Terk XM Stealth Installation!

thoots · 02-17-2007, 12:34 AM

OK, folks, let's play "find the XM antenna!"

I took my 2007 XLE to my favorite car stereo place (NOT my Toyota dealer!!), and had them install the Terk XM system. I asked them to install the antenna "just like Toyota recommends, on the rear parcel shelf next to the center brake light, on a metal grounding plate."

And this is what I found when I checked out their installation:

Can you find it??

No, it's NOT that little black thingy kind of "in the crosshairs" behind (or in front of, take your pick) the center stop light -- that's the "grab tag" for the XLE retractable sunshade. You can see the two hooks for the thing raised up aways away on each side of it.

C'mon, are you blind??

Oh, it's back there, all right. And, it works really quite well -- far, FAR better than I ever expected. I had XM in the 2004 Honda Accord EX-L I traded for the Camry, with the antenna inside the little bubble blister on the rear of the roof. If the reception is any worse with the antenna inside the car, it is only by the teensiest of margins, at least so far in my experience. And we darn near don't have any terrestrial repeaters in our whole STATE, and certainly not within an hour's drive of where I live. So, I'm talking about total "from the satellite" reception. And I'm pretty darn happy so far.

Oh, do you give up looking for the antenna??

Hmmm. "Metal plate." Keep on thinking "metal plate." The thing has to be MOUNTED ON METAL. Hmmm. So, what's UNDER that plastic parcel shelf?? One big hunk of METAL. You bet! The antenna is back there -- mounted on the metal shelf BELOW that plastic parcel shelf covering. Absolute, total satellite antenna stealth installation!!

I couldn't be happier!

I tell you, I looked around for about 10 minutes before I figured out that they must have done it that way -- they sure didn't mention it to me at all when I picked the car up.

I called my installer guy back, and started out accusing him of "hey, I think you guys ripped me off!"

I can't see an antenna ANYWHERE!!

Hehehehe. Of course, it wouldn't have worked at all without one. He stammered a little bit, but then I broke out with stuff like "That's outrageously cool!!"

Indeed, I'm just really really happy that I've got XM and I've got no outward evidence of it. Stealth rules!!

It's been a long day, so I'll leave it there for now, but if you've got any questions about the Terk setup, I'll be glad to let you know what I've learned about it!

***wireless*** · 02-17-2007, 07:37 AM

There are some terrestrial repeaters in Portland, but that is about it for Oregon...the area didn't really need them.

Can you post a picture of your antenna in it's location? I am curious excatly where they put it. My reception is average (could be better) on the rear deck with a tiny piece of metal underneath it.

Sgt Tip · 02-17-2007, 07:59 AM

I also hand XM installed (07 SE V6) at a private shop only the owner wanted to use the factory kit to protect the warranty. It was purchased on line at a greater discount than the dealer wanted.He also put it under the rear package tray for the clean look. It works great and a lot cheaper than the $800. that the dealer wanted. Just remember when you listen to 150 the comedy channel people look at you funny when you sit at a light laughing like a nut. Sgt Tip

thoots · 02-17-2007, 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wireless

There are some terrestrial repeaters in Portland, but that is about it for Oregon...the area didn't really need them.

Exactly. Outside of Portland, there just aren't any repeaters anywhere else in the whole state!

Quote:

Originally Posted by wireless

Can you post a picture of your antenna in it's location? I am curious excatly where they put it. My reception is average (could be better) on the rear deck with a tiny piece of metal underneath it.

I really don't know where the darn thing is, myself -- you certainly can't see anything from inside the car, nor can you see anything looking up at things from inside the trunk. I expect that it's still somewhere right around the center brake light, though -- it's got to be as far to the rear as possible to get decent reception, I would think. I'm reluctant to do anything like pulling the shelf cover to see what's going on, but I'll do a closer inspection from inside the trunk to see if I can find any evidence of its installation!

To characterize the reception, though, I can directly compare it to my memory of the Honda Accord reception, with its antenna up on the roof of the car in its blister bubble. And, with the limited driving around town and up and down the freeway, it has essentially worked just fine. There is nothlng like "worse reception" while going under overpasses -- in fact, my recollection is that the Accord tended to lose signal under some that the Camry (so far) kept on receiving signal under.

I've got to spend more time with it to say much of anything more than that, though -- so far, it has just "worked as it should," which to me is just GREAT considering that it's installed inside the car. I'll certainly report back later with whatever news I come up with!

thoots · 02-17-2007, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sgt Tip

I also hand XM installed (07 SE V6) at a private shop only the owner wanted to use the factory kit to protect the warranty. It was purchased on line at a greater discount than the dealer wanted.He also put it under the rear package tray for the clean look. It works great and a lot cheaper than the $800. that the dealer wanted. Just remember when you listen to 150 the comedy channel people look at you funny when you sit at a light laughing like a nut. Sgt Tip

Yep, I hear you about sitting there laughing like some whacko!

My shop charged me $425 for everything, which included a rather whopping $250 for the Terk unit. I suppose I could have gone online and bought the thing myself for less than half of that -- the store at xmfan.com has it going for $99 lately. But, I respect my store and I know "they have their suppliers," so I really don't quibble on price with them. In fact, when it comes to installations, I always tell them to "take their time, go the extra mile to make it nice and rattle-free, and charge me more for doing more work!" The installation went for $175, which they described as being a bit more than usual, due to all of the disassembly and reassembly of the rear of the interior in order to get that under-the-shelf-cover antenna installation done. Well-spent dough, as far as I'm concerned! Ultimately, it certainly is cheaper than a dealer installation with the OEM kit, and I'm sure the job done was miles better than whatever the axe murderers at the dealer would have done!

