I just bought a 1991 940 Turbo and I'll post later about other issues but, first, this power antenna is driving me nuts. This is my first Volvo and I didn't even know what that switch on the dash was for when I brought the car home. Anyway, the antenna mast goes up and down of its own will and I get FM only intermittently. I have lubricated the mast (puzzling my neighbors in the process) and it will now go all the way down. But, I'm confused. Between the battery and the antenna motor there are three switches: that one on the dash, the one with the ignition and the radio ****. All apparently trigger the antenna but I feel like I might burn out the mast motor if all three keep triggering it. Can anyone help me understand this crazy antenna?

 

I just let the radio run the antenna up and down. The dash switch only lowers the aerial when the radio is on.
The ignition switching is powering the radio on and off, which sets the antenna up and down.
So, set the dash switch to down and the antenna SHOULD stay down all teh time, regardless of radio, ignition switch etc.

Regards, Andrew.

 

Thanks, Andrew, that makes sense to me now. The FM reception is hit or miss so I think I'm going to dig into that trunk area and make sure everything is hooked up back there. Although, today when I hit a pothole, the FM came clear making me think there's a loose connection behind the radio. I dread having to figure out how to remove the radio to check.

 

Radio antennas are easy, they're just coax cable and simple plugs. They're either connected or not. You may have one connection just holding on somewhere.

Regards, Andrew.

 

This afternoon I removed the power antenna from the trunk. Very straightforward job. I found that there's a rough spot on the middle section of the mast but it seems to be *inside* the mast and untouched by the silicone from my new can of aerosol silicone lubricant spray. So, I reinstalled the antenna in a relatively extended position and unplugged the power. A quick check of eBay found a few rubber antennas that promise to work and I think that's a direction I may go. They look pretty good, too.

I'm still experiencing bad FM reception and so I'm sure now it's the connection behind the radio. I just didn't have time to figure out how to get to the back of the radio today. It looks like many panels must be removed...