help i killed the power antenna!

[jsmith]

installing my new alpine head unit i noticed that the antenna wasn't going up. i double checked the actuator connection, still nothing. i hooked up the darn becker again and now it's not working with the becker either! how do i even start to debug this?

[JCE]

A: Is your antenna switch in the down, center, or up position? Up works best for me.

B: Did the fuse get shorted? # C 16Amp on my 87 300E.

C: Does the Antenna need cleaning? Alcohol and White Lightning bicycle chain lub do wonders for a stuck antenna.

D: Does the rest of the radio work - display, cassette on the Becker, CD on the Alpine? If not, check fuse box #1 and #9 on my 87 300E.

E: The blue wire is the one you are using for the antenna power, isn't it?

Cheap fix starting points.

[jsmith]

hi John,

this thing kept me up all night. otherwise the new system sounds great. i don't want to pop the unit in the sleeve yet because i know it's gonna be a real PITA to get out again with two release tabs plus maybe the mb's black tabs to deal with.

1- antenna switch - huh?! i have no idea what/where that is.
2- fuse was first thing i checked also "C" in my car - ok
3- lube, no it doesn't even make a noise and it was working fine all this time

4-the BLUE CONNECTOR WAS SHEATHED IN BLACK! i totally missed it. i assumed that the turn on was common for the active bass and the antenna - NOT! the antenna has it's own circuit and needs to be grounded.

[jsmith]

BTW, how the heck do you get those blasted screws back into the ashtray? I had buttoned everything up as the seats were off, the trunk liner was out and it had taken me a half hour to get everything back in place. Then I remembered the ashtray and went back to do that. Thirty minutes later I still couldn't didn't get it back in. Do I have to tilt up the shifter console? Are there any tricks to this?

[JCE]

The ash tray was easiest to replace, for me anyway, with the console wood removed. A magnetic tip screw driver was needed to get the ash tray screws back in place. Lots of TLC was needed to make sure it went back in without shorting the cigarette lighter wires, as that pops miscellaneous fuses in the car!

[jsmith]

I did as you said John and that was it! I also discovered why I have that hairline crack in the shifter panel. The fader is hard to snap back in place!

If you want I can send the full details of how I did it and how to wire into the aktiv bass amp system for your DIY page. It actually sounds pretty good!

[JCE]

I'll bet that the webmaster would like to see your removal/install notes for the DIY section. There are enough differences between early and late w124s, and enough tips on installation, that you should email Bill Wood and see if they want it as a seperate DIY article!

[jsmith]

this approach only uses two speaker channels and will use the stock amp to power the front, back and "aktiv bass" door speakers. it will use the existing fader in the shifter console. i kinda like the fader there since i don't have to fiddle with the head unit to adjust it.

it's not really that complicated once you figure out what the amp
in the back is all about. the amp is on the passenger side in the trunk right underneath the trunk hinge. it is really just a speaker level "booster" with specific bass enhanced outputs. the amp is the black finned box with a big wire harness plugged in on top. right beneath it is the rear tuner unit. you just need to send the following connections to the back:

- 2 pairs speaker wire - on the tuner in the back disconnect the black and white plugs which are the amp inputs. this is where you will connect your speaker out.
- amp turn-on - this is a spade tip connector on the rear tuner unit between the power and the black and white plugs (see note below on turn-ons).
- antenna extension - the existing cable is routed from the antenna behind the tailight assembly to the right side since it plugs into the rear tuner unit. i am not sure if it will reach all the way to the front - you may need this extension.

at the head unit be aware that the antenna turn-on is a separate circuit and is in front. you will find a spade tip connector on a blue wire that is sheathed in black plugged in back of the 1432. on the new head unit, if you don't have separate turn-ons for amp and power antenna, wire this in parallel to the amp turn-on you are sending to the back. you will also need the ground spade connector that was plugged into the old head unit for the power antenna circuit, you can just wire this in parallel with the new head unit's ground.

here's a worthwhile trick - the din cable that connected the head unit to the tuner will no longer be needed so you can use it for the speaker and amp turn-ons. i think you can buy these din connector heads at RS because i did some years ago. they each come with 4 pre-wired, color coded rca plugs which you can either use or snip off. this is a little more involved and you will have to check that the signals come out ok at the other end. if you do this you will only need to route the antenna cable which is a lot easier by itself than with the speaker and turn-on wires added.

everything else is as previously described regarding R&R of the old 1432 head unit.

John, you can just reference this in your page...

[JCE]

Some really great info here - I had no idea how the later w124s were set up. I can't modify the page, but I will email this thread to Bill Wood and see if he can add something to the article. Thanks for the info (I still dream about getting a 400 or 500E, and will probably need these details).