Radio Reception

[carolsdavid]

I have lost my radio reception in my '00. If I put my hand on the antenna cable at the back window the stations come in fairly well. Any idea?
P.S. I cannot get the plug out of the silicone that seal the back window.

[shorod]

Is the connection at the window glass still good, or has the plug maybe pulled loose from the conductive material on the glass? Is there a cut in the conductive material near where the cable attaches?

If the connector is loose, there are conductive epoxies available on the market, but they are not cheap (~$20). However, they are certainly less expensive than a new window. For cuts in the traces on the glass, you can purchase conductive paint to repair the trace. This is the same conductive paint that would be used to repair rear window defroster grids. It's around $8-$12 for a small bottle.

-Rod

[carolsdavid]

The plug is embedded into the window sealant. I do not see any cuts or scrapes. I've owned it since '00 and this just happened overnight. The defroster works fine. There is another lug on the back window that I am curious about.

[shorod]

Did they change the rear window between 2000 and 2002 model year? I checked on my wife's 2002 (which is quite a bit different from my 2004 LS) and the radio antenna plug attachs well outside of the window sealant area. The connector housing is about an inch long, and there is about 1/2 inch of coax before it gets under the headliner.

Her back window has three connections, the one upper center left (driver's side in US) for the antenna, and one centered on each side for the rear window defroster. The defroster connections are underneath the trim panels.

-Rod

[carolsdavid]

Problem fixed!!!!!
Thank you for checking. I look at it again yesterday and used a screwdriver this time to dislodge the connector. I was unsure how it attached and afraid that I would cause further damage. After prying it out of the sealant I connected it to the prong on the window and everything is fine. The amazing thing: For 6 years it was never connected to the post and yet I had great reception, unitl recently.