Retrofit MDI?

[Vizlaswheels]

A quick qestion: Is it possible to retrofit MDI (Yeti L&K, Columbus satnav)? I missed it off the spec sheet when I ordered the car doh!

Please let me know if I should also post on the ICE forum.

Thanks

[Merlinman]

Try a search - it's been covered many times and several of us have done it!

All the parts are readily available both on Ebay and via VAG dealers; some recoding may be needed.

I've routed mine into the glove box - so whatever source I use - it's tucked out of sight!

[Andito]

Call your dealer & have it added to the order.

I've just done it on my order although I had to push the dealer to check the ordering sytem as he claimed it was not available per the current catalogue. He went away & checked it & made me very happy when he told me it was available & had been added to my order.

There is a point though when your order becomes locked meaning no changes can be made so time is of the essence, my order is build week 14.

[rockhopper]

There is a point though when your order becomes locked meaning no changes can be made so time is of the essence, my order is build week 14.

It was 2 weeks before build date when changes were no longer able to be added for my Yeti (in 2010).

Sent using Tapatalk from my Phone

[hmibennett]

It appears that a number of dealers claim that orders can't be altered because they can't be bothered to do the (minimal) admin and key-tapping required. Call Skoda UK if there's a problem: they can do the amendments for you if you have the official order number.

[Splooter]

Was tempted to add MDI to my order last week, then decided against it. Now tempted again.

£175 is nothing relative to the cost of the car, but with the Columbus's HDD, SD slot and bluetooth streaming, is it really worth adding? I had a Columbus in my last car and was happy just with mp3's on a SD card (I didn't bother with anything on the HDD), but I do have an old iPod lying around which would be far easier to update, manage playlists etc.

To those that already have MDI, are you happy with it?, and would you spec. it on your next car ?

[CrazyCam]

The wife's Roomster came with MDI fitted.

To be honest, I wouldn't pay any extra for it, had it been an option.

I've stuck an 8 Gig USB stick onto it, and it works just fine, except there is so much music that it takes too much stuffing about to find any give album.

(Maybe I am missing something, dunno?)

I end up just burning a few CDs full of mp3s and playing one of them.

regards,CrazyCam

[JCP]

Was tempted to add MDI to my order last week, then decided against it. Now tempted again.

£175 is nothing relative to the cost of the car, but with the Columbus's HDD, SD slot and bluetooth streaming, is it really worth adding? I had a Columbus in my last car and was happy just with mp3's on a SD card (I didn't bother with anything on the HDD), but I do have an old iPod lying around which would be far easier to update, manage playlists etc.

To those that already have MDI, are you happy with it?, and would you spec. it on your next car ?

It really depends on whether you are comfortable with and used to the iPod way of doing things. If you are then the MDI is vital. I tried the SD card route it works but is clunky when compared with an apple interface. I don't know how easy it is to manage memory sticks loaded with songs- I guess it is similar to the original "wrigley packet" shuffle which was excellent but is now antique. I think a home made Mp3 cd will work but I've more or less left optical discs behind and wouldn't bother now.

My sister was a dedicated non Apple person and stuck with an Mp3 player for ages. She has succumbed to a classic.

I had one fitted to my Bolero and have specced one on my forthcoming Columbus. Although I fully understand the visceral dislike of Apple -I don't like their business model-the fact is they work very well.

So, yes. Get one fitted. It is cheaper than retro fitting.

[Splooter]

Hmmm - 1 for and 1 against :think:

Weighed it up - if I don't add it I'll probably always wonder whether I should have, and may end up retro-fitting it at greater expense and involving taking bits of the dash apart. If I do add it, worst case scenario is that I don't like/use it and I've wasted £175. I've decided on the latter and have emailed the dealer to add it on.

[Merlinman]

Good choice!

I was one of the first of us Yeti owners to source and retrofit the MDI - mainly because I have a vast library of music on my iPod and to give me the full control, both via the MFSW and the Bolero. I also have a 64gb memory stick (separate lead required) loaded with music which lives permanently in the car (Glovebox is where my MDI terminates)

I reckon it's the best solution for me - everything out of sight and easily controlled full access to all my choons.

I could never understand why Škoda UK didn't offer this option on Yeti when it was readily available across the rest of the range - but I've long given up trying to understand their rationale (or lack of it)

Enjoy your new Yeti when it lands. I'm 2 years into happy ownership and intending to hang on to it for a while yet

[MOCAMB]

Can someone please confirm when the factory MDI option became available for the Yeti? I placed my order on 15th January, with delivery expected sometime early next month. At the time, I was told categorically that MDI was not available from the factory, but that it could be retrofitted at the dealership by a trusted audio specialist for £250+VAT. I've tentatively gone for this option, but was surprised to find today that MDI is now listed as a factory option on the website (it wasn't when I placed the order).

Have to say that I'd much rather have taken this route had I known it had become available, rather than having to have a new car's dash pulled apart - and pay almost double for the privilege. I shall be contacting my dealership to discuss this tomorrow, but I suspect that my order is now well and truly frozen.

