Raspberry Pi
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Joined: Jul 2014
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2008 E350
Raspberry Pi
I just purchased my first Benz a couple of weeks ago, a 2008 E350, and I'm loving it!
As a techie, tinkerer, and gadget guy, I'm interested in doing some DIY upgrades, even something that may seem sort of ambitious, and looking for some tips.
I'm building a custom Raspberry Pi-based system with a 7" touchscreen, and I want to replace the COMAND unit with it. It looks like COMAND handles the stereo, navigation, and potentially bluetooth phone interface; all of which I'd like to do with my own system.
At this point, I'm still in the development stage of the project. I've pulled the COMAND unit out of the dashboard to investigate what's going on behind it (because I haven't had much luck finding wiring diagrams online), and it appears that the only thing that really plugs into the back are power and fiber.. there's no direct connection to speakers here. The only thing I really need back there is power for my devices and access to the audio wiring.
How would I interface into the audio wiring? Is the amp included in this removable unit (meaning I'll need to install another), or is it elsewhere in the vehicle? What functionality losses can I expect by removing this, perhaps something I'm not anticipating?
As a techie, tinkerer, and gadget guy, I'm interested in doing some DIY upgrades, even something that may seem sort of ambitious, and looking for some tips.
I'm building a custom Raspberry Pi-based system with a 7" touchscreen, and I want to replace the COMAND unit with it. It looks like COMAND handles the stereo, navigation, and potentially bluetooth phone interface; all of which I'd like to do with my own system.
At this point, I'm still in the development stage of the project. I've pulled the COMAND unit out of the dashboard to investigate what's going on behind it (because I haven't had much luck finding wiring diagrams online), and it appears that the only thing that really plugs into the back are power and fiber.. there's no direct connection to speakers here. The only thing I really need back there is power for my devices and access to the audio wiring.
How would I interface into the audio wiring? Is the amp included in this removable unit (meaning I'll need to install another), or is it elsewhere in the vehicle? What functionality losses can I expect by removing this, perhaps something I'm not anticipating?
Super Member
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 673
Likes: 27
From: Frederick
2000 ML320, 2005 E320 CDI
You'd need to build an audio gateway between the Pi and the amplifer in the vehicle. You could buy one for $500-700...but that would be nearly the cost of an Android based head unit. Search for Dynavin IIRC.
