Nav/Sat-Radio Antenna Blocked by Camper

[NRALIFR]

Hello, I'm new here. I'm looking for ideas on how to solve this issue.

I bought a 2010 F450 King Ranch with factory Navigation, Sync, and Sat Radio to haul my Lance truck camper. As near as I can tell, the antenna on top of the cab between the marker lights is a combined GPS/Sat Radio antenna. I'm not subscribed to Sirrius yet, but may later on. The problem I have is that the part of the camper that extends over the cab is blocking the antenna, so the nav screen has the "No GPS" icon on it most of the time.

I'd like to add a second antenna, perhaps a magnetic mount type or just another stock antenna mounted on the plastic surface in front of the windshield that the wipers poke through. I don't know what to buy, or how to access the head unit in the dash though. Is the stock wiring harness long enough that it could go though the fire-wall grommet and reach that area in front of the windshield? Or would it be easier to just buy some after market GPS antenna?

This is my first exposure to GPS navigation sytems, so I'm pretty clueless on what to do.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

[k.thed]

Don't quote me on this, but I had a friend that added a nav unit in his 2008 Lariat F250. Also, from installing cab lights, I believe the antenna on the roof is strictly for satellite radio. The nav unit actually has an antenna under the dash that picks up signal. It's a little silver box mounted near the top of the dash by the defrost vent. I know this because my friend ran into the same issue after he got the head unit installed. Then he realized that he was missing the nav antenna. And it was a pain to install. Ended up having his wife reach in the dash to install it because our arms were too big to reach the factory installed bracket. I don't know if this helps you or not, but I don't know how far off the camper skews your signal on your dash?

[NRALIFR]

Yes, that's correct for the 2008's. The GPS and sat radio each have their own antenna. But for 2010 and maybe even the 2009's, they appear to have been combined into the unit on top of the cab. Some truck camper friends with the '08 SD's don't seem to have a problem with the camper blocking the signal like I do.

Thanks for the reply. I'm sure we'll get it figured out eventually.

[k.thed]

Well I also know that I've put cab lights on another friend's 2011 King Ranch F250 and his antenna wire was exactly like the 2008 and 2009's that I've put lights on. I would think that if they reworked the antenna to accomodate the nav reciever, it would have been modified slightly. But really, there's nothing to that Sirius antenna wire. It's pretty small, even on the 2011. I've just never had my arms in the dash of the 2011 or 2009 that I put lights on... yet.