Recently bought some Motorola t265 radios to use. These would mostly be used for driving out of cell service areas and off road trails so we can communicate back and forth. They worked okay but even when we were driving 20 yards away from each other we would get static. Some times they would be clear but mostly it was difficult to get a clear signal. I understand being inside cars could/would cause some issues but what else could I be doing wrong? Are these radios too “small” for what I need? I was looking at possibly midland gxt or cobra options, or maybe the Motorola t402 models.
Range hand held to hand held is always short but 60ft indicates a real problem. You need to do some sensible tests. A football size field and no obstructions. They should all communicate 100% if you can see each other. If you can see somebody and not hear them, noise free, then it could be low transmit power, as in deliberately programmed in or a fault. Sometimes broken antennas. If you have at least three, on the football field you can check if it is one radio low power, or one radio poor transmit. If three people equally spaced in a triangle have short range identically, them suspect power output. One dodgy antenna, or power stage, or receiver fault, but two? That’s too much a coincidence. Be systematic in controlled circumstances.
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Get some $25 mag mounted antennas for the roof of the cars and run the cable inside through the door frame or hatch or whatever. Use an adaptor to attach your handhelds. You’ll see a huge increase in performance. Might consider using an extended mic to the handhelds so you don’t have to pick 'em up all the time possibly putting strain on the HT’s antenna mount.
The Motorola Talkabout T265 is an FRS radio, so the antenna is not removable. This model cannot be connected to an external antenna. It’s only rated 0.8 watts maximum power, which is well below the limit of 2 watts for FRS. Technically, yes, these radios are too low power to transmit very far from inside a vehicle. For maximum range on FRS, I would suggest the Wouxun KG-805F, which is rated for the maximum wattage allowed and is Part 95 type accepted on the FRS.