So in the past 3 months I have moved from a 2011 Audi A6 to a 2013 Lexus GS 350 Luxury and a 2010 Audi Q5 to a 2013 Lexus RX 350. I had satellite (Sirius) in both Audis and now have XM in both Lexus cars. I am experiencing many more drop outs with the Lexus cars. I've driven the same route to work for the past 4 years and in the Audi there was just one spot where satellite would drop, on the same route with either Lexus there is 6 different spots where there are drop outs. I'm basically experiencing drop outs way more no matter where I drive. Dealer said this is not a known problem. I called XM yesterday and they refreshed the system (sent a signal) to no avail and told me it could be because XM and Sirius use 2 different satellites.

Was curious if anyone else has been experiencing this problem and had it fixed? My next step is to have Lexus service make sure there are no malfunctions with the system but my gut tells me nothing can be done and it is what it is.

Thoughts?

 

Its quite opposite for me.

We have a Honda Pilot and that thing constantly drops with a route thats full of tall trees. With the GS, the signal stays constant and never drops.

I never had an Audi so I can't comment on that but that's my experience.

I'd still go ahead and have Lexus take a look at it - you could have a bad connection to the antenna or something...

 

Mine drops more than my previous car (BMW 5 Series)

 

Definitely the case here. The satellite reception in my GS is awful compared to the Audi it replaced, as well as my wife's 2013 Ford Explorer (and the Acadia it replaced). I have signal drops in wide open areas in clear blue skies. It's so bad that I was considering dumping it completely and putting the cost into extra data for Pandora.

 

Maybe it has something to do with the curvature of the earth. I have little problem with the XM dropping out up here. I only experience this driving north on a couple of boulevards under one highway (QEW) and only sometimes.

Now broadcast quality of many if not most of the stations is a different matter. A lot of "ssssss..." in the sound, not sure if it is the source or the DAC in the ML.

 

No problems here with either our GS or a Nissan

 

Broadcast quality is a whole different topic. Sirius/XM is horrible! To truly enjoy your stereo break out the ipod or CD.

 

Definitely drops out more than my TL. Guess the Acura has a better satellite antenna.

 

I remember reading something about this. My guess is our Antenna is not as good as the Audi ones.

 

i've noticed that different stations sound better/worst. Why is that? Aren't all stations broadcasting from the same specs? (I don't know radio/XM specs, tv on the other hand... )

 

I've had Toyotas before the GS, and noticed the same type of reception between the two. I did notice a difference between seasons though. Trees really seem to affect Toyota XM Reception, not sure if it affects other cars, but in the winter I have 2-3 spots on my way to work, in the spring / summer, 10-15 spots where I lose it.

 

Totally agree. I tried it out once or twice and never bother to go back. The sound even on HD station is no where near that from my iPhone 5 and DVD/CD. On the same note, how long do you have this free trial? Its been more than 6 months and mine along with live traffic are still working. I thought they said it would end 3 months later if I dont renew it.

 

I think the free trial for raio is 6 months while the traffic is for a year.

 

I have 0 issues with my XM and the sound quality is awesome. I purchased the car 3 weeks ago so maybe this was fixed at some point...

 

If you are having problems with your XM. Loss or bad signal. Try and do a refresh.

https://care.siriusxm.com/retailrefresh_view.action