RNS-510 HDD replacement w SSD and firmware

So. I've read till I'm blue in the face about the lame RNS-510's and upgrading the firmware. My wifes car is a 2014 Passat TDI SEL w/ the Fender system and the RNS-510. It's a J model (late 2013) and is equipped with the ancient hard disk (HDD). It's SO UTTERLY SLOW to boot up that I can't believe VW would install something like that in such a great car! You start the car up and back out of the driveway, and 2 blocks later the backup cam finally turns on. THEN it goes into "Starting Up" for another minute or so before finally turning n the radio. Everybody who has one of these knows what I'm talking about. Obviously the biggest reason is the HDD...solid state would be MUCH faster even with the old firmware. With her model, the newest firmware I can go is the 5238. Which I'm considering doing, as it has to be better than what we now have.

My question is: has anybody out there done a disk swap (HDD to SSD) and then loaded NEWER firmware that goes with the SSD's (specifically, the 5328)? There is a great post with pictures in swapping out the drive, and I'm an electronics guy so I'm not worried at all about that. It's what firmware I go with at that point that is the big question...it SOUNDS like the newer firmware should run as long as I have the upgraded 64Gig SSD...but I can't find anything to prove that (what hardware differences in the unit besides the SSD is the question...and will it run newer firmware). Also, being my wifes car, if I brick her unit I'm on the hook to replace it (she wouldn't be pleased, and neither would my pocketbook). I figure by pulling out the original HDD and saving it, then the worst that can happen is I brick the new drive (which by all rights I SHOULD be able to reformat and reload w/ the older 5238 firmware)...but if all else fails I can reinstall the original HDD (and then upgrade the maps) and we are back to square 1...then I'd have to decide whether to go w/ the 5238 or just leave it alone.

Also, I see on ebay most of the firmware upgrades for sale are from Greece or Bulgaria...sounds kind of fishy to me...I'd be much more comfy w/ a disk from somewhere in the US.

Appreciate any info...I'd sure LOVE to speed that thing up but I don't want to spend a fortune doing it.

There is a meber here that is very up on the OE units that may help find your answers

BarryT82

IMHO go with an excelon series Kenwood. Worth every penny

This is my wifes car, and she won't be into spending the $$ to get a new unit when this one still works (albeit SO VERY SLOWLY!). Just ordered the 5238 firmware disk (from a seller in Greece on ebay)...that one is safe even for her older unit. I'd still like to swap the hard disk out for a SSD, but don't yet have enough data...for instance, will I need to do recoding with VAGCOM if I put in a new SSD drive (even if I were to use the older 5238 firmware)? Do I need a startup disk before installing any firmware on a new disk? Being as it's not MY car's unit I don't get final say, even tho I HATE it as it is...(if I were to brick it I'd be in trouble...she'd be saying I should have just left it alone). If it were my car I'd risk it and go right w/ the SSD and see what happens, and IF I brick it I'd then have reason to put in an aftermarket unit. So I will keep researching and see what I can talk her into (comes down to what risk she is willing to take).

If you already have an ssd drive, you need to find out its firmware version. Before installing the firmware, it is important to keep in mind that you need to save the entire disk (backup) or individual files you need. (for example, to another disk or flash drive). To check the firmware, you can use many utilities, for example https://www.salvagedata.com/. If you are afraid to reflash the ssd disk yourself, salvage data can do it completely for you. And even if you flashed the disk yourself, but lost the data, they will be able to recover all the lost data again with the help of their special utilities which with a 95% success probability.