w203 TV antenna amp problem & part numbers & vin/chassis nos

[perdikoyla888]

Hi, I have replaced my original antenna amp A 203 820 64 89 to accomodate the retrofitted tv tuner.
I have INITIALLY ordered from mercedes the following part number:
A 203 820 69 89
However I received the following (due to superceded number):
A 203 870 31 89
Everything works fine (tv, command, radio etc) however i lost remote central locking keyfob functionality (only infrared works close to the door handle).
I went to mercedes dealership, they diagnosed and said that the antenna amp was faulty. Thay ordered another one but the problem still remains. They suspect wrong part number or wrong supercession and they wait confirmation from the central Mercedes office (Milton Keynes) in the UK.

Do you think it is the wrong part number or it might be something else and they just made wrong diagnosis?
Has any of you retrofitted TV equipped antnna amp and what part number have you used? (MIRO, SUNMAN, STEVE etc please let me know what part number have you used for your cars).
Also does anyone have a valid w203 chassis/vin number for a factory TV equipped c-class just to verify correct part number? You prompt reply would be appreciated as need to get my car back asap. thank you.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Can't help but I would be interested to know which other parts were required, how much they cost, and how easy/difficult fitting is.

Good luck with fixing it...

 

[ckember]

When you fitted the amp, did you disconnect the car Battery?

I recently had a similar problem after my battery died, the dealer had a look at the rear SAM module and after a quick fiddle all came back to life, they didn't change anything, its been fine for over two weeks.

 

[perdikoyla888]

Thank you for the reply but it is not the rear sam as it was changed to a brand new one and still having the same antenna amp problem. Anyway the car is in the dealership and I assume they would have pinpointed the sam (or disconnected battery) issue if this was the problem..

Anyone else? please help!

A chassis/vin number of a tv equiped w203 c-class would be needed.

OR a part number from a successful tv equiped antanna amp retrofit.

thank you.

 

[perdikoyla888]

somehow the part numbers of antenna amps are really messed up.

A 203 870 31 89 gives the wrong frequency for remote unlocking

the dealership is hopeless as they ordered today a coupe antenna amp to try (which is ridiculous as the are different shape and do not fit to a sedan/saloon)

After checking agaiin epc i think that THE FOLLOWING PART NUMBER MIGHT DO THE TRICK:

A 203 820 66 89

iknow it does not mention any code for remote unlocking but neither my original antenna A 203 820 64 89 was mentioning any code for remote unlocking but it had remote unlocking functionality.

what do you think miro?

 

[miro]

For what its worth I dont know the answer till I get some feedback on the diagnostic tests.

 

[perdikoyla888]

i ordered it today. tomorrow will have it in the dealership and test if it works. will let you know so that you change the one you ordered as well. i have a good feeling about this part number

 

[miro]

Hi, I have replaced my original antenna amp A 203 820 64 89 to accomodate the retrofitted tv tuner.
I have INITIALLY ordered from mercedes the following part number:
A 203 820 69 89
However I received the following (due to superceded number):
A 203 870 31 89
Everything works fine (tv, command, radio etc) however i lost remote central locking keyfob functionality (only infrared works close to the door handle).
I went to mercedes dealership, they diagnosed and said that the antenna amp was faulty. Thay ordered another one but the problem still remains. They suspect wrong part number or wrong supercession and they wait confirmation from the central Mercedes office (Milton Keynes) in the UK.

Do you think it is the wrong part number or it might be something else and they just made wrong diagnosis?
Has any of you retrofitted TV equipped antnna amp and what part number have you used? (MIRO, SUNMAN, STEVE etc please let me know what part number have you used for your cars).
Also does anyone have a valid w203 chassis/vin number for a factory TV equipped c-class just to verify correct part number? You prompt reply would be appreciated as need to get my car back asap. thank you.

A 203 870 31 89 works fine.

Cheers.

 

[perdikoyla888]

Are you sure Miro?

Mine was working but not remote central locking. They already tried 2 of them (a 203 870 31 89) but no remote function.... Have you tried remote central locking? Did you try to lock/unlock with your keyfob remote from distance?

I cannot understand... Unless they use different frequency in Australia.

Supposingly the a 203 820 66 89 that ordered last week (to replace the 2 non-working a2038703189) works from what the dealership said but they did not put back together the car yet and therefore i do not believe anything until i see the car ready and test it myself. They delayed a bit. Hopefully monday/tuesday they will have it ready.

