MINI has made a change that you may not like - I know I don't. The combination/integrated AM/FM/Sirius antenna that has been offered since MINI released the Sirius tuner is now defunct. The new OEM Sirius kits have a black magnetic "wart" that mounts (per MINI instructions) in a very obvious and unattractive spot on the coupes which is roughly parallel to the factory AM/FM antenna base, and half way between the base and the side rain gutter on either the left or right side of the roof depending on whether you have H/K or not.

I'm not sure of the reason for the change, and it may not be a big deal to those that have black roofs, but it is an eyesore on any of the light colored roofs. It may or may not work mounted directly behind the factory antenna base but if installed by the dealer it will be out in the middle of the roof.

 

I am not sure if it is the same antenna that is sold with the sirius sportster, but if it is it does work fine behind the regular antenna.
Thats where mine is placed

 

In my built-in-Oct.-'06 MC (non-S), I discovered a curious thing when poking around in the passenger-side boot cubbyhole that the OEM Sirius tuner/CD changer is usually installed.

The pre-wiring lead & plug for either unit is there as it should be, as is one bare threaded mounting stud (didn't see the other). But there's a second, smaller bare lead & plug taped to the tuner-changer lead, and it's terminated with what looks suspiciously like a satellite antenna plug (small, almost square). I'm not completely sure that that's what it is, though, since I don't have a Sirius tuner to plug it into -- but the plug is very much like the one in the Jeep I owned before the MINI (I'd installed an aftermarket Sirius tuner, etc in the Jeep).

Could it be that late-'06 MCs have the combo AM/FM/Satellite antenna installed as standard, ESPECIALLY since MINI is throwing some normally optional equipment on the last '06s to get rid of the spare parts before the '07s arrive?

 

I think what you are referring to is the CD changer wiring plug. That's the plug that my Blitzsafe for my XM plugged into.

 

So, Crashton, what you're saying is that one plug is meant for one unit and the other for another? The larger plug is what connects to the OEM CD changer, and the smaller one to the OEM Sirius tuner, and both lead to the factory HU?

That doesn't make sense. You can't have both mounted there, so why have the leads for both leading there? And it's my understanding that when a CD changer and OEM Sirius tuner are controlled simultaneously from the stock non-HK HU, it's via a pass-through in the Sirius tuner, NOT a separate proprietary plug.

 

No - Both plugs are used for the CD Changer. I believe that the Sirius tuner has a pass through connection meaning if you have both the Changer and Sirius, you would connect the factory wiring to the Sirius receiver and then use another set of cables included with the Sirius receiver to connect it to the CD changer.

 

[FONT='Times New Roman']Got it. Dang; I'd thought that I'd gotten lucky with the antenna in my '06 MC. Thanks for the clarification, pjschaeffer.[/FONT]