Hi Guys!

I need some sound advice on retrofitting a columbus unit that I got.

Columbus unit specs:

Part number: 3T0 035 680

HW: H03

SW: 0904

Manufactured: December 2008

My Octavia is a 2005, 1.6 petrol, manual shift. The thing is, after reading LOTS on this forum, I know that my CAN gateway will cause a battery drain issue and needs upgrading. I understand that I need to get hold of CAN version L or above. Is it the same which car it comes from, can I by one that came from an AUDI for instance? I know that some forum members sell CAN units precoded, are any willing to precode and ship to Norway?

Now, when that gets sorted out, I plan to upgrade firmware on the Columbus, any specifics I should be worried about?

And lastly I get poor reseption on both my columbus and Stream mp3 units. I read something about a component corroding and it was easy to replace. Could someone pinpoint me to a thread where I can read up on what component I need and how I can replace it?

Just called my local dealer. He was very helpful and gave me the part number for the CAN bus that should work well with Columbus.

Can Gateway part nr: 7N0 907 530AF

Problem is, if I buy this part from my local dealer he wants 1700 NOK (191 GBP) for it, I found a dealer on ebay selling the same module for much less. So I will probably order from him and have my dealer program the CAN Gateway for me.

I will keep you posted.

I fitted an Audi Can gateway into my 2006 Octavia a couple of months ago, the part number was 8P0 907 530A with a manufacture date of 14.08.10 . Apart from a fault code I get when i scan with VCDS which is for the battery regulator, I've had no problems since fitting it.

Edited 4 June, 201313 yr by Mr G 76

I fitted an Audi Can gateway into my 2006 Octavia a couple of months ago, the part number was 8P0 907 530A with a manufacture date of 14.08.10 . Apart from a fault code I get when i scan with VCDS which is for the battery regulator, I've had no problems since fitting it.

I suppose you used your own VCDS tool to program the gateway?

Hi

I have a brand new CAN Gateway of that part no for sale. £80 incl post

Pm me if you're interested.

Found something interesting while browsing the Ross Tech about retrofitting a RNS510: http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/Navigation_System_(RNS510)_Retrofitting

For the lazy:

The Gateway (aka. Diagnostic Interface for Databus OR CAN-Gateway) is responsible for passing Messages from one Control Module to another, older versions of the Gateways were not compatible and caused the Databus to stay active even with the Ignition turned OFF which resulted in excessive Battery Draw and failure. To identify if your Gateway is compatible, check the (Software) Part Number and the Software Version of the Control Module shown in the Identification provided by VCDS (for example in an Auto-Scan).

Address 19: CAN Gateway Labels: 1K0-907-530.lbl

Part No SW: 1K0 907 530 K HW: 1K0 907 951

Component: J533__Gateway H12 0178

In this Example the Software Part Number is 1K0-907-530-K and the Software Version is 0178, now check the following List if your Gateway is considered NOT compatible - all part numbers NOT listed here can be considered compatible.

Control Module Part Number Software Version Compatible Notes 1K0-907-530-A 0020 No Update available 1K0-907-530-B 0050/0070 No Update available 1K0-907-530-C 0080 No Update available 1K0-907-530-D 0100 No Update available 1K0-907-530-E 0110 No Update available 1K0-907-530-F 0120 No Update available 1K0-907-530-G 0130/0140 No Update available 1K0-907-530-H 0150 No Update available 1K0-907-530-J 0160 No Update available 1K0-907-530-K 0021 No Replacement only 1K0-907-530-K 0170 No Update available 1K0-907-530-K 0178 Yes - 1K0-907-530-P 0191/0192 No Replacement only

All Modules / Part Numbers that are NOT listed in the Table above are considered to be compatible. Those Part Numbers & Software Versions listed with the Note "Update available" can be updated to 1K0-907-530-K @ 0178, this often saves Money/Work which a Replacement of the Module would cause. The Update is NOT available in the US, all Rest of World VW (see TPI 2017949, 2018155, 2022606), Seat and Skoda Dealers should have access to it.

I'll be visiting my dealer to pick up the plastic trim part to fit columbus in the console. I will see if they can software upgrade the gateway that is already in the Octavia. If this is possible it could save me for much trouble ordering a new gateway.

Also, I found out that my antenna aerial is listed as OFF in the hidden menu of the Stream MP3 unit. I will probably order a new one from the dealer and swap it out and add some silicon so the problem doesn't reappear.

I saw that article when I upgraded the firmware on my 2008 Columbus. I have one of the offending P revision gateways but had no issues once I took the plunge to 381x, and then 402x firmware. I think some of these more recent firmware updates actually address the battery drain issues also.

Adam

I saw that article when I upgraded the firmware on my 2008 Columbus. I have one of the offending P revision gateways but had no issues once I took the plunge to 381x, and then 402x firmware. I think some of these more recent firmware updates actually address the battery drain issues also.

Adam

How easy is it to upgrade the firmware on the Columbus. Do you just stick in the DVD and watch the magic happen or is it more to it than that?

EDIT: Also, I thought the P versions were unpopular because they have a reputation of breaking. As I understand all CAN gateways above K do not have the battery drain problem.

