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CarPlay/Android Auto working on 2014 S-Class for less than $300
Some of you may have followed my earlier threads trying to get the infotainment system in my 2014 modernized. I tried a third party CarPlay box through the RCA connectors in the center console but that was a bad experience and so I had settled on a regular iPad for the last year or so.
But I hadn't given up getting a better solution.
Through browsing some forums recently I found a different route and I have it working and (so far) I'm very happy with it.
The short version of the story is to use an Android tablet for CarPlay (yes, you read that right) and then use one of the third party dongles that adds CarPlay to Android head units. A few other minor tweaks later and the system is up and working reliably playing through the S-Class Burmester system.
Here are some pix (please excuse dirty car) I can share more details if anyone is interested:-
CarPlay iPhone in center console Apple Maps Spotify iOS 13 split screen
Interesting solution. It would be nice to have touchscreen CarPlay functionality this way. Don't you find it inconvenient to not have the use of your cup holders though? And is your Android Tablet able to be charging and connected to your phone at the same time?
I just traded in my S63 Coupe for an S550 Sedan, so I pulled out the joyeauto CarPlay system and will be reinstalling it into the new car this week. It really is a pretty good solution.
Do you find that you have GPS issues with your car? My iphone wasn't able to keep a reliable gps signal in my coupe - I'm not sure if this is because it had the Magic Sky Roof, or because of the IR reducing glass. I'm hoping the sedan won't have that issue. In my coupe I had to put a Garmin Glo2 bluetooth GPS antenna on the rear decklid to connect to to get a reliable GPS signal.
Interesting solution. It would be nice to have touchscreen CarPlay functionality this way. Don't you find it inconvenient to not have the use of your cup holders though? And is your Android Tablet able to be charging and connected to your phone at the same time?
I just traded in my S63 Coupe for an S550 Sedan, so I pulled out the joyeauto CarPlay system and will be reinstalling it into the new car this week. It really is a pretty good solution.
Do you find that you have GPS issues with your car? My iphone wasn't able to keep a reliable gps signal in my coupe - I'm not sure if this is because it had the Magic Sky Roof, or because of the IR reducing glass. I'm hoping the sedan won't have that issue. In my coupe I had to put a Garmin Glo2 bluetooth GPS antenna on the rear decklid to connect to to get a reliable GPS signal.
I wasn't aware of the Joyeauto solution - last time I took a look at this the third party solutions weren't very good. Did it require removing the dash to install or did you pay someone else to install? Do you know if it works in a 2014 (their web site says 2015-)?
Cupholders isn't an issue - I use the door ones. And yes, there is a small USB C hub underneath that allows charging at the same time as connection. GPS in the sedan hasn't been an issue - seems fine whether I have the phone out or in the center console.
Been very happy with the Joyeauto system. It works very well. It works on both the sedan and the coupe. I’m not sure about 2014 - I would think it would work since I believe the hardware is the same.
Interesting, I'm happy with the tablet set up but there are pro's and con's to it like all of these aftermarket solutions - for mine the main issue is to power down the tablet if you know you aren't going to be in the car for a long while (quarantine!). I have it set up to offer to shut down when USB power is off for this purpose. On the other hand the touchscreen is nice versus stepping through each screen button with the rotary controller when you need to click on something (my wife's Q7 does this). The tablet screen is bigger than my MB built-in screen too plus I have the other issue that my car has SplitView which means the display is actually poorer compared to normal (the worst option MB ever came up with - sounds great but worse than useless in reality - I didn't specify it, came with the car).
I'll see whether joyeauto supports my 2014 S63 (NTG5.1) and I'll think about it - a few hundred bucks isn't much to add a feature that significantly improves the audio and nav on such an expensive car.
So I pulled the trigger on the Joyeauto system to give it a try - should be here in a week or two. If it doesn't work out for some reason I still have my tablet solution.
Did you ever get Siri working with the hardware button?
So I pulled the trigger on the Joyeauto system to give it a try - should be here in a week or two. If it doesn't work out for some reason I still have my tablet solution.
Did you ever get Siri working with the hardware button?
I couldn't get that button to activate siri - but I'm wondering if it's different on the C217. Will install it on my w222 sedan soon and let you know if it works.
