I bought a 09' Gl-450 about 1 mont ago and was against the new design for the rear seat dvd players. I was going to have a aftermarket company install dvd's in head rest like older designs but found out that you can't do that anymore due to the power head rest controls.
Well I'm back to settleing for the OEM edition of the rear seat entertainment package. The question that I'm looking for a answer too is:
On car window sticker it states:
"Accessory code 866 PRE-WIRING FOR REAR SEAT ENTERTAINMENT".
Does this mean all the wiring is already installed and all I need to do is purchase the Head rest dvds from MB.....

Any help in this matter will save me alot of head aches with the wife!!! LOL

 

The 09 RES is installed behind the headrests just like 08. The headrest and monitor are seperate, the power headrest does not affect the installation. The headrest goes up and down, the monitor stays in place. Do NOT go with generic replacement headrests with the monitor in them.

There is also a less expensive version of the RES where the monitor is placed between the two front seats above the rear vent console.

Prior to selling his GL550 my father had an aftermarket system put in his, each monitor had its own dvd player and the headphone were wireless and the monitors were independent of the headrests and the color matched the interior. I beleive the total cost was less than 3k, but the hardware was discounted. Let me know if you need additional information on the hardware that was installed.

Bryan

 

Riz--what that means is the "pre-wire" for them has already been run. This allows the dealer to install the factory RSE system to your car. I believe it's a little more than just buying the monitors, but it does allow the dealer to install it for you. Hope this helps.

 

GL has an active head restraint system which moves the headrests forward in case of a collision to minimize whiplash. Make sure your RSE will not interfere with that.

 

Riz1 - Vizualogic makes the aftermarket DVD screens that look like the 07-08 leather boxes that sit behind the factory headrests - they do not interfere with active head restraint system. I installed these in my GL450 because I didn't like the location of the factory DVD player - on the vizualogics, you get wireless headphones, seperate players in each unit behind the seats, and you can pipe the music into your factory stereo (or use the FM modulator). I bet it will still be more affordable than going back to get the factory pieces (pre-wired or not). Even cheaper if you want to install them yourself - its pretty easy to do if you are handy with soldering wires - only really need to connect up 3 wires, constant power, car on power, and a ground.

http://www.vizualogic.com/active_headrest.html

 

yes, you are pre-wired for the factory RSE kit. I believe the dealer installed price is around $2700 for parts and labor. You also have the option (as noted) of using the vizualogic neck-pro compatible kit which sits the monitors behind the factory headrests. We have a complete plug-and-play kit for your application that includes the vizualogic kit, dual-zone operation (you can play front dvd on the back screens, rear audio up front, aux A/V input for ipod or playstation.), DVD in motion up front for the passenger, and remote power on/off from the steering wheel controls (so you dont have to reach back to trun on the monitors for the kids.)

Its also about $600 less than the factory kit.

You can see how it works in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmQuZoYz3kE

the last 2 minutes show how it functions.

 

I got the OEM RES, and one of my three kids broke one LCD, and I wanted to replace it.
Just one screen costs more than the whole system, they wanted $3k's.
I checked around, even in Europe to see if I can get the Grundig screen at a discount, and it's impossible. I wish they would sell the OEM screen at a more accordingly price, I was willing to pay up to $1k.
The Vizualogic is great, and your price around $2k's is great, but what do I do with the OEM, and who is going to install it? Is it an easy DIY project? Can you play DVD from any region?

 

Will this system work for 2009 as well? It says 2005-2008 on the website.

 

yes

 

Sorry to bring up this old thread but now that its 2.5 years later, are there any other alternatives that would allow me to utilize my pre-wired GL other than the MB units and the Vizualogic? Most everything that i am seeing either come with a DVD player (which i don't need as the head unit already has this) or are designed for the 2007 year. Hopefully less than 2k installed?

 

Not sure how old your kids are, but I would vote for an Ipad solution using the pro-clips to attach to the headrest bars. Then buy some bluetooth headphones. Definitely less than 2k and much more versatile. That is as long as your kids know how to operate an Ipad and you can get the movies onto it.

Only issue is that you can't control from the front which can be a pain anyways.

 

My kids are young and unfortunately id like to be able to control what and when they watch something. Being able to control from the front is very important.

 

Hello. My new car got a bit beat up by the kids. They tore the DVD player out of the back floor console. An aggressive drop of the backpack in the backseat. The DVD player works, but the mechanism that pops it out and closes it is broken. For a mere $205, I have a replacement part, but can't figure out how to get the rear console off to replace. I pulled the top part off but it seems like there might be screws somewhere. Any help would be greatly appreciated. The dealer is going to charge me $200 to replace it (in labor) so I thought I would try it myself first. Thank you.

 

Are there any HDMI screen options? I want to put an Apple TV to my screen

 

You would need to run an HDMI to Composite converter, which would let you go from there to the input on the screen in the rear. Most will need power to run as well, so you have to factor in having the converter plugged in, to whatever power source it might need - models may vary.

 

I have the adapter but I was hoping not to lose quality by not converting somehow

 

Well the screens aren't exactly 4k wonders, I'd guess at best, you'd see maybe 720p quality. You shouldn't see any quality difference between converting down, versus playing a DVD instead in the car. It's not going to equal a great home setup, but you're only going to be as good as the weakest link, and in this case, a decade-old screen.

 

I just want the kids to be able to watch Netflix and play games in the car...

 

They won't notice any converter difference, go for it and trust me, just being able to do it will be a lot more entertaining to them than if there's a pixel out of place somewhere