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This is really not bad, I must say. Though the screen resolution is awful (1024x768, wtf?) and it’s vertical so apps will probably act weird, but it does look cool. Oh and it’s even more than $1K. For a car that has depreciated into “not much”, this seems like a LOT
$1k is ridiculous for the US market, but keep in mind that W251s were sold in China up until 2017. There's a lot more newer W251s in China than there are in the US.
The way the bottom sticks out doesn't look right to me. I bet it would look especially atrocious from the side. Also, it's clearly designed for non-ADS cars with parking sensors. I suppose it will work fine for cars without parking sensors, but cars with ADS is a no-go.
Nearly every Android-based headunit I see has a resolution of 1024x768 or 800x600. I have yet to see an Android unit go above that resolution.
$1k is ridiculous for the US market, but keep in mind that W251s were sold in China up until 2017. There's a lot more newer W251s in China than there are in the US.
The way the bottom sticks out doesn't look right to me. I bet it would look especially atrocious from the side. Also, it's clearly designed for non-ADS cars with parking sensors. I suppose it will work fine for cars without parking sensors, but cars with ADS is a no-go.
Nearly every Android-based headunit I see has a resolution of 1024x768 or 800x600. I have yet to see an Android unit go above that resolution.
You're probably right on the fit. I wouldn't even think about it, just is kind of neat how they've used the space. Why do you say ADS won't fit - additional buttons? (I've not looked closely at the consoles, so not sure how they differ between the two).
As for low-res... that's not quite so... there are some serious enthusiasts out there developing PROPER Android systems, like the one Daniel is building for Audis (RSNav). It's now 1920x1080, on a 10.25" screen, and it's "only" $600 USD, so it's completely reasonable, too. (https://rsnav.com/collections/s3-and...em-for-audi-q3). It's entirely true a lot of the Aliexpress ones are disastrously bad AND expensive, so the problem is finding the right, good one...
Nice to see some non-Chinese players in the market after years of them not existing. But not too many for Mercedes yet...
ADS has additional buttons. Specifically, there's a button for sport/comfort modes on the suspension and another button for raising the car an additional 2-3 inches at low speeds. They're part of the button stack at the bottom with the hazard button, seat heaters, etc.
Nice to see some non-Chinese players in the market after years of them not existing. But not too many for Mercedes yet...
ADS has additional buttons. Specifically, there's a button for sport/comfort modes on the suspension and another button for raising the car an additional 2-3 inches at low speeds. They're part of the button stack at the bottom with the hazard button, seat heaters, etc.
.. or, in the case of the W251, probably "never" rather than "yet" I'm still tempted by the one that mounts on top of the dash ... but thinking the center speaker will prevent that from installing correctly. Rats.
Noted on the ADS. Makes sense. I am only getting my car in a few weeks, so I haven't looked at the interior in detail yet...
what are you trying to accomplish? If you want better sound, the easyest way would be to keep the existing head unit and add say a 5ch amp that has HP and LP and better speakers. Tie into the speaker outputs at the back of the HU. A step up would be to investigate a MOST fiber optic to RCA converter. Trying to reproduce the HK system would be very expensive.
what are you trying to accomplish? If you want better sound, the easyest way would be to keep the existing head unit and add say a 5ch amp that has HP and LP and better speakers. Tie into the speaker outputs at the back of the HU. A step up would be to investigate a MOST fiber optic to RCA converter. Trying to reproduce the HK system would be very expensive.
Oh no, definitely do not want to change the sound - the built-in HK system is perfectly OK for me. I want a head unit with "newer" navigation (I want Waze, Carplay, that sort of stuff), and because I don't want to lose the built-in functionality, I don't want to remove the OEM head unit. The setup on top of the dash seemed perfect to retain both. I'm trying to be as uninvasive as possible (without resorting to a cell phone + windshield attachment, which is a little too lame for my taste).
Oh no, definitely do not want to change the sound - the built-in HK system is perfectly OK for me. I want a head unit with "newer" navigation (I want Waze, Carplay, that sort of stuff), and because I don't want to lose the built-in functionality, I don't want to remove the OEM head unit. The setup on top of the dash seemed perfect to retain both. I'm trying to be as uninvasive as possible (without resorting to a cell phone + windshield attachment, which is a little too lame for my taste).
The only OEM functionality you will lose out on, assuming you have a W251 with navigation, is the compass, navigation, and autosync of clock in the gauge cluster. You also lose front/rear balance if you have the HK fiber optic system. If you don't have navigation or HK, you literally lose no OEM functionality.
