so i finally got around to mounting my FT-7900R in the truck after it sitting in a box for like three months. went with a lip mount on the trunk lid for the dual band antenna, pretty standard setup. my question is about the coax routing because im not 100% sure i did it right and dont want to find out the hard way.

i ran the coax under the door sill trim on the passenger side, then along the kick panel and under the carpet up to the center console where the radio sits. to get through the firewall i used one of those rubber grommets that was already there, just pushed a small slit in it with a screwdriver and fed the PL-259 through. the power cable i ran direct to the battery with an inline fuse about 6 inches from the terminal like everyone says to do.

audio is clean on receive, transmitting seems fine but i havent really done a proper test yet. just wondering if the grommet method is okay or if im asking for water or exhaust issues later. truck is a 2019 F-150 if that matters.

the grommet method is pretty much what everyone does, youll be fine as long as you put a little silicone or dielectric grease around where you cut it. the factory grommets seal pretty well on their own but a dab of something helps keep water out especially if you live somewhere it rains a lot or gets road salt in winter. ive done four or five mobile installs that way over the years and never had a problem.

one thing i would double check is that your coax isnt getting pinched anywhere under that sill trim, the F-150 door sill can be kind of tight depending on trim level. a pinched coax will work fine for a while then you start wondering why your SWR suddenly went up. ask me how i know lol. other than that sounds like a solid install, running power direct to the battery with a fuse close to the terminal is exactly right.

nice, i did almost the exact same thing in my Tacoma with a 7800R. only thing id add is maybe zip tie the coax somewhere under the hood so it cant rub on anything hot or move around. mine was flopping around near the alternator for a while before i noticed and i think thats what was causing some of the noise i was hearing on 2m. fixed it and most of the noise went away.