2009 base & xm radio....help!!

[GenuineVibe]

Hey guys, I have a 2009 vibe base. anyways it says that it is xm radio capable and has the "CAT" symbol on the radio that says "for xm radio only" when i hit it. My question is does anyone know what i need to get the xm radio to work (besides buying a subscription), the dealership didn't tell me anything and it being such a new car nobody else seems to know either. I know the higher models (GT) came with xm radio already working and what not. Does anyone know cuz i'm totally clueless!

[WaveAction]

might have to get the GM dealership to program it or something through MASS...im not entirely sure about it..the dealership should know..if not..find a new dealership lol

[moongdss]

I second finding a different dealership.... barring that, take it back in and get the service manager, not a sales guy, to help you out.Let us know what the outcome is so others who have this happen can read about it here!

[farles]

Did you pay for XM as an option? If not, then you have to buy a subscription to get it working. Mine was working the day I got it with nothing to do. They mailed me a subscription offer for after the free first three months are up. If I dont respond then they stop the service (a nice change from the typical 'negative' billing). The subscription gets cheaper the longer you commit for and depending on how you pay (monthly, every 3, 6, 12, months etc.).Remember, there is an initial fee to get it started even if it is XM ready.Yep, your dealer should know about this stuff, XM is not new.

[GenuineVibe]

no i didn't get it as an option. The GT comes with xm already working, whereas the base does not. It only says that the car is xm radio capable, so i dont know if that means i have to buy an adapter (besides the subscription) or what? I shouldn't have to buy the entire radio i dont think, since if i fiddle with the buttons on the stock radio they flash "xm radio only". They never gave me a radio code or anything. Just wondering if anyone knows?

[farles]

You likely won't have to buy an adaptor of any kind. Try going online to the XM site and getting a subscription. I think you can get the 'code' for your radio on channel 0 (zero)...or something like that and then that would be the code you give them to get things started.I am only taking my best guess, and trying to help

[zionzr2]

with mine i had to leave it on channel 1 for a few minutes then i was good to go.

[GenuineVibe]

hmm thanks guys, i'll give that a try after work.

[98ex]

FYI, if you need to call Xm to activate, they will ask you for the radio's id #. Usually located in your manual or the radio itself(my aftermarket radio scrolled the number after doing what my manual said to do)

[ragingfish]

When you buy the car, XM gets notified the car is sold and your trial subscription begins on the day of delivery. You should be able to receive full XM service for 3 or 6 months (depending on the offer at the time of purchase). As has been mentioned, if you do not commit to a subscription prior to the end of that trial, it gets shut off.I don't know how the 09 radios work, but in my G6 to get XM you have to cycle to it with the "BAND" button (it goes for me FM1, FM2, AM, XM1, XM2, FM1, etc.)

[jerryn]

Before you spend the $$ on XM. here's my 2 cents.I bought a GT earlier this week. It has a 3 month free subscription to XM.My IPOD sounds much better than XM. despite what they say XM does not sound like CD quality. It sounds like a 128k mpeg to me. My Mpegs are ripped at 320k. But if you like unlimited variety and could live with the compression, then XM would be ok. I'm just going to use XM until the subscription runs out. So, you might be knocking yourself out for nothing.If XM drops some channels and increases the bandwidth to sound like a 256k mpeg.. then I might subscribe.

[MountainMax]

I think the xm sounds even lower then 128k mp3 quality, more like 96 imho, but that's because of the bandwith needed to send it down, they compress it as much as they can without annyoing many people. Ipod is going to sound much better even if listning to 128k mpegs. But it's nice for a change, but expensive, I have Sirius, lifetime sub and love it.

[farles]

I agree with all, XM is not even close to CD quality. When you switch from XM to a CD, the difference is huge. XM is not even that much better than FM for the most part. What you do get with XM is a plethora of channels with no commercials or DJ's and text info with artist and song. I love XM for the variety, good signal no matter where you are, and just music. Worth 50 cents a day IMO. Dont get it for the quality, plug in the Ipod, MiniDisc, or CD.