Retrofit/mount larger screen for NTG4.5/7
 

Sooo...here we are again.

I have a 2014 E350 with COMAND ONLINE. My biggest and probably only complaint about my car is the size and location of my 7 inch screen.
I've done a ton of research online and in the forums about retrofits and larger screens. It seems as though you need NTG5+ with the iPAD style screen to do a screen upgrade.

My question is this...Can we install an aftermarket screen with preferably an Android OS built in that has capabilities like GPS, WIFI, etc? My logic is this, the main screen is hooked up with a FAKRA cable. Can't we unhook the FAKRA cable and convert the signal to either HDMI/RCA to input into the aftermarket screen that has input capabilities?
My main goal is the following:
1. larger screen 8 inch+
2. be able to switch between the android OS and the stock COMAND system using the aftermarket screen inputs.
3. lose ZERO functionality.
4. mount the larger screen in front of the OEM screen in the available space.

I have seen this done...to an extent on YOUTUBE. to see an example of what i'm trying to you can go here

I have also heard that CAN-BUS hacking might be useful in this scenario also

Any suggestions, opinions, etc are extremely welcome.

Does anyone have any input or ideas how this could work? or if even possible...

Great topic. I'm very interested in seeing how this can be done.

From what I have been reading it seems you can just disconnect the FAKRA cable from the back of the stock 7 inch COMAND screen and hook it up to another screen without issue or at the very least use a CAN-BUS cable to trick the car I think. Can anyone with extensive experience verify any of this???

That would certainly be great, but where does the larger display go that doesn't look horrible?

Mounted right in front of the OEM screen with a base that fills the empty space of the OEM screen housing.

My goal is 8-10 inch screen upgrade.

Sounds interesting, but what about resolution, alignments, etc. The delta would be pretty noticeable when going from a 6" to 10" screen.
How would you do that. A simple "mount" would seem awkward and conspicuous. Wouldn't this require extensive reworking of the dash area?

If you guys watch the youtube video i supplied it should give you a pretty good idea of what im trying to accomplish. Also screen resolution shouldnt bea problem based on the dimensions of the COMAND 7 INCH screen which is believe is 800x600 which is a standard resolution that doesnt have a hard time upscaling on a bigger monitor with a higher resolution. Many of the MB owners with the iPAD style screens are swapping them out for larger ones as well. I strongly believe our only hurdle is the FAKRA cable/CAN-BUS for the W212. Again, look on youtube for MIRAGE AUDIO W212 10.2 INCH SCREEN which what i linked up top. The only difference being they didnt hook up the source COMAND cable to it which is still running to the OEM screen. I simply posted the video for screen size and placement, when the real issue here is finding the right new aftermarket screen and having it pull the COMAND feed that would otherwise go to the OEM.

I have managed to find the new screen with android OS and any necessary cables that might work as part of the process.

With that said...does anyone know the COMAND system and electronics really well that could almost walk me through the process if even possible?

Are you sure you want to do this?
IMHO iPad mounted inside the cabin or a larger iphone will look and function better.
This mod will completely ruin flowing lines of the dash...but...it's your car ;)

Without question yes! Screw the flowing lines, the car needs something to make it pop more on the inside anyway since it's been using the same interior scheme for years.

I have contacted NAVIKS and CAR SOLUTIONS and they do not think they have anything in the way of an "interface" that would allow the hookup of a after market screen in place of the OEM screen when it comes to the cables and such.

I know they make FAKRA cables that can either be striped or converted to RCA/HDMI to hook up another screen which is my intention. However, I think the real problem arises with the car sending the data to the after market screen as opposed to the OEM. This doesn't really make sense to me because a screen is just a screen and it shouldn't matter what the data is outputing to as long as the screen can play it. Perhaps maybe its a CANBUS issue but if thats the case then they make cables for that too to trick the system...I honestly dont know my grasp of this EXTREMELY INTRICATE (yet unnecessary) electrical system.

Hopefully some of you have some insight or info

So this is incoming....This will be brought to you by one of your more famous forum members(not me, obviously). More info should be coming in the next week or so.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...362fb2adde.png

It will/should also have mounting brackets.

I think the oem 8 inch screen without bezels should fit from the newer command units. That should give you a larger screen and keep full functionality. Then have a new bezel fabricated to make the new screen blend in as best as you can in the original mounting position.

I have no problem at all using the screen you suggested. The only problem is, I don't have one of those to test on my vehicle to see if it would work/talk to each other correctly. Most of us already know the resolutions(800x600+) will line up for uniformity of info on the screen(s) which is good news. All of these MB screens have 2 connections, 1 is for the Fakra cable and the other is for power. Now the only issue I can think of with those cables is either the COMAND system and/or the CAN-BUS system not liking that "new" screen and not sending the correct data resulting in a black/messed up screen. I know there are CAN-BUS modules to help with those sort of situations but beyond that...SOMEONE just needs to plug one in and see if it works. If it does then the only issue is mounting which shouldn't be that big of a deal.

Although, I would like the "new" screen to have and ANDROID OS built in with multiple inputs. That way you have all the OEM stuff on one source and then also be able to switch over to the android os for other apps like google maps and such. I guess we'll see what happens very soon.

I just like nice things...

And so it begins....


https://mbworld.org/forums/showpost....&postcount=125