Need some small assistance replacing two small things in my 94 Toyota Camry V6 SE

[mercurius420]

I heard about this site from a good friend of mine, and was hoping, to get a little assistance on these two repairs.

First, my antenna is supposed to rise up or down when turned on, sadly it doesn't anymore. I can hear the little motor in the trunk run like it should, and it sounds like it should, but nothing moves. I have removed the trunk liner to get to it, and from a visual standpoint, the gears look good, but I can't get it to function. What I was hoping for, was suggestions, maybe on how to easily remove the entire motor to get a good look at it, and ideas on the suggested means of replacing the entire motor/antenna if need be.

The second repair I was hoping to get addressed is the small change box inside. The latch on it broke, and now about a dollars worth of change comes flying out of it every time I hit a slight bump because its stuck, hanging open at all times. I looked at various manuals, and can't even find the correct name for it, let alone how I should go about replacing it.

Any and all suggestions are appreciated.

[ASG14]

#1: Just replace the antenna "mast". I'll make a quick DIY later tonight for ya if no one else gets to it.

#2: If you mean the change tray to the left of the steering wheel, I have both a spare one for a gray interior, and brown/tan interior I can do for $7 (+50 cents is by paypal) shipped to your door is you have one of those colors. Let me know.

[J708]

I faced both problems. For the antenna, knowing I hardly use the radio anymore. When I went to service my car, I asked the mechanic to disconnect the motor and stick it back in. Now I use the radio from time to time and no difference! Reception is still great.

For the change box. Mine has been hanging lose for over a year now. At first it was annoying. But now I learnt to ignore it even when I put change in it. Worse to worse comes try jamming a double sided tape on the edge of the box and close it. That might do.

[BlueFusion6851]

I just have my antenna in the up position disconnected from the power source... I'm going to do the S2000 conversion once I get some money though.

[Mike Gerber]

Pep Boys carries an aftermarket mast for your antenna for around $16. The dealer charges around $40-$45. There are instructions in the generation 3 manual stickied at the top of this forum to remove it, but it's really very simple. Remove the ring around the antenna mast taking care not to scratch the paint. A needle nose pliers will do it or a retaining ring (snap ring) pliers with the 2 tangs also works. Now go turn on the radio while someone stands at the rear of the car to catch the old mast, while noting which way the gearlike teeth are facing on the nylon strip at the bottom of the mast. Now feed in the new mast with the teeth facing the same way and turn off the radio. The new mast will be dragged down in to it's proper place by the unit. Now just reinstall the ring around the mast and you are done. Worst case scenario, if the old mast doesn't come up and out, you will have to remove the assembly and disassemble it to get the old mast out. I have done this once, but don't remember the exact procedure, however it is doable. If you have to do it this way, I would take a couple of digital pictures before dissably to help you reassemble it.

Mike

[95PimpingCamry]

^ I tried the PepBoys mast before and it was too cheap. The teeth on it did not stick out far enough and caused the gear to slip. I finally just put in a rubber mast antenna.

[bigbird]

the antena works almost if not just as well down as it does up in most cases. id do the S2K antenna conversion of just disable the mast motor and leave it down.

welcome to TN man and get some pics of that coupe up asap

[ghettosled]

Originally Posted by 95PimpingCamry

^ I tried the PepBoys mast before and it was too cheap. The teeth on it did not stick out far enough and caused the gear to slip. I finally just put in a rubber mast antenna.

my pep boys antenna has been on for about 6 months now and never had any problems. i think its real test will be when there is snow and ice on the car.

[Stillrunning]

As has been mentioned the reception, mast up or mast down, is the same. You can pull the mast up about half way and leave it if you want. I like everything to work so I bought the dealer replacement mast. My original mast had broken the nylon strip and left part of it in the motor works so I had to remove the motor and disassemble it, remove the old nylon then install the new one. I used the opportunity to clean out the old grease and put new stuff in it. Mike Gerber's suggestion to take pictures as you disassemble is a good one. Watch for tiny washers and their location as they get lost in the grease easily. For the most part it is easy to do. Be careful when winding in the new mast the motor really grabs the nylon and can catch your fingers.