Rev. Sam, It was 3 yrs ago. I remember I took the "Jaguar" unit out of my '98 XK8 to replace the shaft. The tooth part of the antenna broke off inside the the motor. I'm pretty sure it was the original but I may be wrong. I don't remember seeing any spices in the cable. Next time I go in to check my top fluid I'll look a little closer. About a year after that the motor went bad and I got a universal motor and antenna off the shelf and installed it. It was a straight forward switch. Jack

 

Took just a quick look at my antenna connector (with a mirror) and it doesn't look like anything Ive seen before.

Somebody who has this unusual connector ... how is it secured, just a press fit?

 

I live 30 miles south of the city of Jacksonville and nearly all transmitting antennas for the local Jacksonville stations are that 30 mile distance. Daytona is 70 miles south of where I live, and I don't pick up any Daytona stations until I go 12 miles south, and then pick them up weak, and this is about when I start getting some fade from the Jacksonville stations. Of note too, the area is FLAT here, unlike northwest and north central Florida. I hope that helps anwer the urban/rural question for you.

 

Mine is like yours Sam, that funny connector that has a male part protruding that is about the diameter of a small finishing nail, not the standard antenna connector expected. HOWEVER, when coupled, it appears standard. Only once I disconnected did I realize is was different. And now where does it appear that the cable had been cut and the ends replaced. Also, I beleive my power antenna is factory original.

 

OK, so I finally got around to uploading the video of what I did to get rid of the alien beacon. Rather than putting the antenna down on the bumper, I routed the cable up into the compartment where the convertible top folds. It was really very easy to get it up there. I initially tried tucking the antenna up behind the lip of the back seat, but the reception wasn't that good there. I ended up lowering it about an inch, so it's visible now, but only when the tonneau cover is off.

Sorry that the video is ten minutes long. I could have made it a three minute video, but I was too lazy to cut out the superfluous stuff. Just watch the first minute or two and the last minute or two. You'll get the idea.

How to eliminate the antenna on a Jaguar XK8 - YouTube

 

Oh yeah... total cost was about $10.

 

Excellent, as ever, Rev

I already did the antenna switch mod following your previous how-to video and would do this new mod in an instant IF you could find a way of eliminating the stock antenna physically so we can have a nice uncluttered rear wing without a hole in it.

 

That's possible and I've thought about it. It would require taking the car to a body shop, having the hole filled, an having the fender resprayed. Around here that would probably cost $600-$700.

 

Yes, it would require major surgery $$$

 

Based on this post, I ordered 2 x antennae from tune trapper, as I too am not keen on the masts sticking up from otherwise sleeek vehicles, and I had snapped off the antenna on my X300 in a car wash as well.
They arrived this week and today I fitted the first one in my antenna-less X300. It works perfectly, just hung with cable ties in the boot (trunk) below the parcel tray.
Installed in less than 30 minutes. No fuss, and excellent results.
Now to install in the XKR!
Very happy camper.
Phil

 

New Zealand? Wow! That's about as far as you can get from the factory. Are there many XK's over there?

 

Greetings Rev,
Xk's are becoming more common in New Zealand, as there is a huge trade bringing second hand cars to NZ from Japan, and the Japanese seem to have a reasonable number of XK's,X Types, S Types, and XJ's to get rid of.
However the one I bought was a 1 owner NZ new example.(P.O. also had an XJR...so an enthusiast I think!)
I would normally encounter 2 or 3 other XK's on the road somewhere in Auckland each week. Not overly common, but not uncommon either.
ps. I really appreciate your contributions to the forum, and I'm sure I will be making use of your videos at some stage, being a bit hands on with my cars as well.

 

Gah, forum ate my message. Anyway, long story short, there's a wire-in-tape antenna you can stick to the windshield. Worked pretty well for me on my old car.

 

Hi all, I have been trying to find out what the aerial connector in the boot is. This is the only thread I could find that touched upon the topic, although it was a few years ago. I originally thought it may be a RAKU II , however after buying an adaptor, it's not.

The reason I would like one is that I have found a in line FM transmitter which will connect to a Bluetooth receiver, which will allow me to use my phone (and MP3's) on the Cassette stereo (XKR 1998). The transmitter comes with rear of the stereo connecters, however I'd prefer to mount in the boot as I have a nice space above CD changer, and power is easy to find. I will cut off the car's connectors if I can't find an adapter, however thought I'd ask if anyone found out what the type of connector is before chopping away.

