I’m not 100% sure as I’m manual. Reading codes doesn’t require me to use a VIN, but changing anything (coding, adaptations) does. I don’t have the unlimited VIN licence for VCDS. Let’s see what we discover on the auto scan.
Is your DSG playing up?
Aftermarket Digital Cluster - Guinea Pig
- Thread starter CJW
- Start date
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- digital dash
Is your DSG playing up?
Thank you, yes, it may be a solenoid dragging, it may just need a resync and learn. There's a slim chance it might do something, it would be good to just get a confirmation that it won't touch a DSG map presently on there.
I think my next purchase might be a rosstech wireless unlimited..
I think my next purchase might be a rosstech wireless unlimited..
'I can I can't' freaks me out, all can I can hear when I see your profile is that and 'Looondon'. Ha
We just set it 80 if you are not sure then when you next fill up, if it doesn't read a full tank on the dash change back to 70 and then it does. Easy..
No, I have the Halo; you just won't get the compass or road name working through the nav integrations. But then, they aren't the most intuitive navigation features I've ever seen anyway. Having this unit myself, I would never really consider using the screen cast option over the Halo 11 with AA wireless plugged in.
Install Day Write Up
Antony came over today and installed the unit in my 2016 Startline.
Antony is a very likeable, intelligent and capable chap and it's always great to meet other forum members. It took 3 hours or so to install but there was an awful lot of chat, coffee and looking at each other's vans in that time, naturally! I invited him in to do the work, but Antony has got a mobile workshop running out of his heated T6 Cali, which is only to be expected in this forum.
Because mine's a Startline, in many ways I stand to benefit a lot from the upgrade. I couldn't even see the coolant temp with the Startline clocks, and why is the speed in km/h?
Antony was right that being Startline was not a problem in the sense that post-upgrade, I get all the functionality because the data bus is the same across all clocks, it's just the actuator / display layer (the physical clocks) that are different.
Unexpected hurdle
What nobody anticipated, though, is that the LCD panel in the middle of the instruments is removable from the ribbon on Highline, but not on SL, so we had to get creative with a hot glue gun to keep that connected but out of the way. This was achieved successfully. The hot gluing certainly doesn't effect the install and everything worked well during testing, commissioning and on a short then extended test drive - will it effect something in the long run? We decided to fold it back onto the blank section of the circuit board, raise it up off the board on hot glue, clinch the corners with hot glue, and put some tessa tape around it as belt and braces. However, that was the only observation.
Preparation
This is what I did in preparation:
The rest of the install went as expected. The process is:
The display sits in parallel with the old display's circuit board. There's a new loom that joins to the connector that goes into the back of the clocks, and splits the signals so that the old clocks get the data, but so does the new display. In all cases except one, your old circuit board sits there silently and invisibly just going about its normal business. The only time you're reminded of the old clocks' existence is when the speed alert is accidentally set. To get rid, disconnect the starter battery for a couple of seconds and reconnect. Other than that, I'm very impressed with the implementation. In fact it's remarkable that a company has engineered an aftermarket upgrade that works so well. It also looks the part.
Pros
I liken it to Mac vs PC. The OEM clocks are like the walled garden of the Mac, and this is the freedom of the PC - but with that freedom comes responsibility to make sure it is configured correctly during commissioning and that you don't monkey with the settings if you don't know what they do. I'm not likely to ever sell, but if I did, I would revert it to OEM. I wonder if the manufacturer would consider being able to give the owner the ability to lock down settings - a bit like parental control on a computer. If they did that, I would leave the clocks in place when I sold, safe in the knowledge that nobody could accidentally change something.
Glad I paid Antony to do it. His experience meant the whole thing was done in a few hours and the vehicle is immediately drivable. If I had done this myself, there was nothing too technical but quite a few squeaky bum moments that would have slowed me down and meant it would have taken a couple of days. His experience was very valuable, especially since I'm told the documentation leave a bit to be desired. I also appreciate having Antony on the phone if I need him.
It works great and looks amazing. Being able to breath new life into an 8 year old vehicle is something else. It's small thing but I've now got a digital speed figure in front of me; why-oh-why was this not on the Startline clocks? Gah! I love all the extra readouts.
I'll post here if I come across anything unexpected or any problems.
[Note: the display if far sharper than this photo suggests and the reflections are not visible in real life]
Antony came over today and installed the unit in my 2016 Startline.
Antony is a very likeable, intelligent and capable chap and it's always great to meet other forum members. It took 3 hours or so to install but there was an awful lot of chat, coffee and looking at each other's vans in that time, naturally! I invited him in to do the work, but Antony has got a mobile workshop running out of his heated T6 Cali, which is only to be expected in this forum.
