2001 Forester and Satellite Radio

[BRH]

I'm thinking about having satellite radio (would prefer Sirius over XM)
installed in my 2001 Forester. I went to Circuit City to check out
installation options, and there don't seem to be any good ones. All of
the satellite radio receivers seem to require the installation of a
bracket (meaning drilling into/mounting onto the passenger side of the
center console). There doesn't seem to be any unit that fits neatly
into the Forester with a "clean" (ie - no brackets; no wires exposed;
etc) install.

Does anyone have satellite radio installed in their Forester? If so,
what model receiver did you have installed, where was it physically
installed on the vehicle, and who did the install for you?

Thanks!

 

[A7N8X-X]

I installed an Alpine that has the XM tuner built into it. The XM receiver
is under the drivers seat and the antenna I ran through the firewall and
have it on the hood (only the size of a zippo lighter so it doesn't look bad
at all).

 

[Alan Pollard]

I installed an Alpine that has the XM tuner built into it.I think that's the key - go for a head unit that's contains the tuner
(or can use an external under seat-tuner), rather than a plug and play
unit. I believe the head units that contain the tuner are just on the
market, or will be imminently so, but will probably have a $$$
premium.

I have Sirius in my 03 Legacy - have a Sirius-ready Kenwood head unit,
with an external tuner that's under the passenger seat. No drilling
needed, just replacement of the OEM CD/Radio and routing of cables.
Plus you can upgrade to a unit that does things like play MP3 CDs.

Of course, the only trouble is that you're then commited to that
service - if you decide you want to switch from Sirius to XM or vice
versa, you're more kind of stuck than you would be if you had a plug
and play unit. I initially bought a Sirius system since at the time
XM music was not commercial free and Sirius had NPR; now the content
gap is closing (although Sirius has more sport), and Sirius's one
major issue (way too much repetition of songs) has begun to irritate
me.