Thanks for the reply! It looks like I may be one of the first to see if the OEM Sirius sharkfin antenna works with an aftermarket Sirius antenna line. I guessed the specifications of my Sirius antenna wire might be different than the OEM specs, but I also figured that, since both receive/run Sirius satellite signals, this mod might actually work.

I'll let you know how it goes this weekend!

 

So far I stripped off both wires (my Eclipse Sirius antenna wire and the OEM antenna line). They both have the outer shielding, inner shielding and A middle conductor. The middle conductor on the Eclipse side is a SINGLE wire (thicker than those on the OEM side). I twisted them up really good and electrical taped them.

I didn't have enough of the outer braided shielding to reach across the gap so I just tested the Sirius signal without reconnecting the outer shielding. It didn't work, my head unit just threw an error saying "Antenna".

Anyway, does this mean it won't work or does it just mean I need to reconnect that outer shielding?

 

you must connect the braided shielding. it must be the return line for the signal. you will have to adjust your wire lengths to get the braided wires to reach. Try stripping off 4 inches of the outer plastic jacket and unbraid the lead. Bend the inner lead out of the way and see how much you need to bring them together for a good connection of the braided lead (about 1" worth). now cut your inner lead so they overlap about 1" for a good connection and snip off the rest.

 

Thanks man! I'll give it a shot today, and let you guys know how it turns out. As of right now, I have no more Sirius until this is resolved (one way or another)...

-B

 

Project failed. I spliced and re-spliced the OEM antenna and SIR-ECL1 antenna wires at least six times before I ran out of wire on the OEM antenna, which is now worthless. The closest I came was on one of the tries, instead of the HU displaying the generic "ANTENNA" error message, it actually showed no error at all and I could switch between all of the HU sources (AM/FM/DVD/MP3/SIRIUS, etc). But none of the buttons were controlling the Sirius tuner. Meaning, the Sirius interface was displaying on the AVN's LCD screen, but the buttons (Category, Title, Direct, etc.) did nothing when clicked. So the Sirius functions were basically non-functional. I also heard a very faint interference type of sound through the speakers. On my last attempt, the tuner was not even showing up on the menu as a selectable source anymore.

So, now I'm on to plan B. I've detached the thin "sealing" rubber base from the OEM Sirius antenna. This is the piece that sits against the painted roof of your car when installed, with the antenna and antenna cover sitting over top of it. The factory-painted OEM antenna cover (plastic shell) slips over that perfectly and looks exactly like the installed OEM antenna, even without the antenna actually in there. My next attempt will be to run the Eclipse SIR-ECL1 aftermarket RAT antenna up into that shell and then find a way to mount the shell (which will be somehow strongly adhered to the thin "sealing" rubber base from the OEM antenna) in the same OEM location. Basically I'm going to try putting the tiny aftermarket Eclipse/Sirius antenna inside of the OEM sharkfin antenna shell/cover.

I'll let you guys know how it goes.

 

Man, sorry it didn't work out for you. Did you still have the same # of wires on the antenna as the cable? Did you have a lot of the braided cables break off? Did you try reversing the leads? There's a slim chance you did everything right and they're just not compatible. I'd recommend you not modify the OE assembly because of the risk of leakage into your vehicle. If your connection at your tuner is the same as the OE tuner, i can try to splice in what is left inside the OE antenna. You'd just have to mail it to me.

 

Hey man,

Here's the info you requested. Thanks for following up. Maybe this will help a future G35'er attempting this type of DIY.

To answer your first question, no the Elcipse SIR-ECL1 Sirius tuner only had ONE inner cable lead vs. about 5-10 braided in the core of the OEM Sirius antenna wire. Yes the Sirius one was thicker but it was still a single strand of metal.

And yes, the reason why I went through the OEM Sirius antenna short cable so quickly - each time I'd try to strip the wire down the braided outer shielding cable kept ripping off.

Thanks for the offer man. I guess I might be able to give it another shot. Maybe I'll take a pic and send it to you so you can determine if it's even worth trying (might be beyond repair since I cut the wire down so far!)...

Thanks again...
B

 

Sure thing. You might be able to salvage it if you want to take apart the antenna assembly. I never opened it so don't know how much wire is left (if any) inside. You might be able to get on last splice if you keep it short. Unbraiding the wire can be a pain since they're so brittle. I took about 15 minutes doing one strand at a time with a scribe (a sharp pick) and only managed to break about 3 or 4 single strands. Shoot me a PM and I'll give you my work address if you want to email a picture.

 

Thanks for the offer again, man. I searched and it appears my GF has moved the antenna to the trash can (she's a bit OCD when it comes to things lying around) and it's now long gone. However, I did save the rubber antenna base. So my only option at this point (unless I want to buy another $115 antenna) if I'm going to continue down this path is:

1. Use a Scotch-Weld industrial adhesive to "permanently" affix the rubber seal base to the plastic OEM antenna cover so they become a single, mountable unit that can be attached directly to the roof while maintaining a good waterproof seal.

2. Drill a very small hole in the roof of the G, and pass the SIR-ECL1 antenna wire into the cabin.

3. Position the SIR-ECL1 small magnetic "rat" antenna on the roof near the hole.

4. Seal the !@$%& out of the hole on both sides with some hardcore silicone sealant. Allow it to fully cure.

5. Use the Scotch-Weld again to "permanently" affix the rubber base of the antenna cover to the roof of the car.

Some other notes on this:

I am looking at these 3M products for this application. I am going to call 3M and ask them directly for their advice on which product would best suit this application (e.g. rubber affixed to "plastic", and rubber affixed to painted metal, etc.):

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3...beMBXMDW0933gl

Also, I plan on temporarily placing the magnetic Sirius "rat" antenna on the roof and "staging" the OEM antenna cover over top of it for some test drives around the neighborhoood (e.g clear sky, moderate treeline, heavily wooded, etc.) to ensure it gets excellent reception in all scenarios before diving into this project. You guys have any comments on this plan?

 

Well, good luck on your new project. If you're going to be affixing the rubber sealing base, you might have to scuff up some paint for good adhesion. Either way, you're drilling into the roof to run an antenna cable so it's basically going to be a permanent fixture. But if your antenna goes out for some reason, it's going to be good-times getting the glued antenna off and likely going to do some paint damage.

My only suggestion is you tape or insulate the antenna lead that is going to sit against the hole that you drilled, so any vibrations/movement don't wear through the cable jacket.

Maybe you can do a DIY for non-OE antenna's, LOL.

 

hey, props on the thread...where did you get the fin cover?

 

all parts are from the dealer, hence the part #'s.

 

Sorry but what's the difference between the ones that you take off the 3M stickers, and this one where it's like, a HOLE inside your car?

 

The ones that just have 3M stickers are non-functional and just for looks. With this, you're bringing the stock look from the newer years ('07 and up) to your older model car with satellite radio. Up to '06, they just had the black plastic antennas so this incorporates the '07 antenna with shark fin cover for a cleaner look with better reception.

 

Well, I thought this was the coolest mod ever, but I was never able to get the OEM Sirius antenna mated up to the aftermarket Sirius antenna coax line coming out of my head unit. Well, I'm selling my car now, and moving into something German soon. Since I'm parting out my G, I've got two of the three parts you'll need to do this mod, brand new.

Feel free to PM me if anyone's interested in giving this a go, and you have an OB G - all you'd need next is the antenna:

Shark fin cover ($10.93 MSRP):
INF 28228-EH004 (Black Obsidian)

Nut ($6.23 MSRP):
INF 28219-ED000

I'll give both these up for $12 shipped, which saves you at least $5-$8 off retail with shipping.

LMK!
B