My car's antenna didn't fully extend when I first got it last January, and I had so-so radio reception. My mechanic did something to fix it some months ago, but recently I noticed the same problem again. Thanks to info on this forum, I was able to remove the antenna mast, clean the muck that prevented one section from sliding smoothly with WD-40, and replace it with minimal fuss. Treated it with it some white lithium spray grease for good measure. ($3.99 at Harbor Freight).

Only issue I had was getting the nylon cable teeth to catch the motor gear when reinstalling the mast. I knew you had to face the teeth into the curl of the cable, but I thought the motor unit was installed parallel to the side of the car, when in fact it is installed parallel to the rear. So I was trying to engage it sideways! Once I got my directions straight, the teeth still didn't catch. Until I remembered reading that the end of the cable should be tapered, and mine was not. I snipped off a bit of the cable on an angle and filed into a smooth chisel point. That did the trick. Now I have smooth antenna movement and good radio reception.

BTW, when I opened the right rear trunk panel to see how the antenna motor was situated, I noticed a pair of wires terminated in metal tubular connectors, one male, one female, unconnected. One wire was blue/red, the other was black. Both disappeared back into the antenna motor housing. I reconnected but don't notice anything different in the radio or antenna behavior. Any ideas what it could be?

Thanks,

Ian