OK, this is going to sound like an old man gripe-fest (and I ain't that old)...

but what's with the antennas. Who decided that every car should have an cheap rubber antenna mounted at the trailing edge of the roof. It makes them look like Tyco toys.

My 92 Accord had a power retracting antenna in the trunk.
My 01 Civic had the antenna hidden in the glass.
My 01 CR-V had a manual retractable antenna on the A-pillar - great place for it, and easy to use FM modulators... just tuck it out of sight, and you don't have an ugly mast sticking up.
My pickup... well, it just had the classic American mast on the fender.

Anyway, somewhere around the middle of the last decade, whatever the hell it's called, someone decided that all cars needed an antenna that looked like it was stolen from a Uniden walkie-talkie. Can't retract it from inside. Can't easily delete it and hide it. What happened to the cool "hidden in the glass" antennas. They already paint the resistor wire onto the rear window for the defogger - it has to be cheaper to add an extra few lines and attach a lead than to put the ugly rubber bung-stopper on the roof.

OK... I feel better.

/rant.

 

Have you seen my car?

Aibo's got a really tall antenna mounted right above where the map lights would've been mounted, up front (as opposed to at the back, with GD3s). I actually find it humorous because it makes Aibo look like a remote-controlled car.

And no you can't retract the thing either. You have to screw it off if you want to reach all of the roof while washing the car without hitting anything.

 

My solution.. and a few others on here too:

 

I think VW started this, but I actually like the look of the stock antenna. It's kind of a staple of modern cars and it's more symmetrical then some arbitrarily placed 80's looking TV antenna that just plops out of your quarter panel. Just my opinion.