gps antenna, alternator

[bobnoffs]

i have an easy spot to mount my gps antennas under the cowl but they are within 4'' of the alternator. will there be trouble?

[lr172]

I am not an RF expert by any means, but I would be a bit concerned with my GPS antenna 4" from some large magnets, assuming you are referring to a standby alternator, which use magnetics instead of an electrical field. Alternators are known for electrical noise, but I suspect that is induced onto the electrical path and not radiated though I don't really know.

Larry

[bobnoffs]

well, fwiw i just went outside with my handheld gps and turned it on while holding it next to the alternator of my car. then i repeated while the engine was running. the gps acquired satellites in the same amount of time. don't know what this proves but as a vfr pilot i am going to give it a try by the alternator.
also, back of gps antenna has a label that says something like ''pull tape here to remove magnets if they interfere with compass''.

[rv7charlie]

Just a heads-up. Any alternator you're likely to encounter uses either coils of wire moving through a magnetic field, or a magnetic field rotating through coils, to generate electricity. The alts we typically use, that aren't 'permanent magnet' alternators, use electric current through a coil of wire wound on an iron core to *create* the magnet that allows the alternator to work.