Where can I get my Comand unit replaced or repaired? X253 GLC :) no nav media or radio working

[Bruce3103]

Hi,

So unfortunately a few weeks ago my nav stopped working and now just says “activating navigation” I left it as I rarely use it, yesterday, my radio will only play one channel if I try and move to another it flicks back, if I open the media tab it flicks straight off and goes back to the radio and also the backup camera just shows a black screen, has anyone had this fault before? I believe I need a new command unit and have been quoted £2600+ vat, can I get a used one and reprogram it with my vin or does it have to be brand new? Thanks

 

[markjay]

Hi,

So unfortunately a few weeks ago my nav stopped working and now just says “activating navigation” I left it as I rarely use it, yesterday, my radio will only play one channel if I try and move to another it flicks back, if I open the media tab it flicks straight off and goes back to the radio and also the backup camera just shows a black screen, has anyone had this fault before? I believe I need a new command unit and have been quoted £2600+ vat, can I get a used one and reprogram it with my vin or does it have to be brand new? Thanks

Welcome.

Talk to Comand UK:

Mercedes Parts Specialists

Mercedes Comand, Reversing Camera, Bluetooth Phone, Navigation and Audio Specialists

www.commandonline.co.uk

 

[Bruce3103]

Welcome.

Talk to Comand UK:

Mercedes Parts Specialists

Mercedes Comand, Reversing Camera, Bluetooth Phone, Navigation and Audio Specialists

www.commandonline.co.uk

Appreciate that bud, you don’t know off hand if I can buy a used unit and recode it?

 

[AMGeed]

Appreciate that bud, you don’t know off hand if I can buy a used unit and recode it?

I think I'm right in saying these are your options.
You'll need the full Vin# of the donor car so the anti theft code can be bypassed.
You'll also need to buy a map Pin for a new map for the donor comand unit.
It will also need coding with Star Xentry that the above company, Comand UK can do.

Get in touch with them before doing anything and get their advice.

 

[Bruce3103]

I think I'm right in saying these are your options.
You'll need the full Vin# of the donor car so the anti theft code can be bypassed.
You'll also need to buy a map Pin for a new map for the donor comand unit.
It will also need coding with Star Xentry that the above company, Comand UK can do.

Get in touch with them before doing anything and get their advice.

Appreciate that, my camera worked intermittently today but no sat nav or radio, £3000 for my radio and camera to work is insane but I guess it is what it is, I did speak to some breakers and they’ve said they can be recoded, I’m from Sheffield that’s all and Comand are other end of the country but if it saves me thousands it’ll have to be done

 

[Smart320]

Talk to Command , they really are the experts , you are assuming the answer before you’ve asked them the question, not much point asking forum members what they think if you already decided the answer

 

[markjay]

Appreciate that, my camera worked intermittently today but no sat nav or radio, £3000 for my radio and camera to work is insane but I guess it is what it is, I did speak to some breakers and they’ve said they can be recoded, I’m from Sheffield that’s all and Comand are other end of the country but if it saves me thousands it’ll have to be done

As AMGeed said, don't buy a second hand unit unless the seller can also supply the antitheft pin code for this unit, otherwise the unit will lock up as soon as you install it in your car (and good luck trying to get an MB dealer to unlock it for you), and prepare £100-£200 for new maps - the old maps on the second hand unit will be locked to the donor car's VIN and this cannot be bypassed, the only way is to buy a new maps set to fit your own car's VIN.

 

[Bruce3103]

As AMGeed said, don't buy a second hand unit unless the seller can also supply the antitheft pin code for this unit, otherwise the unit will lock up as soon as you install it in your car (and good luck trying to get an MB dealer to unlock it for you), and prepare £100-£200 for new maps - the old maps on the second hand unit will be locked to the donor car's VIN and this cannot be bypassed, the only way is to buy a new maps set to fit your own car's VIN.

Cool appreciate that, looks like am gonna get shafted with a big bill unfortunately regardless haha

 

[markjay]

Cool appreciate that, looks like am gonna get shafted with a big bill unfortunately regardless haha

See if someone can repair your COMAND unit instead of replacing it - sometimes re-flashing the firmware resolves the issue.

