installing satellite radio (or other aux input) via FM direct adapter

[crackers8199]

last week, i finally found antenna adapters that will fit the model 3's fm radio - this is significant because it allows you (with the following instructions) to install either the sirius xm FM direct adapter and get clear satellite radio sound without having to mess around with trying to find a clear frequency...or, theoretically, install something like this to add an aux input for anything else to the model 3.

for anyone who doesn't already know, the FM radio unit is in the passenger C-pillar. the following video will show you how to pull the trim down to access it (at around 9:19):

once you access this, you will need to do two things...first, you will need to disconnect both connectors to the radio unit (both black and white). second, you will need to connect the cable with the white connector to the following adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PJX5611/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

the plug from that adapter then goes to the "from FM antenna" jack on the FM direct adapter (or aux input adapter). then, the output from the FM direct adapter goes to this adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PHW5J6C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

the jack on this adapter should fit the FM radio unit that the white connection was originally connected to. in order for this to work, you need to leave the black ribbon connector disconnected. in the following picture (which is my unit after installing it), you can see that i have taped this to the body of the car with some electrical tape to keep it out of the way and prevent it from getting damaged just hanging there:

from there, i zip-tied the connected wires to the wire on the bottom of the FM radio as shown here:

back towards the rear windshield, there is a little cubby that you can tuck the body of the FM direct adapter into. from there, you can lift the seatbelt trim piece up and out so that you can route the wire towards the front under it:

the following video shows you how to pull that trim piece out (around 10:10):

once you have it out, you can just kinda lift it up towards the roof of the car and nudge the tabs outward onto the rear deck (so that you can slide the wire under it), as shown here:

after that, the wire can be routed down behind the side trim and under the rear seat, just as jon did in his video here (7:15):

from there, the wire runs to the front of the car exactly as he did in his video, but in reverse (he started in the front of the car, we're starting in the back). you can just tuck it under the side trim along the side of the car. one catch: you will probably need to get a 2.5mm extension cable, similar to this one. the cable from the FM direct adapter was only long enough to make it to just past the rear seat, i had to connect the extension cable to go the rest of the way.

once i got the cable behind the console, i pulled the console out using the instructions that are available here. i drilled a hole using a 1/2" bit in the lower right corner of the console to feed the wires into the front cubby - this was slightly too small, so my friend helped me enlarge it a bit by just drilling around a bit with the 1/2" bit. once the hole was drilled, i fed the wires through and added a grommet to finish it off a bit. unfortunately i did nick the interior felt a little bit, which annoys the hell out of me...but it's not horribly noticeable unless i shine light on it. the grommet covers most of it up.

i used this mount:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0057QYF2G/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

the dashboard disc is stuck to the side wall of the front cubby, and then the arm is mounted on that. this is the final result:

i can reach the buttons, but i prefer to use the remote.

if anyone has any questions or if i missed anything, let me know and i'll do my best to answer them.

 

[crackers8199]

mods, i was trying to edit this but apparently the time limit has expired? i was trying to cut the video clips out to only link to the video once with the three timestamps (since apparently the link with timestamps didn't work, as i can only see the video starting at the beginning three times...this is of course redundant because it's the same video each time, i was just trying to show a few different timestamps).

there's also a broken image at the bottom that i was trying to get rid of, just before the last image. can someone assist?

edit: also, credit (and huge thank you) to @jonco223 for his youtube videos on removing trim pieces and routing wires.

 

[BioSehnsucht]

mods, i was trying to edit this but apparently the time limit has expired? i was trying to cut the video clips out to only link to the video once with the three timestamps (since apparently the link with timestamps didn't work, as i can only see the video starting at the beginning three times...this is of course redundant because it's the same video each time, i was just trying to show a few different timestamps).

there's also a broken image at the bottom that i was trying to get rid of, just before the last image. can someone assist?

edit: also, credit (and huge thank you) to @jonco223 for his youtube videos on removing trim pieces and routing wires.

For future reference, this is why when I want to link to videos with timestamps I just use a word(s), highlight it, then use the link button (7th from the left on the buttons above the edit box) to insert a text link. Then when you click the linked word(s) you will go to the intended timestamp, because you're opening a link and not letting the forum software turn it into an embedded video (which probably COULD support time stamps, but the forum doesn't seem to do so).

