SnowWalker
Member
I tried installing CB in my wife's car that has a sun roof. Of course the SWR reading was a nightmare. What would it take to keep the antenna on a car's roof that has a sun roof?
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Ground plane on car with sun roof.
- Thread starter SnowWalker
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TenSleep440
Member
I never had an issue with my wife’s car and her sunroof, antenna was mounted more towards the center of the roof behind the sunroof.
SnowWalker
Member
My wife's car is a Hyundai Accent model, so the roof does not encompass a whole lot of metal surrounding the antenna.
You are kinda screwed, not enough metal for a ground plane at 27 mHz.
The commercial NMO27 may work on a mag mount. Another idea, NMO27 on a 'hood' mount.
The NMO27 seem to work better in poor or lack of groundplane, the other half of the antenna, applications.
W8RMH
Feed Provider Since 2012
This antenna may help:
Laird Technologies C27S
'DC grounded base-loaded antenna. Higher power handling and less ground plane required than standard base loaded antennas. Internal and external contacts are gold plated for best conductivity.'
Laird Technologies C27S
'DC grounded base-loaded antenna. Higher power handling and less ground plane required than standard base loaded antennas. Internal and external contacts are gold plated for best conductivity.'
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
You will never get a perfect ground plane on a passenger vehicle.
Especially on a car that small. Add in a sun roof, and you are stacking the deck against yourself.
But having a good antenna makes a difference. I've put a lot of Larsen NMO-27's on pickups and SUV's and had excellent results, even with less than ideal ground planes. Never had an issue getting them right down to 1.1:1 SWR on the center of the CB band, with about 1.3:1 on channel 1 and 40.
Especially on a car that small. Add in a sun roof, and you are stacking the deck against yourself.
But having a good antenna makes a difference. I've put a lot of Larsen NMO-27's on pickups and SUV's and had excellent results, even with less than ideal ground planes. Never had an issue getting them right down to 1.1:1 SWR on the center of the CB band, with about 1.3:1 on channel 1 and 40.
Hyundai calls it a sunroof, yes. But that's a glass panel, which is what Lincoln Mercury trademarked as a MOONROOF and properly that is still called a moonroof. A sunroof would be less of a problem, as the metal is still capacitively coupled to the rest of the roof. With a glass MOONroof, it simply isn't going to be counterpoise.
What you've got, if you try different locations on the metal aft of the moonroof, is that the A, B, and C pillars will be your effective ground radials connected down to the body of the car. Sometimes a difference of a few inches makes a big SWR difference. Sometimes, the antenna setup or the way you're using the SWR meter is an issue. If it is all unacceptable, look for a "no ground plane" antenna for the car.
What you've got, if you try different locations on the metal aft of the moonroof, is that the A, B, and C pillars will be your effective ground radials connected down to the body of the car. Sometimes a difference of a few inches makes a big SWR difference. Sometimes, the antenna setup or the way you're using the SWR meter is an issue. If it is all unacceptable, look for a "no ground plane" antenna for the car.
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