cheesypoof

I have a 2001 A4 1.8TQ with the stock Symphony stereo (non-Bose).

The radio will not tune any stations (FM or AM) when the car is started when it is hot inside (after being parked in the sun all day). The radio will only work after running the AC to cool down the interior of the car, then turning the car off and starting it again. It never starts working again without turning the car off completely.

It has been doing this every summer for the last 3 years, but seems to be getting worse. The radio works perfectly all fall/winter/spring and only has problems on the hottest days of the summer when the car has been parked outside all day.

The CD player works fine even when the car is hot.

I bought a refurb radio from ECS and installed it and it has exactly the same problem. What are the chances of getting a second radio with the exact same problem? Makes me think that it might be something to do with the antennae in the car.

Any ideas?

Is there any circuitry between the antennae and the radio? Could it be a loose connector somewhere that expands and contracts with the heat?

AudiMick

Antenna is embedded in the windshield and has an amp, do you have tinted windows sometimes the tint causes a leak and maybe heat is making it worse.

Either that or the amp is bad.

turbo510

Two units doing the exact same thing means the problem is elsewhere in all likelihood. It does seem like an antenna problem, maybe the amplifier (which is in the driver's B-pillar I've heard). Try using an aftermarket antenna plugged into the stereo head unit to see if you get reception when hot.

cheesypoof

No, I don't have tinted windows.

The antenna amplifier makes a lot of sense. I will try to find a used amp and replace it.

According to a few searches, It looks like the antenna amp may be behind the headliner near the rear window on a B5 A4. Hope I don't have to pull out the whole headliner to get to it.

Thanks for your help!

mtroxel

Mr. Bentley says it's behind the D pillar.

cheesypoof

Thanks. To remove the D-pillar trim, do I just grab it and pull, or is there a screw? I tried pulling it off but was afraid to use too much force.

Thanks again for the help.

mtroxel

cheesypoof

I removed the antenna amplifier that is under the driver's side D-pillar trim. It is a little orange box about the size of a matchbox car.

With the amp removed, the radio still does exactly the same thing. I get FM radio just fine unless the car is hot. However, the AM radio doesn't work at all.

I expected that the FM radio would not work at all with the amp removed, so this must not be the right amp.

I am thinking that this amp is only for the AM frequencies and there must be another amp for FM somewhere else?

I searched the Bentley manual and could only find references to the amp in the left D-pillar.

Does anyone know if there is another antenna amp somewhere that I should look for?

AudiMick

I think there is only one amp, it's probably tuned to only boost the AM signal .FM is just a passthru.

On my TT I have hardly any AM reception because of Window Tint but FM comes in loud and clear.