DC area road top CarPlay installation?
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2016 E350 wagon Sport, 2014 C300 Sport, 2006 987 Boxster
DC area road top CarPlay installation?
Lots of great info that led me to purchase the road top CarPlay kit from Amazon. If anyone knows of an installer with experience with this kit in the DC area, I’d love to hear from you. I’m reluctant to take it on myself but will do it if there’s no pro out there. There are a lot of configuration and wiring options and I’d hate to pay someone to do it, only to have to go back if a certain configuration isn’t working.
Even after reading through the threads on CarPlay retrofit, I’m still a bit confused on whether in fact I really need to do the wired option at all. Doing so sounds like it would require me to do more work to run the aux connector to the center console. If I can consistently use wireless, then do I even need to do the wired aux installation? The audio connect for my model is in the console not the glove box.
Thanks in advance, and if I’ve missed this being addressed in the multiple threads on the CarPlay topic generally, my apologies.
Even after reading through the threads on CarPlay retrofit, I’m still a bit confused on whether in fact I really need to do the wired option at all. Doing so sounds like it would require me to do more work to run the aux connector to the center console. If I can consistently use wireless, then do I even need to do the wired aux installation? The audio connect for my model is in the console not the glove box.
Thanks in advance, and if I’ve missed this being addressed in the multiple threads on the CarPlay topic generally, my apologies.
Joined: Nov 2016
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From: Maryland
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
There's actually not a lot of wiring to do. No cutting and splicing, other than to attach the ground wires to the chassis or each other. The only one would be if you were to run the USB connector for a connected or wired connection to your phone. The RoadTop unit is designed to primarily use Bluetooth and/or WiFi. The Aux connector should be in your console and running that wire to the console is not hard. The best thing to do is (1) to watch the several videos on YouTube showing how to remove trim and access your head unit and (2) get some trim removal tools either on Amazon or Walmart. Also, have you looked at the pictures and walk-thru in the R231 forum? It's pinned at the top of the listings.
https://mbworld.org/forums/sl-class-...y-install.html
https://mbworld.org/forums/sl-class-...y-install.html
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 7,847
Likes: 3,498
From: Maryland
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Here's a couple of how-to videos. They are not all of the RoadTop unit, but do help you to visualize what you need to do. So, it's worth watching them all.
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2016 E350 wagon Sport, 2014 C300 Sport, 2006 987 Boxster
Even after watching multiple videos and reading the Road Top instructions, I'm still confused about one thing - the USB and Aux connection deal. Let's say that I never want to used wired Carplay. My car has, in the center consule, both a USB port and a complex-looking aux input with what appears to be a 3.5 mm female jack and some other attachment. Neither looks relevant to today's iPhones, which don't sport headphone jacks and use a lightning connection. The USB port in the console is simply to charge the phone. Ok.
So what I envision is relatively simple. I don't connect the USB on the Road Top or try to use the connector to the Mercedes aux thingy. I just use the iPhone's bluetooth to connect wirelessly to the Road Top wifi antenna. And I will leave the iPhone in the center console plugged into the car's USB port, but simply to keep it charged when on longer trips. The Mercedes head unit already has an Aux option, so is it safe to assume that I can use that for the wireless Carplay without it actually trying to connect for some weird reason to the Mercedes Aux stuff in the center console?
Will that work? I'd prefer to have others' feedback on it before I start taking stuff apart in the car. Looking for as simple an install as possible, with as little disassembly as possible.
So what I envision is relatively simple. I don't connect the USB on the Road Top or try to use the connector to the Mercedes aux thingy. I just use the iPhone's bluetooth to connect wirelessly to the Road Top wifi antenna. And I will leave the iPhone in the center console plugged into the car's USB port, but simply to keep it charged when on longer trips. The Mercedes head unit already has an Aux option, so is it safe to assume that I can use that for the wireless Carplay without it actually trying to connect for some weird reason to the Mercedes Aux stuff in the center console?
Will that work? I'd prefer to have others' feedback on it before I start taking stuff apart in the car. Looking for as simple an install as possible, with as little disassembly as possible.
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 7,847
Likes: 3,498
From: Maryland
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
The AUX port is necessary for the audio portion. That's what provides input so you can hear music, etc. The USB in your console is only for the Mercedes "mode" and can be used to charge the phone. The USB with the CarPlay unit allows a wired connection versus Bluetooth and WiFi. It also will charge your phone when on long trips and using something like Waze or Google Maps. And sometimes it's just easier to connect using the wired USB connection, like most factory units. The RoadTop USB cable has a female end so you can connect your iPhone cable to it.