The only OEM functionality you will lose out on, assuming you have a W251 with navigation, is the compass, navigation, and autosync of clock in the gauge cluster. You also lose front/rear balance if you have the HK fiber optic system. If you don't have navigation or HK, you literally lose no OEM functionality.
I do have HK though, so I was hoping to retain the speaker balance. Also rear view camera; really don't want to run another one... running wires across the whole car is not fun!
I went with an unit from Pioneer (AVIC-Z910DAB), also had a bacup camera and a roof mounted antenna instaled. The unit has wifi Apple CarPlay and navigation that is better than Garmin in my opinion. Love the result despite the price tag. The old COMAND system will not be mised, the new system is night and day compared to the COMAND. I had a pro shop instal the whole thing.
Did you lose any functionality? Do you like it now that you’ve had it a while?
I went with an unit from Pioneer (AVIC-Z910DAB), also had a bacup camera and a roof mounted antenna instaled. The unit has wifi Apple CarPlay and navigation that is better than Garmin in my opinion. Love the result despite the price tag. The old COMAND system will not be mised, the new system is night and day compared to the COMAND. I had a pro shop instal the whole thing.
Looking for some advice here. I'm trying to install a unit, but pin 15 on the quadlock connector seems to be hot all the time - it does not switch off with ignition off or opening the door.
Has anyone installed this on a car with push button start / harman kardon / not sure what is causing this?
Looking for some advice here. I'm trying to install a unit, but pin 15 on the quadlock connector seems to be hot all the time - it does not switch off with ignition off or opening the door.
Has anyone installed this on a car with push button start / harman kardon / not sure what is causing this?
I have push button and HK and don’t recall this issue.
I have push button and HK and don’t recall this issue.
Hmm. Something is clearly wrong then on my end. I just hooked up the unit, started the engine, ran for a bit, turned the car off and exited it and locked it and it kept playing the radio. 30 mins later it was still playing. So my pin 15 clearly is always-on, and not switched like the wiring diagram appears to suggest.
I wonder how I can debug this. Everything else is working (well, FM is a little weak, but I’ll deal with that later) - but if I can’t find a switched wire, this isn’t going to go very far, heh.
[edit] hmm. I’m also pretty sure my front cigarette lighter does not work - but the fuses in the trunk seem fine. I wonder if something nefarious is afoot.
Last edited by Pseudo Nim; 09-06-2021 at 07:26 PM.
I started having problems with my COMAND unit after using my 2010 R350 to jump start a helpless motorist. Don't do it.
The COMAND unit seemed like it was malfunctioning, but after many diagnoses, I was able to determine that the problem was probably within the Sirius tuner underneath the rear passenger floorboard. My conclusion was that this repair was going to be too involved and costly and I would still be left with old technology. I had terrible luck with Seicane. Don't even think about that unit unless your up for figuring out the wiring on your own. I was able to figure out all of the wiring, but ultimately the unit never powered on due to a motherboard issue. Seicane wanted me to take $100 for my trouble and then told me I could try to sell the defective unit to someone else. Like I said, don't waste your time or money.
I opted to go with the folks at Crutchfield. I paid them $25 to pre-wire the harnesses, which saved a ton of time. I purchased the following to save you time figuring it out...
Sony XAV-AX5500
Metra 40-EU10 Antenna Adapter
Axxess AX-MC90082 Wiring Interface (because I have the Harmon Cardon Fiber Optic System and steering wheel controls)
Crutchfield ReadyHarness™ Service
Crutchfield didn't have the dash kit or the backup camera adapter I needed so I had to order them separately. They were...
Metra 95-8728B Dash Install Kit
RCA Male to Fakra Z Male RG174 to Rear View Camera
I can't say enough good about the folks at Crutchfield. Their assistance and information they provide make things so easy. The things they couldn't address were the rear camera hookup and the correct dash kit for the car (which I addressed above) and the radio antenna hookup.
All you have to do for the rear backup camera is plug in the RCA Male to Fakra Z Male adapter into the back of the new head unit Rear Camera RCA port and connect the other end of the cable to the GREEN Fakra connection that goes to the rear camera on the car.
The radio antenna hookup uses the Metra antenna adapter from Crutchfield above, but you have the find the PURPLE Fakra connection wires that are connected behind the old COMOND unit. They are NOT connected to the COMAND unit, they are two wires coming together with a purple Fakra Connection. Disconnect them and connect the Fakra end of the Metra adapter to the PURPLE female Fakra connection on the car. My connection was OK, but I had to add an antenna booster to get a clearer signal.
I started having problems with my COMAND unit after using my 2010 R350 to jump start a helpless motorist. Don't do it.
The COMAND unit seemed like it was malfunctioning, but after many diagnoses, I was able to determine that the problem was probably within the Sirius tuner underneath the rear passenger floorboard. My conclusion was that this repair was going to be too involved and costly and I would still be left with old technology. I had terrible luck with Seicane. Don't even think about that unit unless your up for figuring out the wiring on your own. I was able to figure out all of the wiring, but ultimately the unit never powered on due to a motherboard issue. Seicane wanted me to take $100 for my trouble and then told me I could try to sell the defective unit to someone else. Like I said, don't waste your time or money.
I opted to go with the folks at Crutchfield. I paid them $25 to pre-wire the harnesses, which saved a ton of time. I purchased the following to save you time figuring it out...
Sony XAV-AX5500
Metra 40-EU10 Antenna Adapter
Axxess AX-MC90082 Wiring Interface (because I have the Harmon Cardon Fiber Optic System and steering wheel controls)
Crutchfield ReadyHarness™ Service
Crutchfield didn't have the dash kit or the backup camera adapter I needed so I had to order them separately. They were...
Metra 95-8728B Dash Install Kit
RCA Male to Fakra Z Male RG174 to Rear View Camera
I can't say enough good about the folks at Crutchfield. Their assistance and information they provide make things so easy. The things they couldn't address were the rear camera hookup and the correct dash kit for the car (which I addressed above) and the radio antenna hookup.
All you have to do for the rear backup camera is plug in the RCA Male to Fakra Z Male adapter into the back of the new head unit Rear Camera RCA port and connect the other end of the cable to the GREEN Fakra connection that goes to the rear camera on the car.
The radio antenna hookup uses the Metra antenna adapter from Crutchfield above, but you have the find the PURPLE Fakra connection wires that are connected behind the old COMOND unit. They are NOT connected to the COMAND unit, they are two wires coming together with a purple Fakra Connection. Disconnect them and connect the Fakra end of the Metra adapter to the PURPLE female Fakra connection on the car. My connection was OK, but I had to add an antenna booster to get a clearer signal.
Hope this helps!
That’s good info - thanks. Just to point out one thing - you had the facelift COMAND, so your camera uses the FAKRA unlike mine that uses a single pin on the harness, so your part #s will work for post facelift COMANDs out there.
I thought I would share my experience in replacing my head-unit with an aftermarket (Android) unit in my 2006 Mercedes Benz R350 with Harmon/Kardon (optical) sound system. This because the unit died (all controls stopped working) - and despite trying for several weeks - a local repair shop could not fix it. So rather than spending north of $650 to replace the unit with a used MB unit - I opted for a modern replacement. After looking at various options from aftermarket fitters (including online vendors like Crutchfield) - I opted to do it myself - basically to save money. The lowest quote I got to have one fitted (and they won't fit anything other than Jensen/Pioneer/ etc.) was $1100!
I started by doing some research months in advance - and considered both a 2xDIN fitting kit and a generic radio and some of the aftermarket units from China that fit into the dash as a custom replacement. Alongside were the considerations for how to keep the Harmon/Kardon system working, not losing navigation and aux input..
I settled on an Android unit - which although available locally - is considerably less expensive when you order it directly from China. There are a number of manufacturers/sellers (Seicane, Kunfine, etc.) that sell aftermarket units for a wide variety of vehicles - including Mercedes A, B, C, E, G, M, R and Vaneo ranges (across multiple model years too). When I discussed this option with fitters - they all warned me off - but my experience has been pretty positive. I will take stock in a couple of months - it was only fitted at the beginning of January - but so far I am very satisfied.
I settled on a unit from Kunfine (although it appears to be identical to the Seicane units - even the instruction manuals are exactly the same) similar to the one advertised at: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Android-6-0...o/252826385424
The radio comes with all the connections required (for cars without the Optical connections), and was pretty easy to fit.
The only time I needed to get a soldering iron out was to provide power to the Optical converter - which I simply spliced into the power lines between the car and the radio (+/-/ground).
The optical converter takes 2 speaker outputs and turns the audio into a MOST (bus) compatible signal for the amplifier to understand. Sound quality is undiminished except as listed in the caveats below.
Improvements:
1. Up-to-date maps
2. Integrated Bluetooth (phone and audio)
2. DVD/TV player
3. Wifi on the unit to support Airplay/MirrorLink
4. Expandable with additional apps.
So what are the downsides?
