tophatjimmy

iTrader: (1)

I had a power antenna from a Trans-Am in my old 1995 Camaro and loved the way it cleaned up the look of the car.

When I bought my 99 Camaro SS I started looking around for a power antenna to put on it. The local junkyard was a bust for Trans-Ams and antennas from the dealer or Ebay were outrageously priced.

By chance, I had a 1990 Olds Cutlass SL come in to my work with a power antenna that had a messed up mast. We replaced the antenna with an aftermarket one and I asked if I could keep to old one to mess around with since the motor was still good.
To my delight, with a tiny bit of bracket fabrication, it fits the SS perfectly. I bought a $27 replacement black mast off Ebay and now have a perfectly functional OEM power antenna.

I looked around on Ebay and OEM take out antennas for Oldsmobiles are going in the neighborhood of $40-$60. Much less than the Trans-Am antennas. Plus I'm sure most salvage yards are FULL of wrecked Oldsmobiles.

The antenna I got looks exactly like this one: (1990 -1991 Cutlass Supreme Power Antenna Antenna Motor w/ Mast)



Just thought I'd share.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

Do you have any pictures of the antenna on the car?

blade2222

Autozone has one for a 2002 firebird for $70.

tophatjimmy

iTrader: (1)

Yes, they carry the Metra brand aftermarket antenna, which from my years as a car audio installer, is a perfectly functional antenna. The downside is that they never really fit perfectly, they look pretty clunky on the fender and they only come in chrome.

I prefer the OEM look whenever possible, especially on my own vehicles. Since I got the antenna assembly for free and the new black mast was only $27, I think this turned out very nicely for about an hours worth of work.

Here are a couple of pics of how the Olds antenna turned out:

Mast down:



Mast up:


Tucked behind amp & changer:

blade2222

I have to admit that does look good.

wssix99

iTrader: (5)

It looks perfect stock. Were there any noticeable differences between the Olds antenna and the old part? Were the differences only bracketry?

tophatjimmy

iTrader: (1)

The antenna that came out of my SS was a non-power, fixed mast antenna, so I can't compare to that one.

From just a quick visual comparo of what this one looks like vs. the images of Trans-Am antennas I've seen online, it seems the only obvious difference is the mounting bracket, which is pretty easy to work around.

Dave M

That's an incredibly clean install you have there. It makes me jealous after the mess I've found in my new car.