Because mine's a Startline, in many ways I stand to benefit a lot from the upgrade. I couldn't even see the coolant temp with the Startline clocks, and why is the speed in km/h?
Antony was right that being Startline was not a problem in the sense that post-upgrade, I get all the functionality because the data bus is the same across all clocks, it's just the actuator / display layer (the physical clocks) that are different.
Unexpected hurdle
What nobody anticipated, though, is that the LCD panel in the middle of the instruments is removable from the ribbon on Highline, but not on SL, so we had to get creative with a hot glue gun to keep that connected but out of the way. This was achieved successfully. The hot gluing certainly doesn't effect the install and everything worked well during testing, commissioning and on a short then extended test drive - will it effect something in the long run? We decided to fold it back onto the blank section of the circuit board, raise it up off the board on hot glue, clinch the corners with hot glue, and put some tessa tape around it as belt and braces. However, that was the only observation.
Preparation
This is what I did in preparation:
- Full autoscan and save
- Brim the tank and measure the volume reported by VCDS to confirm that my tank was 80L.
- Make sure the speed warning is off.
- Made a note of mileage, range, mpg etc as reported by the old clocks for comparison.
- Made a list of things I wanted to check post-test. Such as headlight lamp, fog light dash lamp etc - anything to do with the safe function or operation of the vehicle. I also tested them to make sure I had a full and complete audit of the the state of the vehicle prior to making the changes.
The rest of the install went as expected. The process is:
- Remove the clocks
- Remove the circuit board from the casing
- Secure the LCD (only necessary on Startlines)
- Put the circuit board into the new housing
- Pop a couple of fixings in.
- Test it by connecting to the van.
- Go back to bench and make sure all fastenings and fixings are present and correct
- Fit new unit.
- Connect it to the internet and get the latest firmware.
- Let it do some processing, see 'quirks'.
- Configure
- Full auto scan (showed no different at all)
- Test things like indicator lamps, handbrake, headlights etc - anything related to operation or safety.
- Test drive (with Antony)
- Longer test drive (myself)
The display sits in parallel with the old display's circuit board. There's a new loom that joins to the connector that goes into the back of the clocks, and splits the signals so that the old clocks get the data, but so does the new display. In all cases except one, your old circuit board sits there silently and invisibly just going about its normal business. The only time you're reminded of the old clocks' existence is when the speed alert is accidentally set. To get rid, disconnect the starter battery for a couple of seconds and reconnect. Other than that, I'm very impressed with the implementation. In fact it's remarkable that a company has engineered an aftermarket upgrade that works so well. It also looks the part.
Pros
- Gives me what I was missing (coolant temp, oil level etc) plus more - I wasn't expecting to get starter battery voltage. I'm the kind of person who wants that in the cockpit and the Startline clocks were overly simplified in my view. I also like the consumption display within the rev display. The consumption display seems to be linked to either throttle position or fuel consumption as measured at the injectors or pump. I really like the little graph that shows how consumption changes over time. There's generally a lot more info in the display. For me, more info means more confidence and a clearer mind to be on the lookout for hazards.
- Very attractive.
- Display is crisp. Black is black, cannot see any pixels and the reflective surface is not issue whatsoever. In winter. Will update in summer! Strangely - it doesn't photograph very well - I took some photos, which appeared to show bad reflections, looked back at the clocks; no reflections - weird. Believe me when I say it is a very highly quality image with excellent contrast.
- Has really refreshed the driving experience.
- The animations for throttle, revs, speed etc are very nicely done.
- Control over options for instrument colour are great, and I'd imagine that for some users this will mean a more legible display.
- Everything on my test list works as expected.
- I now know which door is not shut properly - not possible on SL clocks.
- Lots of different choices of appearance - some heavier on info than others. I guess the point is that you can get the info you want to feel confident and in control.
- My clocks' perspex screen was showing a small amount of wear through minor scratches - it's now brand spanking.
- No faults thrown. Largely due to the fact that the original instrument circuit board is still there.
- Cannot interfere with mileage as that is stored in the original EEPROM, which is still present.
- When the unit is first run, it needs time (ten minutes, Antony says) to communicate with the BCM. When this happened, it changed my settings for 'chime on lock' and 'flash on lock'. I went into VCDS and could see my original settings - weird. So I flipped them off /on (or vice-versa) and then it remembered and is now how I want it. I haven't noticed any other settings change but will keep my eyes open for this.
- I had previously corrected the speedo because of my larger circumference wheels using @mmi's 'K value' coding and tested it against a GPS speedo. This appears to have been reset as I had to repeat the process. No big shakes but it is a top priority to be on your commissioning checklist. It's much easier to do with the settings in the new clocks than VCDS as it can be done while moving, without being a distraction to the driver. I now have a speedo that runs 1 to 2 mph above of the independent GPS measurement.
