Upgrade vw radio to be sat nav

[Adrian72]

Hi all,

I've got a standard vw dab radio unit and have found second hand one with sat nav.

I have read that the units are programmed with a code specific to the vehicle it is in but can this be changed? If it can who can do it?

I appreciate there are aftermarket units available but I don't have 1k+ to spend and I don't want a garmin/TomTom cluttering the dash.

Can anyone help advise?

 

[DaveyB]

Hi all,

I've got a standard vw dab radio unit and have found second hand one with sat nav.

I have read that the units are programmed with a code specific to the vehicle it is in but can this be changed? If it can who can do it?

I appreciate there are aftermarket units available but I don't have 1k+ to spend and I don't want a garmin/TomTom cluttering the dash.

Can anyone help advise?

From what has been posted by others on here contemplating the same thing @Adrian72, they can’t be recoded.

 

[Adrian72]

Thanks DaveyB. That's what I had read but was hoping it had moved on a bit.

I'll have a chat with the dealership - who knows they might be helpful and knowledgeable!

 

[Pauly]

It's not supposed to be possible, there is a way to do it but it's very complex and involves opening the radio up and making a modification on one of the internal circuit boards, I have heard off a guy who does it in Europe but charges a few hundred quid for the job so unless you got a free stereo an aftermarket unit would prob be cheaper

 

[Adrian72]

That's not good news.

I can't imagine why they would make it so hard! I appreciate it devalues the radio for thieves but this just makes it useless for us poor saps down the line.

May have to save up for an after market one...