Sirius Sat. Radio install in '03 TL-S.
09-13-2007, 05:38 PM
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Sirius Sat. Radio install in '03 TL-S.
First of all, let me say that I did take digital pics of what I did, but I can't figure out how to attach them to the this thread, or if I'm even allowed to do so (why I wouldn't be is beyond my realm of understanding--it's not a problem on other forums).
The absolutely and completely useless storage tray above my radio was something that actually bugged me about my '03 TL-S's interior from day-one.
There are so many things that they could have used that space for! I would have considered using the space for an eq. or a pop-out flip-screen, if I was interested in going w/ an aftermarket system, which I'm not (at least not anytime soon).
I was, however, interested in installing Sirius in the car, as I already have it in my other car and find it indespensible (I'm not as much of a fan of XM, BTW). I was using a suction-cup mount, and switching my sat. reciever (Starmate ST-2) between the two cars. However it didn't look good w/ that big thing hanging in the middle of the windshield, and it's actually a little bit of a hassle switching the reciever between cars, when you just want to get in the car and go...
In my other car ('90 Miata), that Starmate ST-1 reciever is actually custom mounted in a din size mounting plate under the radio. It looks like it belongs there, and it really should stay there, as when it's removed, it leaves a big hole w/ exposed wires showing (it looks like somebody stole it).
So I went on Ebay and bought (for an eye-watering $17.) a brand-new Sirius One (visor-mount type) reciever. This model is from two years ago, and they're not being sold anymore by Sirius, but they're still available on Ebay and elsewhere. I specifically wanted this model because it looked like it would actually fit INSIDE that useless storage tray, you know, the one that likes to make small items disappear forever, and is too narrow to even store a standard size pen in!
When I recieved the new reciever (and verified that it actually worked), I verified that it would, in fact, fit inside the pocket. It did, w/ a little room to spare.
Originally, I was planning to remove the tray, mount the reciever inside the pocket w/ two-sided tape, and (painstakingly) cut a piece of tinted clear plastic to fill the pocket (exact size as the tray's face) and cover the reciever's display, so it would just look like a glossy black panel when it's turned off. (I had NO IDEA where I would have gone about finding such a piece of plastic, in the first place, though...)
I instead decided to modify my tray to hold the reciever within, this way I could access the buttons if necessary by opening the tray as normal. The included remote makes all the buttons and controls redundant anyway, so this was just a "backup" consideration. And also, it's better this way because the reciever's display already is a bit dim in direct sunlight, even on it's brightest setting (hiding it behind a tinted panel might have spelled trouble).
What I did was cut out the center section of the face of the tray to roughly the size of the display, and any raised areas inside it that interfered with the reciever. I also had to grind away the fuzzy stuff and some of the plastic that the reciever sits on inside the tray, so that the buttons would clear the top of the pocket, when popping the tray out I used a simple piece of radio strap, bolted to the tray, and (kinda) snapped in to where the visor mount is supposed to go, to secure it in place. Finally I cut a notch in the back of the tray for a place for the wires to go.
As far as difficulty goes, if you're good w/ a Dremel, the tray mod is just time-consuming, but fairly easy. I already had my wiring in place, from using my Starmate, so I only had to reroute them to the back of the pocket (which was not as easy as it sounds w/o removing the radio--they basically had to be snaked through w/ a coat hanger wire). I do not have an aux input (that might be next), so it's just the power wire and the antenna wire. The antenna, BTW, is mounted inside the third brake light housing, per advice I found on this forum.
I'm satisfied w/ the result, it looks VERY CLEAN, and thought I'd share it here, as I've read some posts where ppl are puzzling to find a suitable spot for their satellite radios. I do wish I was able to post the pics, as they're worth many of the words in this post, and they're really worth seeing...
The absolutely and completely useless storage tray above my radio was something that actually bugged me about my '03 TL-S's interior from day-one.
There are so many things that they could have used that space for! I would have considered using the space for an eq. or a pop-out flip-screen, if I was interested in going w/ an aftermarket system, which I'm not (at least not anytime soon).I was, however, interested in installing Sirius in the car, as I already have it in my other car and find it indespensible (I'm not as much of a fan of XM, BTW). I was using a suction-cup mount, and switching my sat. reciever (Starmate ST-2) between the two cars. However it didn't look good w/ that big thing hanging in the middle of the windshield, and it's actually a little bit of a hassle switching the reciever between cars, when you just want to get in the car and go...
In my other car ('90 Miata), that Starmate ST-1 reciever is actually custom mounted in a din size mounting plate under the radio. It looks like it belongs there, and it really should stay there, as when it's removed, it leaves a big hole w/ exposed wires showing (it looks like somebody stole it).
So I went on Ebay and bought (for an eye-watering $17.
) a brand-new Sirius One (visor-mount type) reciever. This model is from two years ago, and they're not being sold anymore by Sirius, but they're still available on Ebay and elsewhere. I specifically wanted this model because it looked like it would actually fit INSIDE that useless storage tray, you know, the one that likes to make small items disappear forever, and is too narrow to even store a standard size pen in!When I recieved the new reciever (and verified that it actually worked), I verified that it would, in fact, fit inside the pocket. It did, w/ a little room to spare.
Originally, I was planning to remove the tray, mount the reciever inside the pocket w/ two-sided tape, and (painstakingly) cut a piece of tinted clear plastic to fill the pocket (exact size as the tray's face) and cover the reciever's display, so it would just look like a glossy black panel when it's turned off. (I had NO IDEA where I would have gone about finding such a piece of plastic, in the first place, though...)
