Electric Antenna

A friend of mine's daughter has a 2001 4Runner on which the antenna won't go up or down.
He asked a shop about it, and they told him it needed a new motor. But you can still hear the motor running. I believe he just needs a new mast assembly. I have not seen the vehicle, but according to the mech he spoke to, the whole fender had to be removed to access the assembly.
I'd like to help him out, and said I'd look here for any advice before I commited to do this.
Any advice or experience would be appreciated.

I would go to the part's counter at the dealership and have them show me the exploded diagram showing the part's location.

The teeth on the plastic retractor are stripped or the retractor itself is broken. Get a new mast (google search or dealer) - replacement is easy. Unscrew the mut off the mast and pull up on the mast while someone turns on the radio. Once the antenna "engages" it will spit itself out. Compare the length of your old retractor with the one on the new mast. If they are the same length, insert the new retractor strip into the hole and have someone turn the radio off an it will pull itself in. Then replace the nut.

If the old retractor is shorter, you will have to take the existing motor apart to remove the broken portion of retractor. A google search should be able to locate a "how-to" for this procedure.

Hope this helps.
-Bill