Ideas for a shorter antenna?

Grape Ape said:
I just bought the Mangowalk 5.5" and the antenna from Auto Zone and used the screw from that. $15 mod total and 2 minute install.
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Same here... Just put it on yesterday and noticed no change in reception quality here in San Diego.

Easiest mod ever and much needed after banging it 20 times a day at my works parking garage.
 

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Now that I've had the Craven Speed for a while...

It definitely affects reception, even AM. Going under an overpass I can notice the drop in signal in AM while FM seems to be just fine. This is less than two miles from the AM station transmitter! How much do I care? Nada. I listen to AM for traffic reports, FM for sports, and for traveling I stream my iPhone via Bluetooth. I do keep the stock antenna in the little tray behind the sliding rear deck, just in case I might feel the need for better reception in the boondocks.
 
Jeeze, this thread is still around!

When I first got my 4runner, I just took a pair of wire cutters and cut my OEM antenna down so it will fit in my garage. Barely noticeable in terms of looks and I never listen to the radio so I could care less if it impacts reception (doesn't seem to, but I've maybe listened to FM a cumulative 5 minutes the entire time I've had the car).

I think I will upgrade to that speed stubby, though.
 
Just figured out the stock antenna can be stored in the little "hidden" storage box behind the second seat. I'm keeping it around for the times I'm in the boonies and need added reception.
 
I had the same problem, the antenna touch the garage door, so what i did is I bent the it backward parallel with the windshield and that take care of the problem.
 
I must advise you... avoid the cheap ones. I bought a cheap antenna from Walmart and I ended up paying 300 bucks to get rid of it. What happened is that the antenna got rusty and it broke. The piece of the crew got stuck inside and I had to replace the whole mounting.
 
Miraculus said:
I must advise you... avoid the cheap ones. I bought a cheap antenna from Walmart and I ended up paying 300 bucks to get rid of it. What happened is that the antenna got rusty and it broke. The piece of the crew got stuck inside and I had to replace the whole mounting.
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Or just be sure to put some Dielectric Grease in there to prevent it from rusting if you do go the cheap route.
 
Am I an idiot? Removing stock antenna.

So I received my Craven antenna today. I tried to remove the stocker by hand and then with my multi tool with no luck. It's righty tighty; lefty loosy right? If so, I gave it a go and it felt like I was going take the base with the antenna. Do I just need to give it a bit more effort? Thanks for the help (and not making fun of me)!
 
BuckeyeGen5 said:
So I received my Craven antenna today. I tried to remove the stocker by hand and then with my multi tool with no luck. It's righty tighty; lefty loosy right? If so, I gave it a go and it felt like I was going take the base with the antenna. Do I just need to give it a bit more effort? Thanks for the help (and not making fun of me)!
Click to expand...

Yep ...righty tight(clockwise) ,lefty loosey!
It takes a 8mm wrench and mine was pretty tight too.
 
BuckeyeGen5 said:
So I received my Craven antenna today. I tried to remove the stocker by hand and then with my multi tool with no luck. It's righty tighty; lefty loosy right? If so, I gave it a go and it felt like I was going take the base with the antenna. Do I just need to give it a bit more effort? Thanks for the help (and not making fun of me)!
Click to expand...


Just drive into a low ceiling parking structure 2x a day for 2 weeks... that'll loosen that baby right up!

Worked for me!
 
Just got my antenna from Cravenspeed. 100% compatible right out of the box! Looks great too. Great product and fast shipping.

One thing that I was interested in seeing was that the antenna is actually made out of metal. I was expecting some sort of rubberized antenna like others I had seen. Interesting in a good way :-)
 
Ben_Mueller said:
Just got my antenna from Cravenspeed. 100% compatible right out of the box! Looks great too. Great product and fast shipping.

One thing that I was interested in seeing was that the antenna is actually made out of metal. I was expecting some sort of rubberized antenna like others I had seen. Interesting in a good way :-)
Click to expand...

The only concern would be that the antenna is so rigid that it doesn't "give" when it makes contact with anything, i.e., carwash brushes, accidental bumping, etc. I worry that it may damage the antenna base connected to the 4R.
 
Possible. Ran it through my normal carwash yesterday and it did just fine. It is pretty short so that should reduce the leverage and chance for breakage. If you went with a similar antenna that was longer it may be more of an issue.
 
I've had mine on my tundra for 2-3 years, go through the carwash all the time and never had any problems. My wife has had one on the 4R for 5 months and no problems at the carwash. I'm glad some guys tried out the cravenspeed antenna, so much easier than all the mods people were doing to other aftermarket antennas.
 
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