Volkswagen Golf Mk5 Aerial or not?

Tipsy Mac

I have noticed a fair few Mk5 Golfs don't have any roof aerials yet others do. There doesn't seem to be any pattern to it either, some without are sportline or comfortline but I have also spotted lots of these cars with aerials. Anyone know if it's an audio option or whats the reason for it?

crosstownk

Hmmm - I haven't noticed this myself. But its common practice nowadays to integrate the RF antenna into the rear screen. Audi have been doing it for some time now so it wouldn't surprise me to hear that VW had followed suit.

Have you checked the year of the cars in question. A VW Golf registered late in 2005 will most likely be a 2006 model. This could be where the changeover happened.

Tipsy Mac

crosstownk wrote:

Hmmm - I haven't noticed this myself. But its common practice nowadays to integrate the RF antenna into the rear screen. Audi have been doing it for some time now so it wouldn't surprise me to hear that VW had followed suit.

Have you checked the year of the cars in question. A VW Golf registered late in 2005 will most likely be a 2006 model. This could be where the changeover happened.

Yes I have spotted 2004 models without and this years without but have also spotted the same years with them. From the external the comfortline and base are the same so I can't tell if there's a difference between them but I have spotted sportlines with them on and off. It's a strange one because it's not that the owners have removed them, they are simply not there and likely as you said integrated into the back window. Here's a couple of examples...

2005 Sportline with
http://www.carzone.com/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=406179

2005 Sportline without
http://www.carzone.com/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=494642


2006 Comfort/base with
http://www.carzone.com/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=471940

alias no.9

Knowing VW, golfs probably don't have any standard audio equipment and the ones with aerials are the ones that have had radios fitted and the rest are owned by people who just listen to their ipods on earphones while driving.

el tel

My Passat has the RF antenna integrated into the back screen which means I can't pick up Medium or Longwave radio. I had been thinking about fitting a roof-mounted bee sting antenna but can't be sure where the original connection from the window to the radio wiring is located. I don't fancy taking off the headlining and being stumped after that.

JoeA3

When the MK5 was launched, it had the aerial built into the screen. But since mid 2005, they went back to using the bee-sting... I read somewhere that there were complaints in some countries of poor reception with the built in aerial. Being cynical, I would say cost-saving also had something to do with it.

crosstownk

el tel wrote:

My Passat has the RF antenna integrated into the back screen which means I can't pick up Medium or Longwave radio. I had been thinking about fitting a roof-mounted bee sting antenna but can't be sure where the original connection from the window to the radio wiring is located. I don't fancy taking off the headlining and being stumped after that.

Just run a new RF cable to the head unit. More hassle, but at least it will definitely work. Be sure to get an amplified roof antenna.

And yes, those antennas built in the rear screens are dreadful for AM reception. So it is quite possible that this is why VW reverted back to the roof antenna. But if thats the case, then why only on the Golf

J_R

Hi,

Think it depends on the year and whither has a factory fitted Sat Nav or phone.

My 2004 MK5 had a VW phone kit and came with a shark fin aerial.

Assume they could not use the window aerial as a combined radio/phone aerial.

Present car, (2006) exact same model but no phone or Sat Nav but has the old MK4 type "Bee Sting" aerial.

Perhaps this year they have stopped using the window aerial completely. ???

crosstownk

J_R wrote:

Hi,

Think it depends on the year and whither has a factory fitted Sat Nav or phone.

My 2004 MK5 had a VW phone kit and came with a shark fin aerial.

Assume they could not use the window aerial as a combined radio/phone aerial.

Present car, (2006) exact same model but no phone or Sat Nav but has the old MK4 type "Bee Sting" aerial.

Perhaps this year they have stopped using the window aerial completely. ???

This is VW's Triplex antenna which serves 3 purposes - Radio, Navi & Phone. It looks like a regular bee sting and these Triplex antennae are fitted to Mk4 models > http://www.vwnavi.com/vwnavi/forums/showthread.php?t=678

J_R

Hi,

My 2004 car (with phone) did not have a bee sting. Had a neat shark fin like so

zilog_jones

el tel wrote:

My Passat has the RF antenna integrated into the back screen which means I can't pick up Medium or Longwave radio. I had been thinking about fitting a roof-mounted bee sting antenna but can't be sure where the original connection from the window to the radio wiring is located. I don't fancy taking off the headlining and being stumped after that.

Erm, dunno much about car stereos, but any other radio would use a separate aerial for MW/LW. Portable radios and other small things like clock radios generally have a small iron cylinder with copper wire wrapped around it, and hi-fi's generally come with a plastic loop thing with several metres of wire wrapped around it. A small straight or telescopic aerial like those typically used for FM would be pretty useless for anything lower frequency than shortwave radio.

Surely car stereos have an AM aerial somewhere else or even integrated into the stereo unit? I've only taken apart one car stereo and can't remember if there was one in it

el tel

crosstownk wrote:

Just run a new RF cable to the head unit. More hassle, but at least it will definitely work. Be sure to get an amplified roof antenna.

And yes, those antennas built in the rear screens are dreadful for AM reception. So it is quite possible that this is why VW reverted back to the roof antenna. But if thats the case, then why only on the Golf

Thanks for the advice there crosstownk.

crosstownk

zilog_jones wrote:

Surely car stereos have an AM aerial somewhere else or even integrated into the stereo unit? I've only taken apart one car stereo and can't remember if there was one in it

Nope - just the one aerial. Which is why AM reception is quite poor in most cars. Some aerials consist of a 'spiral' of wire which runs up the bee sting mast - and most cars have amplified aerials.