This past weekend I was working on laying vinyl on the roof of my GT. Doing so required I remove a portion of the headliner and the factory antenna. I referenced the headliner removal section of the factory service manual, but it covered a complete removal of the headliner.
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For removing just the antenna, I found you could let down the back section of the headliner while leaving the front section intact. Doing so requires the removal of the parcel shelf along with the rear C-Pillar Trim panels. The parcel shelf is very easy to remove. Disconnect the two drawstring retainers from the rear hatch by pulling on the ball socket firmly. Then you pull towards you and lift the shelf upwards. For the left and right C-pillar trim panels you will have to pry the circular cover labeled "airbag". Under that cover is a small torx screw that will need to be removed. Be careful not to drop this screw behind the side panel. After the screw is removed you can pull the panel away from the body of the car. I was able to grab the cover from the seat belt slot and the lip towards the edge of the door. As a note, each rear door must be open to pop the panels off. I simply pulled the panels away while leaving them connected to the bottom trim panels. If they separate it will go back together easily.
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I pulled back the rear hatch weather seal across the top and a little down the sides. Doing this will create a gab between the headliner and the body. Be extremely careful not to bend the headliner more that 10-20 degrees, It can crease if bend too far.
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For the next part the manual recommended using a special tool. The tool is basically a plastic body panel pry tool. I found it easier and safer to just us my hand. You need to slide your hand into the gap above the headliner. Put your fingers around the plastic retainers / pins that hold the back of the headliner up. There are two pins that have to be popped, one on each side. They can be seen slightly if you peek in between. Firmly press the headliner down towards the floor. I was able to do both sides separate. Be very careful not to press on the headliner directly, only press where it has the plastic supports. There should be a pop and now you will have about 4-5 inches of space to get at the underside of the antenna.
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The antenna has an 10mm bolt in the center on the underside along with two electrical connectors. Under the bolt is a washer type retainer. Make sure not to drop this, it can easily fall into a few terribly hard to retrieve locations. The connectors are fairly simple to disconnect. They have a small lever on the top of the connector that just needs to be pushed down. Push connectors together, push the lever down, then pull connectors apart. Do this twice.
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To actually release the antenna from the roof panel you have to use two shims. Pull up slightly on the antenna body and place a shim under the left and right side of the antenna. There are two clips that have to be pressed in. From both sides you will hear a click when the lock disengages. After that simply pull up on the antenna to remove.
![Image]()
The assembly is about the same method just backwards. I will end up removing the entire headliner eventually when adding sound deadener. If you only need to remove the antenna there is very little reason to go through all the trouble of dropping the entire headliner.
For removing just the antenna, I found you could let down the back section of the headliner while leaving the front section intact. Doing so requires the removal of the parcel shelf along with the rear C-Pillar Trim panels. The parcel shelf is very easy to remove. Disconnect the two drawstring retainers from the rear hatch by pulling on the ball socket firmly. Then you pull towards you and lift the shelf upwards. For the left and right C-pillar trim panels you will have to pry the circular cover labeled "airbag". Under that cover is a small torx screw that will need to be removed. Be careful not to drop this screw behind the side panel. After the screw is removed you can pull the panel away from the body of the car. I was able to grab the cover from the seat belt slot and the lip towards the edge of the door. As a note, each rear door must be open to pop the panels off. I simply pulled the panels away while leaving them connected to the bottom trim panels. If they separate it will go back together easily.
I pulled back the rear hatch weather seal across the top and a little down the sides. Doing this will create a gab between the headliner and the body. Be extremely careful not to bend the headliner more that 10-20 degrees, It can crease if bend too far.
For the next part the manual recommended using a special tool. The tool is basically a plastic body panel pry tool. I found it easier and safer to just us my hand. You need to slide your hand into the gap above the headliner. Put your fingers around the plastic retainers / pins that hold the back of the headliner up. There are two pins that have to be popped, one on each side. They can be seen slightly if you peek in between. Firmly press the headliner down towards the floor. I was able to do both sides separate. Be very careful not to press on the headliner directly, only press where it has the plastic supports. There should be a pop and now you will have about 4-5 inches of space to get at the underside of the antenna.
The antenna has an 10mm bolt in the center on the underside along with two electrical connectors. Under the bolt is a washer type retainer. Make sure not to drop this, it can easily fall into a few terribly hard to retrieve locations. The connectors are fairly simple to disconnect. They have a small lever on the top of the connector that just needs to be pushed down. Push connectors together, push the lever down, then pull connectors apart. Do this twice.
To actually release the antenna from the roof panel you have to use two shims. Pull up slightly on the antenna body and place a shim under the left and right side of the antenna. There are two clips that have to be pressed in. From both sides you will hear a click when the lock disengages. After that simply pull up on the antenna to remove.
The assembly is about the same method just backwards. I will end up removing the entire headliner eventually when adding sound deadener. If you only need to remove the antenna there is very little reason to go through all the trouble of dropping the entire headliner.