I had a chance to install the Joyeauto into my 2017 S550 this morning and the install went smoothly. The system is working perfectly. The only feature I can't get to work is what I mentioned before on the C217, hitting the star button doesn't activate Siri like it says it will do. Although I wish that feature worked, it's not a huge deal since saying "hey siri" still activates it via the phone. Install took me about 2 hours - I was going very slowly to be careful with everything. One thing I don't think I saw in the installation instructions that I want to mention is that you have to transfer the fiber-optic connector off the factory radio harness over to the new one that plugs in. You simply push up on the tab holding it in and it slides out all together. You slide this into the new harness in the same spot.
I had a chance to install the Joyeauto into my 2017 S550 this morning and the install went smoothly. The system is working perfectly. The only feature I can't get to work is what I mentioned before on the C217, hitting the star button doesn't activate Siri like it says it will do. Although I wish that feature worked, it's not a huge deal since saying "hey siri" still activates it via the phone. Install took me about 2 hours - I was going very slowly to be careful with everything. One thing I don't think I saw in the installation instructions that I want to mention is that you have to transfer the fiber-optic connector off the factory radio harness over to the new one that plugs in. You simply push up on the tab holding it in and it slides out all together. You slide this into the new harness in the same spot.
Am really interested in doing the same in my car. Can you please share a vieo and photos? also where can i find the installation manual (can't find it online).
Although the vehicle is different, the connections you make behind the radio are the same and the concept is the same.
As I mentioned before I couldn't figure out how to remove the glovebox (especially with the air fragrance system in there it seemed like it might be complicated), so I mounted the control box in the passenger footwell behind the carpet along the console tunnel. I also wanted to be able to access this box without having to remove the center console again, in case of troubleshooting or updates:
Here's a picture of the radio removed and accessible to connect the main harness and 2 cables (from when I installed this on my Coupe/C217):
When you install the main harness you will need to remember to move the fiber-optic cable from the original harness to the new harness (I can't remember if the video shows this - but it's very easy - it's on its own clip/plug).
Lastly - when you run the audio cord from the audio out on the Joyeauto box to the car's usb input in the armrest - I found that the plastic phone holder thing in the armrest pops out - and if you remove the elastic band on it you can push the audio cord through the hole left there and can reinstall it. So I didn't have to drill any holes to run that cable to there, which was a plus! I didn't cut any wires or drill any holes in this install.
Some pics of it being used (sorry the angle isn't perfect - the way I ran the cord I only had so much movement with the phone).
This last pic is what the interface looks like before you connect your phone. If you hold the back button by the joystick it will toggle between your stock Mercedes screen and this one. When you plug in your phone it will automatically switch to this screen/CarPlay. You'll also see the "Mercedes" icon in CarPlay above, that will also bring you back to the stock Mercedes system. The system automatically switches over to the rearview/360 camera when you shift into reverse, just like stock (it uses/displays the stock system).
The system also has wireless CarPlay functionality and that DOES work. I just found that the wireless functionality is a little buggy - I don't think it's the joyeauto's hardware fault - it's just your phone will connect/disconnect when you're close to the car. I decided I like just having it plugged in more. It's nice though that you have the ability to use it wired or wireless.
Reliability-wise it has worked very well. A few hiccups but I think they were all CarPlay related - as you know if you've used CarPlay it can crash every once in a while - unplugging and plugging back in fixes it.
Audio quality is excellent. I don't have any complaints about it.
This is great stuff, thanks daviper. Mine is on the way by DHL now.
Siri can be activated by long-pressing on the screen "home button" in regular CarPlay (the icon in the bottom left hand corner - middle image below) - does that work in this implementation too?
Since CarPlay updated to CarPlay 2.0 that button has become the button that takes you to the CarPlay dashboard view. I've tried holding down the click joystick on it and it just brings you to the CarPlay dashboard - I haven't found a way to get that to bring up Siri in this version of CarPlay.
Some of you may have followed my earlier threads trying to get the infotainment system in my 2014 modernized. I tried a third party CarPlay box through the RCA connectors in the center console but that was a bad experience and so I had settled on a regular iPad for the last year or so.
But I hadn't given up getting a better solution.
Through browsing some forums recently I found a different route and I have it working and (so far) I'm very happy with it.
