Satellite Radio Constantly Going In and Out...

Ok, bought my Taco, got 3 months os satellite radio..... it has not been great. Constant in and out, even in nice weather. Since the rest of the radio has been great, thought it was a satellite signal issue.

Got Satellite in the Subaru Forrester, they turned on free Satellite for the rest of the month..... works flawless in the Subaru.... even in heavy rain.

Anyone else notice this?

 

I have satellite in my Taco and my work truck. Haven't had any problems with it driving between Little Rock and Knoxville.

 

That's odd. I have owned multiple cars with satellite both Sirius and XM and the only time I have reception issues is when there is something above me. i.e. going under a bridge/overpass... Most of the time, while traveling at highway speed, the signal holds but occasionally there will be a short dead spot. There is one overpass I go under on a regular basis that the signal gets lost every time. I can't figure out what it is about that one overpass - but it has been the same with all of my cars. HTH

 

I have the same problem. I added XM to my matrix and I'm thinking I may take the receiver out of it. I definitely lose reception in more places with the Taco. I wonder if there is an antenna upgrade or something?

Steve

 

Mine cuts out constantly in NH. Even if I am on the highway with no mountains around.

 

Trees and buildings, happens constantly.

 

As I understand it, the main transmitting satellite is in a stationary orbit basically over Texas, so the signal comes from a southern direction.
That might explain some cut-outs of the signal if there is an obstruction in that direction.
Going towards Knoxville on I-40, I will lose my signal when the road is close to hills on the south side of the highway. Just something to consider...

 

I have SXM in both my Taco and our '15 golf sportwagen. The golf almost never loses reception, neither did our old jetta. In the Taco, if you can even see a tree near you, it cuts out.

It's the biggest downfall of my truck so far.

 

Have a roof rack or anything else that might block the signal? The FJC's have a horrid issue with sat reception with the factory roof rack option, the idiot designers/engineers placed the antenna almost directly below the thing. I didn't get the rack and have no issue with reception with the FJ.

 

Nope, straight off the line with no roof accessories.

 

I've found for whatever reason the factory antenna is worse than the Sirius antenna you can buy as an add on. This is on my 09 so not sure if it applies and don't have any reasonable explanation for it.

 

So the thing about XM radio...

VW and some other manufacturers use the "Sirius" side of SiriusXM, and Toyota uses the (better performing and definitely better sounding, usually) XM side of Sirius XM.

There are 2 platforms in orbit that provide this service, 1 is geostationary over the US, 1 is in a (directionally) pole orbit around the earth. They merged companies but did not switch off one or the other's platform. You will notice much better sound quality (lots of high notes and less compression noise) on the XM platform as opposed to the Sirius platform. Sirius is just awful, IMHO. It sounds very AM radioish.

And if I recall correctly, XM is the only one that has terrestrial repeaters near metro areas. I do not recall the range of such repeaters, however the difference in behavior between going under one overpass and another could be that very difference.

Toyota's XM receivers antennas aren't the greatest design (I hate the shark fin, personally, a separate flat button design would be preferable) but they shouldn't be awful, if you're having serious (no pun intended) issues I'd recommend doing a refresh of your subscription and/or be sure your antenna cable isn't loose or potentially intermittently shorted anywhere.

 

Nothing on the roof.

 

I have the same issue, I actually was searching to see if there was some type of upgrade for the antenna. Going under overpasses isn't that big a deal (although I don't understand how some aren't bothered and are almost like tunnels and others are 60 feet above the truck and it cuts out? Wondered if it was something to do with a steel bridge vs a concrete one? But there are a few places by me that it is out for a few miles...

 

Its due to the constant sun spots

 

No problems. Have had it since Oct. Have had it in my Avalon for 3+ years, also perfect and Prius before that. Sure, there is the occasional moutain, tall building or overpass, but that is normal and barely lasts any amount of time. Maybe a loose connection somewhere.

 

I had two spots in my usual commutes that would lose signal briefly in my '14 Wrangler. On the same routes I'm losing signal more often in my Tacoma, though I'm not bothered by it. It gives me a good excuse to save money and not pay for the sub. The pandora app and HD radio is awesome in this truck.

 

Have it in our 16 Taco and our 16 RAV4 and hasn't missed a beat....excuse the pun

 

I truly agree, but we all know sun spots are caused by global warming.

 

This happens to me too. I've had Sirius for over 10 years, in 3 other vehicles and no issues. The Tacoma is XM, even though they merged several years ago I wonder if that has anything to do with it? It also lacks features that previous radios had including favorite song/artist alerts.