Hi guys, I hope I'm okay posting this in here.

Basically I've run into a bit of trouble with the aerial on my 2013 500s, I recently moved into an apartment which has underground parking, with an electric garage door that I hoped would sense my fiat reversing in. Sadly it didn't and clouted my roof!

Luckily from what I can see it hasn't dented the roof but has pulled the aerial mount from the car but some radio stations still work and I still have the black mount and aerial stick. Just wondering (long shot I know) if anyone has run into the same kind of problem? And if there is a way of fixing it before I take it to fiat?

Thanks in advance! Sorry for the awful photo, I can get more if required!

Looks like the whole fitting needs replacing. After previous discussions on the forum the general conclusion is that the headlining needs to be dropped at the rear in order to gain access to the base of the aerial. I believe it has a fly lead attached although I could be wrong.

Users here warned particularly of how easy it is to crease the headlining on the 500!

Wow, that's nasty.

Looks like a full replacement as said above. You will probably need to drop the headlining to get access to it properly - there should be a screw or similar holding it in up there. One job I definitely didn't fancy doing myself.

Unrelated; is that vinyl on your roof?

Cheers for the responses guys, much appreciated!

Gutted it is as serious as I was dreading to be honest. But I knew when I heard it it pretty bad, there was a 911 Porsche also in the garage so I was relived it wasn't that!

I'll have a proper look at it this weekend and if all else fails I'll have to take it to fiat. How many hours of work are we looking at would you say?

Thanks again for the responses, yep I'm currently running a martini vinyl that was intended for a 911 GT3 as it was a reject from my work, cut to fit with the side shields. ??

Another photo, fiats are extremely photogenic.

elliotnewton said:

Another photo, fiats are extremely photogenic.

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well yours certainly is

look in the panda section for a thread / maybe a GUIDE on accessing the aeiral mount.

SEARCH found these;
https://www.fiatforum.com/lets-talk-fiat/435968-radio-reception.html


https://www.fiatforum.com/500/432503-radio-reception-lost-2.html

Charlie

elliotnewton said:

Gutted it is as serious as I was dreading to be honest. But I knew when I heard it it pretty bad, there was a 911 Porsche also in the garage so I was relived it wasn't that!

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I think I'd have cried! It may not be a serious amount of work, just headlining and interior trim is a pain in the backside. I've got a small jiffy bag of interior trim parts that I've taken off and never a) put back on b) have no idea where they go.

Still, could get a smart stubby aerial replacement (assuing yours has one of those RC car style ones like mine does).

Love the vinyl though!

An hour to replace, tops. If your mega careful, you can do it without fully lowering the roof, but it takes girly hands and slim tools, both of which I have. It's a 10mm bolt holding the base in, needs to be removed fully. The lead sits in a bracket that attaches to the rear roof structure (the strong bit that the tailgate bolts to) and can be a fiddle to release. Best advise, take it to fiat, if they bend it they mend it!

Asa James said:

girly hands and slim tools

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huehuehue innuendo.

I say the words, you paint the pictures...

Cheers for all of the responses guys, much appreciated!

My old man is a wizard with fiddling with old mercs and pretty much any car, so i'm hoping it won't be too big of a job for us do to this evening.

Standby for results / crying.

The hooks above the rear window turn 90 deg anticlockwise and pull out, save you breaking them

Asa James said:

The hooks above the rear window turn 90 deg anticlockwise and pull out, save you breaking them

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Something I constantly forget when changing a curtain airbag.

So the repair was a success!

Literally done and dusted in under an hour, surprisingly extremely simple to do, being gentle is key! There's an awful lot of fiddly screws etc but none were that difficult to access.

As you can see, the roof did take a pretty decent hit but we managed to straighten it out and the aerial actually sits a little more flush to the car now.

Phew, one less thing to worry about!

Cheers again for all of the responses.

Glad we have the flexible aerial on ours !!

How difficult was the base to remove/refit? And headlining to drop? This is something I'll need at some point.

Noxide said:

How difficult was the base to remove/refit? And headlining to drop? This is something I'll need at some point.

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It's easy to do and should only take about 1/2 hr. As said before when you open the tailgate you need to remove the two clips that hold the roof lining in place. You can then move it easily enough to get in at the aerial base. You need a 22mm socket or a spanner I suppose (I used a socket) the coax cable is about a foot long and simply plugs in to a female coax plug that is tucked out the way and clipped to the roof.undo the 2mm nut and that's it

Joe Dolce said:

It's easy to do and should only take about 1/2 hr. As said before when you open the tailgate you need to remove the two clips that hold the roof lining in place. You can then move it easily enough to get in at the aerial base. You need a 22mm socket or a spanner I suppose (I used a socket) the coax cable is about a foot long and simply plugs in to a female coax plug that is tucked out the way and clipped to the roof.undo the 2mm nut and that's it

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Fab. How far along the roof did you drop the lining? As far as the aerial? I've got little roof dents which might pop out from inside removing the lining.


Can also fix that darn static aerial.

Noxide said:

Fab. How far along the roof did you drop the lining? As far as the aerial? I've got little roof dents which might pop out from inside removing the lining.


Can also fix that darn static aerial.

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I only moved it enough to reach the aerial. I might be misunderstanding from your quote about the aerial. But if you are suffering from crap reception, when you get the aerial out you will see two small screws that hold the base together. Undo them and you are likely to find a wet circuit board. Dry it out and that should be your problem sorted ?

Joe Dolce said:

I only moved it enough to reach the aerial. I might be misunderstanding from your quote about the aerial. But if you are suffering from crap reception, when you get the aerial out you will see two small screws that hold the base together. Undo them and you are likely to find a wet circuit board. Dry it out and that should be your problem sorted ?

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Ah awesome. Thanks!

Yeah, I've got 2 separate issues;

1) Static radio which hopefully this will fix!
2) Some very small odd dents in my roof which I'm hoping I can pop out from the inside.