MMI 3GP conversion done, where do I find NZ maps?

[scottjjr]

Hi all, i've successfully convered my jap import MMI 3GP to RoW and now are keen to track down some NZ maps.

There wasn't much info about the JP -> ROW conversion but it's the same as converting US->EUR (change language in eeprom using VCP to include at least en_GB and en_DE, then perform update to latest EU/ROW firmware) as per instructions on the net.  I ended up having to go the long way via MMI recovery as I accidently restarted after setting region to RoW and before running the update. Do not recommend getting that part wrong

Keen to track down some NZ maps (latest if possible).  I don't need the JP->ROW conversion so don't want to pay the 600+ people are asking for on trademe.  Anyone know where to get a hold of the latest copy for a reasonable price?

Thanks!

[Alittletuningco]

I have access to the 2018 versions for the 3G/3GP

The reason you will have had to go recovery, is not updating via user defined and ensuring all MU and MI were set to update, this will cause a problem with model numbering in the eeprom - but maps can be set to ignore this.

[scottjjr]

Hello, email sent.

yeah i didn't set that as i rebooted directly after setting internal region.  I suspect even if I had done that and still rebooted before the firmware flash I likely would've had the same issue.  When i pulled all the logs off the MMI using SD card scripts I could see it was booting fine but faulting on a 'can't find font error', which apparently only get installed on firmware update. unfortunately this meant no engineering menus were available, even though doing the key presses appeared to kick into them.  The middle dial and soft buttons just didn't function. Here's the longer version here if anyone's interested to read it.

https://cartechnology.co.uk/showthread.php?tid=50759

Thanks.

[portmanteau]

I am going to propose a group buy for a copy of the latest 2019 MMI 3G/3GP maps, since all of the rogues in this country are still gouging us extortionate amounts to perform this highly secretive process. Much money has been paid to these people, and it's about time it stopped

EU/UK maps (and also USA) are easy to find online, but the Kiwi cartel of upgrade and retrofit "specialists" have done very well so far at keeping their copies of the software close to their chest(s)

The spirit of sharing is alive and well in most countries, but as usual we are being raped here in NZ out of sheer greed and by exploitation of the fact we are in a small market

Anyone else interested in sharing the cost of a copy?

[m100]

Can't help with the maps im afraid, but will let you know if I find a copy.

Did the conversion expand the radio band?

[portmanteau]

Did the conversion expand the radio band?

I would be interested to know the answer to that question, too.

Personally I obtained a UK/EU main head unit (which incorporates the tuner) [eta] (and the separate tuner) from Ebay for a total price less than the "experts" in NZ charge for their possibly dodgy conversions, and then just had to update firmware to latest (not strictly necessary), and have component protection removed. Very happy with the outcome

[Alittletuningco]

I would be interested to know the answer to that question, too.

Personally I obtained a UK/EU main head unit (which incorporates the tuner) from Ebay for a price less than the "experts" in NZ charge for their possibly dodgy conversions, and then just had to update firmware to latest (not strictly necessary), and have component protection removed. Very happy with the outcome

Like to know how these conversion are dodgy?

If you are lucky enough to find a unit that has the tuner included (bigger than an A3, or the new MIB and they are separate units) and one that isn’t blacklisted by Audi’s ODIS system, and you have the contact to remove CP then you can convert it cheaper.

Otherwise for 2G:
1) Replace radio (Japanese hardware is totally different)
2) Replace NAV (Japanese hardware is totally different)
3) Flash new firmware and burn map discs

For 3G/3G+:
1) Replace radio (hardware won’t pick up NZ frequencies) - and also have to remove CP
2) Change main unit eeprom with correct language packs
3) Change firmware to make the hardware know it’s a Eu/ROW unit (hardware is the same, variant is different)
4) Install maps
5) Activate maps
6) Fix maps database else you’ll just get a ‘database is initialising’ error

For MIB:
1) Find unit and then get it converted by VIN locking it to the new car (good luck)

It’s an involved process that the majority of people who offer this have spent a few years doing so. You’re not paying for the hardware, it’s the knowledge of how to do this plus recover in the unlikely event it goes wrong.

[portmanteau]

Like to know how these conversion are dodgy?

Let's just start with people like yourself selling illegal burnt copies of proprietary VAG map data for huge gain (and from your garage at home), and using this forum to solicit that business

Then there's the hack jobs on eproms etc which are simply not necessary if proper components are used

So kind of you to save the rest of us from the consequences of our own ignorance, rather than sharing what you know

[portmanteau]

Here is a list of the Europe/UK part numbers required to convert MMI3G Japan to EU/UK/NZ High version with hard drive in a facelift A6 C6, for example:

Happy to share the results of my own research - isn't that what forums like this are for?

Researching this stuff is not rocket science, despite what some would have you believe


- mmi 3g radio/tuner unit
  part no: 4F0035053 ( or various suffix letters - see ETKA)

- mmi 3g high main  HDD multimedia, DVD, bluetooth, internal telephone sim - navigation unit
  with 2 SD card slots and 1 SIM slot
  part no: 4E0035670C (or other suffix letters - see ETKA)

There are several versions of module with and without SIM slots.

3G HDD with SIM = 670
3G HDD without SIM = 666 (with or without BT)

3G DVD version with SIM = 654
3G DVD version without SIM = 652 (with or without BT)

[Alittletuningco]

Let's just start with people like yourself selling illegal burnt copies of proprietary VAG map data for huge gain (and from your garage at home), and using this forum to solicit that business

Then there's the hack jobs on eproms etc which are simply not necessary if proper components are used

So kind of you to save the rest of us from the consequences of our own ignorance, rather than sharing what you know

Pretty sure my post shows the whole process for each system.