STILL REMAINS MISTERY TO ME........EXPECIALLY BECAUSE YOU SAID THAT THE A203 870 31 89 WORKS WITH YOUR CAR. PLEASE RE-TEST AND LET ME KNOW. THANKS

 

[miro]

Are you sure Miro?

Mine was working but not remote central locking. They already tried 2 of them (a 203 870 31 89) but no remote function.... Have you tried remote central locking? Did you try to lock/unlock with your keyfob remote from distance?

I cannot understand... Unless they use different frequency in Australia.

Supposingly the a 203 820 66 89 that ordered last week (to replace the 2 non-working a2038703189) works from what the dealership said but they did not put back together the car yet and therefore i do not believe anything until i see the car ready and test it myself. They delayed a bit. Hopefully monday/tuesday they will have it ready.

STILL REMAINS MISTERY TO ME........EXPECIALLY BECAUSE YOU SAID THAT THE A203 870 31 89 WORKS WITH YOUR CAR. PLEASE RE-TEST AND LET ME KNOW. THANKS

Since my car chirps with the alarm system arm/disarm there is no mistaking it.

Are they throwing out those 2 other antennas ?

 

[perdikoyla888]

OK I believe you. What conclusions are you making out of this? Do UK w203 cars have different frequency for the remote central locking to the Australian ones? Lets wait to get my car back to see that a2038206689 works for sure with my car and then we are going to make better conclusions....

I do not know what they are going to do with the two 31 ones...

 

[perdikoyla888]

I have my car back. I can confirm that a 203 820 66 89 works fine with UK cars. The one you have miro does not work with UK cars. I do not know why but this is a fact.


I am upset at the moment as I got my car back in a complete mess. they broke many clips and forgot a lot of things to put back together, my rear parktronic screen does not work anymore, they scratched and dented my ashtray aluminium avantgarde trim, dash aluminum trim, gear knob aluminium trim and scratched my brand new leather leather gear knob, the broke the clips from the a-pillar trims, they forgot to hook back the headliner properly as the rear hook clip is not in place which effectively means the headliner has to come back out and put back on properly, they snapped one of the heating element ground wires of the rear windscreen, and all the weatherstrips around the headliner above the doors are poorely fitted. Basically they messed out everything. And we are talking for one of the biggest dealerships in the UK.

Conclusion: Never trust your car to anyone but to your own hands if it involves delicate stripping. They either do not have the skills to do it properly or they dont care to be careful.

 

[miro]

Dropping the headliner is a difficult and messy job. It leaves witness marks all over the headliner and requires many trims to be pulled out.

The factory instruction says to remove the rear glass. So I dont know how they managed to damage your interior. Removing the interior is a time consuming and slow process. You also need to wash the car before you work on it. The reason being that it reduces the risk of getting stuff on the interior by dragging it in.

I got help from a mechanic once and within 5 minutes he left a dozen grease marks all over the interior. His idea was that it can be cleaned .... mine was that it shouldn't need it.

Mine has digital TV installed and the remote keys do work fine. As I dont get interested in which signal band these operate in then I can't answer your question.

These newer parts are nearly impossible to fathom. It will take at least 3 months for the corrections to be made.

 

[eddie24]

hi

hello. i have a 2006 ml w164 with ntg 2.5 comand .
i am thinking to add a tv tuner and i was told that i need the aerial amplifier for it. the aerials are mounted on the back and side windows . do you know if that amplifier will work on my car too??.
thank you for your posts . now i am a bit worried , if mercedes mechanics make such a big mess dont know what to expect from other mechanics .
eddie

I have my car back. I can confirm that a 203 820 66 89 works fine with UK cars. The one you have miro does not work with UK cars. I do not know why but this is a fact.


I am upset at the moment as I got my car back in a complete mess. they broke many clips and forgot a lot of things to put back together, my rear parktronic screen does not work anymore, they scratched and dented my ashtray aluminium avantgarde trim, dash aluminum trim, gear knob aluminium trim and scratched my brand new leather leather gear knob, the broke the clips from the a-pillar trims, they forgot to hook back the headliner properly as the rear hook clip is not in place which effectively means the headliner has to come back out and put back on properly, they snapped one of the heating element ground wires of the rear windscreen, and all the weatherstrips around the headliner above the doors are poorely fitted. Basically they messed out everything. And we are talking for one of the biggest dealerships in the UK.

Conclusion: Never trust your car to anyone but to your own hands if it involves delicate stripping. They either do not have the skills to do it properly or they dont care to be careful.