 

[Bruce3103]

As AMGeed said, don't buy a second hand unit unless the seller can also supply the antitheft pin code for this unit, otherwise the unit will lock up as soon as you install it in your car (and good luck trying to get an MB dealer to unlock it for you), and prepare £100-£200 for new maps - the old maps on the second hand unit will be locked to the donor car's VIN and this cannot be bypassed, the only way is to buy a new maps set to fit your own car's VIN.

I’ve spoken to a guy in Sheffield who’s done this before, Mercedes Benz specialist on bright side lane (incase anyone is having a similar issue) told me everything I already knew, sounded knowledgable , said if I got a used unit for like £300, he could get the pin himself for £150 and he can also get new 2024 maps for £250, which comes at around £700 which is a lot cheaper than the £2600+ vat from Mercedes, or the £1600 from Comand, which is a pain for me to get to

 

[gildeaa]

Sorry for butting in guys but you don't need the pin code from the donor vehicle your Indie can sort that out with xentry, I have already replaced my own unit from a donor car

 

[gildeaa]

You can get the maps on the bay for around £80 . This is the route I took and my Indie only charged £80 for recoding

 

[Bruce3103]

You can get the maps on the bay for around £80 . This is the route I took and my Indie only charged £80 for recoding

Appareciate that, yeah my indie he said £150 to get the pin and £250 for 2024 maps, it’s only option I’ve got really and is still a lot cheaper than Comand or dealer , I can get a unit with pin for £400 so just need coding and maps

 

[Bruce3103]

You can get the maps on the bay for around £80 . This is the route I took and my Indie only charged £80 for recoding

Do maps come on a sd card and you flash the system? I’ve seen some people saying they don’t always work off eBay, have you got the link for the one you used?

 

[fabes]

I used Satnavishop for my last two map updates via SD card

Email them and they will ensure you get the correct map for your system (when installed and working)

 

[Oleks1992]

Appreciate that, my camera worked intermittently today but no sat nav or radio, £3000 for my radio and camera to work is insane but I guess it is what it is, I did speak to some breakers and they’ve said they can be recoded, I’m from Sheffield that’s all and Comand are other end of the country but if it saves me thousands it’ll have to be done

I'd also take comandonline advice with a pinch of salt, they told me that it would be impossible to convert my Japanese import comand to uk spec due to wiring differences etc.... yet I've done research and done it myself and added factory option DAB and GPS maps work too.

 

[Bruce3103]

I used Satnavishop for my last two map updates via SD card

Email them and they will ensure you get the correct map for your system (when installed and working)

Appreciate that, is it something I do myself just plug the sd card in or does it need doing via computer?

 

[fabes]

They provide instructions, but they are start the engine (to ensure battery remains adequate) go through the menu, put the card in and wait upto an hour.

I had a coffee and a book as it idled on the drive for the 45 mins or so my update took.

 

[markjay]

The COMAND maps purchase process is made up of 2 parts.

Firstly, you must purchase a PIN code that is unique to your car's VIN (and this is also the reason that the maps on the second hand COMAND unit won't work once the unit is installed in another car). The PIN is also specific to maps version (e.g. 2024). This costs around £100-200 for an official PIN generated by MB's central computer, or less from websites that use pirated PIN generators and sell the unofficial pirated PINs for cheap.

Then, you need to obtain the maps data so that it can be uploaded to the car. The maps data itself is available as free download from MB, but it's 40-50gb and can take a long time to download on a slow Internet connection, and so some prefer to purchase the maps on a USB drive to save them the need to download it from the Internet.

The maps can be uploaded to COMAND from either a USB drive or an SD-Card*, but the USB drive is generally the fastest way of doing it. It takes between 60 to 90 minutes to complete the maps upload, and you can do this while driving the car (but obviously you won't be able to use the satanv). Alternatively, you can do this with the car parked, but you'll need to trickle-charge the battery (unless you don't mind keeping the engine running).


* Not to be confused with Garmin Map Pilot on SD-Card, which is a completely different system to COMAND