I instead decided to modify my tray to hold the reciever within, this way I could access the buttons if necessary by opening the tray as normal. The included remote makes all the buttons and controls redundant anyway, so this was just a "backup" consideration. And also, it's better this way because the reciever's display already is a bit dim in direct sunlight, even on it's brightest setting (hiding it behind a tinted panel might have spelled trouble).
What I did was cut out the center section of the face of the tray to roughly the size of the display, and any raised areas inside it that interfered with the reciever. I also had to grind away the fuzzy stuff and some of the plastic that the reciever sits on inside the tray, so that the buttons would clear the top of the pocket, when popping the tray out I used a simple piece of radio strap, bolted to the tray, and (kinda) snapped in to where the visor mount is supposed to go, to secure it in place. Finally I cut a notch in the back of the tray for a place for the wires to go.
As far as difficulty goes, if you're good w/ a Dremel, the tray mod is just time-consuming, but fairly easy. I already had my wiring in place, from using my Starmate, so I only had to reroute them to the back of the pocket (which was not as easy as it sounds w/o removing the radio--they basically had to be snaked through w/ a coat hanger wire). I do not have an aux input (that might be next), so it's just the power wire and the antenna wire. The antenna, BTW, is mounted inside the third brake light housing, per advice I found on this forum.
I'm satisfied w/ the result, it looks VERY CLEAN, and thought I'd share it here, as I've read some posts where ppl are puzzling to find a suitable spot for their satellite radios. I do wish I was able to post the pics, as they're worth many of the words in this post, and they're really worth seeing...
Last edited by Ellcapitan; 09-13-2007 at 05:41 PM.
09-14-2007, 10:30 AM
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Please do post pics! Host them on a site such as imageshack.us if you do not have your own hosting, and then post them in via BBcode. We do not use post attachments on this forum (it craps things up!) so you'll have to link them in.
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09-15-2007, 07:54 PM
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Update: This setup is great, but I have one complaint about this reciever. The FM modulator SUCKS! Even the slightest interference from your empty donor FM freq. steps all over the Sirius signal. Even under the best conditions, the signal comes in similar to a weak FM station. I never had any such problem with my Starmate's FM modulator in the same car. It must have been much stronger.
All the more reason to go with a direct auxiliary signal. Now I've gotta figure out if I want a Blitzsafe, or one of those PIE adapters... Any suggestions?
All the more reason to go with a direct auxiliary signal. Now I've gotta figure out if I want a Blitzsafe, or one of those PIE adapters... Any suggestions?
09-18-2007, 02:50 PM
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Ellcapitan: I didn't have any luck with the PIE (radio wouldn't recognize) and ended up having to get the Blitzsafe in my '01 CL-S. It's been great with my XM for about 9 month now. Good luck.
09-22-2007, 04:40 PM
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Well, now my nice clean install is marred by an ugly wire sticking out of it!
I had to use a cassette adapter (with the cord sticking out) to use this reciever, because the FM modulator is absolutely UNBEARABLE. I can't even rely on listening to even one song w/o the the signal getting stepped on, and the signal is so weak that the radio's seek skips right over it. Even when the signal does make it through (about 50% of the time), I have to turn the volume way up to even hear it (the reciever's own volume is turned all the way up, so that's not the problem).
I ordered a Blitzsafe V.1, but it's on backorder for GOD only knows how long!!
Although it's cord sure does look fugly, the cassette adapter is a HUGE improvement. When I plugged it into the reciever, it almost blew my head off! At least I have the excess cord bundled up in the coin tray. I didn't fish the cord around back of the reciever/former storage tray, though, b/c that takes effort, and this is a temporary setup (until I finally get my Blitzsafe), so it sticks right out the front, ghetto-style. And besides, what would be the point? The cord is still gonna stick out from the mouth of the cassette player anyway. There's no avoiding that. I've been driven to the point that I accept this mess, in the mean time.
My advice to anyone who will listen is: DO NOT buy this reciever if you're planning on using it's built-in FM modulator. You MUST MUST MUST aux-out the signal...somehow.
Vent/rant: Off.
I had to use a cassette adapter (with the cord sticking out) to use this reciever, because the FM modulator is absolutely UNBEARABLE. I can't even rely on listening to even one song w/o the the signal getting stepped on, and the signal is so weak that the radio's seek skips right over it. Even when the signal does make it through (about 50% of the time), I have to turn the volume way up to even hear it (the reciever's own volume is turned all the way up, so that's not the problem).
I ordered a Blitzsafe V.1, but it's on backorder for GOD only knows how long!!
Although it's cord sure does look fugly, the cassette adapter is a HUGE improvement. When I plugged it into the reciever, it almost blew my head off! At least I have the excess cord bundled up in the coin tray. I didn't fish the cord around back of the reciever/former storage tray, though, b/c that takes effort, and this is a temporary setup (until I finally get my Blitzsafe), so it sticks right out the front, ghetto-style. And besides, what would be the point? The cord is still gonna stick out from the mouth of the cassette player anyway. There's no avoiding that. I've been driven to the point that I accept this mess, in the mean time.
My advice to anyone who will listen is: DO NOT buy this reciever if you're planning on using it's built-in FM modulator. You MUST MUST MUST aux-out the signal...somehow.
Vent/rant: Off.
Last edited by Ellcapitan; 09-22-2007 at 04:44 PM.
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