Power antenna override - ideas?

[IronYuppy]

So this is kind of crazy. I installed a new head unit a month ago, and when I went to the car wash yesterday I discovered there's no way to turn the damned thing off. It can be "muted" but there is no actual off/on power switch. That means that as long as the ignition is on, the power antenna is always in the up position.

I almost neve listen to terrestrial radio but it's good to have the antenna when i do.

If I remember correctly, an 80 series LC I owned a few years ago had a power antenna switch. I looked through my parts bin and found a tailgate window up/down switch from a 2nd Gen 4Runner. That would be a slick solution enabling me to raise and lower the antenna whenever I want. I just have the switch, no pigtail.

I understand how to cut power to the antenna motor with a simple SPST switch, but how do I control the up/down motion when there is power going to the unit. I assume there's something in the wiring that reverses the polarity of the motor depending on the switch position. Electrics is not my forte, and that's putting it mildly.

Has anyone done this?

 

[octanejunkie]

I did it. I interrupted the antenna power wire at the stereo harness and put a toggle switch in the little compartment underneath the cigarette lighter.

With a Y adapter on both antenna cables I rarely ever put up the mass antenna anymore unless I'm in Faraway places, or not streaming music

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[2001 Limited 285K]

The switch I used to stop a Pioneer head unit from sending up the antenna every time it was powered on is this:

GSW-45 Rocker Switch - Scion OEM Style

Depending on how your stereo system is wired up, the switch install can be a little tricky. But it's nothing that's going to leave you stranded anywhere. You have to make sure that the switch isn't going to cut power to anything else off (subwoofer in my case) besides the antenna.

 

[phattyduck]

Check if your stereo has an "Antenna" wire to use instead of the "Amp" wire - then it should only go up with FM or AM operation.

-Charlie

 

[CLeeJ]

[MENTION=692803]IronYuppy[/MENTION], I ran into this exact same problem. I spent a lot of time contacting Sony support multiple times, and they did NOT seem to understand why you would need to drop the antenna... Crazy...

I did what [MENTION=95183]octanejunkie[/MENTION] did and wired a simple on/off switch to interrupt the power antenna wire coming out of the new head unit (I think it was the blue wire on my head unit). I bought a factory-like on/off switch from Amazon, and put it in one of the switch blanks on the left side of the steering wheel (near where the e-locker switch goes, if you have that...). I had hoped to actually find a factory sized switch with an antenna label on it, but no so such luck. It took some extra wire, but this on/off switch works perfectly. It does not allow you to adjust the antenna height, but it does allow you to put it all the way down or all the way up. I oriented the switch so you press the bottom keep the antenna down, and the top to raise...

Now, I leave my antenna DOWN almost all the time, unless I'm in an area where reception gets bad, and I simply raise it (like [MENTION=95183]octanejunkie[/MENTION], I used a Y connector to combine the power antenna and the rear glass antenna, and I can still pick up local radio stations fine with the power antenna down). I figure this is less wear and tear on the antenna mast/motor since it isn't going up and down every time I turn the ignition on...

I had seen other posts about replacing the power antenna with a whip that can be removed for the car wash or other, but I think modifying it with a simply of/off interrupt switch that looks factory is MUCH better!!!

Someone really should make a switch (labeled antenna) and wire kit specifically for this! Maybe there is, but I couldn't find it!

 

[phattyduck]

I must just be lucky that the (admittedly few) stereos I have installed have had a correctly operating antenna wire. Needed on both the Alltrac and 4Runner. (yes, the 33 year old power antenna still works on my Alltrac). The 4Runner is on its 2nd or 3rd these days...

-Charlie

 

[IronYuppy]

[MENTION=692803]IronYuppy[/MENTION], I ran into this exact same problem. I spent a lot of time contacting Sony support multiple times, and they did NOT seem to understand why you would need to drop the antenna... Crazy......

Yeah, mine is a Sony, too. You would think at some point during the design phase someone would have considered power antennas. Or an actual on/off button. The remote even says "off" but it's actually just a mute setting. At least they could have programmed it so the antenna only extended when listening to the radio - not other sources. I can't imagine many people buying a head unit like this and mostly listening to local radio.

Anyway...