- After a longer test drive, the range figure is still being dynamically adjusted. It started out at 300 miles, and is up to 345 miles after a 20 mile drive as it starts to replace placeholder data with real consumption data. This isn't really a quirk - I'll keep an eye on it.
- Number one is I've lost the ABS lamp flashes that confirm what state a particular ghastly aftermarket device is on. If you know, you know. It's not an issue to me.
- Van colour setting needs an update - only possible to change the top half of a two-tone, but not the bottom half. I left it blue/white for now although my van is all silver.
I liken it to Mac vs PC. The OEM clocks are like the walled garden of the Mac, and this is the freedom of the PC - but with that freedom comes responsibility to make sure it is configured correctly during commissioning and that you don't monkey with the settings if you don't know what they do. I'm not likely to ever sell, but if I did, I would revert it to OEM. I wonder if the manufacturer would consider being able to give the owner the ability to lock down settings - a bit like parental control on a computer. If they did that, I would leave the clocks in place when I sold, safe in the knowledge that nobody could accidentally change something.
Glad I paid Antony to do it. His experience meant the whole thing was done in a few hours and the vehicle is immediately drivable. If I had done this myself, there was nothing too technical but quite a few squeaky bum moments that would have slowed me down and meant it would have taken a couple of days. His experience was very valuable, especially since I'm told the documentation leave a bit to be desired. I also appreciate having Antony on the phone if I need him.
It works great and looks amazing. Being able to breath new life into an 8 year old vehicle is something else. It's small thing but I've now got a digital speed figure in front of me; why-oh-why was this not on the Startline clocks? Gah! I love all the extra readouts.
I'll post here if I come across anything unexpected or any problems.
[Note: the display if far sharper than this photo suggests and the reflections are not visible in real life]
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Here are a few images from www.everest-vw.co.uk that I took if anyone wanted a closer look at the optional layouts. Thanks for your kind words! I am very confident that we 'cracked' the LCD retention plan without too much impact; I think I would opt for this method again as it is quite easily reversible, and as we discussed, it keeps the board clear for any cooling under the LCD. I have clocked up some miles using my unit now; driving from Northamptonshire to Kent, Liverpool and York for a few of my mobile fittings. And although I'm tired each time I get home. Im always pleased to have messages waiting from installs.
Any news on updates, firmware, or just general information, I will let you all know here. Thanks.
Any news on updates, firmware, or just general information, I will let you all know here. Thanks.
You would definitely need to get mfsw sorted first.
Probably a silly question but is the nav on the dash from your phone or the head unit?
My understanding is that the EML is on at first stage ignition, then goes off when engine starts, and that is controlled by the ECU. I could disconnect the MAF sensor or similar if people thought it was worth it?
For bulbs I’m going to disconnect a headlight.
Not got round to thinking about how to test the ABS light yet so If anyone’s got any ideas, I’m happy to test. VCDS lamp tests don’t work with the new display.
That’s easy to test by disconnecting behind the small panel near the passenger door.
Hang on, wont that just trigger the airbag light?
Indeed.Poss right, but a valid test nontheless.
There are silly questions when you consider what is being achieved with this and what a dramatic change it makes to the vehicle's interior personality. If you have stock Nav, only very limited info will carry over. We are talking compass direction, road name (listed in one of the dial centres on the 'Navigation' theme layout).
The displayed map view or my personal favourite, waze, can be wirelessly cast as a smart share/ screen mirror. This is via a direct WiFi connection. And works really well. It always seems to be there ready to recieve quickly. You then rotate your screen to landscape (turning your phone) then sleep the screen. Just as you might to watch a movie via Chromecast if you have ever.
The proprietary cast sucks in audio too, there is a little speaker incorporated behind the LCD which would announce turns if you had nothing else, but a quick Bluetooth selection on the head unit (pre paired to the phone) and then audio goes that way. So you could watch movies or tv on this, or just map views. Then all your voice commands (via the phone) include all your navigation commands and music playing including track listings appearing momentarily on track changes, since waze has some nice little media integrations of its own.
It's a decent solution where there was none, it's second fiddle to anyone with an existing central Android Auto or Carplay setup already. But they have not done a bad job of it.
You can also press the mfsw ok button to increase the visibility of that screen so the dials don't clip so much. Dold down enter and you cannot. Actually adjust the width, height and positioning of the mirror/cast, which I was impressed with.
I have several wireless charging cubby's around my dash, so I always prefer to go wireless, my Halo has the AAWireless dongle plugged in, unless we are camping and I don't want it snatching the hdmi from the firestick.
Just waiting for Google to let Gemini AI assistant option loose on Android Auto. Then just will have my unconditional conversationalist for these long fitting drives! Lol.
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