Hi Guys,

 

I am not sure if this has been covered or not. I apologise if it has.

 

I have an octavia 2015 DSG Elegance with build it Sat nav amundsen unit. Its nice, I like it but I want to replace it with smart link as I have seen in the newer Skoda cars. Its fantastic, I have used it in test drives, just love how it interacts with my mobile. (I have checked my system and there is no option to enter an activation code to enable it)

 

Is it possible to buy this unit and do a retrofit? Swap out the old unit and install the new unit? Will I lose features from the dashboard? Such as Audio view, Nav view? etc?

 

If it isn't possible to do a direct swap out do you think I should look into aftermarket systems? I don't really fancy doing this as I have to find fascias to fit etc but if i have to I will?

Is there a unit anyone can recommend if they have done this before? Will I lose stalk controls???

 

Any help or advice, I would really appreciate it guys. Thank you very much

 

Edited 16 February, 20179 yr by true247spartan

The retrofit involves a lot of things, including the need to get the dealer to disable component protection.

Some companies seem to have found a way around it and can do it a bit cheaper, but still we are talking about a couple of thousands that simply don't make it viable.

 

Pioneer has a quite nice unit purposely made for this car that is plug and play - look and google into Pioneer Navgate Evo.

There is also a nice aftermarket Alpine but that one is more expensive and does not support Mirrorlink or AndroidAuto.

 

If you specifically must have Mirrorlink, the OEM MIB2 units are your only bet, but they must come from a car where all the features you want were previously activated, it needs to be unpaired from that car, component protection must be disabled, the new unit and your car must be paired and... Even then, the looms might not match, most likely you need an updated USB plug, since for some reason it seems the old does not support those features, etc.

 

It is VERY expensive, but can be done.

I am in the same situation as you and probably will end going the Pioneer route.

Edited 17 February, 20179 yr by Jaco2k
Clarifying cost to be more accurate

Hey Jaco

thats brilliant info!

It's a shame it's so expensive to retrofit the unit. I'll look into the pioneer unit you mentioned.

 

By the sound of things, plug and play is the best option, would you know if you lose stalk controls? 

 

Its a a real shame manufacturers don't design the systems to be easier to change for newer models!

 

ill do some research and let you know what the outcome is!

 

cheers bud 

They won't make it easy,  as they want you to buy new cars to get the new features. 

46 minutes ago, true247spartan said:

Hey Jaco

thats brilliant info!

It's a shame it's so expensive to retrofit the unit. I'll look into the pioneer unit you mentioned.

 

By the sound of things, plug and play is the best option, would you know if you lose stalk controls? 

 

Its a a real shame manufacturers don't design the systems to be easier to change for newer models!

 

ill do some research and let you know what the outcome is!

 

cheers bud 

 

From their press videos and site info, it seems you don't lose any functionality over the OEM unit - it does the same things, same way but adds more functionality.

 

Price is around €1200, but it is still cheaper than a retrofit attempt and you gain some in audio quality, etc.

8 minutes ago, Jaco2k said:

 

From their press videos and site info, it seems you don't lose any functionality over the OEM unit - it does the same things, same way but adds more functionality.

 

Price is around €1200, but it is still cheaper than a retrofit attempt and you gain some in audio quality, etc.

The video illustration is spot on! Looks like just what I want without loosing any of the existing features.

 

I called a few companies in Manchester but none stock it!!! :-( 

 

proper disappointed 

 

There's more info on the Pioneer unit in this thread, including from @Mikehaseler who seems to work for Pioneer.

 

Maybe worth sending him a PM to see if he can recommend a source?

 

 

Edited 17 February, 20179 yr by iriches

Hi Guys, if you hadn't seen this one, we've got a quick video that i made a couple of weeks ago, give a better idea of what it does etc.

 

We are still working on distribution of it, but i can make some inquiries as to your closest stockist if you like

 

 

Edited 17 February, 20179 yr by Mikehaseler

1 hour ago, iriches said:

There's more info on the Pioneer unit in this thread, including from @Mikehaseler who seems to work for Pioneer.

 

Maybe worth sending him a PM to see if he can recommend a source?

 

 

Thanks a lot I will check the post out! :-)

28 minutes ago, Mikehaseler said:

Hi Guys, if you hadn't seen this one, we've got a quick video that i made a couple of weeks ago, give a better idea of what it does etc.

 

We are still working on distribution of it, but i can make some inquiries as to your closest stockist if you like

 

 

That would be fantastic if you would be able to find a stockist in Manchester!!!

1 minute ago, true247spartan said:

That would be fantastic if you would be able to find a stockist in Manchester!!!

i'll ask the question

I think my mind is made up about what I am going to get...

That looks fantastic, and this is coming from someone who used to work for Alpine ;-)

 

Love the UI, if I didn't have the Columbus I'd be on this like a tramp on chips.

14 hours ago, Jaco2k said:

I think my mind is made up about what I am going to get...

Pioneer??? By any chance :-)

It's possible to upgrade the Columbus MIB1 to MIB2, so should also be possible to update Amundsen MIB1 to MIB2

 

5 hours ago, true247spartan said:

Pioneer??? By any chance :-)

 

Of course

On 17/02/2017 at 14:14, Mikehaseler said:

i'll ask the question

Any news on the question asked?

On 18/02/2017 at 08:04, Rustynuts said:

It's possible to upgrade the Columbus MIB1 to MIB2, so should also be possible to update Amundsen MIB1 to MIB2

 

Would it not be tricky like Jaco2k mentioned?

Not particularly tricky. Just not particularly cheap...

 

I have found the Navgate evolution for £795! I am tempted but not sure if the price is good! 

Would you know if its plug play for sure? Just remove the existing factory unit and reconnect everything to new unit and whooooooosshhhhh it will work?

2 minutes ago, Rustynuts said:

Not particularly tricky. Just not particularly cheap...

 

hahaha! fair enough. 

2 hours ago, true247spartan said:

I have found the Navgate evolution for £795! I am tempted but not sure if the price is good! 

Would you know if its plug play for sure? Just remove the existing factory unit and reconnect everything to new unit and whooooooosshhhhh it will work?

 

Don't know the answer for your question, but I do have a question for you: where did you find it at that price?

11 hours ago, true247spartan said:

Any news on the question asked?

Hey, yeh sorry, The distribution side of things is still being arranged, and not many dealers have taken on stock yet, but the closest dealer that can supply these would be RCA in Cheadle, little bit out of Manchester. They dont have stock, however they have access to the product, so if you make an inquiry, then they can check with their area rep on pricing etc (we'll see if we can keep to the plan with a discounted rate for forum members) They seem to be available via ebay from Italy etc from about £970.. but if you make contact with RCA first, then they can sort things out from there.
 

7 hours ago, Jaco2k said:

 

Don't know the answer for your question, but I do have a question for you: where did you find it at that price?

It comes with the wiring harness, that connects directly into the vehicle loom. The only other thing you need to do is fit your externals, so mic, GPS, Change over the USB port etc as the Pioneer has its own dedicated accessories. There are adapters available to use the OE Mic, which is a relatively simple process and saves on overall installation.

19 minutes ago, Mikehaseler said:

It comes with the wiring harness, that connects directly into the vehicle loom. The only other thing you need to do is fit your externals, so mic, GPS, Change over the USB port etc as the Pioneer has its own dedicated accessories. There are adapters available to use the OE Mic, which is a relatively simple process and saves on overall installation.

 

Does it support Canton? I know that the Alpine unit does via an adapter they have made. 

This is however much better..the Alpine unit can feel a bit sluggish.