Edited 4 June, 201313 yr by Bakura

You do once you have burned one using good quality media. The noises coming out of it are a bit disconcerting but have a spare pair of pants handy and all is fine!!

There is modified firmware for 3T0 units that DON'T require a CAN upgrade.

There is modified firmware for 3T0 units that DON'T require a CAN upgrade.

Could you link me to it please!

Try here for the firmware

http://vwnavi.com/volkswagen-factory-fit-navigation-systems/rns-510-mfd3-navi-system/firmware/13672-unofficial-272x-software-swl-recovery-cd.html

Not the latest 402x for your probable revision A unit but 381x is fine. There is also a link to the battery drain fix.

Adam

Thanks a lot! I will try those out tomorrow, will continue reporting in on the progress.

Try here for the firmware

http://vwnavi.com/vo...ecovery-cd.html

Not the latest 402x for your probable revision A unit but 381x is fine. There is also a link to the battery drain fix.

Adam

Thanks Adam.

Additional question, does anyone have good suggestions for a Bluetooth module for the Columbus. I was under the impression that Columbus had this build in, so I was kind of disappointed to find out that this was not the case.

Have a look at the BT compatibility thread in the Superb II section as this had lots of info on phone / module compatibility.

Have not seen a good tutorial on the antenna swap yet, so...

HOWTO: Aerial/ Antenna change

Symptoms: Antenna does not appear as ON in your hidden menu on the unit.

1. You will need the right tools. An antenna part and a size 22 wrench.

2. Alright you see that plastic panel closest to the hinges. Well, that sucker is coming off. Mind you, you will probably need to apply some force so man up!

3. Well it came of, this is what it looks like

4. Now tuck down the ceiling cover and you will find this wire, disconnect them. It's a pull back clipping mechanism.

5. Now see that bolt over there, that's the one that holds the antenna in place, use your 22 to screw it loose and take off the antenna.

6. Now you have a hole in the roof! Now just put in your new antenna and reverse the steps. DONT tighten to tight, you will buckle your roof and the seal wont work as well.

7. Turn on your radio and try to search for a station, recheck the hidden menu to see if the antenna is listed as ON now.

8. You are done, give yourself a clap on the shoulder bro!

BONUS: This is how my old antenna looked underneath. Some corrosion visible, probably shorted out the amp. :(

UPDATE:

Columbus Unit swap:

So I finaly got hold of the frame for the Columbus and since I fixed my radio antenna I just went ahead to installing it.

This the old unit, forgot to take the picture with the frame, but most of you know how that looks.

Alright, so I screw it out, disconnect the wiring and put in the Columbus.

Nice! Now time to update that sucker.

Thanks to adamal for the link for the iso images. If some are planing on upgrading to firmware 3810A/B/C here are the links for download I used.

Firmware 3810A/B/C

Fix for battery drain and MFSW/ Maxidot

I burned those iso files using CDBurnerXP. Check the box for "confirm data after burning" and set the burn speed to 8x. Burned fine, no errors.

Now insert DVD nr 1, kept the car turned off. Heard the Columbus reading the disk, displayed said "Loading". After a while you get to this menu:

I confirm that, lets roll son! Chilled for about 5 min, playing Angry Birds

Success, hell yeah! Now install disk nr.2 took much less time, under a minute.

Sweet, now we screw the unit in place and attach the new frame. Now cross fingers that I don't come to a dead vehicle tomorrow morning!

Looks pretty sweet if I do say so my self. I will have to rip the hing apart again when the GPS antenna arrives in the mail though...

Also, the update fixed the trouble I had with the speakers, some of them were not playing, now all works fine!

Nicely done. Fingers crossed for the battery drain not occurring.

It should have taken more than 5 minutes though, so assuming you meant 50 mins 'chilling' with angry birds, which is more like the expected time.

You will of course need to reinstall the map and add your music, all being well.

Adam

You are actually right adamal, apparently I burned the wrong iso (burned the gateway fix twice, checked the dvds now). So the installation took way less time than it should. interestingly enough, the fix worked on the old firmware on the unit, the car seemed to start up just fine.

I am burning the correct firmware on a DVD as I am writing this, will upgrade the firmware as soon as its done, then reapply the fix. I will look into the map upgrade when I get home (at work at the moment), the latest maps with POI are 7920 if I remember correctly.

Also, in case anyone is wondering, radio antenna works great. Reseption is even better than when I got the car!

Im not sure on the latest maps but I am running 7690 or v8 happily enough.

Update went on fine, took about 40 min I think, not sure. I have my car parked outside my office so I checked in on it every half hour. No errors, applyed fix, no errors. All seems to work great, lost maps (asks for map cd) and music that was on the HDD.

I will post an update on when I install the maps, but I am in no real hurry there, still waiting for my GPS antenna that was shipped out yesterday. I am planing to post more pictures when I install it.

Small Update:

After I installed the correct iso and gateway/ Tripcomputer fix I had my car turnened of after work and it has been parked for about 14 hours. Starts up and runs like a charm, no battery drain issue.

BTW, does anyone know if it's safe to install the newest 4xxx firmware with the fix? I'm asking since adamal did not recommend it.

I've heard here and on 'VW Navi' forum that 38xx is the furthest you'll be able to go, but have no hard evidence of this.

Double post sorry