Whistling antenna

[Tlambert]

At 70 mph, the whistling is so loud it drives me crazy. Any ideas of how to make it stop?

i know remove it!!!

Tom

[Jimmy]

Wind a spiral around it to perturb the air, something like so:

 

 

My antenna doesn't whistle. I wonder if it's broken.

[esty]

is it a familiar tune?

 

[conkitchen]

If it's an after market type, the base may be the problem. The cheap plastic mounting bases often are hollow and open to the air on the backside.  

Mine whistles Dixie, I'm thinking of tearing it down.  

[Conserv]

What brand is it? Where is it attached? Is it firmly attached? Does it make a difference if the antenna is retracted or extended? Antennas were almost always installed by BMW dealers. Thus, brands, models, placement, and quality of installation was all over the board.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

[coloincaalpine RIP 2021]

 

[Lorin]

Are you sure its the antenna?

 

The front hood trim Loves to sing.

[Tlambert]

It’s definitely the antenna, when I put my hand over the top mount it stops!

[dlhoovler]

1 hour ago, Tlambert said:

It’s definitely the antenna, when I put my hand over the top mount it stops!

 

So you fixed it. Just wear gloves in the winter! 

 

?

 

Seriously, since you've isolated the source, I'd suggest looking for other antenna mounts that could be swapped out for yours. What's the style of it? 

 

-Dave 

[Son of Marty]

I'm old enough to remember when they sold antenna lube, sort of a very thick Vaseline, it not only lubed the antenna but also sealed the joints between the sections to reduce whistling and act as a conductor for the antenna ground plain.

[Mike Self]

5 hours ago, Lorin said:

Are you sure its the antenna?

 

The front hood trim Loves to sing.

Not to mention the rain gutter trim...even the beltline molding on both the sides and the hood & trunk, if the end is loose...

 

Now don't laugh, but I did a column on tracking down wind whistles...PM me if you'd like a copy...

 

mike

[Son of Marty]

I'm with Mike track down the noise as there are many places on the left side it could be, my best freind in tracking down wind noise is blue painters tape, start by covering everything that could make noise, then find a place you can drive at the speed that the noise is loudest and start making runs removing a piece of tape at a time until you find the noise.

 

PS wind noise is a bitch, but you can beat it, keeping in mind this is a car built in the 60-70s it's not a 2020 Mercedes.

[PaulTWinterton]

15 hours ago, Tlambert said:

when I put my hand over the top mount it stops!

 

Is the antenna loose in the mount?  You can roll some thin plastic sheet around the antenna to fill the gap in the mount, to stop the vibration.

[Preyupy]

To make sure it's the antenna try a small piece of tape from the window gasket to the antenna.  Sliding a piece of clear tubing over the antenna might change the airflow enough to kill the whistle.  I chased a whistle for a couple of years to find out it was the front trim on the hood would pull away just enough to whistle at 65+mph but would snap back in place when it was stopped so there was no gap.  A new clip under the molding fixed the problem.  

[roadhog0]

My driver mirror whistles at the right speed and temp. Same kinda thing. In your case, I would get some tape out and verify then maybe some clear silicone or similar to block the tiny hole.