XM SureConnect (Easy Sat Radio/aux input solution)

[flomobile]

Back in January, we got an XM radio (Audiovox Xpress) for my wife's 5. We had issues with the FM modulator in there (I'm guessing because the receiver is in the front of the car and the antenna mounted at the back.

We tried other FM modulators, but with mixed results.

FInally, I installed a SureConnect kit.

It actually works very well... It's designed to attach to the base of a traditional metal mast front fender FM antenna, but that doesn't work so well in the Mazda thanks to the VW style mast. So, I took off the panel on the roof at the in the cargo area, peeled the headliner back just a bit, and clamped the terminal directly onto the antenna cable where it connects to the base of the FM antenna.

Alas, crystal clear sound (or at least good enough for a 4 speaker factory sound system) and the Audiovox receiver's cradle has an auxiliary input for my wife's MP3 player. It doesn't work as well as the aux input in the dash of my Element, but it's certainly an easier and cheaper fix than tearing the dash apart to install an AuxMod! There's a similar product for Sirius radios as well.

Here's the installation guide on the SureConnect
http://www.xmfan.com/files/sureconnect.pdf

My $.02!

 

[da1nonly]

any pics of your setup and installation?

 

[flomobile]

any pics of your setup and installation?

I can snap a few of the radio mounted on the dash. I just moved from Nebraska to California, and it was installed by a shop out there back in NE. They wired the unit directly to the electrical system (to free the power outlet) and ran the wiring to the satellite antenna. I added the SureConnect kit in order to better transmit the signal to the FM antenna.

The sure connect kit is EXTREMELY simple. It's one wire, hidden along the rubber seals and between the panels and headliner on the driver's side, to the back. To get to the antenna, you need only to unsnap the panel between the headliner and the rear hatch, and pop off the two fasteners that hold the trailing edge of the headliner in place. The antenna wire is clearly visible, and the terminal end of the SureConnect cable is simply clamped onto the cable itself, with the pressure of the headliner against it holding it in place.

Honestly, I don't want to pop the damn panel off again; I'm lazy! Still, "It's so easy a caveman could do it."