 

[BioSehnsucht]

...

the jack on this adapter should fit the FM radio unit that the white connection was originally connected to. in order for this to work, you need to leave the black ribbon connector disconnected. in the following picture (which is my unit after installing it), you can see that i have taped this to the body of the car with some electrical tape to keep it out of the way and prevent it from getting damaged just hanging there:

...

Any idea why you have to unplug that black connector, and what it's for ? That seems really odd...

After you do this, HD Radio reception still works? How do you set what frequency the direct injector uses?

 

[crackers8199]

Any idea why you have to unplug that black connector, and what it's for ? That seems really odd...

no clue, but with the black connector still attached there were some strong stations that the xm feed wouldn't override. with that disconnected, it works universally no matter what frequency I set it to. I have it set to 88.1 now and leave it alone...but it works on any frequency I've tested (including those that have a known strong signal in the area). with the xm on, I hear xm. if I turn it off, I get fm back.

After you do this, HD Radio reception still works? How do you set what frequency the direct injector uses?

yes it works, but the range seems reduced a bit. that's one downside. the frequency is set by the xm radio, in it's settings (I believe the other fm modulator option I linked to has a switch on the hardware itself to control it)...

 

[BioSehnsucht]

no clue, but with the black connector still attached there were some strong stations that the xm feed wouldn't override. with that disconnected, it works universally no matter what frequency I set it to. I have it set to 88.1 now and leave it alone...but it works on any frequency I've tested (including those that have a known strong signal in the area). with the xm on, I hear xm. if I turn it off, I get fm back.



yes it works, but the range seems reduced a bit. that's one downside. the frequency is set by the xm radio, in it's settings (I believe the other fm modulator option I linked to has a switch on the hardware itself to control it)...

Ah, I bet that there is some kind of FM pre-amp or similar somewhere then and the black connector powers it, and with it unpowered the FM injector is able to completely override the FM signal (would also explain the loss of range with it disconnected).

I suppose a slightly more fancy solution would have some kind of gizmo between that and the radio that could be switched on/off in tandem with your Sirius device so that when you're trying to use the FM radio, it gets full power, and when not, it interrupts the connection to let Sirius through better. You might only need to interrupt one or two wires though which might let you use an off the shelf relay module with a manual switch to operate it next to your Sirius controller, though getting it to be fully automatic might be complicated.

 

[TomT]

Yes, that powers the antenna preamplifier. FM reception will definitely take a hit without it powered.

Ah, I bet that there is some kind of FM pre-amp or similar somewhere then and the black connector powers it, and with it unpowered the FM injector is able to completely override the FM signal (would also explain the loss of range with it disconnected).

 

[crackers8199]

Ah, I bet that there is some kind of FM pre-amp or similar somewhere then and the black connector powers it, and with it unpowered the FM injector is able to completely override the FM signal (would also explain the loss of range with it disconnected).

I suppose a slightly more fancy solution would have some kind of gizmo between that and the radio that could be switched on/off in tandem with your Sirius device so that when you're trying to use the FM radio, it gets full power, and when not, it interrupts the connection to let Sirius through better. You might only need to interrupt one or two wires though which might let you use an off the shelf relay module with a manual switch to operate it next to your Sirius controller, though getting it to be fully automatic might be complicated.

Yes, that powers the antenna preamplifier. FM reception will definitely take a hit without it powered.

that would make sense. i have known for a while that there was an antenna amp somewhere (it's in the parts catalog), i just didn't know where it was.

either way, i'm ok for now with the reception hit on FM since XM is now perfectly clear all the time...with XM and streaming available i can't see myself using FM very often, if ever. if anyone comes up with a solution that allows for the pre-amp to be powered and still have XM cut the FM signal regardless, i'll probably install it whenever it becomes available...but for now, this works for me.

also of note: in my picture of the back where i tucked the wire under the seatbelt trim, you can also see the XM antenna there - it works just fine right there. you don't need to try to get it outside the car (which of course would be problematic because the roof is glass and the magnetic XM antenna won't stick to it)...it works fine inside. the only thing i might try to do at some point is move it over to the center, but i'm not sure that's even worth the effort because it has been nearly perfect right where i have it. there is the occasional dropout if i'm up against a hill in the direction of the satellites or under an overpass, but nothing crazy...

 

[sduck]

This is great! A working aux input solution. I've just put the parts in my amazon basket. Thanks!

