Antenna problems?

nadz · Post by **nadz** » 15 Apr 2011, 14:00

Hi, my antenna does not go down all the time, sometimes I have to manually push it a bit for it to go down. It also makes a strange grinding like noise when trying to go up or down. How could I fix this, would I have to get a new antenna?
Thanks.

Post by **BEJinFbk** » 15 Apr 2011, 14:36

Step one - Lube It.
Fold a paper towel around it while it's up.
Spray some lube on it and wipe thoroughly top to bottom.
Try to leave a good coat on it so it spreads around well when
it you run it up and down a few times and it "does it's thing".

Point that can into the segment ends when it's going down
to get some lube down inside the reast of the mast.

I'd start there and see how much it helps.
or not...
But that will usually solve basic problems.

Post by **kcodyjr** » 15 Apr 2011, 15:06

If that doesn't work, likely you've stripped the teeth.

There are two plastic parts, a normal gear and a straight toothed strip; if you're lucky, it's the straight piece that's stripped. That would come with a new mast, but you should open the assembly to find out before ordering. It's just as likely the round gear stripped, in which case, you'll need to replace the whole assembly.

Post by **jblackburn** » 15 Apr 2011, 15:34

Good news is a new mast is super cheap! I think mine was $20 when I ordered a few years ago.

Keeping it lubed up is a twice-yearly thing that you really should do but most people forget about. When mine starts making weird noises, I always say "hey, that's something I need to remember to do more often!" and then forget again.

nadz · Post by **nadz** » 15 Apr 2011, 16:13

Is there a writeup on how to replace the antenna mast? I can't seem to find one.

Post by **jblackburn** » 15 Apr 2011, 16:23

There's a nut at the top of the boot where it pops out of the trunk - loosen that, pull out the old mast. Take note of the direction the toothy strip faces. Now feed in the strip for the new one while you have someone else turn off the power for the radio to run the motor, and hopefully it will catch in a few tries and suck it right in.

Make sure there isn't anything missing from the end of the strip when you get the old mast out - then you will have to access the motor and pull part of the old toothy strip out like the end of this topic:
https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... =1&t=29818

Schmitty · Post by **Schmitty** » 15 Apr 2011, 23:59

My antennae has never gone down (is permanently in the up position). Will this cause any problems for any other part of the car? I don't give a hoot, let alone two hoots if the antennae goes up/down but am curious if it's malfunction will effect any other systems.

Post by **jblackburn** » 16 Apr 2011, 00:15

Won't hurt anything - I forgot about mine and went through a car wash and bent it in half