Touchscreen Sat Nav - Information and Diagnostics - PART 1

The Ford Mondeo hit our roads in 1993, and has consistently been a sales success. Now on its 4th incarnation, it remains a drivers favourite.
For more information, visit the Ford Mondeo forum on TalkFord.com, the definitive resource site covering all Fords from the present day to the 1970's.

---

Overview Guide
Ford Model:	Mondeo
Petrol/Diesel:	????
Estimated Cost:	????
Difficulty?	????
How long does this take?	????

This article is Part 1 of 3.

Part 1 = Touchscreen_Sat_Nav_-_Information_and_Diagnostics_-_PART_1

Part 2 = Touchscreen_Sat_Nav_-_Information_and_Diagnostics_-_PART_2

Part 3 = Touchscreen_Sat_Nav_-_Information_and_Diagnostics_-_PART_3

---

I've (L11XXY) put together this guide for all members who have the Denso Touchscreen Sat Nav fitted to their cars and also for anyone who may wish to retrofit the system in the future.

It covers most of the things you will need to know, including photos of the screen for Diagnostics.

'''WARNING - DO NOT MESS ABOUT WITH THE S/W UPDATE BUTTON. COPIED UPDATE DISCS - USE AT YOUR OWN RISK, THEY CAN CORRUPT THE DVD ROM BEYOND REPAIR - NEVER TURN OFF IGNITION WITH WHEN THE UPDATE SERVICE IS RUNNING.'''

System Description

High End Touchscreen Satellite Navigation fitted as an option to most of the Mk3 Mondeo, S Max and C Max models.

Features

Large Touchscreen Interface with boot mounted DVD ROM, additional 6 Disk Changer. Climate controls are an integral part of the Touchscreen Unit. Voice Guided instructions, On Screen Instructions, Postcode Lookup, POI Data etc etc..

Bluetooth Phone support is an option which requires an additional Blueooth Module. None of the Audio Range on the MK3 came with Bluetooth built into the headunits.

Please also note the the earlier generation Radio / CD modules with part numbers starting 3S7T are NOT compatible with the Bluetooth RX1-C voice control modules. If you are retro fitting BT then you will need to source a unit with part number starting 5S7T. The earlier modules cannot be reflashed with the latest firmware as i have already tried this.

What Breaks?

Certain components can fail on the system, the most common being the DVD ROM in the boot. This is mostly optical or mechanical drive failure. It is rare for the circuit boards to fail, howver it does still happen.

WARNING - MESSING ABOUT WITH THE SW UPDATE BUTTON CAN RENDER THE UNIT INOPERATIVE.

This also applies to 'copied' versions of the firmware. These have an 85% FAILURE RATE. Use them at your own risk. I can recover blocked drives most of the time if the basic BIOS firmware is still operative. Black / Green lines indicate mainboard chip failure and or BIOS corruption.

PLEASE ALSO NOTE! Water getting into the boot area and onto the DVD ROM is also known to happen. This can come from the tailgate grommet, track down the C pillar and onto the CD Changer & DVD ROM. In addition, there is a vent behind the DVD ROM that can also let in water. Once any excessive amounts of fluid get onto the motherboard IT WILL short out due to rust. As its a multi layered board, it will rust, swell & short out, rendering it scrap, therefore for peace of mind, whip off the cover and make sure its nice & dry.

The Climate control unit can also fail, giving an error #9342 - Replace Unit. The climate control module acts as a 'gateway' for certain parts of the CAN BUS system (Controlled Area Network) that allows the car to 'talk' to the modules that it needs to.

Touchscreen Failure is rare, but does happen. This can be caused by liquid ingress or heavy handed abuse if the unit is removed for any reason, so be careful! Inferior removal keys or heavy handed use of removal keys can also cause damage to the PCB which is located (somewhat silly) behind the key removal slots.

Radio / CD modules sometimes fail on the CAN BUS chips inside. This will give you a screen with 6 rectangular boxes, numbered 1-6. Repair is often unconomical therefore a replacement unit will need to be sourced.

GPS Ariel Base Failure - This is normally associated with a small GPS icon with a line through it that appears under the TMC Icon. Will also show up as A$204 ANT on the nav diagnostic error log.

Failure is caused by water ingress into the base assy. The bases are aluminium and oxodise with water and rust out the PCB. Replacement is normally the best way forward. Costs about £48 from Ford or associated Ford Parts dealers on the Internet.

Screen Flicker issues and or jumping from screen to screen with no user input is normally associated with the Bluetooth / Voice Control module software. A Flat battery or jump starting the car can cause stability issues with the BT/VCM. Please see the paragraph "How Can I Fix It" for more information

How Can I Fix It

Normally, changing the damaged component is the only way forward. Touchscreen Units are rare secondhand, the DVD ROM a little more accessable from time to time, however the Climate Control Module is the same as the Std EATC module fitted to the facelift MK3. The only difference is a ribbon cable connector on the board. Therefore should yours fail, paying £30-£50 for an EATC module and changing the boards with your Touchscreen unit is better than shelling out £120 for the Touchscreen variant.

GPS Bases are a common failure on the early Nav equipped cars. Replacing the base is the most cost effective way to return the system to normal operation. The base is roughly £45 from a dealer. DO NOT be fobbed off with a dealer telling you that the Touchscreen or DVD ROM needs to be replaced if you have the A$204 error code.

Bluetooth / Voice Control Modules. ONLY USE RX-1C modules. No other units will work. If you have screen flicker, display corruption etc the BT/VCM module software has normally crashed. Unplugging the module and cycling the ignition a couple of times, then leaving the module off for about 15 minutes can work, however more often than not a software reflash can be done to restore the module.

Dealers can do this with IDS, however, expect to pay in the region of £100 for the pleasure.

I can program modules, using the Royal Mail, if required. Data from my car is downloaded to the laptop with IDS, your module is connected then reflashed using working software.

For more details please E Mail - awhvehicle@btinternet.com

DVD ROM drives can be fixed by swapping the drives over and or the circuit board, whichever is at fault. Optical parts (the laser assy) can be bought from the Net for about a tenth of the price of a new drive.

Accessing the Diagnostics

Turn on the igntion Turn on the Headunit Press 'NAV', then Agree. Press and hold the 'MENU' button for about 10 seconds At this point you should have the following screen

Type in the following code - 842520 Press Enter

You will now have this screen

Press the General Info button gives you this....

General Information Guide

AUDIO

Starts a Self Test of all speakers, front and rear antenna (where fitted)

ISO TP

Not Sure Yet

FNOS

Information on Software Revisions for System

MSG CHECK

Starts the Self Test of the CAN BUS System

HEC - HYBRID Electronic Cluster (Instrument Cluster)

ACU - Audio Control Module (Radio Unit)

CDDJ - CD Changer Communication

DISP - Display Communications

EATC - Climate Control Communication

VRM - Voice Recognition Module (Also Known as BT/VCM, Bluetooth Module)

RSE - Rear Seat Entertainment Comms

PJB - 12v Power Confirmation