Deja Vu

Well I came out to the car to get in and looked at the roof and low and behold but what do I find????

A counterfeit antenna! Someone STOLE my antenna.

BEFORE



AFTER



Notice the distinct change in color from Black to Bronze. Cheap imitation of the real thing.

Oh, I know it did Grow another magnetic antenna but thats not part of the story.

I was SO MAD THAT I .................................









just went online and ordered a new stubby from MiniMania. I didn't yell at the wife since SHE had the car last nor did I steal my neighbors nor have a violent fit of temper ... after all, its a tiny hunk of metal. I must be getting old ...

BUT, who would ripoff a little black antenna and REPLACE it with a little bronze one?

 

Some one that bought a cheap-knock off and didn't like it.

 

Is the antena's color just fading in the sun? Possibly?

 

I had the exact same thought. What are the chances that someone either

A :: Walks around and just happens to have a fitting antenna replacement at hand, paired with the intent for criminal action.

B :: Stakes out your MINI and hatches the plan to purchase a cheap look-alike only to wait for his chance to save a few bucks.



How is the reception? Did it change for sure?

®

 

Good questions. But no.

The color is definitely not black.

When I went to unscrew it to look at it, it was loose (hmm).

The shape of the base looks different. Bottom one is a straight slope. Old one looks like two angles

 

More good questions.

A. Dunno, sounds strange to me

B. My wife says she took it to the "mall", parked far away in the back for a long walk in. She did notice coming back to the car another car parked a row behind her with the engine running and people looking at the MINI. Did they do it? Dunno. Could me absolutely nothing.

Yes, first thing I checked was reception. I found the Minimania stubby to give excellent reception, as good or better on FM than the OEM. This one has more static in it.

 

I dont know about you guys, but i have the mini mania stubby that looks just like that. After a while it certainly did change to a bronze/red/black comb....i let it just go not knowing what to do and it got very close to being almost silver. I grabbed a spray paint can and just sprayed it again. It has been fine ever since.

If its a different shape (sorta looks like it is), then someone stole it. But my mini mania one (which was REAL ) did change colors in the sun/weather.

 

Really??? it changed from black to Bronze (pic might not do it justice but its a dark bronze, no longer black.)

Please don't tell me that because Now I got to get my $25 back from minimania for a new one!

If only I had a way to take a survey!

 

Mine was black for about a year...then i noticed that it was a bronze color with sorta a red tint. I park my car outside every day, and its a daily driver so it sees all sorts of weather. I ordered from mini mania back in 2002 right when i got the car. I painted it, and havent had problems since...although a rock hit it once (but what are the chances of that happening again )

 

Is that the same antenna as the Alta stubby?
case my alta one has been black since the day I bought it...

 

If the antenna is made of aluminum and anodized black, it is only a matter of time before it starts fading in the sun. Depending on the process, it will turn red, blue, bronze or some other dull color, eventually turning silver.

The best thing to do in that case is shoot it with some paint, that will actually outlast the anodized color.

 

I agree with everything said here....mine was a bit reddish

 

that looks like an Onstar antenna

 

did it change at all after the change in color!!!!

 

I get the XM antenna but what is the other big disk antenna?

 

I may be looking at this a little differently but they could have left you with at stump. It appears as tho they had the courtesy of replacing it. (be it a cheap knock off). Maybe one of the nicest theifs I have heard of.

 

No doubt.


They just stole my stock one and didn't replace it. Cost me 32 bucks at the parts counter for another.

note to self....

thread lock

 

GPS

 

Didn't someone just post around here that they got their antenna stolen, so they took someone else's?

I think I'm going to ink-bomb mine, and put a snare-trap on it.

 

Yup. At least chows4us hasn't chosen to be as lame as this guy.

 

that was me....I heard the honda stub is cheaper...

 

Not that anything is quite as cheap as ripping off someone else's antenna.

 

can we keep the beat down to just one thread?


thanks.


now, back to me whining about getting my antenna stolen too....

 

My wife works at Honda, and got me a S2000 stubby. $16 I think she said it was. I'm not impressed with it though, and put my stock antenna back on for radio performance reasons.

 

see, maybe its an epidemic.

When my new minimania stubby arrives, I will physically compare the two. Maybe the old one is weathered but I really dont know yet