Antenna replacement, Aftermarket?

RivieraRyan wrote:

My antenna stopped retracting so the dealer said to replace it. I was able to get a new motormotor, but am having a hard time locating the Mast. Any help finding OEM part# 19151301 is much appreciated.

Contact Ed Morad, moradpartscompany.com -- the mast interchanges across a number of GM cars and he's bout to have at least one, OR a removed-from-service aftermarket power antenna unit that will fit (they don't all fit right).

I had an aftermarket unit for a while, bought an OE pull from Morad. **Years** ago, it's still working. The hint: keep the shaft clean. That's it, mostly.

How do I clean it? I can hear the motor working when I cut the engine off and if I run around and push it down with my hand before the motor stopsstops, it goes down. Maybe if I clean it well I don't even need to replace it and I can return the new motor.

The problem is the plastic cord that moves the antenna gets crap on it and you can't really get it of. If you**keep** it clan from the get-go there never is enough dirt buildup to matter.

You keep it clean by wiping it off while it is extended. Wipe off the dirt, salt spray etc with a clean rag before the antenna retracts. You can lube it with a little DOT 5 silicone brake fluid, WD40 on a rag, or other light lubricant BUT you have to keep in clean because those lubes hod dirt too.

Did I say you have to keep it clean?

Albertj

My 95 radio comes on but no stations work. Radio never been taken out. Where is the fuse or relay to the antenna?

95riviboy93 wrote:

My 95 radio comes on but no stations work. Radio never been taken out. Where is the fuse or relay to the antenna?

What does "no stations work" mean: that you can tune the radio manually but you get no reception, or that the buttons don't map to stations when you use Auto Set or something else perhaps?

What you can do quickly is pull off the trunk liner by the antenna and check the wiring for disconnection or corrosion.

There are 4 fuse blocks. The maps and locations are listed in the owners manual, if you don't have an owners manual do a Google or Yahoo search to find one on line - several pdfs of the various year G body Riv's are on line in various places. GM has posted many of them, here is the '96 manual: https://my.gm.com/content/dam/gmownercenter/gmna/dynamic/manuals/1996/buick/riviera/1996_buick_riviera_owners.pdf - that said, you'll likely need the service manual or you will need to manually trace/test the circuits to figure out what fuse the power antenna goes to, because I do not think it is by itself in any of the fuse blocks. I think it is attached to one of the "always on" circuits such as is the cigarette lighter in the dash. It may help to know that when the car's "retained accessory power" goes off, the antenna's still on (it retracts). The passenger compartment power point (on the *side* of the console) is on an accessory circuit that is switched when the car is on/off.

If your antenna is an aftermarket replacement there may be an in-line fuse to it back with the antenna. If there was bodywork done to the car then the antenna may have been connected to a convenient circuit instead of the original one. In any event my guess is that you're looking for one or another fuse or breaker in one of the 2 underseat fuse blocks, but I admit I never had to figure that out.

98riv wrote:

If you scroll down towards the bottom at this link you can see what is inside of the antenna.  It isn't the exact one that came on our cars, but the inside looks the same http://www.grail-ss.com/PowerAntennaR&R.htm .  They are pretty simple inside.  I took mine apart last weekend and it had a bunch of old grease in it that I cleaned out.  The plastic mast cable broke in mine last winter.  I just ordered a replacement cable from http://antennamastsrus.com/GM/Buick/Riviera/Riviera%201995-1999.htm and plan on replacing it tomorrow.  It looks exactly like the one that came on the car, so hopefully it will work.

My problem is different than yours, but it wouldn't hurt to take it apart and see what it is doing.  You will have to drill out the rivets to get it to open.

If you remember 98, how well did this replacement work? It looks exactly like what I need. Thanks!

KenBluder wrote:

98riv wrote:

If you scroll down towards the bottom at this link you can see what is inside of the antenna.  It isn't the exact one that came on our cars, but the inside looks the same http://www.grail-ss.com/PowerAntennaR&R.htm .  They are pretty simple inside.  I took mine apart last weekend and it had a bunch of old grease in it that I cleaned out.  The plastic mast cable broke in mine last winter.  I just ordered a replacement cable from http://antennamastsrus.com/GM/Buick/Riviera/Riviera%201995-1999.htm and plan on replacing it tomorrow.  It looks exactly like the one that came on the car, so hopefully it will work.

My problem is different than yours, but it wouldn't hurt to take it apart and see what it is doing.  You will have to drill out the rivets to get it to open.

If you remember 98, how well did this replacement work? It looks exactly like what I need. Thanks!

The cable worked but I had trouble getting everything put back together in the right spot. If you don't get the gears and cable in the proper spot, the antenna mast won't retract fully or the motor will keep running after the mast has been retracted. I ended up buying a new antenna assembly as the motor on my old one was weak and I was tired of trying to get it adjusted for it to fully retract the mast.

Has anyone replaced their antenna with a shark fin replacement?
My OEM unit was damaged going through a car wash early in my ownership. Frankly, I didn't enjoy worrying about it happening to begin with, so good riddance.
Robotennis has a nice replacement suggestion and I like the idea of a hidden unit, but locating it across the windshield behind the mirror doesn't appeal to me.
I installed an unamplified hidden unit top-right in the headliner, but it preforms poorly. I'm ready to poke a hole in the roof and install a shark fin unit that I believe would look appropriate on the Rivi. When I paint the car, I'll have the fender hole filled.
The question is, will it improve the stock reception?
Any suggestions for a decent unit that could pull in every radio signal short of those anomolies from the heart of the universe