[93SoCal400E]

I recently found a 2005 CLK500 with just 13,000 miles and jumped on it.

Had belonged to a little old (wealthy) lady for her 2nd home and had spent it's time sitting in a guarded parking garage.

I was THRILLED that she got the 5.0 engine and the factory Xenon lights, I was NOT thrilled to discover that her joy for power had not included a joy for music.

Had to drive from Seatle back to LA with the Audio 20. As luck would have it, this was the only Mercedes I checked out from this era that did NOT have the Aux jack installed.

So, with no way to connect aniPod, we resorted to old school tech, burning CDs as we drove in a Macbook.

Once we got back to LA I decided that I wanted the iPod kit so I ordered it. I then realized that I was going to have to pull the whole unit out to hook up the iPod kit so it seemed like a good time to add the Nav system.

I got very excited when I found one on Ebay in Poland and the ad said he took Paypal. I knew that a European one would have DVD available. But then he wrote me and said Paypal wouldn't let him take my payment so he offered me a discount to WIRE him the money. $700 seemed like alot of money to trust via a wire transfer so I declined.

Then I found one in Texas, I needed a PERFECT one since car looks new and this one was perfect. I got a $25 GPS with blue Fakra and busted out my T-20 drivers.

Using various links I found all the info needed. The hardest part was pulling the UCP. I had cup holder open and ended up wedging a screwdriver behind, Took a crazy amount of force, there are 4 metal clips that need to release. No damage but it felt like I might damage it.

At first I stuffed the GPS antennae behind the Nav unit toward the top. Not much space back there, especially with the iPod kit in there. Tested while in pieces and got silence. Then I realized that iPod kit does not repeat the fiber optics, so you need to unsnap the orange ables from original harness and place them in the iPod one where it connects to Nav unit.

Got it all buttoned back up and drove out of garage to find that I had somehow moved from Hollywood to Torrance. No matter how many times I reset or drove to areas with no trees, it never got it's bearings.

I had read posts where people had pulled out the instruments and/or the AC vents and put the antennae there. The car seems so new, I knew that I would bugger up one of those things if I tried.

Then I remembered that while looking for a place to put the iPod black box I had noticed that there was a hollow spot under the passenger side dashboard at the top. The end cap for dash pulls off easily and I could see right in to an area with only plastic and padding above it, then windshield.

So last night I yanked out EVERYTHING again and ran the antennae onto the roof where it could get 7 satellites !!! Moving it into that space in the dash it can see 4 or 5 most of the time, enough to gather altimter info and it works !!!

IN a perfect world we would figure out a way to split the teleaid antennae or FM antenae feeds to get those 7 satellites.

But until then, this method seems to have worked and I didn't need to yank anything else apart.

I imagine I need to re-code the Nav to "see" iPod, right now it just says Aux and I can only clumsily navigate it through the speedometer display. And the Nav doesn't appear in Speedomter display, but works fine from the LCD display.

So, I think I will just get one of those Dell T630 Chinese knock off Star setups and do some more recoding. Until then, everything works when used the way it wants to be used.

The dash is so much nicer with the LCD firing up with the MErcedes Benz splash screen, the Audio 20 looks very GM circa 1988.

Sounds great, I just need to find the rear subwoofer in light grey now.....

 

[rudeney]

The hardest part was pulling the UCP. I had cup holder open and ended up wedging a screwdriver behind, Took a crazy amount of force, there are 4 metal clips that need to release. No damage but it felt like I might damage it.

Yes, mine was the same way, and I even broke on of the metal clips it was so tight. Others have said theirs just practically fell out of place.

Then I remembered that while looking for a place to put the iPod black box I had noticed that there was a hollow spot under the passenger side dashboard at the top. The end cap for dash pulls off easily and I could see right in to an area with only plastic and padding above it, then windshield.

Yes, that is exactly where the iPod interface and NAV wiring is meant to go.

I imagine I need to re-code the Nav to "see" iPod, right now it just says Aux and I can only clumsily navigate it through the speedometer display. And the Nav doesn't appear in Speedomter display, but works fine from the LCD display.

Nope, that's all the OEM iPod interface is capable of doing. It's complicated to explain, but basically, there are no iPod capabilities in the NAV unit, but the instrument cluster was designed to allow "open" communication. It's part of the MOST specification.

So, I think I will just get one of those Dell T630 Chinese knock off Star setups and do some more recoding. Until then, everything works when used the way it wants to be used.

I bought the "C3" clone for $500. It uses a VMware virtual drive, so I think as long as you have an RS232 serial port, any laptop should work. It's a fairly simple installation from the portable hard drive they send. You can actually run it from the portable drive. copied everything to my laptop's internal HD.

