Volvo XC90 antenna

[kbmp0992]

I need to put an antenna on my Volvo XC90. It has a sunroof, which eliminates a lot of real estate, and the rear portion of the roof is plastic and already houses the car's radio antenna. That leaves a few inches in front of the sunroof for an NMO, but I'm not sure what's in there. The other possibility might be a glass mount.

I'll need to come up with a place to mount a radio, too. Right now, I have a CDM1550 wedged between the seat and the console.

Has anyone attempted one of these cars?

[Splat]

Without seeing one up-close it's hard to say... If the sunroof retracts into the roof is there any room right behind where it stops for a hard roof mount? With today's cars it's getting harder and harder for antenna placement. Mounting the radio is the easy part. You can get a head seperation kit and just mount the control head up in the front compartment with the rest of the radio in the band somewhere. Good luck.

[Tom in D.C.]

I suggest you approach the question this way:

1. Drop the rear headliner just inside the fifth door.
2. See how much space there is in the plastic roof between
the door opening and the sunroof mechanism.
3. If you can get something like 15 to 19 inches, consider putting
in a circular aluminum plate, between the headliner and the plastic,
as a ground plane.
4. Motorola makes a special NMO mount with an extended shaft that's
meant for "thick" roof installations.
5. With the ground plane in place and a good factory antenna install
you should be able to get excellent results and good 50-ohm match.

If you are forced to go to an on-glass antenna, don't listen to the
naysayers. I've used them for years and they can be a pain to get
adjusted, but if you know your electronics you'll understand better than
most people why the principle is sound and why the antennas, adjusted
properly, work fine.