Carplay Retrofit (RNS510 Replacement)?

physicshogon

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2011
Location
Virginia
TDI
2012 Passat
I have a 2012 Passat w/ the RNS 510 system and the ONE THING that would be super useful to me is Apple Carplay. The dealerships tell me it isn't possible to do an upgrade b/c the car's entire body module/wiring harnesses would have to be changed out and it wouldn't be financially feasible.

Have any of you guys done the 'upgrade'/switch to a unit that fits in the RNS510 space prefectly and connects to the existing wiring? If so, where can I buy the unit, how much is it, and how long does the install take? Do you have any issues w/ the radio/Carplay now that it's installed?
 

Lightflyer1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 13, 2005
Location
Round Rock, Texas
TDI
2015 Beetle tdi dsg
There are posts here already detailing how to do something like this. MIB2 I think it is called. Costs can range from $500 to about $2k from my reading depending on where and how you get your parts. It is a big expensive job. Not hard but very involved. Search a little and you should be able to find something. Start here:

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=491209
 

MattRabbit

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 12, 1999
Location
Orlando, FL, USA
TDI
2015 Golf SE TDI, 2014 Beetle TDI, 1981 Rabbit Diesel
You can buy the RCD-330 from China. Aliexpress sells them for around $150. They look and feel stock, and come with Apple carplay or Android Auto. If I had a mk6, that's what I would have done.

Just do a search on it and do a bit of research first.
 

325_Guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Location
West Central Texas
TDI
MkV Jetta
I just installed an MIB2 in my Mk5. All in, with all the required odds and ends, was $550. But, I also did my own hot-air soldering and it took about two months to get all the parts together.



That being said. It's an awesome upgrade!!!
 

Wilkins

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2005
Location
British Columbia
TDI
05 Jetta Wagon 5sp, 10 Sportwagen 6MT
The OP has a 2012. MIB2 is only required for 2015? Or am I mistaken? RCD330+ is plug and play on the NMS is it not?
 

SilverGhost

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Back in So Flo - St Lucie
TDI
'05 Golf - totaled :(, wife's '13 Beetle - buy back, TDIless
The feature set in the MIB2 is VIN dependent - the database in Germany knows what features each VIN is supposed to have, AND authorizes based on that. In order to install the MIB radio in another car you need to get the swap codes (probably black market) to enable functions. I just talked to someone who knows a person in Europe who is logging in remotely to enable CarPlay. @MattRabbit is his screen name.

Jason

PS: RNS510 is already under powered as it is. Adding CarPlay (even if you could) would probably be soooooo slooow you would hate it.
 

325_Guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Location
West Central Texas
TDI
MkV Jetta
The feature set in the MIB2 is VIN dependent - the database in Germany knows what features each VIN is supposed to have, AND authorizes based on that. In order to install the MIB radio in another car you need to get the swap codes (probably black market) to enable functions. I just talked to someone who knows a person in Europe who is logging in remotely to enable CarPlay. @MattRabbit is his screen name.

Jason

PS: RNS510 is already under powered as it is. Adding CarPlay (even if you could) would probably be soooooo slooow you would hate it.
You are correct. But- if you buy a MIB2 from the salvage yard, unless it's locked it still has active all of the features that it had when it was installed in its original car. You only lose the Feature Codes when Component Protection is activated.

In my case, $175 for a legitimately sourced, Grade A used part got me a MIB2 with navigation and CarPlay.

Anywho. Not trying to derail the thread. I just did this mod without outsourcing any hardware work and I took some pretty good notes.

Carry on!
 

SilverGhost

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Back in So Flo - St Lucie
TDI
'05 Golf - totaled :(, wife's '13 Beetle - buy back, TDIless
You are correct. But- if you buy a MIB2 from the salvage yard, unless it's locked it still has active all of the features that it had when it was installed in its original car. You only lose the Feature Codes when Component Protection is activated.

In my case, $175 for a legitimately sourced, Grade A used part got me a MIB2 with navigation and CarPlay.

Anywho. Not trying to derail the thread. I just did this mod without outsourcing any hardware work and I took some pretty good notes.

Carry on!
Very interesting!

But wouldn't Component protection activate once you install it? Or is there an extra step I'm missing? Other wise whats the point of CP?

Jason
 

325_Guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Location
West Central Texas
TDI
MkV Jetta
Very interesting!

But wouldn't Component protection activate once you install it? Or is there an extra step I'm missing? Other wise whats the point of CP?

Jason
Extremely! This was a somewhat hidden secret on the American forums. I found that gem on a Polish website and was mind-blown. That alone cut several hundred dollars off the mod.

For purposes of the MIB2, there's two ways CP can strike.

1. You have a car that is CP enabled, meaning, it has CP components factory installed. On those cars, anything that's not "native" to the car is detected immediately and locked via CAN messages.

2. You have an older car that's not CP enabled. Like my 2006. In this case, the MIB2 will operate for 8 hours of powered time before CP becomes active.

There's workarounds for both. In the case of #1, either the MIB2 can be adapted to the car (dealers do this), or, in cases of an unsupported configuration, a CAN filter can be installed that filters the CP lock messages off the CAN BUS.

For #2, there is a small hardware board that's available for about $50. It reads the current time remaining on the MIB2 and re-writes that value each time the MIB2 powers up. The one bug with this is that, if you drive long distance, you'll hit your power-on time limit and CP will become active. A hard-reboot of the MIB2 resets this.
 

bradeinhorn

New member
Joined
Nov 18, 2019
Location
NY
TDI
2012 Jetta Sportswagon
Can someone post a link to which unit I would need to install a radio with Android auto and a rear cam for a 2012 tdi wagon?
 

MattRabbit

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 12, 1999
Location
Orlando, FL, USA
TDI
2015 Golf SE TDI, 2014 Beetle TDI, 1981 Rabbit Diesel
There's a huge thread over on golfmk7.com for upgrading from MIB1 to MIB2 in the mk7 cars. It's a real pain in the rear, as component protection has to be removed, and the features of the radio are tied to the VIN. They can be reprogrammed, but no one in the states will do it.

For the mk6 and mk5 cars, the RCD-330 is still the best bang for the buck. Of course, if you can find a MIB2 unit that will work for a reasonable price, that's probably a better way to go, but if not, the Chinesium radio works great.

 
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