PhillySteve

I have had satellite radio for years now and never had an issue with losing the signal when going under an overpass or trees. Maybe my other radios had some kind of cache that kept the station playing for a few seconds even when the antenna couldn't get a signal. But in my Mercedes the station cuts out often the instant my antenna is obstructed from the sky. It's annoying. Anyone have similar experiences or explanations?

katiesdad7

I didn't get the Sirius but it shouldn't do that. I have Sirius in my Prius and it never drops out. Sounds like a trip to the dealer is in order.

300DTurbo

N
o
r
m
a
l

This is a by product of the mount of the antenna within the housing. Lexus/Toyota got it right. BMW/MB are bass ackwards in their module design. Just drive under bridges really fast. The turbo kicks in very nicely half way through 2nd gear.

Brewsterx

My XM car radios (in GM and Toyota vehicles) work fine in most urban areas, because XM often has terrestrial broadcast as backup. I do have problems in deep canyons in rural areas.

I don't have Sirius experience yet, but my ML350 is due to be delivered this week.

GregW / Oregon

Yes, same as on my W164 -- annoying around town, fine on the highway. Seems like a 10-second cache would mostly eliminate the problem. Germans are just not cutting edge on these things, it seems.

rexgold

I noticed the same with DAB radio in the UK.. However DAB is not satellite based but it kept dropping the signal in my area, Hence I did not order it. Seems that they can't get this right either!!

NickTH

We drive under lots of bridges here in the big city, & the music cuts out every single time.
Then comes the cursed "Are you Freakin' Sirius...?"

katiesdad7

Sounds like a warranty issue to me. THis is not want you paid for.

Brewsterx

My ML350 has been delivered, so now I have Sirius experience. My XM car receivers work inside my house garage. The Sirius in the ML does not, until I raise the garage door. However, there is a parking garage I use frequently where the Sirius works well and the XM cuts out a lot.

hutch300

I don't see how that holds true. There is not obligation from MB here since all their units work like this. Over time future units will improve but your dealer will just confirm what this forum already did.

I don't get what is being specifically paid for that is not being received that a warranty visit will remedy?

katiesdad7

With your theory then all the diesels that have the hesitation problem are normal. SInce all of them do it. But that doesn't hold water. The car was designed, and expected to, operate in the conditions in which it was designed to be driven. Is it unreasonable to expect the vehicle to be driven in the rain or on a cloudy day? Then it should work in those conditions. To have certain features of the vehicle not work all the time is not what you pay for.

Another example that comes to mind is what if the distronic only worked in clear weather. That would be wrong since the car was designed to operate in the rain.

That's just my opinion.

hutch300

Good thing it's working as designed. Just not the best design.

dougiebear

TV Sat works the same why would radio be different. It comes from the sky not an earthbound antenna. They could do a better job perhaps.

katiesdad7

I have Sirius in my Prius and it NEVER drops out on a cloudy day.

twodivers

Actually, Distronic (and all other radar-based systems in the ML) will cut out if the weather is severe enough. It has happened to me in a severe T-Storm, and it is described in the manual as well. It may not be "normal", but it will occur.

As for Sirius cutting out, it has always done that, always will. It's a pretty well known fact. Now, I'm not saying that M-B's don't suffer more than other makes, but it is the nature of the technology. If there are not sufficient terrestrial repeaters, and the satellite signal is lost, without a cache or buffer of data, you will lose the signal.

Just sayin'...