g4benz

I understand that it is normal operating procedure for the command system to shut off when the car is not "running". Usually, I like to listen to the radio during my lunch hour. But, after about 3-5 minutes, the command system shuts down on me. I know that it takes a lot of voltage, so maybe that's why the car wants to shut it down, but 3-5 minutes? And, I cannot abort the shutdown by pressing any buttons (volume, command button, etc.). I tried everything.

Is this "normal" or is something wrong here? I also tried the key in the accessory position and all positions possible!

Ridiculous if you ask me. Oh, and I have a new battery in my car.

thefisch

How have you powered on the car? I seem to get that message while in accessory mode after pressing the start button once or in retained power mode after shutting off engine before opening the door. However, I don't think it has happened to me yet when just getting in the car and hitting power on comand without using the key/start button. I think in that mode it would let me press a key to continue using comand. IIRC I have let it run 15 minutes in that 'mode' without getting cut off.

g4benz

I come back from lunch and put the car in park. The radio is running. While the radio is running, I turn the engine off by turning the key all the way left (I've tried the key in different positions as well (i.e. accessory). The radio is still running. The radio then shuts off within 3-5 minutes with "Command is shutting down".

thefisch

You are in retained power mode until you open the door. Try opening the door to exit retained power mode so everything shuts off. Close the door and then just press the power button on the front of comand without using the key or start button. See how long it stays on in that mode. Like I said, I've gotten it to stay on longer that way - not that I can make any sense of it.

g4benz

I'll give that a try. Thanks.

thefisch

What did you find? Since I have never figured out the comand shutdown logic or found a reliable source for information on it, I am curious to figure this out.

g4benz

Sorry, didn't get a chance yet. I'll post back once I try.

Arrie

I also hate his cut off when I want to listen to the radio while working on the car.


What I do is I open the driver door window and then with the door shut I press the START button once to get the Comand running. But the problem is it stays on only about 20 min and then goes off.


Don't know why this is as when I go and do the START-button again it does the same cycle, i.e. it does not shut off because of the low battery charge.


Stupid thing as I think it should play the radio as long as I want to or if the battery goes low enough.

El Cid

For me this "feature" was most annoying when I was pairing my cell phones with the car.
The MB pairing process is not easy and I either had to leave the engine running or keep turning power back on to continue pairing.
I guess it is because the electronics and whatever else creates a tremendous drain on the standard MB batteries.

g4benz

I tried a couple of things, but cannot figure out a "pattern".

All they had to do was create a command option that allowed us to disable this. If I want to sit in MY car and hear the radio for 30 minutes, I should be able to.

This is silly.

El Cid

Tend to agree with you, but I think it is MB's way of not having to make no cost Roadside Assistance calls for lots and lots of dead batteries.
Would imagine it is quite easy to drain the MB battery, particularly after it hits a couple of years of age. Mine died at 49 weeks, even thought I always had engine running except two times when paired BlueTooth.

thefisch

I agree that they should at least allow the user to turn off the feature or hit a button to continue using it. Perhaps there are other systems in use/standby during accessory mode to make the car concerned about the available power when comand is also on. Or it could just be an annoying timer that you can't change.

However, this seems to only be an issue when you use the key or start button to put the car in accessory mode. I just tested turning on comand without putting the car in accessory mode by simply hitting the ON button on the comand module. All I did was open the passenger door and pressed the ON button and the radio started playing. I set a timer on my smartphone and checked back every 2-3 minutes to see if it was still on or if there were any warning messages about shutting down. After 20 minutes the radio was still playing without any messages so I shut it down with the ON button. Perhaps this is the way MB intended for us to listen to our comand system without the engine running.

silversleeper48

Hello has anyone found out why our comand system will not stay on while it is parked? Has any discovered a hack for the W204 2013 C63? What is also weird is my car comes with DVD player, but it will not play for more then 5 mins if parked. The only way to watch as long as I want or listen to the radio for as long as I want I have to have the engine running. Also if you update your comand/navigation the process takes 30 to 60 mins and the require the car/engine on until the update is complete. I just can not understand why Mercedes designed their infotainment systems like this.

Arrie

It is annoying I agree but I guess they do it to save the battery like if you would leave the radio on and it would drain it.

But it does not make sense as radio cuts off immediately when the door is opened...

milfed

I have exactly the same issue. I do understand the reasons but with Mercedes being so good normally as these comfort stuff. My old transit van has a simple option allowing 1 or 2 hours before automatically turning the radio off. So simple…

CaliBenzDriver

To keep music playing for a longer time, you'd need a low power media center, one that does not drain 10Amps. The present timeout is to enforce this consideration.

The integrated Comand system really needs the alternator running to supply regulated 14V power. The big AGM battery circuitry only delivers 12.0v or less to accessories. (In a good day... 12.6v battery minus 0.6V diode V19 drop).

Draining your main battery is the opposite of float charging. It's guaranteed to require high charge currents & service calls.
.

Left Coast Geek

note that 10 amps at 12V is *only* 120 watts, thats actually not a lot for a 7 speaker high fi system like these cars have.