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For those who have sirius w/ or w/o the shark fin

Discussion in '8G Lancer - Customization' started by Dotter, Jul 21, 2008.

  1. Dotter

    Dotter Active Member

    Is it me or does the reception from the antenna for the sirius on the new lancers suck a$$. When I had my galant I had an after market sirius HU in it and the reception with it was outstanding and barely cut out. With the Lancer the reception is just horrible and it cuts out all the time.

    Now on another topic, the shark fin. I purchased one a few months back and just got around to installing it and it has left me baffeled. Like I was saying above about the reception of the sirius being horrible. After installing the fin I noticed a very noticible difference in the reception and it being alot better. I tested that theory on 3 major spots that my radio always cut out on. Now with the fin installed it, if at all, cuts out very very little.

    How is it possible to get better reception with something covering an antenna then when its out in the open.
     
    Dotter, Jul 21, 2008
    #1
  2. TheDude

    TheDude Well-Known Member

    I honestly have no idea. However, i have never had a problem with my Siruis (even though its already expired). Never cut out at all.
     
    TheDude, Jul 21, 2008
    #2
  3. nickbutterz

    nickbutterz Well-Known Member

    so there was no problem with the fin fitting over the sirus stub, because i heard that there were problems
     
    nickbutterz, Jul 21, 2008
    #3
  4. TheDude

    TheDude Well-Known Member

    Well i dont have shark fin, yet, but some people i think had problems. try doinjg a search.
     
    TheDude, Jul 21, 2008
    #4
  5. Dotter

    Dotter Active Member

    Its a tight fit, but if you position it just right (with a little room to spare) it fits good. If you slide teh rear of the fin all the way up against the base of the antenna on the car it fits almost perfect with the contour of the roof
     
    Dotter, Jul 21, 2008
    #5
  6. HudsonFalcon

    HudsonFalcon Well-Known Member

    Good to know because I too heard there was fitment issues with the shark fin and the Sirius antenna, I guess I'll have to give it a try now. I've noticed the cut-out issues with the satellite radio as well but I drive through alot of mountains and valleys so I figured it was just par for the course.
     
    HudsonFalcon, Jul 21, 2008
    #6
  7. Dotter

    Dotter Active Member

    I believe they came out with anew one for the lancers with the sirius, I got mine throught sharkfinantenna.com
     
    Dotter, Jul 21, 2008
    #7
  8. freakingwilly

    freakingwilly Member

    Very true, but according to Visual Garage's instructions, the fin shouldn't be touching any part of the stock antenna.

    This is the main reason why my fin is crooked :(
     
    freakingwilly, Jul 23, 2008
    #8
  9. scottyBboy

    scottyBboy Member

    Yea my reception drops all the time too... I didn't think that driving under a tree would cause the signal to drop, but it does even though my GPS signal is strong as a bull.

    As for the sharkfin fitment I had absolutely no clearance issues and if you read read the instructions with the fin when you install it it tells you hold it down for at least a minute (I think is the time) to make sure the adheasive tape bonds correctly and the tape is strong enough and the fin is flexible enough that it pulls it down and holds it in place with no gaps.

    So as long as you put enough pressure and hold it on during install you should have no issues, you don't have to be perfect, VG did a good job contouring it to the roof besides
     
    scottyBboy, Jul 31, 2008
    #9
  10. gator4life108

    gator4life108 Well-Known Member

    yes reception will drop out under any kind of obstruction.....i.e. bridges, trees, tunnels.

    A satellite signal is much different than a radio signal.
     
    gator4life108, Jul 31, 2008
    #10
  11. scottyBboy

    scottyBboy Member

    Yes I am aware, what I was saying is that the Sirius signal seems to have more deadspots than other satellite signals
     
    scottyBboy, Jul 31, 2008
    #11
  12. braindead

    braindead Active Member

    I just put on my shark fin on last week and my Sirius signal has not changed.
     
    braindead, Jul 31, 2008
    #12
  13. dsf3g

    dsf3g Well-Known Member

    I think I was the first guy on this forum to install the shark fin antenna, so I had a pretty early model. I have an ES with GPS and Sirius and I had no problem fitting the piece. The only potential issue was with the orientation of the metal contact ring that screws to the antenna base. If it was pointed in the wrong direction then the shark fin would not fit, but solving that problem was as easy as loosening the screw a bit and reorienting the contact ring.

    I've had this thing on for about 6 months now and the adhesive is holding up well. I did have a tiny bit of lifting initially, with a very slight gap in one place, but it hasn't grown since and is very slight. If I get around to it I might fill in the area with a toothpick and some sort of contact adhesive, but I'm in no hurry.

    As for my Sirius reception its fine. The shark fin antenna portion is actually just an FM antenna, so it shouldn't affect the Sirius at all. I guess it's possible that the old stalk antenna was somehow interfering with your Sirius reception, but I have a hard time imagining how that might be.
     
    dsf3g, Aug 1, 2008
    #13