Is this par for the course with these radios? Or something to do with
this
particular installation?

We had an MX 170B in our Warrior. It worked perfectly (still does,
according to the current owner) 100% of the time, with wonderful clarity.
My only gripe was the almost unusable memory feature, access to which
required a motion that could only be duplicated while sitting on the ground
with your arm on a rest.

It sure beat the old mechanical King beast it replaced...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"