MercMuscle

Been searching for months and can't find anyone with the same issues. They all still have something active in their MOST loop. Had it to 2 dealerships and both gave me different answers. One claimed the computer behind the screen was bad, other claimed the COMAND was flat out bad.

Screen black continuing to reboot (No logo just backlight)

No sound, nav, telematic, cd changer

All fuses checked and are good

No light on front of cd changer but red light visible on left side of unit when out of dash

Can hear the COMAND/CD changer attempting to boot

ANYONE ELSE EXPERIENCE THIS?
CAN ANYONE HELP ME?

Mike5215

Unfortunately they're both possibly right, but my bet is on the head unit in the dash. A single component failure in the MOST ring wouldn't cause that constant reboot. You'd get an error from the specific component "NAVI UNAVAILABLE" etc but still have audio from something. Doesn't sound like a gateway (amp) issue.

A replacement COMAND salvage piece would be the way to go in terms of price. MB sells reman units for around $3500 with a warranty. It would need to go to the dealer to be recoded.

MercMuscle

Thanks for the reply! Which unit? The screen or the cd changer?

Mike5215

I believe the brains of COMAND and the CD changer are one unit and the screen is just a monitor. If you're seeing the screen light up I think just the CD changer/COMAND is the culprit. Ask the dealer if there's somewhere to send it for testing.

MercMuscle

They're stuck on trying to sell me a new one to the tune of $6000. I'm just a little upset now because one dealership told me that it was the monitor and then the other one is telling me is the cd changer. The frustration is just building up. On top of that, they're telling me I can't buy a remanufactured one or one out of another vehicle because they have to be specifically coded to the vehicle. From what I remember them telling me is that when a unit is married to a vehicle it can't be paired to another vehicle. Really doesn't make sense to me

Mike5215

Yeah, you'd still get audio if it was just the screen, but you're getting no audio and the screen is displaying something and then rebooting so the screen is fine.

There's a service on EBay that will repair the unit for $470. They're in Bulgaria but have a positive feedback rating. You also can use a donor unit from another S, it just needs to be recoded by a dealer or an indie with the right equipment.

konigstiger

Both dealers should have pulled fault codes to determine malfunction. Control unit part #s compatible with your vehicle to shop used.

MercMuscle

Will these help? Lol and a lady literally TAPPED my bumper, no damage, not even a dirt mark lol so that didn't hurt anything.

Mike5215

Well the amp/gateway is located in the trunk on the inside of the left rear quarter. If the COMAND failed concurrent with the accident, have the at fault carrier figure it out. They may be on the hook for it. Did you present a claim?

MercMuscle

I did present a claim. Once I took it to the dealership to have them look at it they verified that everything in the truck worked OK and there was no way that the comand would've failed as a result from so small of a tap. So, when you guys refer to the module, I assume you're talking about the CD changer?

Mike5215

Yes, the COMAND unit has the changer in it. I was an auto claims adjuster for many years. As remote as the possibility is, absent some documentation that the issue pre-dated the accident, and with a report of the failure right after the hit, they'd be hard pressed to deny the claim.

The nice thing is that few adjusters handle S Class hits regularly. To them the car is a big mystery full of strange and exotic equipment. The failure of a system that has a major, sensitive component in the area of the collision would be enough to tip the decision to cover it. Claims handling isn't about repair costs...it's about documenting repair costs. The nexus between the hit and the failure is there.

Frankly, nobody knows why COMAND failed after the accident, which means they can't rule out the accident as the cause. Should be enough. I'd hate to see you eat that repair out of pocket if there's a chance the hit, no matter how minor, may have contributed.

MercMuscle

Unfortunately, it's been a fair amount of time since that accident happened. So putting in another claim would be pointless right now. I just really would like to have a definite answer as to what I need to fix and how to fix it because it's just sad now lol

Mike5215

Ok, all indications are it needs a new COMAND unit.

MercMuscle

Thanks I really appreciate the help. Now I hope the dealer can program it for me. I just found one for $1200

greglig

Hi, not sure about the update NTG3.5 system you have but if it's like the older system its possible that the hard disk drive has suffered a head crash (ie head contacted that platted - read more about this in wikipedia). So it's quite plausible that a minor hit has actually caused this problem.

If the dealer says they cannot program the unit maby someone in your area has a Star Diagnosis system with developer mode (just about all clone system have this).

I'm not sure of the procedure as I have never done a comand unit re-program.

Also from what i have read just check if it's not a euro import as they are not interchangeable.

Cheers.

Mike5215

I agree, if it failed concurrent with the hit I wouldn't eat the repair. I once owned a boat that hit a log and tore the out drive unit apart. Progressive fixed it. A year later I sold the boat and a month after that the new owner noticed a crack in the lower unit housing. Progressive reopened the claim and determined that they'd missed the damage, and paid $2k to replace the housing on a boat they no longer insured and I no longer owned.