Piranha Posted July 29, 2003 Posted July 29, 2003 i have a 1995 ES300. my power antenna recently started making a grinding noise. then got stuck up. so i finally got it down. now it wont work. and everytime i turn the car on it grinds. should i just take it to a mechanic or can i fix it myself?
Piranha Posted July 29, 2003 Author Posted July 29, 2003 did a search. couldnt find anything that helps me. i kinda fixed it now. it goes up and down. but when it goes up. after its done extending the motor still runs for 10 seconds making a grinding noise. whats wrong?
SW03ES Posted July 29, 2003 Posted July 29, 2003 Well, a lot of times what happens to those antennas is as follows: 1: They get slightly bent. Once they're slightly bent, then they'll never work correctly again and the mast will have to be replaced. Not really a big deal and you can easily do it yourself. 2. They get corroded, and so clogged with junk that they no longer work. For some reason the Toyota antennas are more prone to this than others. I have a 97 Explorer Limited with a power antenna, and it still works perfect. I see all kinda of Toyotas and Lexus' though with stuck antennas. What you should try first is getting some WD-40, removing the dust cap on the antenna base (should screw or pop off) and spray the WD40 down into the antenna mast real good, then see what happens. If it stays stuck, you'll just have to replace it. Like I said though, not really a big deal. You sure you couldn't find anything in the search, lemme see if I can.
SW03ES Posted July 29, 2003 Posted July 29, 2003 Yeah here ya go, I searched for "antenna" http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...ighlite=antenna There's the link, there are some discussions about the issue. Also, if you check the ES300 FAQ the instructions for replacing the antenna are in there. Good luck!
SW03ES Posted July 29, 2003 Posted July 29, 2003 Here's the FAQ about the antenna: "the antenna if broken can be removed by holding the fm button on the radio down and turning the key to on, you will also have to remove the nut at the base of the ant by unscrewing it. it will pop the ant right out,just get a new one form lexus it is about $30 for just the mast, let the teeth on the plastic teeth face to the back of the car and insert once the key is turned off it will retract the new one in the amp is under the passanger seat"
Piranha Posted July 30, 2003 Author Posted July 30, 2003 thanks. for the search it helped. and the FM thing dont work. i gotta get a head cover gasket replaced so ill get the ant fixed then
Ronald Posted July 30, 2003 Posted July 30, 2003 Grinding sounds are bad news. My '93 made the grinding noises and I had to replace the antenna as the grinding noise eventually became dead silence. The mast at least was locked down, but when I turned on the radio, there was a whirring sound of the motor trying to raise the antenna. Of course, the mast could not be raised, so the whirring was bothersome, but the reception was still fairly decent. There were little plastic pieces in the antenna motor drive. The dealer charged me between$75-$105 for the antenna and about 1 h labor (Lex of Tucson). I don't know the price exactly as this was 2-3 years ago. I don't know if the Camry antenna is the same, but the Toyota part was much cheaper on the web.
breedy Posted July 30, 2003 Posted July 30, 2003 I just had to buy a new antenna for my '93 ES300. The Lexus dealer wanted $80, the Toyota dealer $56, I purchased it from Autozone for $27. I haven't changed it yet but I assume it will work. Also, on Ebay they are offering the antenna mast for 19.95 plus shipping. B)
chillaxin Posted July 30, 2003 Posted July 30, 2003 thank goodness the 03 es has an embedded antenna so that i don't have to worry about it jamming...
amf1932 Posted July 30, 2003 Posted July 30, 2003 The sensitivity of the embedded antennas are not as high as the staff type antennas. I noticed this right away in areas that were prone to multipath distortion. There is a fluttering sound as the signal goes up and down. This never happened with my '94ES. I like it better in one respect though.......it doesn't jam! P.S. There's nothing wrong with my radio! This happened with all the cars I drove with embedded antennas whether it was a Lexus or not.
Piranha Posted July 30, 2003 Author Posted July 30, 2003 my dads 98 ES has embedded. im a power antenna fan. i like them.
SW03ES Posted July 30, 2003 Posted July 30, 2003 Yeah the embedded antennas are nowhere near as powerful as the mast ones. Lexus is going to abandon them for low profile high powered units like on the LS430.
SKperformance Posted July 31, 2003 Posted July 31, 2003 the imbedded ones do add a nice clean look but with some metalic tints they are even worse for reception especially with remotes for alarm systems
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