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2016 E350 wagon Sport, 2014 C300 Sport, 2006 987 Boxster
After 6 hours or so yesterday, I got the Road Top installed and working, with aux wired to center console. The main issue that I am confronting is a conflict between Siri and the MB voice assistant. I've read various things on this in multiple forums, but before I go down the road of configuration changes too much, is there a general consensus around:
- just turning off the native MB assistant altogether, even for phone calls
- some sort of hybrid and does that necessitate reinitializing Aux in the audio selector after every call?
If there's one thread to rule them all on this configuration - again, for the Road Top (I realize that the JoyAuto and others may be slightly different) - then please feel free to point me to it.
On a final note, I think I'd pay an installer to do this work. It's not hard, but it is one of those things that causes you to go quite slowly if it is the first time you are disassembling a bunch of plastic parts in tight spots. And getting the cables out of the way behind/below the Head Unit was really frustrating, as everyone has noted.
- just turning off the native MB assistant altogether, even for phone calls
- some sort of hybrid and does that necessitate reinitializing Aux in the audio selector after every call?
If there's one thread to rule them all on this configuration - again, for the Road Top (I realize that the JoyAuto and others may be slightly different) - then please feel free to point me to it.
On a final note, I think I'd pay an installer to do this work. It's not hard, but it is one of those things that causes you to go quite slowly if it is the first time you are disassembling a bunch of plastic parts in tight spots. And getting the cables out of the way behind/below the Head Unit was really frustrating, as everyone has noted.
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Joined: Nov 2016
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From: Maryland
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
It's really important, if not essential, to NOT connect to MB Bluetooth. Forget MB Bluetooth on your phone.
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Thread Starter
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Joined: Nov 2019
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2016 E350 wagon Sport, 2014 C300 Sport, 2006 987 Boxster
Pinning down configurations
Ok I’m slowly making progress. First I changed wifi setting to 6. Road Top says console must be rebooted for this change to take effect. PLEASE tell me that there is a way to “reboot” without taking out the glovebox again and unplugging it.
Next I went into HU’s engineering mode and disabled the default MB voice command. It was interfering with Siri. Copying shamelessly from an Amazon review for this product:
“ If you don't want the factory MB voice (who does?) then go into Engineering Mode on the head unit
(press and hold 'end call' + '1' + '#' buttons for 10 seconds). Navigate (using the console knob) to menu 7.7 (HU Parameter), then scroll down to find SDS/TTS in the list. Select this and choose Disable. Now hit the Back button until you're back at the root menu, then find menu 9 (Reset) and run this. It does not factory default the HU, this just reboots the unit. This is necessary to make it accept the changes.”
I then restarted phone. And I ran it wired only by disabling both BT and wifi on the phone. That’s working well although I need to tune Nav volume vs Spotify volume somehow.
I will try forgetting MB BT next and see if I can get a reliable wireless connection.
but if anyone knows if I can make the change in wifi setting stick without having to get to the console to reboot it, please let me know.
Next I went into HU’s engineering mode and disabled the default MB voice command. It was interfering with Siri. Copying shamelessly from an Amazon review for this product:
“ If you don't want the factory MB voice (who does?) then go into Engineering Mode on the head unit
(press and hold 'end call' + '1' + '#' buttons for 10 seconds). Navigate (using the console knob) to menu 7.7 (HU Parameter), then scroll down to find SDS/TTS in the list. Select this and choose Disable. Now hit the Back button until you're back at the root menu, then find menu 9 (Reset) and run this. It does not factory default the HU, this just reboots the unit. This is necessary to make it accept the changes.”
I then restarted phone. And I ran it wired only by disabling both BT and wifi on the phone. That’s working well although I need to tune Nav volume vs Spotify volume somehow.
I will try forgetting MB BT next and see if I can get a reliable wireless connection.
but if anyone knows if I can make the change in wifi setting stick without having to get to the console to reboot it, please let me know.
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2016 E350 wagon Sport, 2014 C300 Sport, 2006 987 Boxster
After two weeks of working, the unit has suddenly stopped. There is no display, not for OEM head unit, not for CarPlay. Audio radio works but not CarPlay. Going into reverse doesn't turn on OEM rear view camera.
What to try next, short of taking out the dash and head unit again simply to recheck the connection? If this is going to be a recurrence, then it's not worth having CarPlay. Any suggestions from others who have had this thing working?
What to try next, short of taking out the dash and head unit again simply to recheck the connection? If this is going to be a recurrence, then it's not worth having CarPlay. Any suggestions from others who have had this thing working?
