Theodor.

Hi Everybody,

I have an E220 2010 sedan, and my head unit doesn't have a GPS, so I was thinking about getting a head unit with GPS,
I called the dealer and that costs like 2K USD, so absolutely am not doing it there, so I was thinking what if I buy a head unit online and install it myself, I checked on Youtube the the replacement doesn't look that complicated, but I was thinking about the below points,

1, Would the bought head unit work? couldn't it be considered as stolen one?
2, most of the available head units online are in US, and I live in Sweden, is there anything specific I need to think about before doing this?
3, Considering that the above point is clear, do I need to do any additional cabling for GPS while replacement?
4, would the new head unit be functional using my steering wheel control?
5, the head unit consists of two sets of buttons, one is directly related to the radio, audio, GPS etc... and the other set is for additional functions, like seat heaters and sensors disable, do I need to change both sets? or can I change only the first one?

thanks for your help in advance

jonUF02

Everything electronic in MB needs to be set up and tied together in the main computers, it definitely won't be as simple as physically swapping parts. You will need someone very knowledgeable with the right computer system to get it going properly.

thefisch

Not sure it would be worth the time or cost to totally integrate a new comand system into a car that didn't come with it. Better off getting a garmin or other standalone gps in the long run if you need that.

beejAMG

hate to be the bearer of bad news but unless youre an MB tech that has access to anything and everything MB related, this is waaaaaaaaaaay above your pay grade.

i would trade the car in for one that has gps. might be more cost effective. i know how some hate the external gps with all the wires hanging, i do. but for now either that or trade in.

pamiboy

Agree with this. No point doing so much work on a car unless this is your business. Just trade the car for a comparable one with navigation. I hate dangling wires too.

PatrixUSA

+2 ^^ Most likely a complicated and expensive process for putting a new head unit in the car. I'd opt for using your phone or a portable GPS unit. Many advantages going that route such as most portable units have traffic included, can be taken with you to use in multiple vehicles and the voice recognition is much better than what I've experienced in the MB.

cetialpha5

Wow, there's a guy in Sweden who did the retrofit. However if you don't want to pay 2k, you probably don't want to do the retrofit either because it's probably not too much cheaper. Navigation isn't that great anyway, I still prefer to use google maps instead of the navigation, google maps gives better directions than the navigation system, plus it's already up to date and has current traffic.

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...ofit-ngt4.html

jonUF02

Yeah, I also use my phone for navigation 98% of the time I need it. Live traffic on Google is much better than the available service through Sirius, and so much easier to search for any place you want to go.

Only time I like to set the Nav is on long trips, which I rarely do in this car.

SoCal208

It's not easy. The latter COMAND unit (E class & C class face lift) is tied to the VIN # of the car. Retrofit will need the DAS & MB dealer enter the data to the car VIN # to make it work. SteveNL MERCEDES can answer the question better.
The android phone NAVI work better than the COMAND !!!

Theodor.

thanks a lot all for the tips I was actually thinking about trading my car and get another one with some more options but since I love this car in particular I thought maybe I can add some stuff instead of breaking up with her

Arrie

If it is ONLY around $2k I would not even entertain the possibility to have it done by anyone else but the dealer. Absolutely foolish to take the risk for that low cost in my opinion.


I would have thought the head unit part cost alone would have been more than that.


MB dealer would have to make it work and I'm pretty sure there are some programming involved and this you can have done only by someone who has the proper equipment and knows how to do it.


Also, I would not get a U.S. head unit for an European car.

Arrie

Just that if the car is what OP otherwise likes just missing the NAV then it may just be the lowest cost option to have the head unit swap done by the dealer assuming that $2000 is about the cost by the MB dealer. He can probably not trade the car in and pay only $2000 between the cars to get the car with NAV.


If the cost indeed is only about $2000 it puts me at ease as I have been thinking this head unit repair as one of the most expensive parts to repair/replace. I see it is not.