Home > Consumer Reviews > Garmin GA26 Remote Vehicle Antenna for StreetPilot II+ and III+

My c330 is not mounted to the windshield so I needed the external antenna. It took me a while to figure out how to do hide the wire but now it works very well.

An external antenna for a GPS is generally not needed unless (1) You have coated windshield tinting - these have metal particles that can obstruct satellite reception. (2) You are constantly in an area surrounded by skyscrapers - these can interfere with satellite reception also. If you are not affected by these two conditions, then you DO NOT need an external antenna... using an external antenna will NOT improve your satellite reception... you ONLY need this if you are having reception problems. If you are not having reception problems, you are wasting your money... it is an external antenna, and NOT a signal amplifier... if you are not having reception problems, you will NOT get any better signals using an external antenna.

This antenna ought to work through the windscreen; it does not. It works patchily when I place it directly under the moonroof on the sliding shade. It works perfectly only when I place it completely outside the vehicle. The windscreen mount was therefore a waste of time and money - I should have taken the advice I got from no less than a Garmin salesperson to purchase the cheaper antenna for $31.00. Whether this is all the fault of the antenna or that there is some peculiar unique "firewall" in my 2007 Toyota Camry windscreen (or the electroluminiscent rearview mirror) - I do not know, but it seems to me that paying big money for an item without caveat or exclusions for certian vehicles should secure just what the item promises: that it would work through the windscreen with or without a mount.

I bought my Garmin GPS unit in Texas where it worked fine without the remote antenna. When I got back home to Michigan I sometimes had a hard time aquiring a satellite signal. I purchased this remote antenna and so far been very pleased with the remote antenna. I get a very good satellite signal with it and so far it has worked great for me. With my short time using it I would recommend this remote antenna if you are having trouble aquiring a satellite signal.

I am very happy with this antenna. It does exactly what it says it will do and was easy to connect and attach to the car. The price was better than the Garmin website and it arrived pretty quickly.