2012 Ford Fusion 3-Radio Setup

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SimpleSkye

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Consists of the following:

2012 Ford Fusion Sport
VHF XTL5000 (Laird BB1360WS 136-174 Wideband VHF Antenna)
UHF XPR5550 (Laird ETRAB4503 450-470 Phantom Elite Antenna)
7/8 APX6500 (Laird ETRAB7603 760-870 Phantom Elite and Laird GPSU15M GPS Antennas)
PanaVise 12" Stay-Put Flex Mount

All the control head wiring is under the carpet. The speakers are on the firewall of the passenger footwell. The VHF mic is run directly to the radio deck in the back. Apparently, you can't do that with the APX series, so I had to plug the extension directly into the front. Not as clean, but better than nothing. The XPR mic is also head-based. I ended up anchoring the flex arm to the side of the center console so it wouldn't wobble.<br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion01-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br /><br />
I have a sunroof, so most of the antennas are on the trunk.<br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion02-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion03-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion04-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br /><br />
A buddy of mine made the brackets for the control heads and seat mount. <br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion05-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion06-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio"><br /><br /><br />
I was a little concerned about the SWR for the VHF on the trunk, but it swept around 1.5 or better from 144-174. The others swept around 2, which is normal for the Phantoms.<br />
<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion07-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio">
 

mmckenna

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Looks nice.

I've had really good performance from the 1/4 wave antennas on VHF. I'm running Larsen NMOWB's on my personal and work truck. I'm seeing similar SWR curves as yours.
 

norcalscan

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Nice install! Norcal representing with some real radios and real antenna mounting. My wife's car is a newer model Fusion so we have the odd storage scoop pocket in the front dash that some here squeeze in a small VHF, but alas no radios allowed anyway. I'm relegated to HT and magmounts if we use it on any trips. When the 700 system comes online you'll be ready.
 

SimpleSkye

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Thanks!

Thank you everyone for your kind words!

Edit: I ment to say that the APX microphone is plugged into the head since it won't work if you plug it directly into the TIB.

When the 700 system comes online you'll be ready.

Yeah! At the rate it is going, it will be second half of next year before anything is turned on; Chico hasn't even broken ground yet! A few of "us" have the APXs installed in our POVs, a couple others are kicking the tires...
 

kayn1n32008

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The control head bracket, did you fabricate it, or was that something off the shelf purchased?

Very nice install. My preference is always to mount antennas on the roof, but with the sunroof that complicates things.
 

SimpleSkye

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The control head bracket, did you fabricate it, or was that something off the shelf purchased?

Very nice install. My preference is always to mount antennas on the roof, but with the sunroof that complicates things.

A buddy of my fabricated it; I can probably get the SolidWorks file he made if you are interested.

I agree roof mounted antennas are the ideal way to go. The performance doesn't seem to have suffered and it is much lower profile this way. I was really surprised that the sweeps were so good; I thought we were doing something wrong, so we moved the antennas to the roof of a SUV and re-swept them with near-identical results. The VHF antenna doesn't hit when the trunk is open. Plus, the wife said "It looks nice." and still likes to drive it around!

<img src="https://jakeguild.com/assets/fusion02b-min.jpg" alt="Ford Fusion Ham Radio Antennas">
 

crazyboy

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Thank you everyone for your kind words!



Edit: I ment to say that the APX microphone is plugged into the head since it won't work if you plug it directly into the TIB.







Yeah! At the rate it is going, it will be second half of next year before anything is turned on; Chico hasn't even broken ground yet! A few of "us" have the APXs installed in our POVs, a couple others are kicking the tires...



You could wire it into the rear accessory connector. Great install though.
 

kayn1n32008

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A buddy of my fabricated it; I can probably get the SolidWorks file he made if you are interested.



I agree roof mounted antennas are the ideal way to go. The performance doesn't seem to have suffered and it is much lower profile this way. I was really surprised that the sweeps were so good; I thought we were doing something wrong, so we moved the antennas to the roof of a SUV and re-swept them with near-identical results. The VHF antenna doesn't hit when the trunk is open. Plus, the wife said "It looks nice." and still likes to drive it around!



They will be somewhat directional on the trunk lid especially on VHF. Likely not a problem until you start getting a ways out from the repeaters. It will be noticeable when working simplex.


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SimpleSkye

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You could wire it into the rear accessory connector. Great install though.

Thanks! I don't know how I would get the GCAI connector to plug into the accessory connector. I can't find an adapter or cable anywhere, and I don't really want to cut up a $50 extension cable either...
 

crazyboy

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Thanks! I don't know how I would get the GCAI connector to plug into the accessory connector. I can't find an adapter or cable anywhere, and I don't really want to cut up a $50 extension cable either...



Yea, you’d have to chop it up put pins on it and inset them into the accessory connectors.
 

Skypilot007

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Very nice. One question, does the control heads interfere with your passengers seat space? I was considering a mount like that but I frequently have passengers in and out of my car.
 

radio3353

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Very nice! So good to see people using commercial radios instead of the consumer crap (Whistler & Uniden) peddled today.
 

03msc

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Very nice! So good to see people using commercial radios instead of the consumer crap (Whistler & Uniden) peddled today.

I agree it's great to use commercial radios when you can. However, the scanners from Uniden and Whistler (which actually get pretty dang good reviews despite your claim of them being crap) definitely have their place as most people cannot monitor the systems they want to monitor with a commercial radio since they aren't authorized to do so. :wink:
 
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