My comand head unit had bad buttons on it. A previous owner had simply fudged up the buttons with something - perhaps hand sanitizer. The unit worked fine but the buttons would stick and the decals were droopy. I recently purchased another unit off eBay to take it apart and see if I can replace just the buttons. I found out that you can.

These units are so poorly documented on forums that I thought I would do a quick write up of my observations. I might add pictures later if requested. The best video for how to pull the unit that I found is .

1) The bottom row of buttons (that include the seat heaters) is a separate component and easily swappable with 4 hex screws. When you pull the unit out of the car it is a separate plug on the right side of the unit.

2) The top buttons (8 on each side - volume in middle etc.) can be swapped out quite easily also. It's four phillips screws and a few clips - comes right off. Be careful to line up the PCMCIA buttons when you put the new one on. I made the assumption that a unit with the same buttons would have the same guts and I was right. It lined up perfectly.

3) Three screws on the bottom of the unit gain access to the hard drive. I did not have any luck simply swapping my hard drive with another unit. I imagine they will have to have the exact same versions of software, etc.

4) If the display looks wonky make sure to reseat the metallic plug on the back of the unit - that's the display port.

5) It's essential to view the back of one of these units before purchase. Pull the one you have and take a photo of the back to compare. I saw about 3-4 versions on the internet.

6) My 2011 E350 did not have any protection swapping a new unit (or the old one back) a few times as I played with it. No codes or anything. The word on the street is that they introduced this in the middle of 2011.

 

great write up mate. glad it worked out well for you.

on a different note. I have a bluray stuck inside the unit for some time now (dont ask) did you notice if it was accessible when you removed the HU? i mean can I fry the whole thing apart to get the stuck bluray out? cheers!

 

Not that I would ever do this but a terrific write up!

 

I did not get that deep into the unit but I can speculate that would be a rather intense (surgical) job. I'd speculate the thickness of the BluRay is what caused it. Is the whole DVD portion jammed or just that particular slot?

 

yep thats it, picked up the wrong disc and as soon as the HU ate it i was like, crap! tried the eject button straight away but all i can hear was the HU trying to spir it out. now I cant even load the rest of the 5 empty slots.

i reckon I can take out the HU easy by following the video link youve got here but from there im afraid i might make it worse. i dont really use the 6 slot changer but it would be good to know that i can when i want to.

 

It might be worth it - but I cannot guarantee. You would have to make sure to kill the power WHILE it's trying to eject (so the slot remains open) and then take off the top and bottom parts. The slot is bigger without the buttons on and you might be able to get a set of needle nosed pliers in there.

BUT, hey, if you don't need it I'd let it sit - however you will not be doing any map updates .

 

didnt think about map updates until you mentioned it. hmmm

what about the software upgrade, do you have to go through the cd slot as well? cheers1

 

That's a whole other bag. From what I have heard YES.

 

Great write up. Good to know it's here if I need it.

 

My pleasure. I hope it helps someone. I have been lurking these boards for many years and I owe a lot. I am thinking about imaging the drive in my spare COMAND and checking it out. That will be another write up.