4 Steps to Fix That Pesky Car Radio Antenna

March 30, 2012 4:45 PM Text Size: A . A . A Electric-powered, self-extending antenna masts used to be a telltale sign of a fancy, feature-laden car. As is the case with many electromechanical parts, however, power antennas usually end up requiring repair. Run through a carwash with one extended and you'll have what looks like a bent hanger sticking out of the fender. Today, power antenna masts have been replaced with fixed antennas or wires embedded in windshields, but there are still plenty of cars out there with these telescoping menaces. Broken antennas get stuck all the way up, all the way down, or often somewhere in between. The shabby appearance of, and stunted radio reception on, an otherwise perfectly good car means that replacing or repairing an antenna is a worthwhile fix.

It's almost too bad these have gone out of style; they are actually pretty elegant in a Rube Goldberg kind of way. An electric motor hidden below the fender turns nylon gears that eventually mesh with a toothed nylon rope matching the gears. That rope extends all the way through the hollow antenna sections and mounts to the tip. As the motor turns the gears, the rigid rope is pushed or pulled and the mast advances or retracts, stopping based on either a digital counter or timer or on a measured spike in voltage when the motor can't turn anymore.

As you might imagine, there are several ways these antennas malfunction. The most prevalent is a bent mast?even slight tweaks to the tight-fitting telescoping tubes can cause havoc. The nylon bits are a problem, too; teeth from the gears or rope break off from wear or cold or the rope snaps along the length. Sometimes the antenna fails when the components just plain get dirty?rain and dust infiltrate the mechanism, and things grind to a halt. Below we're going to walk through the general steps of removing the whole assembly, taking it apart, then cleaning and replacing the problem parts.

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