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It started as an SWR issue with the cb antenna


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And now it's a friggin' nightmare. Here's the details:

The truck in question is a 2013 Pinnacle and It's assigned to a coworker. After about 2 weeks on the road, the engine lost power and was sent back to the dealer. My understanding is that a computer was replaced. I'm only assuming it was the ecm but regardless, the dashboard was taken apart while repairs were being made.

SWR is high on all cb channels. Radio, antenna, and coax are in good working order. Antenna, like most in the fleet, is mounted on the grab handle above the rear window. The antenna has a good ground. This was confirmed by using a seperate swr/power meter and by using the process of elimination by substituting other equipment (i.e. diferrent radio, coax, etc.)

Here's what we know:

The only way to safely operate the cb with an acceptable swr is by using the factory antenna/coax and getting power from one of the ports on the dash that will accept a cigarette lighter plug.

The driver was using the posts that are mounted on the dash for cb use but after removing the ground wire from it's post, the radio still had power. It didn't lose power until the coax was removed from the back of the cb and yet we cannot find any evidence of the antenna or coax being improperly grounded.

We're thinking that somehow, during the reassembly of the dashboard, something is grounded that shouldn't be. The cigarette lighter is not working and the fuse has not yet been checked. I don't know if that is relevant to this issue.

The company doesn't want drivers taking trucks apart. We're just wondering if there is a simple solution or is it going to have to wait until the shop can get to it.

Jim

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