Columbus or aftermarket ?

[Nismo75]

I have a 56 plate VRS with no maxidot etc. I bought a Columbus unit off eBay from again an Eastern European country. The Columbus I bought was advertised with an older firmware which would not cause battery drain, hence no need for new gateway. This has been the case so far with 4 months of ownership, no battery drain at all.

Very happy with Columbus, brill sound etc. sat nav could be better, however I have no problems where it is mounted following directions when driving.

I would recommend Columbus over any other integrated sat nav and its a doddle to fit.

[skippy41]

http://www.ebay.co.u...=item257733a480 http://www.ebay.co.u...d=220951892153 Edited 3 December, 2012 by skippy41

[bigman1976]

I've got a Columbus fitted to my 07 VRS and thought very seriously about getting an aftermarket unit. In the end, the Columbus' massively better integration won me over along with the excellent sat nav and integration with Maxidot (though I still haven't got that coded properly!). The hard-drive and ability to use SD cards means that you can store all your music without needing CDs in the car which is a bonus too. The sound quality isn't up to the standard of the very best, but many people on here have said that is mainly down to the poor standard fit speakers.

[KBPhoto]

<p>

integration with Maxidot (though I still haven't got that coded properly!).

Not yet...

The sound quality isn't up to the standard of the very best, but many people on here have said that is mainly down to the poor standard fit speakers.

The standard speakers in my '07 Octavia are pretty good (over the noise of a PD 140 tractor engine!)

[dunc69]

But as some have posted, factory and retro fit Columbus have the turn information Displayed on maxi-dot. To me I would have that every time over something stuck to my front screen.

Couldn't agree more! Nav on Maxi-Dot is excellent!

[MattyD]

When I bought my 07 vRS in the summer time I got one with the Columbus unit in it, it wasnt the reason I bought it at all, in fact at the time I couldnt have been more bothered at all about it. However after 4 months and nearly 6,000 miles in it I love it. i've been on many road trips in it where I didnt have a clue where I was going, just stuck the full post code in it and it took me right there. The sat nav screen been in the dash and not higher up doesnt bother me at all, the audio directions are good enough. Mines got the 6CD Auto changer in the boot and the integration is superb with it and with the Aux port in the jumbo box too. i find the sound quality fine with it as well. The real bonus for me is that the dash just looks a lot nicer than a standard one, looks more modern to me. If I was buying another one now, I would make sure it had Columbus in before I bought one, or it would be the first thing I added to a one, it most definitely isnt rubbish, its great to me.

[musaphir]

Could some body please enlighten me, what is maxidot?

[KBPhoto]

Could some body please enlighten me, what is maxidot?

If you search this forum (of Google it) you will see example pictures.

Otherwise, it is the graphical display that sits between the rev and speedo dials on your dash board.

If yours shows a large picture of a car and which specific door is open, you have Maxidot.

[FUBAR]

googled and first result as always is from Briski

[Dennisthemenace]

How easy is it to retrofit, how expensive and is it worth it in the long run?

[KBPhoto]

About £170 to but new from Skodateile and about £130 to get a dealer to fit it (if you can find one).

Used ones do come up occasionally, but AFAIK on Ben at Shark has the know how to retrofit a used one.

Search this forum and you'll find a lot more info.

[Eddie-NL]

About £170 to but new from Skodateile and about £130 to get a dealer to fit it (if you can find one).

Used ones do come up occasionally, but AFAIK on Ben at Shark has the know how to retrofit a used one.

Search this forum and you'll find a lot more info.

I have the know how and tool to do them also

There will be an interesting post later this week, if all goes to plan

[martinr]

Right, having read a little more and reviewed my current car spec I think I hedging towards a aftermarket Pioneer AVH 4400 BT unit. The pioneer doesn't look as 'factory' but offers all that I require. They do a slightly better version with a removable front panel, but having seen one installed it protudes from the dash too far and looks odd. For approx £320-350 for the pioneer it offers DVD, SD Card, rear Ipod connection, bluetooth, 7 inch touch screen etc. As my car has no maxidot or wheel controls, there is very little I'll gain from going OEM. Currently only my climate control shows on the stream, so losing that is no real loss.

Hope I'm making the right decision, but I really can't see what the extra money for the columbus will gain me ( not bothered about the sat nav )

[Al_Bundy]

Actual fitting of the unit is dead easy, literally a 10-15 minute job.

If you're caught with the dreaded battery drain issue and require a new CAN gateway that's about the same amount of time again (assuming it's located behind the glove box....) - though of course you then have to factor recoding into the equation.

Edited 10 December, 2012 by Al_Bundy

[Dennisthemenace]

Are there dealers who will carry out this mod with a supplied part and recode as necessary or will they just fob you off?

[Dennisthemenace]

Any part numbers anyone, how reliable is this skodateile supplier and where do they ship from, any hidden taxes?

[Eddie-NL]

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/217217-maxidot-fl-retrofit/page__hl__+maxidot%20+fl#entry3025875

I will be able to fit FL cluster, info later this week

[KBPhoto]

I have the know how and tool to do them also

There will be an interesting post later this week, if all goes to plan

I'll look forward to that as having seen how good the nav instructions on the Maxidot are, I might be back searching for a retro fit!

Are you going to be able to do used ones or just new?

[KBPhoto]

I bought my maxidot cluster for my pre-fl Octy from Skodateile, did an international transfer through the bank, and received the goods within 5 days from the Czech republic. I could not fault the transaction at all.

Only issue I had was that my original 2 emails to them were ignored, and were only replied to after doing a Google translate of the email contents into Czech and sending them that. They then replied by return!

+1

I had a few issues getting in touch initially, but this was my fault for using the email address on the website! This appears to be one that is not checked...

Once I'd got the right address emails were answered quickly and with good information. Service was excellent and quite a large order arrived 2 days earlier than expected.

I'd use them again without hesitation. Bank transfers can be made for free by registering with the appropriate Post Office service online. It even gives a live update on the actual amount paid as the exchange rafe fluctuates.

That's how I did mine recently.

[Eddie-NL]

just done a Golf 2008 cluster for someone

http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,57954.msg651043.html#new

would like to have a look at a pre FL cluster to see what is possible

I will be trying a couple of newer NEC clusters in my 2012 car soon,

[KBPhoto]

Any part numbers anyone, how reliable is this skodateile supplier and where do they ship from, any hidden taxes?

Tell Skodateile what car you have and get them to supply the part - they will then have to accept responsibility if its wrong. But I doubt that will happen as Ales knows his stuff.

No hidden taxes as its shipped from within the EU. I was worried about that, but had no problem at all.