Car Stereos: car stereo antenna problem, ford windstar, antenna connection

Question
I have brought a Nextar NC990C car stereo to replace the factory stereo in my Ford Windstar 1999 van. Upon completion,the CD player works, MP3 player works but I have no FM reception and limited AM reception. The factory stereo has great reception for both AM and FM. I've rechecked all the wiring to the Ford wire harness and the antenna connection is secure(no wiggling or moving). How can I check to see if there is a problem with the Nextar antenna connection?
(side note: I can switch between the two stereo with two quick connection and the antenna still works with the factory stereo)

Answer
Hi Tina,

The antenna on the Windstar is integrated into the rear window.  As such, it's a poor antenna in the first place, and aftermarket decks without good antenna amplification built in (like your factory deck) will not be able to get much reception at all.  Most people get around this by installing an aftermarket antenna on the vehicle themselves.

Justin