[Skoda Al Coda]

Can someone please confirm when the factory MDI option became available for the Yeti? I placed my order on 15th January, with delivery expected sometime early next month. At the time, I was told categorically that MDI was not available from the factory, but that it could be retrofitted at the dealership by a trusted audio specialist for £250+VAT. I've tentatively gone for this option, but was surprised to find today that MDI is now listed as a factory option on the website (it wasn't when I placed the order).

Have to say that I'd much rather have taken this route had I known it had become available, rather than having to have a new car's dash pulled apart - and pay almost double for the privilege. I shall be contacting my dealership to discuss this tomorrow, but I suspect that my order is now well and truly frozen.

Available to the dealers' ordering system Tuesday 12/2/2013.

It was 'available' according to the configurator sometime during the previous week.

[Yetigreenline2]

This is all you need to do retrofit at a later date and the price is alot cheaper than getting it specced in the first place

http://www.carsystems.pl/vw-media-in-mdi-kit-ipod-adapter-retrofit-5n0035342e,id290.html

And then all you need to think about is where you want to put the lead for the connection as it takes 5 mins to unscrew Columbus and plug this in.

Edited 9 April, 2013 by Yetigreenline2

[MOCAMB]

Many thanks for the above replies. Seems my car has actually been built and is now in transit, so I will go with the retrofit option offered by the dealership.

Edited 9 April, 2013 by MOCAM

[MOCAMB]

Quick update on this, having collected the car today. MDI neatly fitted in the top-tray:

[Skoda Al Coda]

Quick update on this, having collected the car today. MDI neatly fitted in the top-tray:

I'm very jealous - that's where my ipod lives each time I disconnect it - if only I could leave it connected in situ

[MOCAMB]

I'm very jealous - that's where my ipod lives each time I disconnect it - if only I could leave it connected in situ

Happy to give you the name of the company that installed it for the dealership if you're interested. Total cost was £300 including parts, labour and VAT.

[Skoda Al Coda]

Happy to give you the name of the company that installed it for the dealership if you're interested. Total cost was £300 including parts, labour and VAT.

Thanks, but I don't think I'd ever hand over any cash to do it. Mine was fitted at factory for £175 (in the stupid position of lower cubby hole) & it might just be the case that the wiring will reach the top tray.

As I now know that it all works, I might have a look one day to see if I can re-route it - at least I don't need any coding doing, it's just a (simple?) case of re-routing the wiring, maybe I might need an extension cable at most?

I would either need a new lower cubby hole housing or need to fashion some sort of blanking plate, but it's something on the to-do list.

[Timmo_B_Good]

I'm completely confused by the apparent uncertainties that associate with iPhone and iPoduse in my YETI.

It was a massive disappointment to me to discover that whilst I can stream music into the Bluetooth in my "Elegance" and have that input available via the Bolero unit as "BT-Audio" - this turns out to be just a mono signal, coming out of all the speakers. (grrr!).

I've followed this thread and decided that a "proper" Retrofitted MDI may be the way to go, but I am not sure that such a unit would be compatible with the new 8-pin "Lightning" connector on my iPhone 5. Has anyone tried this and retained all of the track information and track/menu control functions via the steering wheel controls?

My concern (with the new Apple interface) is that the Skoda MDI retrofit kit for iPods might rely on the old "iPOD out" digital signals, which were present on the old 30 pin connector, but are absent from the 8 pin "Lightning" connector.

Would be forever grateful for a heads up on this topic, as £250 seems a lot of money..

[freedie]

Sorry to take so long to reply to this... too busy trolling.

But there is definitely something wrong somewhere with your system (or, as you say you are still awaiting delivery, with your version of how you think the Bolero bluetooth works). Bloetooth works in stereo. The Bolero is a stereo unit. If the streamed music is in stereo the output will be in stereo.

I can assure you it should, and in my case does, work like this. I can assure you, too, that if it didn't by God you would hear the complaints without using electrical audio equipment at all.

Good luck.

[MOCAMB]

I've followed this thread and decided that a "proper" Retrofitted MDI may be the way to go, but I am not sure that such a unit would be compatible with the new 8-pin "Lightning" connector on my iPhone 5. Has anyone tried this and retained all of the track information and track/menu control functions via the steering wheel controls?

My concern (with the new Apple interface) is that the Skoda MDI retrofit kit for iPods might rely on the old "iPOD out" digital signals, which were present on the old 30 pin connector, but are absent from the 8 pin "Lightning" connector.

 

 

I've only ever used my retro-fitted MDI with an iPod Touch 5th Generation, connecting it via a standard Apple 30-pin > Lightning adapter. Everything seems to work just fine, including track information and the steering wheel controls.

[dcl5ad]

Anyone know what part number is required to put the outlet in the cubbyhole in front of the gear lever?

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[dcl5ad]

...or, failing that, anyone got a photo of a factory-fit MDI in a RHD Yeti? I'm not actually convinced the parts exist.

[JCP]

I have a factory fit mdi in a rhd yeti-the parts are there!

[Kenny R]

I have a factory fit mdi in a rhd yeti-the parts are there!

+1