In my previous truck, a 2007 Freightliner Columbia, satellite radio antenna placement was no problem, I simply mounted it to the top side of  my right mirror bracket.  The signal was strong because it was far enough from the truck.  I rarely lost the signal, usually only while driving under a canopy of trees overhanging the right side of the road.  However, mirror mounting on a Cascadia won't work because of the aerodynamic design and the softer materials used around the mirror. 

The first place I tried was a magnetic antenna near the windshield, just out of sight, but that didn't work well as I lost the signal quite a lot.  Later, I was told that mounting that close to the cab would cause interference because of the aluminum lined insulation around the cab. Then,  I tried mounting the magnetic antenna on the radiator support bolts in front of the engine. Believe it or not, the antenna will pick up the signal with the hood being closed.  However, when the truck was positioned in a way to not provide the antenna a line of sight to certain parts of the sky, the signal failed.  I'd say 50% of the time, I had no signal. 

The Qualcomm mount that was already on my truck was the best place to mount it and I always knew that, but the 23' of antenna cable wasn't quite enough to reach it.  I tried to avoid buying extra cable, but couldn't avoid it any longer as all my other antenna locations were not working.  I bought the antenna extension cable from TSS-Radio.com; a great resource for satellite radio equipment that I've bought from regularly.  They also have a great selection of products designed for commercial trucks.

Since the installation on the Qualcomm mount, I'm finally getting to enjoy uninterrupted satellite radio that I've been paying for all this time.  Imagine that!

Comments (3)

Joey Slaughter

Joey Slaughter is the owner of Blue Ridge Transport, LLC. Joey has been in the trucking industry since 1992.

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Just curious, did you try running the cable from the Qcomm hole in the back through the interior?

April 01, 2016 14:24:10 PM

As we discussed today I mounted mine on the right mirror housing. I drilled a hole in the top of the housing and ran the cable through the mirror arm. The only time I loose signal is in the extreme Northern latitudes and when I am driving in a North Western direction but the no signal usually lasts a minute or two. I like where you mounted yours but I may add a second antennae on the left mirror then use a "Y" cable to connect the two together.

August 23, 2013 21:37:00 PM

Not having continuing signal to our radio is enough to drive us crazy. Glad it is working for you Joey!

July 08, 2013 3:42:32 AM