***wireless*** · 02-17-2007, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thoots

... There is nothlng like "worse reception" while going under overpasses -- in fact, my recollection is that the Accord tended to lose signal under some that the Camry (so far) kept on receiving signal under....

That would more than likely be a function on larger forward sampling of the reciever than reception, since the signal profile from the Satellite and it's line of sight propagation wouldn't change under an overpass.

I'll have to check my old site list and see where the repeaters are in Portland. I can't recall, but I think there were 5-7 total.

thoots · 02-17-2007, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wireless

That would more than likely be a function on larger forward sampling of the reciever than reception, since the signal profile from the Satellite and it's line of sight propagation wouldn't change under an overpass.

Yep, given how it's better than I recalled from about a year ago, your description sounds correct, and perhaps they've made an improvement in that regard.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wireless

I'll have to check my old site list and see where the repeaters are in Portland. I can't recall, but I think there were 5-7 total.

Yeah, I haven't looked in at least a year or so -- last I recalled, there was ONE repeater in the Portland area, the only one in the entire state of Oregon.

***wireless*** · 02-17-2007, 12:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thoots

Yeah, I haven't looked in at least a year or so -- last I recalled, there was ONE repeater in the Portland area, the only one in the entire state of Oregon.

I need to check my old PC files. I was the Program Manager for the deployment of that network from 2000-2002 (design to launch and a bit after).

thoots · 02-17-2007, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wireless

I need to check my old PC files. I was the Program Manager for the deployment of that network from 2000-2002 (design to launch and a bit after).

Cool!

I found this interactive google map:

http://www.whatsonmyxm.com/gmaps/repeaters.php

There are quite a few more repearters around the Portland area than when last I looked, though I'm still well south of all of that stuff, unless I head up to that area. I can't comprehend what the power of each of those represents in real terms, but you can click on each "icon," and see the technical details, including power. And some are a lot more powerful than others!

***wireless*** · 02-17-2007, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thoots

Cool!

I found this interactive google map:

http://www.whatsonmyxm.com/gmaps/repeaters.php

There are quite a few more repearters around the Portland area than when last I looked, though I'm still well south of all of that stuff, unless I head up to that area. I can't comprehend what the power of each of those represents in real terms, but you can click on each "icon," and see the technical details, including power. And some are a lot more powerful than others!

The site info is correct on the handful of DC metro area sites I randomly checked, but the ERP (effective radiated power) is way off.

BTW: The antenna's are Til-Tek and the "-H" is a high power site which is a klystron 1KW power amplifiers. The standard low power sites are 100 watts.

FlopShot · 03-03-2008, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thoots

To characterize the reception, though, I can directly compare it to my memory of the Honda Accord reception, with its antenna up on the roof of the car in its blister bubble. And, with the limited driving around town and up and down the freeway, it has essentially worked just fine. There is nothlng like "worse reception" while going under overpasses -- in fact, my recollection is that the Accord tended to lose signal under some that the Camry (so far) kept on receiving signal under.

OK, so I was prepping the rear seat this weekend for a subwoofer installation and since I had everything taken apart, I decided to try this stealth XM antenna installation. I've had my Terk antenna sitting on top of the rear deck for a year and have been extremely happy with the reception, but I would love to hide it if possible. In the old position, I get perfect reception on my 1hr commute to work, except for three half-second drops within a 1/4mile as I pass thru a very thick forest. But in the stealth position, the reception was horrible. I could hardly bear to even listen to XM during my commute because it was so bad, as there was more silence and static than I did actual XM broadcasting. I immediately moved the antenna back to the original position.

Just wanted to post my experience in case anyone else is thinking of doing this.

***Yazovets*** · 03-03-2008, 05:53 PM

Nice install. But just wait until you slap on some metallic-based tint on your rear window. Your reception will go down the drain.

smeg · 03-03-2008, 06:09 PM

Very timely day for this thread to resurface! It was one of the only Terk / XM install threads I haven't read this last week.

Yesterday I ripped my dash apart and installed the Terk / XM receivers, which I got from XMFANSTORE for $99 (after a $50 rebate!). Everything installed fine, except the antenna.

My old Delphi receiver antenna was sitting on my trunk lid, which is already scratched from it, so I really wanted to stealth install my new antenna. Except I can't find any good information on how to get into a location to do this. Mounting it upside down in the trunk was terrible, and I couldn't figure out how to lift the rear parcel shelf up in my SE to install it under that.

So it's back on the outside of the trunk for now.

Does anyone have any details, pictures if possible as I'm not a professional, or even experienced installer, of how to get the XM antenna under the plastic shelf?

***JSM1284*** · 03-03-2008, 06:22 PM

Someone pay for my XM subscription....... It worked for the first 50 miles of picking up my new Lexus with XM, But then i guess they realized I was listening and shut it off......

Wow, A year old thread......

thoots · 03-03-2008, 11:11 PM

All I can say are two things:

1. My "stealth" antenna provided fine reception. Really no different from the reception I got with the Honda and its antenna on the roof.

2. I really, really don't know where my shop installed the antenna, except that it was under the plastic shelf somewhere. I certainly expect that it was ON TOP of the metal plate below the plastic shelf -- putting it below the shelf would be like putting it under the roof of the car. And, I expect that it was placed as far towards the back of the car as they could fit it, to get as much clearance from the roof as possible.