 

[ECCtechguy]

This is also a great option !

https://www.amazon.com/SiriusXM-Commander-Full-Color-Touchscreen-Dash-Mounted/dp/B016NXEBU2

 

[crackers8199]

This is also a great option !

https://www.amazon.com/SiriusXM-Commander-Full-Color-Touchscreen-Dash-Mounted/dp/B016NXEBU2

i thought about going with that one too, but i didn't like the lack of presets and wasn't sure if i could find a good spot to mount it. i'm really happy for the most part with the way the onyx sits inside the middle cubby, and i can easily close the lid over it to protect it when i park (so you can't see that there's anything there)...

also, IIRC the commander is significantly more involved as far as installing it because of the power requirement. you will need to either tap into wires somewhere or run a new 12v switched wire to VC left or similar, as it's not as simple as a 12v adapter like the onyx.

 

[crackers8199]

fun fact about this solution that i discovered tonight: if you're in an area with a strong HD signal on the station you use, the FM direct adapter can't override it. i had to tap the HD logo to turn off HD in order to get the XM signal to override the FM signal.

 

[BioSehnsucht]

Funny, but it makes sense. HD Radio is broadcast just above/below the normal analog channel frequency, so if the FM injector doesn't block out those frequencies the car will happily pick up the HD broadcast that surrounds it and have no clue that they are different sources.

 

[crackers8199]

Funny, but it makes sense. HD Radio is broadcast just above/below the normal analog channel frequency, so if the FM injector doesn't block out those frequencies the car will happily pick up the HD broadcast that surrounds it and have no clue that they are different sources.

interesting, i did not know that. while turning off HD did bring back the XM signal (so it did allow for the override), it seemed there was at least a little bit of interference...so this may not be 100% static-free if there's an extremely strong signal in the area (although it did not ever allow the FM signal to return, so at least you won't have it cut out completely). solution is to just have a few different presets to try, i guess...it's not a perfect solution, but it's way better than the FM transmitter in the onyx without having the antenna cutout. without the antenna adapters, i literally couldn't find a single frequency that would work in the OC / long beach area. with the antenna adapter, i had just the little bit of static with the HD frequency and perfectly clear when i moved just a bit up the dial to 88.3 instead of 88.1.

 

[Steve Holtam]

I installed all of the above as mentioned. It works pretty good, but not perfect. First, there are no empty local stations in Sacramento. I picked the weakest to broadcast over. 75% of the time is sounds okay. Not perfectly clear, but better than without the XMDA. But about 25% of the time the radio comes through at various strengths. Sometimes just a bit of static, other times clear as day, fully surpassing XM. It almost feels like it has something to do with the car, or the cars motion. Just a bit of feedback.

 

[crackers8199]

I installed all of the above as mentioned. It works pretty good, but not perfect. First, there are no empty local stations in Sacramento. I picked the weakest to broadcast over. 75% of the time is sounds okay. Not perfectly clear, but better than without the XMDA. But about 25% of the time the radio comes through at various strengths. Sometimes just a bit of static, other times clear as day, fully surpassing XM. It almost feels like it has something to do with the car, or the cars motion. Just a bit of feedback.

two things to check: are you sure you left the amp disconnected? and are you sure you have HD turned off?

i'm in the LA area, so there's almost no chance i have somehow found an open frequency here but there are none available in sacramento.

radio locator says 107.9 should be empty or close to it (and limited interference on 107.7). i'd give those two a shot.

Vacant Channel Search Results

 

[crackers8199]

i wrote this up on my blog, in case anyone wants a clearer picture (with links to the timestamps i'm referring to in the video for each point)...plus, i can edit this as time goes on if i find new information:

Installing SiriusXM Satellite Radio in a Tesla Model 3

 

[PhilCaps]

last week, i finally found antenna adapters that will fit the model 3's fm radio - this is significant because it allows you (with the following instructions) to install either the sirius xm FM direct adapter and get clear satellite radio sound without having to mess around with trying to find a clear frequency...or, theoretically, install something like this to add an aux input for anything else to the model 3.

for anyone who doesn't already know, the FM radio unit is in the passenger C-pillar. the following video will show you how to pull the trim down to access it (at around 9:19):

once you access this, you will need to do two things...first, you will need to disconnect both connectors to the radio unit (both black and white). second, you will need to connect the cable with the white connector to the following adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PJX5611/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

the plug from that adapter then goes to the "from FM antenna" jack on the FM direct adapter (or aux input adapter). then, the output from the FM direct adapter goes to this adapter:

