Cobra 75WXST Weatherband CB Radio

We use the unit in a Corvette, and there is no convenient place to mount a regular CB; the Cobra solves that problem nicely. We had the local stereo shop install a cigarette lighter plug on the Cobra power cord so we just plug it into a lighter outlet. The built in speaker is rather weak, we bought a Cobra S500 external speaker that sits on the shelf behind the driver seat and works very well. The volume and squelch controls are sometimes moved by accident when handling the unit. We removed the hanger stud on the back of the unit and put a piece of fuzzy velcro there, a mating piece of hook velcro on top of the console keeps the unit handy. These units seem rather short-lived, ours are heavily used about 2 weeks per year but just sit in the car the rest of the time, two previous units both died at 3 years.
Summary- not perfect, but the best solution available for our situation.

Handset is bulky and not comfortable to use. Speaker in handset sounded terrible while it worked. After two weeks the radio no longer produces any sound. Everything lights up like it thinks it's working but there is no sound at all.
I hope I can just return this item for a refund

I bought this radio and the Cobra 1500 antenna. Both arrived 2 days later in perfect condition. Assembly, installation, and first use were a piece of cake. Couldn't have been easier. Since this is a CB radio, not a ham radio, the power is restricted to 4 watts. Therefore it was easy to install and power up using a cigarette lighter plug. This makes the whole rig easily portable from one vehicle to another.

This is definately NOT a professional unit. Its great for the occasional CB'er. We noticed about a 1 mile range on our whip antenna which is mounted on top of our motorhome. Probably could get better range with better antenna. Dont need more than that. Easy to hookup and VERY CLEAN look - that is my favorite part. Internal speaker is "ok" but not for the hard of hearing.

Being a member of a local Miata club, it is very common for our club runs to use CB's as the form of communication. Being in a Miata also means there is not a lot of spare room for such things. After talking to other members and reviews online, I felt this would do everything I needed and then some. The biggest asset is not having a large "box" that would need to be mountet and left in the car. The second biggest reason I also chose this unit was I needed a CB for our Cherokee 4x4. By being able to buy a second "connection" box for ~$25, I can use the main unit in two vehicles without the full expense of two CB's.

Hookup is easy with a power, ground and antanna connections. The plug for the main unit to the connection box can be run from undernieth the dash or console or mounted in a hole with the supplied mounting plate and grommet. I used a "blank out" panel (unused switch location) in the dash so if I ever remove it, I can just replace this panel with no ill effects. I drilled a hole in the panel, the same size as the mounting plate and used the supplied grommet in this panel, not using the mounting plate. It is a very clean installation and when the handheld unit is removed, you never know there was a CB in the vehicle.

The BIGGEST thing to remember for ANY CB is proper antanna tuning and a quality antanna. Without this, it doesn't matter how good the CB is. How important is tuning? I tuned my antanna for the best SWR readings I could get, which were very good and in our last club run, I was the only person who could talk and receive from everyone in the group.

I am very happy with this product and am looking forward to getting it setup in our Cherokee as well.