Honda Element: weBoost

Another upgrade I made to my car is to add the weBoost Drive Reach Overland antenna on top. It essentially takes whatever cell signal it can find and rebroadcasts it inside your car. The antenna can rise several feet over the top of the car, picking up distant signals that the iPhone’s built-in antenna can’t reach.

I knew I needed something like this after my trip to Colorado earlier this year. I still needed to work but I was sometimes without any cell coverage. Starlink would be great but it’s a pricey $150/month. The weBoost is just a one-time cost without an ongoing subscription.

I attached it to my roof rails, keeping it rotated so it’s parallel with the roof and turned off most of the time. It’s easy to flip it up when needed at a campsite. The wires are a little all over the place right now. I’m considering drilling a hole in the roof but not ready to make that leap yet.

Attaching the weBoost to roof rails. Wire going into the car above driver's seat window. weBoost inside components, with antenna velcro-ed near passenger seat. weBoost pointed up.

It works as advertised. I first tested it in the city where I had 2 bars. I turned it on and right away had 4 bars. Out in the Davis Mountains, I had 0-1 bars and with the weBoost that jumped to a reliable 2 bars.

Of course, it’s not magic. If you are too far away from a cell tower, there’s nothing it can do. But I’m amazed by it. It’s a game-changer when you’re just a little too out in the middle of nowhere.

Manton Reece

@timapple I really love it. Just hope it lasts for a while, it’s getting up in years and miles even though I just got it.

Jason Tucker

Awesome, this is a great way to boost the signal. I know a lot of vanlifers that use this and it works wonders for their cell signals. The scary part of cutting a hole in the roof is that you need to make sure its sealed properly AND that you check that seal regularly or you may end up with a leak especially if you use automated carwashes. Awesome job and I hope the new setup works well for you!

Manton Reece

@jasontucker I’ll definitely need to research how to seal it properly. Don’t want water coming into my car. 🙂

Alan Jacobs

Ah, I like that idea! (I’m actually out in that party of Texas fairly often, often for stargazing, so my use case would be similar.)

David Sinclair

@pratik we have a multi-carrier antenna on our roof, hooked to a Pepwave modem that can have up to four SIM cards, though currently only has two Verizon SIMs; I need to cancel one. Plus a couple of MiFi devices (for T-Mobile and AT&T). And Starlink.

Manton Reece

@ayjay The stars are really something out here. Usually try to go to McDonald Observatory too, but this was too quick a trip.

Manton Reece @manton
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