Power antenna malfunction

I just noticed this morning that the power antenna of my '94 Accord LX
got stuck in the open position and I could not push it down even
manually after turning the radio off. Later I extracted the antenna and
I took it to a Honda dealer's part store to see if the length of the
plastic strip in it is the original length by comparing it to a new one
there. Well, it looked like mine was about 6 inches shorter, so probably
that torn piece was stuck in the antenna motor's wheels, meaning I would
have to remove the motor itself to extract that broken off plastic
strip. Unfortunately, when I looked at the motor behind the trunk
panel, I found the motor so well hidden in there that I could see no
easy way to remove it. Anybody here has done it before and has a good
advice how to do it? In the meantime I disconnected the motor by
pulling out its connector in the hope of at least saving the motor from
possible overload when turning on the radio that still can recieve some
strong FM stations without the antenna, plus I can still use my MP3
player through an FM adapter.

Rudy

"R. P." > wrote:
> Anybody here has done it before and has a good advice how to do it?

Apparently not. I guess I'll have to figure it out the hard way then.
:-( To avoid making more scratches around the antenna than I already
have, I better get the special antenna nut (sucket) wrench before I
commit to it though. I wish I knew where to get one. According to the
Service Manual, its part number is 07JAA-001000C.

Rudy

"R. P." > wrote in news:44Kdndhr9-wNyKffRVn-
:

> "R. P." > wrote:
>> Anybody here has done it before and has a good advice how to do it?
>
> Apparently not. I guess I'll have to figure it out the hard way then.
>:-( To avoid making more scratches around the antenna than I already
> have, I better get the special antenna nut (sucket) wrench before I
> commit to it though. I wish I knew where to get one. According to the
> Service Manual, its part number is 07JAA-001000C.
>


You can try a bicycle-repair shop, believe it or not. Certain bicycle parts
are tightened using a similar sort of socket.


--
TeGGeR®

The Unofficial Honda/Acura FAQ
www.tegger.com/hondafaq/

I pulled the mechanism out of a 90 Prelude. It wasn't too hard at all.
YOu have to undo the fender mounting carefully if you don't have the
specially shaped tool. I had some narrow needle nose pliers that did it
fine. Snap ring pliers would work well too.

Then you have to pull the trunk lining back to get at the motor. It's
held on to a bracket with one bolt (6mm maybe, something like that, I
can't remember). Then unplug the antenna and electricals and the unit
should come out.

The piece that broke off will be in the drum-shaped part of the unit,
which is held together by a few screws.

I don't have the Helm manual here with me, but its not a tough job at
all.

Cheers,
Mike Davis

Chain ring bolts.
I used a pair of round needle nosed pliers to get the mounting nut off.
Snap rings would work too.

The trick is to use something that you can concentrate on turning
without having to concentrate on holding it the slots. ...

Cheers,
Mike Davis

"TeGGer®" > wrote:
> You can try a bicycle-repair shop, believe it or not. Certain bicycle
> parts
> are tightened using a similar sort of socket.

Even if they have it, that does not mean they have it for sale. Honda
service shops also have them but not for sale. But it's an interesting
idea to pursue, anyway.

Rudy

> wrote:
> Chain ring bolts.
> I used a pair of round needle nosed pliers to get the mounting nut
> off.

Well, I got it also off with bent needle nose pliers and managed not
only scratch the paint around it but the process also scratched the nut
itself (gold color, not chrome!) and dulls the grooves in it enough to
worry me that I might not be able to turn it in the future if I repeat
this method.

> Snap rings would work too.

I'm not familiar with these ones.

> The trick is to use something that you can concentrate on turning
> without having to concentrate on holding it the slots. ...

I agree and pliers are not the tool to be able to do it. At least not
for me.

Rudy

"TeGGer®" > wrote:
> They sell them. I own two sizes. They are about as cheap as ordinary
> sockets.
>
> The ones I've got have a hole in the middle so axles and the like can
> protrude, and have a couple of flats so you can get a wrench on them.
>
> http://tegger.com/hondafaq/misc/bicycle_socket.jpg

I see. Those nicely manicured hands sure don't look like that of a
grease monkey. ;-)
The hole in the middle is probably not large enough to accommodate the
bottom of the fully extended antenna mast in case it stuck in the
extended position as was in my case.

> You can modify the pins with a grinder to make them fit your
> application.

Looks like that would be necessary because they are too wide to fit in
the nut grooves.

> guess you could probably even grind down an ordinary hex socket to do
> the
> same thing.

Sure, if you have a well equipped work shop which I don't. :-(

But I still would like to hear how the heck can one get to that antenna
motor that is so tightly sqeezed in there between the side wall and
another supporting metal bracket. Do you have a picture of the removal
process somewhere?

Rudy

> wrote:
> I pulled the mechanism out of a 90 Prelude. It wasn't too hard at all.
> YOu have to undo the fender mounting carefully if you don't have the
> specially shaped tool. I had some narrow needle nose pliers that did
> it
> fine. Snap ring pliers would work well too.
>
> Then you have to pull the trunk lining back to get at the motor. It's
> held on to a bracket with one bolt (6mm maybe, something like that, I
> can't remember). Then unplug the antenna and electricals and the unit
> should come out.
>
> The piece that broke off will be in the drum-shaped part of the unit,
> which is held together by a few screws.
>
> I don't have the Helm manual here with me, but its not a tough job at
> all.

That's reassuring though I don't know how similar the antenna of your
'90 Prelude was to my '94 Accord. There is also some kind of drain pipe
there I think which might have to be unattached.

It also occured to me if the teeth of that plastic cord need to be
greased before insertion and if so, what kind of grease? I haven't seen
any specific mention of this in the Service Manual. Maybe TeGGer knows
the answer to this, too.

Rudy

> wrote:
> I pulled the mechanism out of a 90 Prelude. It wasn't too hard at all.
> YOu have to undo the fender mounting carefully if you don't have the
> specially shaped tool. I had some narrow needle nose pliers that did
> it
> fine. Snap ring pliers would work well too.
>
> Then you have to pull the trunk lining back to get at the motor. It's
> held on to a bracket with one bolt (6mm maybe, something like that, I
> can't remember). Then unplug the antenna and electricals and the unit
> should come out.
>
> The piece that broke off will be in the drum-shaped part of the unit,
> which is held together by a few screws.
>
> I don't have the Helm manual here with me, but its not a tough job at
> all.

At last I figured out how to wiggle in the end of the antenna cable
so the motor retracts and extends the antenna mast correctly.
My problem was that after the first few tries, there was still about
3 inches of the mast up when I turned off the radio despite having the
same cable length as in the old antenna. So I figured I should wiggle in
about 3 more inches before I turn off the radio, but I could not do
that. Then a light flashed in my head and I found the trick I was
looking for.
Next time I wiggled in the same small cable length again as before,
then turned off the radio: those 2-3 inches of the mast still sticking
out, of course. But now, after turning on the radio again, I was pushing
back down the mast against the motor's force, enough to hear that the
rachet wheel skipped several teeth on the plastic cable and then the
mast did not quite extend fully. That was exactly what I wanted because
when next I turned the radio off again, the mast was fully retracted
after some ratchet noise from the motor. After these "adjustment cycles"
the antenna was working as it should, without any more teeth skipping.

I am sharing this info, so others out there in similar situation
don't have to go through the same frustruation I've been through. (But
I still want to install that 3-way antenna motor override switch I
mentioned before.)

Rudy