 

Want to do the same, did you find a solution for that antenna connector?

 

I have been considering replacing my antenna with a powered shark fin. The power input to the existing antenna extension would be used to power the new antenna.
So far, I have not discussed this with my local radio shop...Anybody consider this option ?
Stainless

 

TL;DR: Back of the radio is where it's at

I installed one of those FM transmitters a few weeks back [AudioVox]. The sound was better than expected, and as a bonus, you get all the radio settings to apply on top of the sound input.

I gave some thought to what you are thinking of, but ended up connecting the adapter on the back of the radio. Those are all "standard" connectors and was an easy fit. I put the box under the center console, without adding unnecessary wires. I figured the less connections, the better, as we are talking about weak signals meant to be from an antenna (pre-tuning, pre amplification).

Removing the radio is documented on this site and on YouTube. I happen to have the "chrome" trim, so it is even easier than with the plastic shifter surround plastic trim. Altogether, it is pretty easy. I tapped into the cigar lighter wire for power and ground as it is switched.

One more thing I did not really care for: When the adapter is powered on, and even if the outside antenna is plugged into the adapter, all the normal radio stations become weaker. The radio "scan" function finds only a handful of stations. So, you probably need to wire a power switch for the adapter. When the adapter is powered off, all the normal stations seem to be at normal signal strength. I wished there was a logic signal of some sort I could use to power a relay for the FM adapter power, something off of the Bluetooth adapter that would say "Bluetooth music is on now, turn the FM adapter power on". I hate fiddling with stuff when I am driving.

Best of luck, keep us posted.

 

Well I got tired of not listening to the radio, as I had disabled the ugly antenna by removing the fuse. I shopped around and read the forum to see what others had done. In one thread someone mentioned a Tune Trapper antenna http://www.tunetrapper.com and I checked them out. I liked the antenna, but wanted to get the adaptor to fit the existing plug. Well after searching high and low I was unable to find one for a XK8/XKR 1996-2006 anywhere. I ended up taking a chance on one that several suppliers thought might work. Unfortunately it did not fit, but I was able to make it work. After disconnecting the antenna wire at the plug by the antenna I cut off the adapter end that was to fit the car end and bared the center wire and braided wire so that I could place the center wire in center hole of the existing antenna wire and the braided wire around the male portion of the plug. I then taped the union together (you will find it easy to pull the antenna wire out where you can do this easily if you remove the cable tie). I then plugged the new hidden antenna lead into the adapter leaving the antenna lying in the trunk. I then went and turned on the radio, hoping both the antenna and my connection worked. They did and I had excellent reception and and tone quality. Just to check I disconnected the new connection and the sound was almost totally lost. I had purchased the center mount antenna with plans of just mounting it in the fender near the current antenna, but due to the curvature of the fender it did not fit (the antenna is not supposed to touch metal beyond the area of the mount). So I found the metal area between the trunk and convertible top storage area just below the trunk gasket was ideal. The mount fit just perfectly in the area, the antenna was out of the way when using the trunk and it was easy to run the antenna wire behind all the panels. I cleaned the area with paint thinner and roughed it with sandpaper to get to adhere well. Yes you do see the antenna when you open the trunk, but it looks nice, was easily installed, and is at the highest point on the car (for better reception) other than the windshield. While I was doing all this I found it was the perfect time to check and fill the battery.

 

Hi, I used the RAKUII connector into the male, and then chopped up a second to fit the female, in short it din't work, the power of the transmitter wasn't strong enough. Next I'll try at the back of the stereo with routing the on off switch up through the ashtray in the rear. I'll also place the blue tooth receiver there, although now I may as well use the jack socket provided. I'll let you know how I get on in a few weeks.

 

The easiest way would be disconnect the antenna in the trunk. Purchase a short American antenna extension and cut off the male end, then strip the wire with the female portion attached. Strip it so that you have the copper center wire exposed enough to go into the hole in the car plug. Remove the outer wire coating so that the wire braiding is exposed and is enough to put around the outer male portion of the plug, then carefully tape them together with a good quality electrical tape. I found this to work well and was able plug the hidden antenna I purchased (as noted in the post before yours).