1. I would have preferred an Microsoft CE unit - simply because you typically get full Apple iPod/iPhone music integration over USB with those (which I do not have).
2. The integration into the electronics (CANBUS) means that you get the radio station/track information on the instrument cluster - but you do not get Compass/Navigation info, and you cannot change the time on the dash.
3. You cannot change any of the settings for the speakers. Because you take 2 outputs and turn them into 7 - you essentially get uniform distribution of the 2 channels left and right - no fancy 'audio modes'.
4. Figuring out which antenna lead to use is a 50/50 affair (I got it wrong first time - and got VERY poor radio reception off the GPS antenna!).
5. Cosmetically it looks good (I can post a photo if you would like) - but you do lose the wood strip across the top of the radio.
I would be interested to hear of anyone else attempting or having attempted similar.
I realise this is quite an old post, and apologies if these questions are answered elsewhere, but here goes...
I have an R350CDI 2010 that I'll probably keep for several more years. Today I was carrying some (carefully wrapped) decking timber inside the car when I had to make an emergency stop (vehicle pulled out directly in front of me). The timber flew forward and smashed one of the right hand number buttons on the factory head unit. It's still functional but it's very annoying! I've been interested in these Chinese manufactured replacements for a while. Do you still own the vehicle? Is yours still working well? Did all of the Mercedes connectors fit directly in to the new head unit? Did it work with the factory Mercedes reversing camera? I'm pretty sure I don't have an optical amp, but I'll pull the unit this weekend to check.
Many thanks for taking the time to reply...
I realise this is quite an old post, and apologies if these questions are answered elsewhere, but here goes...
I have an R350CDI 2010 that I'll probably keep for several more years. Today I was carrying some (carefully wrapped) decking timber inside the car when I had to make an emergency stop (vehicle pulled out directly in front of me). The timber flew forward and smashed one of the right hand number buttons on the factory head unit. It's still functional but it's very annoying! I've been interested in these Chinese manufactured replacements for a while. Do you still own the vehicle? Is yours still working well? Did all of the Mercedes connectors fit directly in to the new head unit? Did it work with the factory Mercedes reversing camera? I'm pretty sure I don't have an optical amp, but I'll pull the unit this weekend to check.
Many thanks for taking the time to reply...
In my case they fit. I had an older one which worked decently well, but it couldn't charge a modern phone to save its life. Newer units have more processing power. Currently the most powerful Anroid head units use the UIS7862 or MTK8667 processor. If you're okay with hacking up your car a bit, you can even install 360 degree cameras. Almost all the top end ones come with Android Auto and Apple Carplay abilities now.
If you are interested why not do some of your own research on it and report back to us! Get the installation and operating manual and let us know. How does it interface with the OEM radio and amps? does it work with the harman Kardon system? Maybe it just connects to the aux input?
I’ve been combing through forums and reading a lot, I just stumbled on this. I’d be more interested if someone else has used it. Prefer recommendations especially on something off brand.
I’ve been combing through forums and reading a lot, I just stumbled on this. I’d be more interested if someone else has used it. Prefer recommendations especially on something off brand.
If i’m not mistaken, when I was researching this for my Harman Kardon system, it was an automatic no-go because of the speaker in that location (there’s no way to have it coexist in this setup).
If you _don’t_ have HK, it should work just fine with COMAND and all because all that stays on your main unit and this one will literally just provide navi. Connection should be via splicing the harness (meaning, they provide you with one, likely the big quad lock that will go behind the OEM navi). It will be via analog so AUX in.
If i’m not mistaken, when I was researching this for my Harman Kardon system, it was an automatic no-go because of the speaker in that location (there’s no way to have it coexist in this setup).
If you _don’t_ have HK, it should work just fine with COMAND and all because all that stays on your main unit and this one will literally just provide navi. Connection should be via splicing the harness (meaning, they provide you with one, likely the big quad lock that will go behind the OEM navi). It will be via analog so AUX in.
Thank You! My 06 r500 has Harmon Kardon. Mostly I’m jealous as my new 2108 gle is so high tech wanted to see what I could do. Probably best to leave it alone, figure out how to add Bluetooth and maybe an auxiliary input. I do NOT see any connection in the center arm rest or glove box. Was that optional, or am I blind?
01-26-2021, 09:04 PM
I'm still tempted by the one that mounts on top of the dash ... but thinking the center speaker will prevent that from installing correctly. Rats.
DASH KIT SOURCE?
