Vent mount for xm receiver

[onesillyracer]

Happy new year everyone! My gf picked up the xm xpress car kit and noticed that a vent mount was not included in my kit(unless im blind and just dont see it). Has anyone had any luck with a vent mount kit or can anyone send me in the right direction where to purchase one? Thanks!

[c-lo]

I'd recommend not using the vent mount kit. moves around too much. myradiostore.com is a great place to go for all things bracket related. one option is putting it in the cubby if you don't have anything in there.

 

 

Happy new year everyone! My gf picked up the xm xpress car kit and noticed that a vent mount was not included in my kit(unless im blind and just dont see it). Has anyone had any luck with a vent mount kit or can anyone send me in the right direction where to purchase one? Thanks!

[CzarDestructo]

I saw some nice mounts on e-bay that are a flexible tube so you can bend and place it where you want, and it mounted into one of the front seat bolts (loosen a single bolt, slide it under the bolt head, tighten). They're like $15 and allow flexibility as to where you want the unit visible.

[legacydispatcher]

I have my Sirius XACT unit in my cubby, but I take mine out every night for safety.

 

 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2303/2069617902_c93ce7d162_o.jpg

[c-lo]

well with all those cables showing I can see why! why not route the cables in from the back? you can close the door and no one will know it's there.

 

I have my Sirius XACT unit in my cubby, but I take mine out every night for safety.

 

 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2303/2069617902_c93ce7d162_o.jpg

[gary_gnu]

There's no easy way to mount the larger XM units in a Legacy. My favorite unit is my Xpress, but it's too tall to fit in the center cubby, and it's too big to use with the vent mount, so I put it in my truck. My RoadyXT looked okay on the vent mount, but i didn't like all the exposed wires, plus it cuts down on the airflow I get in the drivers seat. Also, the display gets kind of washed out if you blow really hot air on it for awhile, like what I do when I get in my cold car in the morning.

 

My wife didn't want to lose the functionality of the center cubby, so I opted for a Sportscaster mounted in the ashtray hole using a custom bracket I fabricated. It looks really good, especially at night, but I'm not completely thrilled with the operation of the Sportscaster. The small display, lack of preset buttons, and random glitches and lockups are kind of annoying. I think the best radio is the XM CommanderMT since it has a small display that can be mounted remotely from the rest of the unit, so it would fit either in the center cubby or in the ashtray hole. The only downside is that it's rather expensive ($150) and I hate to spend that much on a radio until the XM/Sirius merger is resolved.

[TSiWRX]

Like c-lo said, myradiostore.com is a great source for these things. I also shop xmfanstore.com - slightly higher prices on some things, slightly lower on others.

 

I don't like the vent mount for many of the same reasons that gary_gnu cited. In the LGT, I have a Arkon "gooseneck" mount, which I bolted to the passenger seat. I don't yet know if the wifey will mind the intrusion to her legspace (or if I can set the gooseneck so it doesn't intrude as much), since we have not been on any long trips since this install. It is a great place for the mount, for me, though, and with the wires for the unit snaked through the outer sheid, it's essentially a complete hardwire setup (the 12V adapter is snaked through the center console - I snipped the wire from it, and put it back together once I'd passed it through the console; although my wife's power supply is hardwired, I decided that I so rarely will listen to it - since we share the one - and since I had access to that "extra" 12V outlet, that I'd just make-do with the adapter), with no real visible wiring until you get to the unit itself. The only shortcoming of this mount is that it is on the end of a rather long lever-arm, and I do see vibrations, with the severity, of course, based on road-conditions.

 

On the wifey's WRX, I have the XM mounted smack in the middle of her upper center console, right by the hazard light switch, using the standard adhesive-backed swivel mount. It's a good position for the wifey, who likes to scan-over to see what's on the stations, and it's pretty darned steady. It also allows her to view the panel when she's in the passenger's seat - since we often use her car to run errands, together. Although this position still eats into, somewhat, the vent-flow, it's not near as bad as when we had it mounted via the vent clips, which also restricted the vent's directional capabilities severely.

 

If I'd had to install an XM unit into the LGT on a more permanent basis, I'd look towards the Cubbypod solution.

[legacydispatcher]

well with all those cables showing I can see why! why not route the cables in from the back? you can close the door and no one will know it's there.

 

 

I plan on doing that but its cold as hell here in Ohio, and I do not have a heated garage so I'm kinda stuck with the way its run right now until it warms up. I plan on running the wires behind the radio and out between the radio and cubby to have just a limited amount of wires.

 

Plus now I have a GPS to deal with.

[TSiWRX]

^ If you don't have much heat in the garage, I'd definitely wait until it warms up to the mid-50s. Less chances of plastics breaking - as if you haven't ever taken these items apart before, they could be relatively reluctant to come loose.

 

You should only really need to:

 

(1) pop-loose the gearshift/ashtray trim surround

(2) remove the passenger side console upright trim piece

(3) pop-out the cubby

(4) route wires under where the console upright trim used to be, and then snake it up behind the junction between the main center console and the dash, here, you may need to cut and re-splice the wires, depending on the size of your connectors - alternatively, you can route well-behind this area, by utilizing the inboard console kick-panel on the passenger's side, this should allow you to clear the connectors with no problem, no matter their size)

(5) you can tap power for hardwire either via the cigarette lighter or via the auxiliary 12V outlet in the center console armrest area - if you elect to retain the 12V plug for the accessory/accessories, you can still either pass-through or cut-and-splice (of the heads are too big) via the already-present mounting holes for the center console that bolt to the vehicle transmission tunnel.