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Right, next instalment in my stupid questions campaign. I beg your tolerance, I'm working back through 27 years of car here

Right, firstly I was a bit confused by the aerial on the car. The actual mast had been snapped at some point, only had the bottom two "joints" left but it definitely seemed to be electric. There's no aerial switch in the car to raise it though. I thought FBs had a switch with a little umbrella-like pictogram on them for the electric aerial? Or was this only on S1 or 2 and the S3 were automatic? Anyway, it didn't bloody work and the radio didn't find any stations even with the two joints that were left extended.

Since I had the boot trim and lights out smegging around trying to get my spoiler sorted, I took the opportunity to strip it out and I found this;


Is this a standard thing? It looks like a generic electric aftermarket job to me. It was properly bodged, the only things "holding" it in place were some cable ties through the fender structure webs and the nut fastening the mast to its mount The red Halfrauds crimp connectors hint at home-build bodgery too. It wasn't connected, the actual aerial wire was but not the power connectors and nothing seems suitable amongst the spurious connectors dangling like yesterdays noodles in the boot Certainly, I tried plugging it in to the most likely ones... but nothing. It's shuffled off this mortal coil. It is an ex-aerial.

TBH, I never listen to the radio in the car anyway so I'm gonna lose it and plug the hole, but I'm just curious if it's a standard object, and if so why it was such a lash-up. Any opinions?


Secondly, the other side of the boot is my colostomy bag errr, sorry, washer bottle Weird old thing that is. Anyway, it doesn't work either. I took it all to bits and tried to flush the bag and tubing out of all the brown gunge and slime that had congealed in there over the years, which isn't easy to say the least. The motor I took apart and cleaned up, it seems fine, a but grubby but it seems to spin OK and that. It just doesn't work. So, how do you actually activate it? Neither the rear wiper switch nor the only-other-switch-I-don't-know-what-it-does, next to the wiper switch in the centre console seem to make it spin. How do you actually scooosh the window? Keep the wiper switch pressed forward? Or should the spurious unlabelled mystery switch do it?

I don't have a multimeter so I can't really test the electrics other than plugging stuff into them and trying to get it to work lol. For now I've taken the colostomy bag out and just plugged the tube to the washer jet, but it'd be nicer to have a working washer than not.


Thanks for reading my inane drivel as always, any help mucho appreciated

that aerial is a cheapo aftermarket thing, not a genuine 1st gen aerial

Yeah, that's what I figured.

And the washer?

the washer is operated by the rear wiper switch in the centre console.... you have to press the switch all the way ( which way I can't remember!)
It's usually the wiper itself that stops working due to the contacts on the rear window strut moving and losing the connection.

Yeah, that's also what I figured. Ok, so either the motor's borked or there's a fault in the wiring somewhere between the switch and the motor. Hmmm. Might have to get a multimeter then ... and someone who knows how to use one

Those contacts on the struts are weird, it took me ages to suss out wtf they were all about.

The switches for the rear washer/wiper and the aerial are located to the rear of the electric window switches.

The left rear switch operates the rear washer/wiper, switching on to activate the wiper, and fully depressing the switch to operate the washer.

The right rear switch operates the aerial, switch on (forward) puts the aerial up.

Pics below of the aerial out of my S2.



Hey Lucky, I know you want this to plug your hole (oh er) but it is fully functional and someone might want a working unit.

Those switches down by the handbrake fill up with fluff and crud and general smeg. They come apart easliy (watch for springs) and clean up nicely. Always check these if you are having problems with your windows jamming.

Cheers, James. I've got an idea for the hole anyway , but you're right, that aerial of yours deserves to go to a decent home. The switch to the right of the rear wash/wipe one is blank, unmarked. Would it not have been the umbrella aerial motif? It looks like it never had anything marked on it, not like it's rubbed off

Took a quick snap this morning

S3 switches are same.

Oh Oh James, I spy a handrake (an 'andbrake) cover not located properly. needs the funny little internal dowel on the screw hole locating properly before you actually put the screw in......Ho Ho, codge scores again.......

More details please Dave, as this has been like that since I took ownership.

So i just need to take apart and put back together properly.