morph860

OK, I know a lot of people have been asking how to make an AUX input for their iPod or other mp3 player. I'm posting directions for the one I made for my car. This will work with the COMAND 2.0 (mine is the Euro comand, so i'm not 100% sure if this is the same with the US model). From what I understand, if your car came with a COMAND from the factory, then you have a pre-wired loom in the passenger side pillar. If you have this, you can simply attach the MB cable harness to use the COMAND. If you installed your Comand yourself, you DO NOT have this loom, and need to create your own. Here are the parts I used:

1. Mercedes Part #A 210 440 50 05 - cable harness ($31 from my local dealer)
2. Mercedes Part # 0085455526 - c2 connector pins ($1.50 each from my local dealer) you will need 4 of these.
3. Belkin Auto Kit for iPod (eBay/Amazon/Best Buy). They're $30 new at Best Buy. This charges the iPod, and also creates a Line Out, so that you don't need to use the headphone jack.
4. 1/8'' -> 1/8'' headphone cable. You can get these at Radio Shack for real cheap (part #42-2387A), or Monster makes better quality ones as well.
5: 12vDC Accessory Outlet. I used Radio Shack part# 270-1556. I think it was $8, somewhere in that range. This is to power the Belkin adapter.

Step 1: The cable harness has a 1/8'' input on one end, and a pin connector on the other end. Cut off the pin connector, and strip the wires. The cord is pretty long, so you can cut it if you need to - depending on where you want to put it.

Step 2: Once you have all the wires stripped, you need to crimp the 4 c2 connectors onto these exposed wires. Colors should be brown, black, yellow, and a bare wire.

Step 3: These pins need to be added into the c2 connector behind the COMAND. If you installed it yourself, you should know exactly what this part looks like. If Steve installed it, then you probably already have the AUX IN, so I doubt you're reading this. The brown wire is for Audio Right, needs to go into pin4. The black wire is the right ground, need to go into pin 5. The yellow wire is for audio left, needs to go into pin 13. The bare wire is the left ground, needs to go into pin 14.

Step 4: Attach the 12VDC Accessory Outlet to the power/ground wires behind the COMAND. I tapped into them without cutting them. I heard that if you cut/disconnect them, you could do something to the CANBUS Network and will need it reset. Not sure on what this means, or what it will do. I don't have any problems with mine.

Step 5: Plug the Belkin into the Accessory Outlet. Use the 1/8'' cable to plug the line-out onto the Belkin into the Mercedes cable harness.

After this, you can put the dash back together, and figure out where you want the wire to run. I have mine set up so that only the dock connector poked out inside the ashtray area. Everything else is behind the COMAND. Nothing exposed. Once you get all this back together, you can plug the iPod into the dock connector on the Belkin, and you're all set. If you have the Euro COMAND, press the SYS button and you can access the AUX IN from here.

Answers for questions I'm sure will be asked:

No. You cannot control the iPod from the steering wheel or the COMAND. You need to use the controls on the iPod to play. Since it's a line-out, the quality is pretty good. The Belkin does have a volume adjustment on it, but I didn't notice much of a diff when playing with it.

Yes. You can still keep your CD changer.

Yes. This works with BOSE and non-BOSE systems.


If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. I'll try to answer the best I can. I wish I could have taken step by step pics, but I don't have access to a camera right now. I'll post finished pics when I get one. Overall cost was about $75, and took maybe an hour from start to finish. Enjoy...

MR_560SEC

do you have any pictures ? thanks for the post.

morph860

No, but thanks for reading

rrpnow

lmao...

Skylaw

This is good news - thanks for your post.

Does anyone know if this loom is present in the US spec COMAND 2.0 equipped cars? Especially the W220 (S500/430/350)?

morph860

My guess would be yes....from what I've learned, it seems that all cars that came with the Comand 2.0 stock, either have the aux input, or the loom for the aux input. I've only checked the C class and E class so far. It's real easy to check, please post your results. My car's at the dealer right now for a suspension problem. When I get it back, I'll undo everything and take pictures re-installing it. It's really easy, especially once you see the pictures.

Honestly, this is an easier install without the loom. That way you can run the wires anywhere you want, and not have to worry about the glovebox port or the wires in the door panel. Without the loom, you can just go directly into the COMAND.

dc2774

Morph,

Any idea why I'm getting the main voices only on the right side of the car? it seems like the background music is coming only from the left side of the car?

Thanks,

aamitabh

Hi folks,

I just joined this group, so this question may have already been answered.

Is it possible to also have a Aux Input on a factory radio of a Mercedes E320 1999 model? The factory radio is also attached to the CD changer in the trunk, which I believe is connected through a fiber optic cable.

Thanks in anticipation.

agunjal

Thanks this is really great. Will this work in my 01 S430? I looked for the loom today and its not there..I was really bummed

Thankjs

Richard

We get COMAND 2.0 in the ML (W163) in Europe (rather than USA MCS system) - but that does not have the aux wiring (i.e the C2 to the intermediate white connector (which the connector you say cut-off in step1 plugs into) in it.

The C/CLK with factory fit COMAND 2.0 has that intermediate connector in place, so all you do is to plug the loom you mention into that (if your car didnt come with the jack in the glovebox, which they cost cut at some point in the past)

Also, it will not work for COMAND2.5 (i.e the original COMAND in the S class, before they briefly switched to widescreen in 2003 I think, then switched to MOST) - it doesnt have the electronics - i've always assumed that is because of the tape player.

And finally, if you have the COMAND-APS DVD based system with the map dvd in the head unit rather than the trunk, (A/B/C/CLK/ML/GL/R/Smart-forfour) the loom is different part number and just plugs into the connector on the COMAND-APS. See my retrofit COMAND-APS to A class document at http://www.mercupgrades.com

Cheers

Richard

dyos

All,

I'm interested in installing some type of integrated bluetooth into my 2003 CLK55 AMG. I've attached two images of the electronic panel in my trunk. I do not think I have the factory integrated COMAND system. I'm not sure if someone has converted bluetooth into a system like this but I'm looking for some advice. I look forward to your response and thanks in advance.

Skylaw

Jeremy,

Welcome to the forum.

It would be easier to tell what you were photographing if we could read the labels.

You can check your car against the phone bulletin for it at http://home.earthlink.net/~phdwebsit..._bulletins.htm - at least you will know what you have. If nothing at all, you will want to install a Universal PSE, a cradle eliminator cable, and a V60 Bluetooth puck. Those items, plus a compatible phone will put you in business.

If you have a "blue label" PSE as described at post # 3 at https://mbworld.org/forums/audio-ele...ml#post2788377, you're in luck - just add the cradle eliminator cable and a V60 puck, plus the phone, and you're in business.

Also, you might want to take a look at https://mbworld.org/forums/suggestio...-guy-help.html to get more use and enjoyment out of the forum.