 

[93SoCal400E]

Finally got "COmand=Present" coded...new problem !!!

So, looks like there are in fact 2 different MCS 2 Comand units for W209.

And of course I discovered this because it seems I got the WRONG one.

I posted in "Telematics" forum but want people to be able to find this.

The early COMAND with a "SERV" button and a later one that says "SYS".

The drag being that my 2005 came with Audio 20 and I got a 2007 Comand with "SYS" button. For more than a year I have lived with the 2 clocks having different times. When I took it to MB of San Fran to have Speedo coded to "Comand=Present" they gave me a cock and bull story that it might "brick" the ECU or Comand and they would still have to charge me $600 or something like that.

In any case, as part of my search for Distronic Nirvana I finally got a Star D630 up and running. Hooked her up, started digging through menus and found the setting. Set it to "Present" and reset MOST loop. Nav now shows in the Speedometer, BUT............now both clocks match...ON THE WRONG TIME. They are both ahead an hour.

And while I have dug and dug, all I can find are well meaning folks suggesting that I turn on Timezone via the "SERV" button, which I don't have. Mine is part # 209820788 and from a recent listing on EBay I noticed one that had a "SERV" button and was from 2004 which is part #2098700189.

I did find a place in STAR where I could have the speedo clock be independent again, but then I'm back to 2 separate clocks.

Does anyone have any ideas if there is a fix? I suppose I could source a 2004 unit but now that I've gone through 22 hurdles and have my Star unit up and running, I'd rather get use out of it.

So, there must be a change in the cluster as well, or? What Menu choices does a 2007-2009 Comand use to set/correct time or timezone with the "Timeset" button?

 

[television]

Have you been into the cluster menu with the diag kit, I cannot remember but I am sure this is where the time is. for no Comand its done by the cluster.

 

[93SoCal400E]

Have you been into the cluster menu with the diag kit, I cannot remember but I am sure this is where the time is. for no Comand its done by the cluster.

I should have mentioned, I used to set time on dash clock this way.

The option has vanished from choices.

EDIT: It's official, retrofitting Comand into W209 just gained some knowledge.

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/8940529-post7.html

So, looks like 2005-7 is one kind, and 2007-9 is the other. Don't mix and match if you want clocks working properly.

Curious what early Command in later car does. And if anyone ends up in that spot, I've got a shiny 2007 Comand to trade......

UPDATE: I am going to get t the bottom of this.

I have ordered a A2098702089. It has "SERV" button.

Yesterday I tried to get to the "Engineering Menu" on my MCS II by using "OK" and "7" and "MUTE", no respond on "sys" screen. So it appears that there are other differences in Pre and Post 5/2007 models. Does anyone else know how to get to "Engineering" menu? I am hopeful that there is a setting in there to fix, but I foolishly ordered another COmand anyway.

If there is anyone reading this with a MY 2008 or 2009 CLK who wants to upgrade to "Comand" I will soon have a really nice one for sale. If you are in LA, I can even include the Coding. I have discovered that nice thing about coding is that you always know what street you are on and what direction you are going.

BTW, I discovered that this "SERV vs "SYS" issue was discovered a couple years ago at the "other" site. I will post a link. Wish I had read that before I bought my 1st Comand. Anyone with a W209 looking to update to Comand needs to know this.

http://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w203/292642-comand-mcs-ii-issues.html#post6057395

Note that I have a different name on that board as I joined later, this is an important issue for W209 folks trying to install NAV Comand on their cars.

 

[93SoCal400E]

Finally got the right Comand in my 2005 - lessons learned

So the 2007 Comand showed up and today I had the time to go wrestle it in there.

Actual act of installing took just a few minutes, especially since I already had the iPod and GPS antenna run. I hooked it up and first thing I noticed was the noisy little fan built into the side of it. Pretty sure it's louder than last one. May take part number and order one.

Part of the reason it was so loud is that the CAR WAS DEAD SILENT !!! As in, there was no lovely music, or anything playing. I tried CD, Radio, and AUX (iPod).

Nothing worked even the least bit. I went in to the Sound controls and noticed my "Logic 7" no longer showed up. So I am going to guess that using a Comand that didn't have HK system on an HK system requires DAS to reset MOST bus. Good thing I have one. Before I screwed it all back together I ran upstairs and grabbed it. Hooked it up and as soon as MOST bus got reset, BINGO music !!! So I now see that before I was just lucky. I must have purchased one that was on a Logic 7 system or I would have returned it as dead or needed to go to a dealer for $120 MOST reset. (criminals)

Next I opened up the NAV screen to see that I was in Philly, PA. I had to drive out of the parking garage and out from under the trees. The unit was in shock, for some time it kept plotting my route on whatever streets it was last on in PA. I imagine if I went to sleep in PA and woke up in LA I would have a rough few minutes too. In any case, a drive around the block and it got it's bearings.

