mx5cartalk.com

So I have an aftermarket kenwood headunit that the previous owner put in and the radio is unusable due to the amount of static on any station. The aerial goes up and down appropriately so that's fine.

I'm replacing it anyway and have bought a double DIN android headunit so that I can have google maps as otherwise I just get lost all the time, so wondering:

When I take the dash apart to do the install, is there anything specific I should be looking for that could be the cause, other than the kenwood headunit itself which is going in the bin either way?

Cheers, appreciate any suggestions

Step 1 would be to check the antenna is actually plugged into the back of the stereo, the up/down function is a single wire in the stereo loom, but the actual antenna itself is a big separate plug.

Other than that all I can think of is electrical interfere, which can be caused by a bad ground.

Check that the antenna cable is properly connected at the antenna end as well.

Also the antenna cable leading to the back of the head unit is often extremely short. It's common for it to not be able to reach a different plug location on a new head unit. You can buy very short extensions for a few dollars at most auto outlets.

Sweet I'll check those things when I rip it apart and report back.

Got the new headunit in and while installing it I absent midedly cut the antenna coaxial cable!

After re-terminating it and plugging everything in its now sounding crystal clear. So I figure most likely the old headunit was shagged but the antenna connection could have been the culprit as well.

You cut the antenna cable! That is the fattest wire of the lot.

It certainly wasn't my finest moment.
It was a short cable to begin with and then after stripping it back I was elbows deep in the dash fiddling about to reterminate it.