The only reason eeprom have to be written to - is that the hardware is the same at the factory they flash different versio for different regions. The process just replicated this to covert japanese to european

[portmanteau]

I have access to the 2018 versions for the 3G/3GP

translates to:

I will contact you in private and offer to sell you an unauthorised digital copy of the map data for a price at least 60% of what it cost me to buy a genuine copy from Audi to get my "business" started. (that is if I even bought a genuine copy in the first place!).  Of course I am selling copies to as many people as I can, for huge profits

I will also charge you for an activation hack which in all other parts of the world is freely shared among enthusiast owners

It's generally called piracy

To add insult to injury the copy I would sell you is out of date (2019 maps are available now)

[portmanteau]

Pretty sure my post shows the whole process for each system.

and then atttempts to persuade members of forums like this that they are too stupid to do it themselves, and should be appreciative of your kindness in sharing a teaser

[Alittletuningco]

translates to:

I will contact you in private and offer to sell you an unauthorised digital copy of the map data for a price at least 60% of what it cost me to buy a genuine copy from Audi to get my "business" started. (that is if I even bought a genuine copy in the first place!).  Of course I am selling copies to as many people as I can, for huge profits

I will also charge you for an activation hack which in all other parts of the world is freely shared among enthusiast owners

It's generally called piracy

To add insult to injury the copy I would sell you is out of date (2019 maps are available now)

ROW maps are a 2018/2019 transition map and versioned at 5.10.4

The only maps available for 2019 have the suffix ‘AC’ or ‘AG’ depending on where you look for them - but these are specifically for ECE (Europe and Central Europe).

[portmanteau]

ROW maps are a 2018/2019 transition map and versioned at 5.10.4

The only maps available for 2019 have the suffix ‘AC’ or ‘AG’ depending on where you look for them - but these are specifically for ECE (Europe and Central Europe).

You are incorrect

Once again, to help out other forum members:

2019 maps for ROW (incl Aust/NZ/South Africa, Middle East and Pacific) are part no.:  8R0051884GC

You were just telling us that the reason why novices need to pay a lot of money to "experts" like yourself was on account of being able to access your years of accumulated wisdom and experience?

Once again, you are selling unauthorised pirated copies of OLD maps for not much less than the genuine current product from Audi NZ, and using this forum to seek buyers

[Alittletuningco]

You are incorrect

Once again, to help out other forum members:

2019 maps for ROW (incl Aust/NZ/South Africa, Middle East and Pacific) are part no.:  8R0051884GC

You were just telling us that the reason why novices need to pay a lot of money to "experts" like yourself was on account of being able to access your years of accumulated wisdom and experience?

Once again, you are selling unauthorised pirated copies of OLD maps for not much less than the genuine current product from Audi NZ, and using this forum to seek buyers

There is currently no activator or dB fix available for that database number. Which is why no-one is is offering it yet.

[portmanteau]

There is currently no activator or dB fix available for that database number. Which is why no-one is is offering it yet.

None that you know of, perhaps

Intriguing though how you speak of your software pirating business as if it is something that you are entitled to conduct. A sensible seller of illicit goods would just keep his head low and stay out of the limelight

[scottjjr]

Can't help with the maps im afraid, but will let you know if I find a copy.

Did the conversion expand the radio band?

No that's a separate unit in the boot, apparently can be re-regioned with updating the eeprom as well to open the other frequencies in a similar way but no-one's sharing the unlock code for the radio unit so you need to pull it off the board (pretty hard to do as its surface mount) and do it with an eeprom programmer directly.

I gave this a punt but seemed to have buggered the eeprom trying to read it, suspect it may have been the aliexpress special chip reader as i cant seem to read any eeproms with it at all (old motherboard eeproms). That or i wrecked it removing it from the board when heating to melt the solder (probably both TBH).

I ended up buying a new radio unit off ebay which arrived today., will install it on the weekend and get component protection removed from it and take it as a lesson learned.  BMWs certainly are easier to hack around than audi.

Re the maps. Unfortunately the audi forum communities arent as large or as forthcoming as the BMW comminities and RoW maps dont have the same level of availability.  For the money being asked for the ones you do find its a better idea to install a carplay/android auto interceptor instead and have full google maps with traffic that can be controlled from the mmi controls instead (+ more, spotify, siri, google assistant etc) for 350 for wired and 450 for wireless. Thats where i'll ljkely head once ive recovered from buying and paying for component protection to be removed from the new radio unit.

[portmanteau]

Re the maps. Unfortunately the audi forum communities arent as large or as forthcoming as the BMW comminities and RoW maps dont have the same level of availability

I would expand on that comment to add that the lack of willingness to share or assist fellow owners is isolated to our part of the world here in NZ/Aust. In the USA Europe and UK there is no problem at all in finding other owners willing to share map content

Hence we are able to be bent over and extorted by the NZ "specialists" who are without fail all selling illegal unauthorised copies of maps, themselves

Greed is alive and well in NZ

[JaseNZ]

Greed is alive and well in NZ

Hahahahaha you make me laugh , looks like self importance does as well.

[portmanteau]

Hahahahaha you make me laugh , looks like self importance does as well.

Take it as you may. It makes me sad, rather than amused