upgrading to command on 2007 c class w203

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

tin2080

New Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2007
Messages
18
Location
northeast
Car
2007 320cdi avantguard c class
hi, I have just bought myself a 2007 mod (last of old shape) 320 cdi c class avantguard with sports upgrade. the car has audio 20 installed but I want to upgrade to command. I have seen a command unit on ebay and the seller states that this will plug and play in my car. how easy is this to do ? can anybody advise before i part with my cash..
i apologise if this has been asked before.
 
hi, I have just bought myself a 2007 mod (last of old shape) 320 cdi c class avantguard with sports upgrade. the car has audio 20 installed but I want to upgrade to command. I have seen a command unit on ebay and the seller states that this will plug and play in my car. how easy is this to do ? can anybody advise before i part with my cash..
i apologise if this has been asked before.

Welcome to the forum. You have come to the right place!

Its not quite plug and play.

Your car will need coding for it to work properly with any other fibre devices you have in the car. Phone, Harmon Kordon, Cd changer etc. If you dont have any of these devices, then your car most likely does not have fibre. In this case the comand unit will almost certainly turn off after a few seconds when you install it. It will again need coding to function.

Be very very careful about buying units on Ebay. Take a look at some other threads on this forum. There have been some real horror stories. If you do get one and want someone to install it and code it for you, let us know. If you want a warranted comand unit we can help there too.
 
hi thanks for the quick reply the seller has advised that the part number is a203 870 35 89. this is from a 2006 mod w203 I can also add that my car has telephone pre wire but no multi changer. hope this helps.

p.s what is harmon kordon?

thanks tin2080
 
Your car sounds like mine was, and I upgraded from Audio 20 to Comand APS.

I followed this guide : http://www.mbcnsw.org.au/forum/index.php?topic=1157.msg5219

and it went pretty much ok.

I bought my unit from ebay, from a seller in Lithuania. First unit that arrived had a stuck disc in it - would not eject, and it would only power up to the mercedes star logo no further (I subsequently learnt this is to do with coding). I did however then get another unit from him which (touch wood !) has been fiine so far. However, I have to admit that in hindsight it would have been nice to have the peace of mind of having a fully warrantied unit bought in the UK.

However, I still need the car coding for so that the cluster shows navigation. If you are handy and have done this sort of thing before then go for it (with the caveats given by Alfie) and also I'm not sure whether I'm thinking about the Audi Nav or the Merc Nav but I remember the USA and EU units were different.

I had upgraded a lot of my can bus Audi car equipment before I bought the Merc so had some experience, if you haven't then Alfie certainly seems to be the man with the Talent and knowledge !

Other useful links :

http://www.mercupgrades.com/COMAND%2BRetrofit-article-1.html

http://www.comand.co.uk/ - Alfies Site I think.
 
Last edited:
replying to myself here but...

The part number he gave you, assuming he meant : a203 820 35 89 is for a USA unit - I don't know for sure (others will) but there may be incompatabilities with this unit in the UK - for example the FM radio bands ?

found in the table here : http://www.mercupgrades.com/COMAND+Retrofit-article-1.html

Harmon Kardon is a factory fit Audio upgrade, comprising AMPs and different speakers I believe. Its on my list of Mods to do !
 
thanks again for the info pleased i reg on this site, it appears that the guy selling on ebay is possibly the same guy you bought your command off in lithuania. please can you advise what part number i would need for uk car.

thanks
tin2080
 
replying to myself here but...

The part number he gave you, assuming he meant : a203 820 35 89 is for a USA unit - I don't know for sure (others will) but there may be incompatabilities with this unit in the UK - for example the FM radio bands ?

found in the table here : http://www.mercupgrades.com/COMAND+Retrofit-article-1.html

Harmon Kardon is a factory fit Audio upgrade, comprising AMPs and different speakers I believe. Its on my list of Mods to do !

The part number you need is any one of the following;

A203 870 10 89
A203 870 20 89
A203 870 35 89
A203 870 62 89
A203 870 71 89

The last two are very new and rare. The most common one is the A203 827 35 89.

Do not get a USA comand. Get one of the above.

As you have pre-wire, your comand shouldnt turn off when you power it up as it will see the fibre. However what it expects to see on the fibre bus and what you have are likely to differ, hence coding will be required.
 
Last edited:
Hello, I have a A203 870 10 89 and when I turn it on it shows the Mercedes logo for a few seconds then turns itself off. What do you mean by coding ?
Thanks a lot in advance.

Your car sounds like mine was, and I upgraded from Audio 20 to Comand APS.

I followed this guide : http://www.mbcnsw.org.au/forum/index.php?topic=1157.msg5219

and it went pretty much ok.

I bought my unit from ebay, from a seller in Lithuania. First unit that arrived had a stuck disc in it - would not eject, and it would only power up to the mercedes star logo no further (I subsequently learnt this is to do with coding). I did however then get another unit from him which (touch wood !) has been fiine so far. However, I have to admit that in hindsight it would have been nice to have the peace of mind of having a fully warrantied unit bought in the UK.

However, I still need the car coding for so that the cluster shows navigation. If you are handy and have done this sort of thing before then go for it (with the caveats given by Alfie) and also I'm not sure whether I'm thinking about the Audi Nav or the Merc Nav but I remember the USA and EU units were different.

I had upgraded a lot of my can bus Audi car equipment before I bought the Merc so had some experience, if you haven't then Alfie certainly seems to be the man with the Talent and knowledge !

Other useful links :

http://www.mercupgrades.com/COMAND%2BRetrofit-article-1.html

Welcome to www.comand.co.uk - Alfies Site I think.
 
Thread revival! The answer is above :)
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom