Newbie Nav question

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Tuckerman Moss

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Just bought a yellow A2 - and all I get is smiles as I drive along! But I have a bunch of newbie questions:

1. I would like to retro fit a navigation unit. I like the Blaupunkt single DIN-slot units a lot but have read here (somewhere) that changing the radio (Symphony II) will permanently screw up the ability of the dealer to access the error codes and diagnostics. Is this true?

2. Audi talks about two different kinds of original equipment navigators - Navigation and Navigation Plus. I'm not wild about the colour rolling map - but I can't seem to find anything about the non-Plus version. Will I find a used one if I look hard? Will the dealer retro-fit one? Will anyone else?

3. Where does the GPS antenna usually mount in the A2?

many thanks, Tuck
 
There are several people I know who have retrofitted the "small" Nav-Unit into their A2´s, there even is a fitting guide (although in German) on the german forum. The parts (cables,GPS antenna, control knob and Satnav-Unit) can be bought off ebay sometimes... in your case, it would be easier to retrofit a NavigationPlus, because that would simply slide into your Symphony´s place in the dashboard... you would lose the CD-Changer, though...

Bye, Frido.

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[img=left]http://homepage.mac.com/frido/a2pic.gif[/img=left]
A2 1.4 TDI 2003 S-Line, cobalt blue, CC, DIS, SatNav+, TV, Apple iPod
now parents' car: A2 1.2 TDI 2002 silver, CC, DIS
My A2OC pics Homepage
 
How about a PDA satnav solution-best of both worlds then....?

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit
 
Friedo, Thanks for the reply. Could you be kind enough to point me more explicitly to the German installation material. I can get Google to translate it if only I could find it!

Tuck
 
Runboy, Thanks but I don't begin to see how a PDA solution would begin to equal a built-in unit. Guess I better do some serious reading - probably need to upgrade my Palm IIIc to :). Do PDA solutions provide spoken directions too?

Tuck
 
And does anyone know about this 'third-party radio/nav units will screw up the diagnostics' thing? Anyone out there have an after-market Blaupunkt nav/radio installed?

TIA, Tuck
 
Yes, PDA does offer spoken word-a friend has just got a Ipaq and TomTom and it is good. Some user on here have this set up.

I read a review of the Blaupunkt DIN satnav head unit in Autoexpress last week and it looks great. Stores the directions on an internal hard drive so you can use the single slot cd for music. They said performance from the unit was quicker than a BMW satnav unit!

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit
 
I do like the idea of installing the 'small' sat-nave unit so I had a good close look at the situation in the boot. The nav-unit DIN box on the floor has a whole bunch of wires connected to it's forward face. Oh, boy, I thought - maybe it's all pre-wired for the sat-nav unit already. But then I took the plastic box out enough so that I could look at it and I just ended up confused. What are those wires anyway? They don't appear to do anything or go anywhere - they just plug into the outside face of the plastic DIN box - but there's no outlet or apparent use for them. If those aren't the sat-nav buss wires what on earth are they?
 
The wires there are either the wires for the SatNav-unit or for the TV-Tuner...

Bye, Frido.

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[img=left]http://homepage.mac.com/frido/a2pic.gif[/img=left]
A2 1.4 TDI 2003 S-Line, cobalt blue, CC, DIS, SatNav+, TV, Apple iPod
now parents' car: A2 1.2 TDI 2002 silver, CC, DIS
My A2OC pics Homepage
 
Friedo, thanks for the reply. I have looked at those wires more carefully and conclude that they are for the TV-Tuner. My reasons are: 2 of the wires look like coax antenna connections and it appears that the top of the rear window has the two parallel wires (like the demister wires) that I believe are the diversity antenna for the TV. Can you confirm that this sounds right?

I have read the German Install Guide for the 'small' Sat-Nav unit (for which also thanks) and conclude that that installation is more than I feel up to. Which takes me back to your original suggestion of installing the Navigation Plus unit. But that leads me to some more questions:

If I buy a new Navigation Plus from a dealer or VAG.com will I need to do anything else but swap it for the Symphony II, plug in the plugs and get my dealer to set the computer to talk to it? Do I need to buy/install the GPS antenna? And lastly, have you any idea what a German dealer is charging for a new retro-fit Navigation II? I ask because it is likely to be far less than in the UK - and I will be in Frankfurt next week.

Many, many thanks, Tuck
 
I think a new NavPlus will cost about €2000 at an Audi Dealership... and the procedure should be the same as you described...

Bye, Frido (sorry, not much time, will go on holiday for 2 weeks with the A2 now)

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[img=left]http://homepage.mac.com/frido/a2pic.gif[/img=left]
A2 1.4 TDI 2003 S-Line, cobalt blue, CC, DIS, SatNav+, TV, Apple iPod
now parents' car: A2 1.2 TDI 2002 silver, CC, DIS
My A2OC pics Homepage
 
I have a a portable HP iPaq and a NAVMAN GPS sleave with Co-Pilot as sat nav.

IMGP2552.JPG
Shown with iPod...

Look at http://www.a2forum.net/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=1630

http://www.a2forum.net/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=2547

Co-pilot is the only system that actually reads out road names and places... the others only say Left or Right or whatever.

The biggest advantage for me is that it sits well forward at the base of the windscreen and is in my line of sight - the Navigation Plus has the screen too low and you can't drive with the voice switched off. You attach a cassette headjack to the audio out on the iPaq and that goes into the Symphony's tape deck and you have the instructions over the car's system if you like. Once you know where you go you can just follow the arrows on the screen and switch to CD or whatever. The other advantage is that you can use this in any car. I took mine to Spain recently for the rental car there, used it in vans I rented to move stuff, you name it.. and all that for about £400 or so (today's prices).

I would recomend not going the Palm route though as the Palm system is not good enough. It has to be a PocketPC based system.

____________________________________________________________________________________
[img=left]http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-2/11882/a2andme2.gif[/img=left]
2001 A2 TDI SE Crystal Blue with Open Sky, 6CD Symphony II, BOSE upgrade, DIS and HALF a winterpack!

iPAQ 3970 with Sat-Nav sleeve, rear cupholders, luggage net and floppy wiper!

http://www.audi-a2.co.uk/uk23.htm
 
I still would like to have either the Navigation or the Navigation Plus unit retrofitted to my new A2 - but I am having trouble finding anyone who will do it. The local dealers all refuse saying that 'there is no retro-fit kit available from Audi. A couple of local auto-electronics houses indicate a willingness to try if I will assume all the risk. So let me try asking my question differently:

Has anyone had a Navigation Plus retrofitted to a 2003 A2 with a Symphony II radio - and if so are you willing to share with me who did it? I don't really mind whether it's in the UK or Europe. If I had it successfully done in Europe at least I could find my way back home. :)

Thanks, Tuck
 
My car has a VDO-Dayton MS 5000 installed afterwards. And a Becker Mexico Pro radio. And both work like a charm. You can see the pictures at page three of the european owner section.

I would not recommend retro fitting an audi system, my first guess would be that the wiring loom is not capable for this. Both Audi nav systems use the DIS display between the dials for information so there has to be a path between the centre unit and the DIS display. I think that that is only wired when the car is built with nav.

Retrofitting a DIN unit is far far easier. Just remove the radio, fit the adjustment brackets, fit a wiring adapter en slide in the radio. That's basically all there is to it. Retrofitting an Audi system would be a lot more complex and probably more expensive.
Plus, my personal experience is that maps for aftermarket systems are easier to get. I can copy VDO dayton maps from 5 friends. But my collegue with a builtin Renault system has to buy them.

Dennis de Held

Amulet Red 1.4 Tdi
 
You may well be right about the DIS to centre console wiring loom. But then again I find that my car is already pre-wired for TV in the rear - and somehow if they prewired for that option I'd have bet they left the DIS wiring in too. But you're right in thinking that if it is NOT there then the cost (and problems) of retrofitting the Audi system is probably too great.

Which is why I would really like to hear from anyone who has retrofitted either the Audi Navigator or the Navigator Plus - together with who did the install if you're willing to share.

Thanks, Tuck
 
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