Cellular and GPS Antennas

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2018 Buick Regal TourX and 2018 Buick Regal. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

The combination antenna will have any of the following antenna elements when equipped with OnStar:

Primary cellular element
Secondary cellular element
GPS element
Digital radio element
AM/FM element

The OnStar® TCP system uses 2 cellular antenna elements to send and receive cellular data, the primary cellular element and the secondary cellular element. The primary cellular signal is carried by a coax cable that connects the antenna directly to the telematics communication interface control module. Details of the secondary cellular signal are further described below.

The GPS antenna element is used to collect the signals of the orbiting GPS satellites. GPS signals are output from the telematics communication interface control module on Ethernet. Other modules on Ethernet may use the GPS latitude, longitude and satellite time data broadcast by the telematics communication interface control module. Using positioning information from the vehicle Ethernet avoids the use of a coaxial signal splitter to pass the analog GPS signal to other modules. Within the antenna is housed a low noise amplifier that allows for a more broad and precise reception of this data. Also housed within the antenna is circuitry to combine the GPS signal and the secondary cellular signal. The combination GPS/secondary cellular signal is carried by a coax cable that connects directly to the telematics communication interface control module. The cable also provides a path for DC current for powering the antenna.