So, my NSX had a bad mast that was bent and would always be 1/3 of the way up when it should be closed and about 2/3 of the way up when it should be fully opened. I finally got the nut to unlock the mast and install the new one I bought. However, when I am trying to install the new one using the instructions from the book - It won't go down all the way. The mast cord will grab in the motor and go up all the way (but clicks a bit at the top). However, it won't retract fully. It retracts lower than the old one did, but even though the antenna is not binding it stops with about 8 inches of travel remaining and begins to click. If I remove the mast completely and run the motor - it runs all the way from up to down without any clicking. Any thoughts? I'm stumped. This looked really easy - but I must be missing something.
Antenna Mast Issue
- Thread starter SaberX
- Start date
I just did this on mine last night with only one small problem. When I took the old mast out, the metal sleeve stayed behind. Instead of fighting with it, I cut the metal sleeve off of the new one and let the black plastic bushing seat into the old sleeve. I had to run it up and down 3 or four times to get the last 1/2/inch to go all the way down but all is perfect now.
Does your old mast still have the metal sleeve on it (about 4" long)?
Does your old mast still have the metal sleeve on it (about 4" long)?
Remove the motor and take the 2 screw out of the round metal plate, then remove the round plastic shield underneath, you should find a section of broken antenna cord inside, discard and reassembly. That should do it. Make sure the antenna mast nut is not overtighten.
EIFFEL said:
So, I removed the cover and checked it all out. No broken cord bits. I have watched how the retraction motor works and it looks like its just a problem of lubrication. That since the mast has been broken for so long the grease looks all "dried up". What grease should I use? multi-purpose, silicon, WD-40?
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did you check inside the antenna tube for debris? also adj. the tension of antenna nut on top may help the mast go all the way down. may have to trial and error a few times to get it just right.
I too am having a problem with the up and down of the antenna. I think it may be a timing issue of the disc. I don't really know how the disc/relay work in conjunction with the mast. I disassembled last night and found a broken cord, only about two inches at the anenna. With some major disassembly I removed the broken piece and connected the remaining cord to the antenna. Now I get smooth operation up and down but at the min/max height I get the gear grind. If someone can post a pic of what the disc/big gear look like in a properly operating antenna or know how to time this it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Thanks
has anyone considered replacing the oem antenna mast with an s2000 antenna? i was thinking about doing this and wondered if it would work.
Update: I took my car by the dealership to get them to look at the mast. They think that the whole motor needs to be replaced because after years of not going down completely, the motor clutch is totally worn. After talking to the tech and telling him what I had done so far, he suggested that lubrication might be in order. I'm going to clean out the gunk and old grease using something like wd40 and then regrease it. I'll post my results.
My mast cord broke yesterday. After removing the round metal motor cover and plastic "donut" that the plastic cord runs through, I found a section of the toothed plastic cord (5" +/-). My questions are (1) does a new mast come with the toothed cord, (2) how do you remove an old mast that will not retract and (3) how easy is it to install the new mast? 
Yes it does.kgb_agent said:
kgb_agent said:
Pull the whole unit out of the car and disassemble it. Then use some WD40 to loosen it and it should come out.
kgb_agent said:(3) how easy is it to install the new mast?
Not too hard and I'm not the best mechanic out there!
SoCalDude said:
SoCalDude, thanks for the info! I'm not the world's best wrencher either, so please bare with my silly questions. How do you pull the unit out it will not retract? Must I cut the mast off close to the car and then pull the motor apparatus out, or should the mast come off by pulling upwards (after the chrome mounting nut is removed)?
Sorry for my ignorance...
Just remove the nut on the antenna on the top of the fender - since your cord is already broken, you should be able to pull the antenna & the rest of the cord out through the top.
To re-install the new one, turn on the radio to simulate effectively raising the antenna (obviously there's nothing there at this point!). Then feed the plastic toothed cable of the new antenna down into the assembly, then run the motor back "down" by turning off the radio again. The teeth should engage & pull the antenna back in.
Here's an excellent procedure from an old post by NSXT.
To re-install the new one, turn on the radio to simulate effectively raising the antenna (obviously there's nothing there at this point!). Then feed the plastic toothed cable of the new antenna down into the assembly, then run the motor back "down" by turning off the radio again. The teeth should engage & pull the antenna back in.
Here's an excellent procedure from an old post by NSXT.
D'Ecosse said:
Thank you thank you....exactly what I was looking for.
The only thing I can add other than what D'Ecosse has mentioned is when I did it, the mast came out but cable with the teeth did not. It was stuck in good. That's why I have pictures of the antenna off and disassembled. Good learning experience for me!kgb_agent said:
Here's an update on mine if anyone cares. I bought the Accord antenna (same part # per the FAQ) at a local Honda dealer yesterday. This install was more difficult than planned because the mast would NOT pull out of the assembly below the fender; if I would have pulled any harder, I would have hurt something.
I ended up cutting the mast off with some sidecutters close to the fender. Then I carefully removed the entire motor/mast assembly. I assumed that once I got the unit out I could get some real leverage with pliers or vice-grips and pull that baby straight out. Nope. The bottom section of the mast (with the 2 tabs that bend inwards) was FUSED inside the top section of the tube (the part with threads that mate to the chrome nut). Neither WD-40 nor penetrating oil would budge it. After about 1.5 hours of chewing the old mast down with every type of plier I owned, I used a screwdriver to forcefully yank it out from the inside. I then disassembled as much of the motor/tube apparatus as I could, cleaned with electronics cleaner and q-tips, and lubed the cord track lightly with some silicone.
All the old stuff went back together perfectly and--armed with D'Ecosse's instructions--I was ready for the moment of truth: inserting the new mast cord. This part worked like a charm, I just had to press the bottom mast section in about 2" to create a perfect fit. The action works perfectly smoothly up and down when the radio is turned on/off, but I get a series of 4-6 loud clicks from the gear motor skipping teeth. This happens after the antenna is completely raised or lowered. It's almost as if the motor runs about 1 second too long on each up/down sequence.
I disconnected the harness after all that.
It does look nice, though.
I ended up cutting the mast off with some sidecutters close to the fender. Then I carefully removed the entire motor/mast assembly. I assumed that once I got the unit out I could get some real leverage with pliers or vice-grips and pull that baby straight out. Nope. The bottom section of the mast (with the 2 tabs that bend inwards) was FUSED inside the top section of the tube (the part with threads that mate to the chrome nut). Neither WD-40 nor penetrating oil would budge it. After about 1.5 hours of chewing the old mast down with every type of plier I owned, I used a screwdriver to forcefully yank it out from the inside. I then disassembled as much of the motor/tube apparatus as I could, cleaned with electronics cleaner and q-tips, and lubed the cord track lightly with some silicone.
All the old stuff went back together perfectly and--armed with D'Ecosse's instructions--I was ready for the moment of truth: inserting the new mast cord. This part worked like a charm, I just had to press the bottom mast section in about 2" to create a perfect fit. The action works perfectly smoothly up and down when the radio is turned on/off, but I get a series of 4-6 loud clicks from the gear motor skipping teeth. This happens after the antenna is completely raised or lowered. It's almost as if the motor runs about 1 second too long on each up/down sequence.
I disconnected the harness after all that.
It does look nice, though.
I wonder if the Honda part is exactly the same length? From others' experience I believe it should be.kgb_agent said:
One thing to try - during the "up" motion, try "helping" the antenna by pulling it upwards, to be sure it reaches the full, maximum extension. Then try an un-assisted extend & retract & see if that process helped.
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