I do not have reception issues unless I am in a parking garage with no view of the sky at all. Covered a lot of ground over the years listening to XM and I have not had the issues you raise.
I do not pay full price. I always call them up and say I am going to cancel and they drop the rate. Usually more than 50%. I figure I do not have to listen to a bunch of crap commercials and have WAY more variety to choose from so it is worth it to me. I put about 30,000 miles on a car a year.
