Work down this list in order. Step 2 tells you whether you have a hardware problem or a subscription problem, which decides everything after it.
Start here: tune to preview channel 184. If you hear audio, your radio and antenna are fine and it is the subscription. If you hear nothing, it is the antenna or where the car is parked. That one check saves most of a call.
On a factory head unit, press SOURCE or MEDIA until the display shows the satellite band rather than FM, AUX or Bluetooth. It sounds obvious, and it is the single most common cause of a radio that "stopped working" the day after someone else drove the car.
Channel 184 plays for every receiver whether or not a plan is active. This is the test that tells you which problem you have. Audio on 184 means the receiver and antenna are working and the issue is the subscription. Silence on 184 means the signal is not reaching the receiver at all — go to step 3.
The antenna needs a clear view of the sky. A roof box, a bike rack, a metal sunroof surround or a tinted heated windscreen will all block it. Follow the lead back to the receiver and reseat the connector at both ends — the plug works loose over time, especially on a magnetic antenna that gets moved.
Park away from a garage, a multi-storey, a tree line or a tall building and leave the ignition on with the radio tuned for five to ten minutes. A receiver that has been out of coverage for a long time needs that time to reacquire and reload the channel list.
Tune to channel 0, or look under Settings, Advanced or System Info in the radio menu. The ID is a string of letters and numbers and never contains the letters I, O, S or F. Write it down — nothing can be activated or refreshed without it.
If 184 plays but your channels do not, the receiver needs a refresh sent to it over the air. Call us with the radio ID, leave the radio on and tuned to a satellite channel, and stay parked with clear sky while it comes through.
The receiver is not seeing the satellite. Almost always the antenna, its lead or where the car is parked. Steps 3 and 4.
The receiver can tell the antenna is not connected properly, or the lead is damaged. Reseat both ends; if the message stays, the lead has failed and needs replacing.
Good news. The refresh landed. Press a button and the channels come back.
Hardware is fine, the plan is not active on that radio ID. Nothing on this page will fix it — it needs the plan attaching to the ID.
Usually a power problem rather than a signal one. If the receiver is on a 12V lead, try a different socket; a lead with a blown fuse gives exactly this symptom.
Call once you have the radio ID and you know whether channel 184 plays. Those two facts let whoever picks up skip straight to the fix instead of walking you back through this page. Have the vehicle make, model and year to hand as well if the antenna or the lead looks like the problem.
Everything on this page is what we would walk you through anyway. Work through the six checks, note which step the problem sits at, and you will either have fixed it or you will know exactly what to say when you do call.
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