andrethx Posted March 17, 2011 Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 the other day when i was looking at my trunk, i found a small amount of water in the passengers' side rear fender well (in the compartment where the antenna is). I cleaned the water out and checked, didn't see any rust. i figured that side marker light gasket must have cracked, and water was getting in. since it isn't going to rain here in socal until november or so, i put it on my list of stuff to check out later. when i got home just now, i was looking at my antenna -- it is stuck in the raised position, which is not unusual for these retractable antennae. most peugeots that are my car's age have the hirschmann 6800 antenna, and i was looking at it to see if that's what it was (there are many repair kits for those antennae). not only was my antenna not a hirschmann 6800, it's some kind of no-name knockoff that doesn't even fit. water mystery solved! so i need to do something about my antenna. short term, i'd like to swap it out for the right part. later down the road, i might add a spoiler so i'll either have to move the antenna or get a roof-mount antenna, but for now i'd like to get an antenna that fits and works (or is fixable). does anyone have any suggestions? andre Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norcal505 Posted March 17, 2011 Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 Don't think you need to relocate the antenna Andre. Your 84+ 505 accommodates the spoilers, as the hole is much farther down the quarter panel than my 83 505, for example, if you look it mine. Hirschmanns are hard to come by...at least for a good price. Expensive, and prone to failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrethx Posted March 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 thanks for the reply, rob, it's good to know that i won't have to relocate the antenna if i get a spoiler later on. as for my current problem, the issue is not the antenna per se, but the fit on the fender where the mast comes through -- 505s use a hard-to-find seal/grommet, because of the distinctive fenderline of the car...for guests reading this, i'm sure rob knows about this issue, he was practically born in a 505. the geniuses who replaced my antenna used a standard seal/grommet, which doesn't contact the fender all the way around, which accounts for the leak. did a bit of research on peugeot-l, seems koll and others found that the seal from a bmw 318i antenna is similar enough that it can be made to work...will look into that.... andre Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norcal505 Posted March 17, 2011 Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 Are you talking about the 318ti antenna conversion? It's a common and semi-simple modification on our E30s. There's a good write-up for them somewhere, I'll try to find it. However, its unclear to me whether or not the 318ti antenna uses the universal antenna connection, or the Euro/Bmw/Motorola style connector. In order for me to install a Universal Whip-Antenna (BAD IDEA), I had to splice the antenna cable (another BAD idea), and it somewhat compromised my antenna reception. Now I'm looking at having to completely rewire the antenna cable (going to be a major PITA). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrethx Posted March 17, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 17, 2011 Are you talking about the 318ti antenna conversion? It's a common and semi-simple modification on our E30s. no, although i would be interested to see the writeup you have -- more info is always better. there was a thread a few years ago on peugeot-l about using the seal from a 318i with the standard hirschmann 6800 that comes in our cars. when the original seal cracks & crumbles with time, replacements are few and far between now, with NOS or good condition units fetching high prices on ebay --- when they are available. apparently, the seal for the 318i is a close enough fit that, with some reworking, it can be used as a replacement. the bmw seal in question only costs $5, so it's worth trying. in my case, i don't have the right antenna -- all i have at this point is a non-functional generic retractable antenna & a hole in my fender. the guts of my antenna are not the same as the 6800, so i can't just get a repair kit. i'll probably bit the bullet and get a 6800 from somewhere, then try to modify the seal to give me a good fit. if a real 505 seal becomes available at some point, i'll likely try to buy it, maybe even reproduce it. my wife's hobby is making jewelry, so she is good at fabricating small parts. in a perfect world, i would like to get a euro antenna & mount it on the roof, but my headliner looks great and i'm loathe to pull it down. it's a matter of picking one's battles. whatever i do, i'll write it up here with photos. i'm enjoying this puzzle, and i'm grateful for the info the experienced members of these forum provide. the most sincere way i can thank them is by paying it forward... andre Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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