping that someone out there might have figured this one out if they had a unit that came with the xm antenna installed from the factory like this one did, it is listed on the original build sheet. Thank you for giving me another possible place to look. I will give it a try.

dickschaak · 12-13-2011, 08:08 AM

It might be easier to take the antenna that usually comes with a new xm receiver and route it to the overhead compartment. Then just tape it to the ceiling. You should have plenty of signal there.

slabman · 12-13-2011, 08:34 AM

I'm guessing that Pioneer installed down below might have been the original in-dash unit, since I can't believe the Alpine came from the factory. Not even sure they installed XM antennas at the factory....does the Pioneer have XM capability?

I had a guy install MY XM antenna on the roof directly over the frt. left side ceiling speaker. That way its easy to route the cable into the overhead cabinet over the driver's left shoulder, then into the nearby pillar and down to the dash area. Maybe you can remove the speaker and begin tracing the cable over to that compartment...etc. If it's an after-market install, the cable/jacket may look a bit different to factory work and would be more easily identifiable.

I like Dick's suggestion as its similar to what I did with a GPS antenna on a Pioneer AVIC I recently installed. I just tossed it onto the dash in front near the bottom of the windshield and it works great. Don't see why the XM wouldn't work in the same manner. A little double-sided tape would hold it in place.

delcirose · 12-13-2011, 11:50 AM

Great suggestions, thanks for the input.
I did remove the speaker from the front left front and the headroom is very narrow making it difficult to even get ones hand in there to feel over to where the vent cap on the roof which was installed to allow access for the xm antenna wire to get down into the cavity. I tried using a very bright light and a mirror at different angles but due to the insulation in the area it is difficult at best. There is a large bundle of cables that run down the length of the curved area at the top and then down the pillar on the left side exiting at the bottom some into the dash area and some down into the front cap area.
I will try the suggestion of getting the xm radio with it's antenna and just try placing it in different locations and see if that works for us and in the mean time I will try to find the end of this existing cable. Kind of a puzzle and a challenge at this point.
Thanks one and all and a Merry Xmass to everyone and a great year in 2012.

slabman · 12-13-2011, 12:36 PM

Don't forget that frt. LH overhead cabinet has removable interior panels. Just use an angled pick and you'll be able to pry them open to reveal more access to the top of that pillar.

My stereo guy installed the separate XM radio unit on a wooden shelf immediately behind the radio mount area in the dash. (Over the heater box, I believe) Then he spliced a cigarette lighter plug into the nearby dash cig. lighter wires. Then you can plug the supplied XM power plug directly into it.