Dashcam and shielded windshield

[gazzavr]

Hello there...just got a brand new Redtiger F7N, previously I had a DOD LS470W.
Both had the same problem : couldn't catch any GPS signal through my windshield which appears to be shielded.
I don't know ho to explain it in english, but it seems that the glass contain a fine metallic layer which can be heathed and can quickly melt snow or ice deposited overnight.
The downside is that neither the DOD nor the Redtiger can get enough GPS signal, no matter where I position the dashcam.
I don't know if in the USA you have similar problems, here in Italy ( North) and also Germany it is a pretty common and effective solution ( Audi A4).
Any suggestion ?
I was thinking about a GPS signal repeater, like some you can get on Amazon, but the distance between the receiving and the transmitting antennas of the repeater ( very short whithin car lenght) can lead to malfunction : kind of of signal "looping" if the antennas are too close...
Anyone faced the same shielding problem and got a solution ?

Tnx
Andrea

 

[Deleted member 64174]

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[Kremmen]

Reminds me of a post in the UK Honda forum :

Well GPS booster arrived and after testing on the sofa, I fitted it temporarily to the car. The receiver mag-mounted just behind the sharks fin with the cable just trapped in the hatch weather seal and run in the roof liner. The transmitter I rested top down on the dash.

The strength of the GPS signal was boosted considerably on my dash mounted phone on my GPS test app.

OK now to try the car satnav. It locked on before I had reversed out of the drive and maintained lock and showed me on the correct road even when I drove to an area with streets pretty close together where it normally has a problem staying on the right road. But this time it did.

Just the one test so far, but it looks good ATM.

I have relocated the receiver under the roof level spoiler so that it is now hidden and I'll try a roof level location for the transmitter. I'll give it another longer work out tomorrow or Tuesday and report back again.

If anyone is interested in trying it as well, [Ebay link now gone but the price seems OK] is the one I got for the princely sum of £10.90

 

[gazzavr]

I did email RedTiger and asked about such an antenna, I will let you know what they tell me.

That would be great Lufo...I also thought buying the separate gps support and crack it open to wire it to the main unit ( Amazon, ASIN B09SFY13TZ ), but a "remote wired antenna" would be much more elegant...please do let me know, tnx mate !!

Reminds me of a post in the UK Honda forum :

Yep, I guess it was the same solution I was thinking about....it implies a lot of wiring tho, to install the transmitting unit on the forward part of the car, and the external receiving unit out in the back.
Also, I don't have any spoiler to conceal it....but as last resort....it could help also to improve my iPhone GPS reception while on the stand, and my radioamateur transmitter as it does use GPS position while reporting my position on APRS HAM network...

 

[Deleted member 64174]

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[gazzavr]

If you have not already seen this thread, you can look at post #3 for ideas of where to place the GPS unit. Not your exact car but it may help you.

Tnx for the feedback mate, I know I represent the 0.001% of people having RF reception problems through the windshield, so it is unlikely that a company could care about us....even using what seems to be the specific spot which theoretically should be not shielded helped a lot : the automatic payment device I use for the motorway doesn't work either, forcing me to keep it outside the lateral window when trespassing the toll booth...

 

[Deleted member 64174]

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