The short version of the story is to use an Android tablet for CarPlay (yes, you read that right) and then use one of the third party dongles that adds CarPlay to Android head units. A few other minor tweaks later and the system is up and working reliably playing through the S-Class Burmester system.
Here are some pix (please excuse dirty car) I can share more details if anyone is interested:-
CarPlay iPhone in center console Apple Maps Spotify iOS 13 split screen
Was this supposed to be a joke? lol
You have splitview, you can have video in motion turned off and pretty much do whatever since you can convert those inputs to hdmi. I did but only downside is it is not the full screen as the map on the left still appears.
Some pics of it being used (sorry the angle isn't perfect - the way I ran the cord I only had so much movement with the phone).
This last pic is what the interface looks like before you connect your phone. If you hold the back button by the joystick it will toggle between your stock Mercedes screen and this one. When you plug in your phone it will automatically switch to this screen/CarPlay. You'll also see the "Mercedes" icon in CarPlay above, that will also bring you back to the stock Mercedes system. The system automatically switches over to the rearview/360 camera when you shift into reverse, just like stock (it uses/displays the stock system).
The system also has wireless CarPlay functionality and that DOES work. I just found that the wireless functionality is a little buggy - I don't think it's the joyeauto's hardware fault - it's just your phone will connect/disconnect when you're close to the car. I decided I like just having it plugged in more. It's nice though that you have the ability to use it wired or wireless.
Reliability-wise it has worked very well. A few hiccups but I think they were all CarPlay related - as you know if you've used CarPlay it can crash every once in a while - unplugging and plugging back in fixes it.
Audio quality is excellent. I don't have any complaints about it.
Nice! Glad there is something out there that works.
So I pulled the trigger on the Joyeauto system to give it a try - should be here in a week or two. If it doesn't work out for some reason I still have my tablet solution.
Did you ever get Siri working with the hardware button?
I decided to buy direct from Joyeauto versus Aliexpress where I could have saved a few dollars but I think the shipping might have been slower. I chatted to Linda there and she threw in free DHL shipping - so total was $415.00 inc shipping. You probably could do better but peace of mind was worth it for me.
They sent me DHL tracking # within a day or two, should arrive next Friday, then the fun really starts trying to get the W222 center console out ...
Nice, thx for sharing. I'm interested in one. I'm assuming the newer release of CarPlay allows for Waze integration, does the Waze navi show up on the display?
Nice, thx for sharing. I'm interested in one. I'm assuming the newer release of CarPlay allows for Waze integration, does the Waze navi show up on the display?
Yes. CarPlay is all driven by the phone so if you have latest iOS you’ll get latest features inc Waze, Google Maps etc.
Daviper - quick question - where did you run the mic to and is voice quality ok? Did you thread it behind the unit to the driver's side or around the passenger side?
Daviper - quick question - where did you run the mic to and is voice quality ok? Did you thread it behind the unit to the driver's side or around the passenger side?
I ran the mic around the passenger side and mounted it above the rearview mirror. Audio quality has been fine for Siri. I had issues with using the mic for phone calls - but I found that you can still use the factory Bluetooth system with phone calls and that works perfectly. When I get a call I just hit the answer button on the steering wheel and it picks it up via the car’s Bluetooth (and still can be controlled in carplay). When you make a call it will select the factory Bluetooth as well. You just need to select “MB Bluetooth” for the speaker the first time you make a call.
I had issues with using the mic for phone calls - but I found that you can still use the factory Bluetooth system with phone calls and that works perfectly.
Thanks - what kind of issues? Muffled or echo or ...?
I ran the mic around the passenger side and mounted it above the rearview mirror. Audio quality has been fine for Siri. I had issues with using the mic for phone calls - but I found that you can still use the factory Bluetooth system with phone calls and that works perfectly. When I get a call I just hit the answer button on the steering wheel and it picks it up via the car’s Bluetooth (and still can be controlled in carplay). When you make a call it will select the factory Bluetooth as well. You just need to select “MB Bluetooth” for the speaker the first time you make a call.
I used a Parrot mic instead because I like the look better than the one that came with it - but here is where I mounted it. I ran it along the passenger side because the box it plugs into is there so it was a shorter run.
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