Coolest thing was being able to finally set the "Time" option to a time zone with DST. Now the speedo clock is and will always be right. Odd thing is I no longer see the time on the Comand anywhere. I'm pretty sure it used to be on the Map screen by the number of satellites, just not there now.

It had a 2006 disc in it, when I put the 2014 one in it ran a software update. Good news is that the Engineering Menu still shows up after update. So you can calibrate the Comand to work with different tires, etc. ( I wonder if this would help those people who put on big tires and it screws up ESP?)

While I had DAS fired up I went ahead and raised the speed limit to 250KM/h. This will come in handy in case I decide to outrun the police or start racing.

So, now that it is all done, I'm glad I got the right one for my car. If anyone knows a 2008 or 2009 CLK owner looking for Comand system, send them my way. Going to put it on Ebay next week for $600 but will do for less here. Kind of a drag that odds are 50/50 that they may need to get DAS on it to make it work, especially if they don't have the HK sound system.

 

[thrilos81]

So far I've found that the enigneering menu on our comand doesn't give you many options to do anything other than to test/calibrate it.
Have you found something different?

 

[93SoCal400E]

yeah, I guess. I was so relieved to have the time be right (finally) that was all I cared about.

Still have a 2007-9 unit for sale, in great shape.

 

[503865]

Which one are you selling? One with a "sys" button or one with a "Serv" button?

 

[93SoCal400E]

Which one are you selling? One with a "sys" button or one with a "Serv" button?

I still have a "SYS" version, in great shape

 

[93SoCal400E]

Going, Going....Comand for 2008-9 W209 CLK, free DAS hookup in SoCal

OK, tired of looking at it on the shelf.

I have the 2008-9 Comand System that I originally put in my 2005 CLK500.

It's in great cosmetic shape and works fine...in a 2008 or 2009.

In a 2003-2007 it works except you can't set the time, as detailed in this thread.

I am going to wait one week and then put it on Ebay. I am worried about selling on Ebay as there are so many ways to screw it up, and I feel certain that I will end up in a nightmare.

So I would rather sell it locally so that I can be involved in getting it set up.

When I got the 2008-9 one it worked fine in my car which has the HK system. When I sourced the correct 2003-7 version it didn't work at first and required me running a DAS system to reset the MOST ring, my guess was that it came from a non-HK car. Hence my concerns about selling to someone who may not have access to a DAS.

Anyhow, I would strongly recommend that folks with a 2003-7 only get the correct version. I drove around for awhile with both clocks always off by 1 or 2 hours and it drove me batty, passengers always asking, etc. Made it seem like I was too dumb to set the clock.

So, I just want to get rid of this, so $350 cash? Includes me connecting up and resetting your MOST ring via DAS system. If you know how to save a diagnostic report and/or print it from an ancient Windows laptop I'll do that too. (Not going on a long fishing expedition to figure out why your tail lights flicker or car runs funny, however, just a quick MOST reset until sound working perfectly) The nice thing about having DAS is even when mine was "working" with 2008-9 unit I didn't get the directions in center of speedometer and the audio directions weren't always audible. Once I set it up through DAS all works as expected. When I asked the schmucks at Mercedes-Benz of San Fransisco to do this for me they informed me that it would be $600 to program and might "brick" the entire sound system. They were idiots and I told them to p--s up a rope.

I could even help install the Comand System but you will be doing all of the yanking and tugging on the interior panels, I don't want to be the one who snaps some walnut trim in half. Very unlikely to happen but it is nerve wracking when you are tugging on them so I won't be the one doing that.

I am located in Hollywood area near the Dolby Theatre, parking garage is kinda dark but at least I have another W209 we can check for matching.

I will include a legit 2008-9 disc and a copy of 2013-4.

It is important to get the Blue Fakra antenna prior to install and read through the other Comand Retrofit threads. If you are still driving around using Audio 20 this is a big upgrade, if nothing else seeing the animated MB Logo every time you start car is a morale booster. On April 14 I will put on Ebay but would much rather sell locally as I can be certain that it ends well, especially since dealers seem to want to terrify you out of doing such upgrades.

Here in LA, I have loved being able to put my brain into "just drive" mode and let the car tell me where and when to turn. Takes much of the stress out of driving in this awful driving environment. I will say that entering a destination is frustrating on the system, about as clunky as clunky gets. Wise move is to log a "Home" location. In 2006 I visited my brother in Texas where he proceeded to drink himself into a stupor. I was able to hit the "home" button and get us back to his place safely in his 2005 E63 using a similar system.

I will also mention this in Audio & Telematics but don't think W209 folks go there regularly.