Anyone replaced their factory satellite radio antenna with an aftermarket antenna? (1 Viewer)

[lsumatt1514]

We bought my wife's 2014 Land Cruiser about six months ago (including the extended warranty) and ever since have noticed very frequent signal interruptions of the satellite radio (XM), often in wide open areas or roads with very, very slight tree cover on the sides (not severe tree cover at all). Her Sequoia that we traded (and my current 2008 Tundra Limited) had an aftermarket Sirius tuner/external antenna, integrated through the factory system with a Vais Technology module. We NEVER had a signal dropout (likewise with my Tundra)...we'd have to be in a parking garage to lose the signal.

I've been googling this issue and it seems to be a Toyota problem...all models regardless of price, car vs. truck, etc. in recent years are experiencing very, very poor satellite radio reception. I've also seen numerous threads on other forums where the dealers are refusing to do anything about the issue and state that the radio "is performing within specs." Some have even acknowledged the problem but will not do anything to resolve it. This is garbage considering how much it drops the signal. I haven't been able to get mine into our dealer yet, but I've taken 4-5 videos of it cutting out and sent it to the service manager.

Question for y'all is have any of you unplugged your stock satellite radio antenna, and installed an aftermarket Sirius/XM antenna...the small, black, magnetic base type antenna? Some folks on a Prius forum are reporting significant improvement and no drop outs by doing this. If you have, here are some additional questions...

1. Does the stock antenna plug directly into the radio, or into an external satellite radio tuner?
2. If it plugs into an external tuner, where is the tuner located?
3. If anyone has done this, could you list the parts that you used to make it work?
4. Could you also let us know where you routed the wires?

Here are the parts the Prius folks used to get the aftermarket antenna integrated...

Aftermarket Antenna Adapter
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...ue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=A3V6XSMQUGE1SN

Aftermarket Antenna
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009J6PYW/ref=crt_ewc_title_dp_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=AF8CJ05KGZIBN

Thanks for the help!

 

[Skiime]

I'm definitely following this topic. I have the same problem, and it drives me crazy. I've had satellite radio in my car since the 90's, and I've never had such bad reception as my 200. I had actually planned to take my truck in to the dealership in the next week or two to see if there's anything I can do...although, I'm not holding my breath. I heard about others using an aftermarket antenna, so I'll be curious to see what others say.

 

[lsumatt1514]

I am going to call Vais Tech today and see if they know if this adapter is compatible with the Land Cruiser. If it is, then this should work.

 

[LX prospect]

I have just re-noticed this problem over the weekend. When driving on basically any road with trees on the side, the XM cuts out. My Civic 10 years ago with the Sirius aftermarket was 100x better.

It's just disappointing, the details like this, that they get overlooked.

Hopefully we'll find a fix!

 

[lsumatt1514]

Any ideas on an inconspicuous mounting location for the new antenna? I was told by a local car audio store that the wire for the aftermarket antenna could not run where the "shark fin antenna" wire runs because removing it will compromise the water tight seal of this antenna. I'd like to put it on the roof somewhere, but I do not want to see the wire at all. Absolutely pathetic that we have to do this, but I may pull the trigger and order the parts this afternoon and see if this works. Hopefully they come in by Friday and I can get it put in on Saturday morning.

 

[lsumatt1514]

I spoke with the service manager at my dealership. I'm going to drop by at lunch tomorrow and have them do a software update on the head unit/Entune system and see if that does any good, before dropping $150+ on parts and labor to stick another antenna on the roof. I will keep y'all posted.

 

[LX prospect]

How can one tell their software version / if they need an update??

 

[lsumatt1514]

Not sure. If I find out tomorrow, I will let y'all know.

 

[codyaustin5]

I was told there is no software update they can do. It's all done via the Toyota entune app when they do updates.

 

[lsumatt1514]

I don't think that is right Cody. I have found several threads on various Toyota forums where they discussed updating the software on the head unit via the truck's (or car's) USB port. Here is one older example from 2014...

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/3...une-3-1-0-3-2-0-update-how-download-link.html

My service manager even mentioned updating it via USB today. Yes...the Entune apps have to be updated on the head unit via your smart phone (I did that myself tonight), but that is totally independent of the software in the head unit and the issues the software updates are addressing (such as the Bluetooth problems in the newer Tundras). It won't hurt to swing by there after lunch and let them check it out. May be a waste of time, but at least I will have tried it before shelling out $150 for another antenna and the labor to put it in (I don't have time to do it anymore unfortunately...).

