Shaved antenna and Relocation
12-10-2012, 09:05 AM
#1
Shaved antenna and Relocation I bought my trans am with some body damage to rear quarter but got such a good deal I couldn't pass it up. The power antenna was malfunctioning and luckily the guy had the replacement antenna piece (the telescoping antenna and plastic linear gear) and I fixed it... now I hate the way the antenna looks on the car.
My plan is when I take it in for the body work, to shave the antenna hole and mount a universal window antenna to the rear hatch and plug in the wires since I still like to listen to the radio. I know guys have shaved their antennas, I was wondering if anyone has any insight on the "hidden" aftermarket antennas or if they did something different to keep radio reception? Any other opinions or a link to a thread (if this is already covered) are greatly appreciated!
Just to be clear, the window mount antenna would be on the inside of the rear hatch.
My plan is when I take it in for the body work, to shave the antenna hole and mount a universal window antenna to the rear hatch and plug in the wires since I still like to listen to the radio. I know guys have shaved their antennas, I was wondering if anyone has any insight on the "hidden" aftermarket antennas or if they did something different to keep radio reception? Any other opinions or a link to a thread (if this is already covered) are greatly appreciated!
Just to be clear, the window mount antenna would be on the inside of the rear hatch.
12-10-2012, 09:27 AM
#2
I am fully shaven and have the hidden antenna:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/general-m...haved-you.html
Antennas work best when they stick straight up in to the air. A hidden antenna can't do this, so reception will never be 100% of what the stock antenna is. In an urban area, the hidden antenna is perfect. You will just loose reception as you head out of the city sooner than you would with a stock antenna.
Mounting to the hatch won't work well... It's fiberglass and the torque on the mount will rip your hatch apart. If you look at how the stock antenna is mounted, its attached to metal at the top and the side of the fender. If you are going to move the mount, you'll need some kind of hidden metal structure to support the antenna.
My suggestion -> try the hidden antenna out for a while, unplug the stocker, and see how you like it. If you don't like it, you can sell the hidden antenna and plug the original back in. If you do like it, you can move on to that body work.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/general-m...haved-you.html
Antennas work best when they stick straight up in to the air. A hidden antenna can't do this, so reception will never be 100% of what the stock antenna is. In an urban area, the hidden antenna is perfect. You will just loose reception as you head out of the city sooner than you would with a stock antenna.
Mounting to the hatch won't work well... It's fiberglass and the torque on the mount will rip your hatch apart. If you look at how the stock antenna is mounted, its attached to metal at the top and the side of the fender. If you are going to move the mount, you'll need some kind of hidden metal structure to support the antenna.
My suggestion -> try the hidden antenna out for a while, unplug the stocker, and see how you like it. If you don't like it, you can sell the hidden antenna and plug the original back in. If you do like it, you can move on to that body work.
12-10-2012, 11:43 AM
#3
Exactly the info I was looking for thanks for shaving and showing pics after, the body looks way better clean and shaved 
I was familiar with the metal bracing but the aftermarket antenna I was looking at actually mounted to the glass not the fiberglass. Regardless, the process you and WhiteBird00 went seems way better, I'll definitely be giving it a try.
I was familiar with the metal bracing but the aftermarket antenna I was looking at actually mounted to the glass not the fiberglass. Regardless, the process you and WhiteBird00 went seems way better, I'll definitely be giving it a try.
