What's this antenna for?

Posting a picture would be helpful.
Is there a wire connected to it on the inside?
To my knowledge, there was not a GM installed antenna mounted on the rear panel glass. Therefore, it is most likely an aftermarket device.
I sounds as if it might be an antenna for an aftermaket mobile telephone installation.

I agree that a picture would be most helpful. When I get home, I plan to snap a pic and upload it...

There is a plate on the inside of the glass, with a wire coming out and going up into the headliner. I suspected that it was for a mobile phone. I would like to remove at lease the outer portion, but am not absolutely certain that there is no hole in the glass...

It sounds like the old style analog cellular antenna (with the curly-q in the middle). The analog OnStar system uses that antenna. I believe it was mounted as you describe, on one of the rear side windows. (It was on the rear window of my 04 CTS.) I don't think there is a hole in the glass. I believe that the OnStar digital upgrade process replaces that antenna with the current "shark fin" type antenna.

Negative, the digital OnStar upgrade did NOT remove this antenna. I have it on my 04 V6 AWD.

This is the Cell Phone antenna.

You can unscrew it and just leave it there; no harm no foul.

Could I remove the mounting from the glass as well? Thanks for the replies, guys!

You can remove the entire thing from the outside. Put your car in the hot sun and then take some fishing wire or similar and pull down between the glass and the antenna. I did the same exact thing to my 04 SRX.

Thanks for the suggestions! Will do!

You can go one step further and remove the mount from the inside of the glass as well. Then you can tuck the wire up into the headliner and it looks like it was never there. Very clean indeed.

ACE

SRT ACE said:

You can go one step further and remove the mount from the inside of the glass as well. Then you can tuck the wire up into the headliner and it looks like it was never there. Very clean indeed.

ACE

Click to expand...

Was considering doing just that...I did remove the antenna last weekend...By the way, the consensus is that it was an analog OnStar antenna...

I had the digital upgrade a few years ago and they upgraded that antenae. I assume it still serves a function so unless I did not use onstar or the car phone, or xm radio? I would not remove. Mine is a 2004..

louisn said:

I had the digital upgrade a few years ago and they upgraded that antenae. I assume it still serves a function so unless I did not use onstar or the car phone, or xm radio? I would not remove. Mine is a 2004..

Click to expand...

The dealer told me not to remove it.

George Ware

Thanks for the insight. I do not use the XM, OnStar, or car phone, so no concerns here...

I have the same type of antenna in the used SRX I bought. It is a mobile phone antenna for a hands free. I wanted to remove it as well, but the technician told me that it could not be done since there is a hole in the window.

Highly unusual that an installer would cut a hole in the glass to install a mobile telephone antenna. In the late 80's and 90's I had many of these installed in my vehicles and transferred to other vehicles. There never was a hole in the glass. The signal must have been transmitted through the glass from the outside piece to the inside piece. I am confident that you could remove it without problems. In the unlikely event that you find a hole, simply reinstall the antenna base over the hole.

I removed the antenna on my 04. No hole or anything like that in the glass.