I guess my question s more about how the actual antenna motor works. Like, is there constant 12v going to it whenever the head unit is powered, and the range of antenna motion is governed internally in the antenna motor unit? Or is it a case of an "up signal" and a "down signal" being sent from the head unit?

What I'm picturing is a scenario where pressing "up" on the repurposed window switch raises the antenna, and pressing "down" cuts the power to the antenna motor. Releasing the switch from either position simply keeps the antenna in whatever position it's in. Is that right?

So basically it would be pressing "up" sends voltage to the motor and pressing "down" simulates no power from the head unit.

I'm sure this is extremely simple and obvious, but I can't wrap my head around it and I want to have at least the fundamentals before I start puling the console apart.

 

[Twisted Sid]

12v applied and it goes up.
12v removed and it goes down.
All you need is a simple on/off switch in-line with the blue or blue with white stripe wire (depending on your head unit)

 

[IronYuppy]

12v applied and it goes up.
12v removed and it goes down.
All you need is a simple on/off switch in-line with the blue or blue with white stripe wire (depending on your head unit)

Ah-HA!

So will this work with the repurposed switch? Looks like it will. (skip to the switch schematics)

AGCO Automotive Repair Service - Baton Rouge, LA - Detailed Auto Topics - Diagnosing Power Window Problems

Of course these are momentary switches. Is there any danger of over-extending the antenna mast, or is there some kind of physical limiter in the mechanism?

 

[Twisted Sid]

If it's a momentary switch, it won't. The antenna needs a constant 12v to stay up. As soon as the 12v is taken away, the antenna will go down

 

[phattyduck]

Of course these are momentary switches. Is there any danger of over-extending the antenna mast, or is there some kind of physical limiter in the mechanism?

The antenna controls its own position internally. As has been said many times, 12V = mast stays up; no 12V = mast goes down. It has a separate full-time power wire to actually power the motor - the wire from the head unit is only a signal whether it should be up or down. You need a latching SPST or SPDT switch.

-Charlie

 

[CLeeJ]

I used this switch: Amazon.com: Scion OEM Style Rocker Switch (Used for: Scion tC xB xA, Toyota 4Runner FJ Cruiser Celica Matrix Tacoma Tundra Landcruiser, Nissan Frontier, Lexus IS300 SC300 SC400) - Without Light - On/Off : Automotive

I needed some extra wire to connect everything, but it fit perfectly in one of the blanks on the dash to the left of the steering wheel. I just put it in inline with the antenna wire from the head unit and the antenna wire for the car. It looks factory and works well (I just wish the switch had a label).

The switch simply allows you to break (remove) the 12 volts going to the power antenna, and the antenna stays down. Flip the switch as needed, and it goes up (as long as the key is on...)...

I have another aftermarket head unit, and when you switch the HU to a source other than the radio (i.e. streaming input, CD/DVD, etc.), the antenna goes down... BUT NOT ON MY SONY.

 

[St Runner]

I use the ECT button on my 97. Didn't need it after swapping in the 5 speed but there is another blank there where you can put in another switch. I actually never use the radio (all my music is in my phone) but since it still worked I figured I would keep the function but keep the antenna down

 

[octanejunkie]

I use the ECT button on my 97. Didn't need it after swapping in the 5 speed but there is another blank there where you can put in another switch. I actually never use the radio (all my music is in my phone) but since it still worked I figured I would keep the function but keep the antenna down

You could 3D print a button with ANT cut out and lighted. That would be sicc

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[Jarnigan]

I was going to come here and say to just remove it but you made the point of listening to the old FM stations here and there. My 97’ limited had the power antenna at some point but it’s been removed entirely by a previous owner so I just capped the hole with a plug.

Good luck! I’d just turn that hole into a ham radio antenna holder [emoji56]

Good luck!


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[phattyduck]

I use the ECT button on my 97. Didn't need it after swapping in the 5 speed but there is another blank there where you can put in another switch. I actually never use the radio (all my music is in my phone) but since it still worked I figured I would keep the function but keep the antenna down

Nice. I use the center diff lock button on my Alltrac to control the engine fans... (the AT had a "center diff auto" button that isn't used with the MT)

-Charlie