Amazon.com

the jack on this adapter should fit the FM radio unit that the white connection was originally connected to. in order for this to work, you need to leave the black ribbon connector disconnected. in the following picture (which is my unit after installing it), you can see that i have taped this to the body of the car with some electrical tape to keep it out of the way and prevent it from getting damaged just hanging there:

from there, i zip-tied the connected wires to the wire on the bottom of the FM radio as shown here:

back towards the rear windshield, there is a little cubby that you can tuck the body of the FM direct adapter into. from there, you can lift the seatbelt trim piece up and out so that you can route the wire towards the front under it:

the following video shows you how to pull that trim piece out (around 10:10):

once you have it out, you can just kinda lift it up towards the roof of the car and nudge the tabs outward onto the rear deck (so that you can slide the wire under it), as shown here:

after that, the wire can be routed down behind the side trim and under the rear seat, just as jon did in his video here (7:15):

from there, the wire runs to the front of the car exactly as he did in his video, but in reverse (he started in the front of the car, we're starting in the back). you can just tuck it under the side trim along the side of the car. one catch: you will probably need to get a 2.5mm extension cable, similar to this one. the cable from the FM direct adapter was only long enough to make it to just past the rear seat, i had to connect the extension cable to go the rest of the way.

once i got the cable behind the console, i pulled the console out using the instructions that are available here. i drilled a hole using a 1/2" bit in the lower right corner of the console to feed the wires into the front cubby - this was slightly too small, so my friend helped me enlarge it a bit by just drilling around a bit with the 1/2" bit. once the hole was drilled, i fed the wires through and added a grommet to finish it off a bit. unfortunately i did nick the interior felt a little bit, which annoys the hell out of me...but it's not horribly noticeable unless i shine light on it. the grommet covers most of it up.

i used this mount:

Amazon.com

the dashboard disc is stuck to the side wall of the front cubby, and then the arm is mounted on that. this is the final result:

i can reach the buttons, but i prefer to use the remote.

if anyone has any questions or if i missed anything, let me know and i'll do my best to answer them.

hows this set up working for you?

 

[crackers8199]

hows this set up working for you?

been flawless for 3+ years. the only change i've made since originally writing this is that i have completely disconnected the model 3 antenna adapter and antenna amplifier, because i don't use FM at all (and even if i want to, it still picks up some stations). the sound quality isn't perfect, but it's good enough (and better than the silence i'd otherwise have around my house where there's no cell signal).

one note: i did test the roady BT last week...that seemed to have even better sound quality than the onyx. i'm not sure if that's placebo, but i may actually switch to it at some point in the future if it goes on sale (it's not worth $100, but if it goes on sale for $50 or $60 i'd probably switch to it for the magnetic mount and one wire solution. the roady BT has bluetooth available too, but i didn't love that solution because it would always connect to my phone first if the car was asleep when i got in...i would rather keep the FM ability to just get in and go and have the XM come on as soon as i pull out of the garage.

i actually did just buy a USB 12v adapter and harness to finally move the XM power supply behind the dash instead of inside the console like it is on this post...i'll write up a new post once i install that later this week. it'll also let me get fast charging to my wireless pad in the phone dock.

 

[PhilCaps]

been flawless for 3+ years. the only change i've made since originally writing this is that i have completely disconnected the model 3 antenna adapter and antenna amplifier, because i don't use FM at all (and even if i want to, it still picks up some stations). the sound quality isn't perfect, but it's good enough (and better than the silence i'd otherwise have around my house where there's no cell signal).

one note: i did test the roady BT last week...that seemed to have even better sound quality than the onyx. i'm not sure if that's placebo, but i may actually switch to it at some point in the future if it goes on sale (it's not worth $100, but if it goes on sale for $50 or $60 i'd probably switch to it for the magnetic mount and one wire solution. the roady BT has bluetooth available too, but i didn't love that solution because it would always connect to my phone first if the car was asleep when i got in...i would rather keep the FM ability to just get in and go and have the XM come on as soon as i pull out of the garage.

i actually did just buy a USB 12v adapter and harness to finally move the XM power supply behind the dash instead of inside the console like it is on this post...i'll write up a new post once i install that later this week. it'll also let me get fast charging to my wireless pad in the phone dock.

thats great. I just intstalled an siriusxm oynx ezr. I only connected the FM direct adapter (to fm radio cable) to the m3 FM radio (replaced the white plug) and it seems to be working great.

is the m3 antenna adapter the black cable going into the FM radio?

also where is the anetnna ampilifier?