 

[lsumatt1514]

There is also a TSB out there on updating the head unit software. It is saved on my work computer at the office. I will post the link to it tomorrow.

 

[codyaustin5]

Just an example then of the dealer not really knowing. Only thing they knew about was the map update which is not what I was looking for. I've seen in other forums USB updates but never been able to figure it out on the LC.

 

[lsumatt1514]

My software was up to date. I didn't get to see what version it was, but it took them less than five minutes to check it. Service manager asked me to hold up on ordering the adapter and antenna. He is going to check with a regional rep and see if anything is in the works to fix this issue. I did get to show him 4-5 videos that I have taken with my iPhone and he really didn't act surprised at all. After talking with him yesterday and today, it is very apparent that he is aware that this is an issue with several model Toyotas but also made a statement something to the affect of “Toyota isn’t going to own up to the fact that they have a design problem very often.” Stay tuned...

 

[TestLap]

Its a problem with the way the XM satellites work, Sirius has much better, consistent signal.

Not sure if you'd be able to integrate an aftermarket antenna somewhere though.

 

[lsumatt1514]

I am so aggravated with this. There is absolutely no reason for us to have to invest the time and money to experiment with an aftermarket sat radio antenna on a truck that costs this much. I'm going to stay on top of my service manager and see what I can find out...

 

[PePaw]

We bought my wife's 2014 Land Cruiser about six months ago (including the extended warranty) and ever since have noticed very frequent signal interruptions of the satellite radio (XM), often in wide open areas or roads with very, very slight tree cover on the sides (not severe tree cover at all). Her Sequoia that we traded (and my current 2008 Tundra Limited) had an aftermarket Sirius tuner/external antenna, integrated through the factory system with a Vais Technology module. We NEVER had a signal dropout (likewise with my Tundra)...we'd have to be in a parking garage to lose the signal.

I've been googling this issue and it seems to be a Toyota problem...all models regardless of price, car vs. truck, etc. in recent years are experiencing very, very poor satellite radio reception. I've also seen numerous threads on other forums where the dealers are refusing to do anything about the issue and state that the radio "is performing within specs." Some have even acknowledged the problem but will not do anything to resolve it. This is garbage considering how much it drops the signal. I haven't been able to get mine into our dealer yet, but I've taken 4-5 videos of it cutting out and sent it to the service manager.

Question for y'all is have any of you unplugged your stock satellite radio antenna, and installed an aftermarket Sirius/XM antenna...the small, black, magnetic base type antenna? Some folks on a Prius forum are reporting significant improvement and no drop outs by doing this. If you have, here are some additional questions...

1. Does the stock antenna plug directly into the radio, or into an external satellite radio tuner?
2. If it plugs into an external tuner, where is the tuner located?
3. If anyone has done this, could you list the parts that you used to make it work?
4. Could you also let us know where you routed the wires?

Here are the parts the Prius folks used to get the aftermarket antenna integrated...

Aftermarket Antenna Adapter
Amazon.com: FRA3M Antenna Adapter: Automotive

Aftermarket Antenna
Amazon.com: Terk by Audiovox XMICRO2 XM Mini Roof Mount Antenna: Electronics

Thanks for the help!

 

[PePaw]

I have replaced the radio with an o.e. that has xm/hd and added the antennae and adaptor you posted. I get "check antennae" when in xm mode. Any ideas? This is on a 2014 Prius Two.

 

[ohsix]

I found this thread and one other in a forum search. Did anyone ever figure out how to make the satellite radio work well on the 200 cruiser?

Reception on my wife's 2014 LX570 has always been poor. My 2017 LC isn't much better. I live in a flat, treeless area. I've had satellite radio since 2004 in many vehicles and never exprienced signal problems until I bought the LX570. The BMW I traded for my Land Cruiser had a similar antenna and had great reception.

 

[PePaw]

I have replaced the radio with an o.e. that has xm/hd and added the antennae and adaptor you posted. I get "check antennae" when in xm mode. Any ideas? This is on a 2014 Prius Two.

Here's an update. I discovered that the XM antennae adapter that plugs into the back of the o.e. unit is gray and will only plug into that slot. The actual plug in should be in the "blue" slot (upper right hand if looking at the back of the unit. To make that work I had to trim off a piece. Worked like a charm!

 

[Slickspawn]

I moved my rear-most roof rack cross rail forward about 8 inches... Helped a lot.