Has anyone 'upgraded' to the 2010+ RNSe?

[sakimano]

WOAH!! That looks superb.

I had an A5 black edition as a loan car the other week and I think this had a similar unit, made my existing RNS-E look very outdated.

Did you pay ~£1,000 for it? Is is a straight swap with the same connections?

Did you look at the Kenwood double din sized units?

I have the Alpine KCE-425i and Kufatec IMA plus just to run my iPod and that's not brilliant, I'd love to take the lot out and swap for something like this, especially as my iPod is about to die!!!

1. thanks
2. I paid $1000 CDN dollars a.k.a. about 600 pounds sterling. I was offered a unit for 650 pounds sterling from an ebay seller, however a local guy had bought this particular unit but sold his B7 and asked me if I'd buy it from him. He paid $1000...I just gave him what he paid. Some sellers want $1500 for these. Just be patient. Also beware...some sellers are putting old RNSe units (2005-2008 units) on ebay with '2010+ RNSe' but they are lying/ignorant...and are selling an old unit with a 2010 or newer disc...trying to trick people into thinking it's the new LED screen/32GBx2 SDHC card unit. It's not. So look closely.
3. I believe it's a pretty simple swap, and there's a couple of great DIYs on audiforum.us that will guide you through it.
4. I didn't look at aftermarket units. Not my cup of tea. Probably better, but it just annoys me to no end to have non-OEM looking cars, inside or out. I'm a bit boring that way though.

[PetrolDave]

So i guess it will not come up with the rs4 bit at the beginning or can that be reprogrammed in would you think ?

Correct, you CANNOT program it to show the RS4 logo (despite what earlier posts say).

[PetrolDave]

A lot seem to come from Lithuania

That's becasue there is a factory there that refurbs them for Audi.

I dont think I could live with the gloss black surround

The gloss black surround was introduced in 2011, so it you get a 2010 it has the "normal" matt black surround - which is what I have.

After a bit of diggin round on the internet it would SEEM that the Seat RNS-E unit is EXACTLY the same, but I will leave it to someone else to try before I spend over £500 on it

The only issue with the 3R0 SEAT unit is that it says SEAT on the front panel...not really appropriate in an RS4 IMHO?

[PetrolDave]

I had an A5 black edition as a loan car the other week and I think this had a similar unit.

'fraid not, the A5 has MMI not the RNS-E so it's a completely different (multi-box fibre-optic MOST connected) system.

[PetrolDave]

3. I believe it's a pretty simple swap, and there's a couple of great DIYs on audiforum.us that will guide you through it.

Swapping from a pre-2010 RNS-e to a 2010+ RNS-E is the simplest possible swap. Physically and electrically it's 100 compatible, so all you need to do is check/correct the coding and clear any fault codes. Swapping took me about 15 minutes from beginning to end.

4. I didn't look at aftermarket units. Not my cup of tea. Probably better, but it just annoys me to no end to have non-OEM looking cars, inside or out.

+1
OE is the only option for me too.

[sakimano]

As there is NO 2010+ RNS-E made for the A4 you nee to buy an A3 or TT 2010+ RNS-E and swap the faceplate from your current RNS-E to make a "hybrid" that has the 2010+ electronics but a pre-2010 faceplate.

So I can't give you an Audi part number as there isn't one!

Once you've done that it's a straight swap, with the usual need to correct the coding and clear fault codes (especially if you have Bluetooth) using VCDS (VAG-COM).

Good points. In fact the faceplate swap is a good buck (100-200 dollars) and is a bit of a pain in the ass job to do apparently as it requires removing the screen from the unit etc. Not impossible by any means, but maybe more involved than some folks would want.

The B7 part codes generally start with 8E. My RNSe starts with 8P, as it was from an A3 (then had the A4/S4/RS4 faceplate swapped on by the original seller). It came with 4 radio keys (brilliant design this whole thing really) and an antenna in case you needed it. That was interesting...I just left the antenna connected but in behind the unit in the cavity. Tried it and I get 7 satellites usually...perfect. You can run it in behind the speedo/gauge cluster or run it to the sharkfin, but it wasn't necessary for me.

The key part of the part number is the last 3 digits. The 192 units are the old one. The 193 units are the new one.

Mine was 8PO 035 193

So i guess it will not come up with the rs4 bit at the beginning or can that be reprogrammed in would you think ?

Thanks

does the RS4 with RNS-e usually have an RS4 splash screen on the unit itself? My car has RS4 in the DIS, but on the RNSe2010+ screen it just says Audi Multi Media Interface. I remember this on my B7 S4 trying to change the start up screen to see if the lamborghini one would work for a laugh but I don't think it did. Anyone remember where that is in the coding?

edit: petroldave says we can't. I believe him. I've never seen anyone who knows more about this stuff. Ever.

[gilford]

So i guess it will not come up with the rs4 bit at the beginning or can that be reprogrammed in would you think ?

Correct, you CANNOT program it to show the RS4 logo (despite what earlier posts say).

I stand corrected, I was only quoting what I had read on another site stating they could be programmed for a Lamborghini

[gilford]

[
Swapping from a pre-2010 RNS-e to a 2010+ RNS-E is the simplest possible swap. Physically and electrically it's 100 compatible, so all you need to do is check/correct the coding and clear any fault codes. Swapping took me about 15 minutes from beginning to end.

What about the B7 surround, doesn't that need switching over as per the other forum guides?

[PetrolDave]

So i guess it will not come up with the rs4 bit at the beginning or can that be reprogrammed in would you think ?

Correct, you CANNOT program it to show the RS4 logo (despite what earlier posts say).

I stand corrected, I was only quoting what I had read on another site stating they could be programmed for a Lamborghini

They can be coded to show Lamborghini, but changing the startup screen for different Audi models needs an adaptation channel change not a coding change.

Audi have removed the firmware that recognises the adaptation value for RS4 from the 2010+ RNS-E firmware - as they don't expect it to ever be installed in an RS4!

Coding:
0?xxxxx: Model

1 = Lamborghini
2 = Audi A3 (8P)
3 = Audi A4 (8E)
4 = Audi A4 Cabriolet (8H)
5 = Audi A6 (4B) (some doubt whether the 2010+ RNS-E will accept A6 coding)
6 = Audi TT (8J)
7 = Audi R8 (42)

Adaptation Channel 18: Start Screen
The start screen setting has to correspond with the control module coding, e.g. a S3 start screen doesn't work with an A4 coding.

0 = Standard Start Screen
1 = Audi S3 Start Screen
2 = Audi S4 Start Screen (not 2010+ RNS-E)
3 = Audi RS4 Start Screen (not 2010+ RNS-E)
4 = Audi TT Start Screen
5 = Audi R8 Start Screen

[PetrolDave]

[
Swapping from a pre-2010 RNS-e to a 2010+ RNS-E is the simplest possible swap. Physically and electrically it's 100 compatible, so all you need to do is check/correct the coding and clear any fault codes. Swapping took me about 15 minutes from beginning to end.

What about the B7 surround, doesn't that need switching over as per the other forum guides?

As we've already discussed the need for a faceplate change I was only referring to what you actually need to do when in the car.

[gilford]

Cheers Dave

[Shadow6ix]

How much of a pain is the faceplate change exaclty?

[PetrolDave]

How much of a pain is the faceplate change exaclty?

With the exception of two small screws that are normally extremely tight (with threadlock) and easy to knacker the head on, it's fairly easy. Take time and care on those two screws and you're OK.

[Shadow6ix]

Hmm, ok, thankyou. I'm very tempted. Oh yes indeed I am.

[Shadow6ix]

Have you made any progress with the MMI Dave?