Advanced Tele Prep means no MDI Port

[neilgcal]

Ok, to clear this up. The advanced telephone prep gives you an induction plate in the centre arm rest, where you are expected to put your mobile phone in order for it to connect to the external aerial. There is no physical connection for the phone to the aerial, however there is a 5V USB port which is for charging ONLY. Manual states for the optimum connection the phone should be put inside the netted holder in the armrest and that no other metal objects should be put in there. Storage useful for nothing else then!

Secondly, as I have found out, in the centre storage locker under the radio, there is no longer an MDI port, all you get is an AUX jack and another USB port. This is connected to the radio, however looking at the manual is only for connecting up an external hard drive. ie similar to the SD Card slot, you can have your music stored on a USB key or external drive.

Yes, when you are using streamed audio via bluetooth the next/back controls on the steering wheel do work so does the track information, however you can not browse the source for music, all you can do is go back and forth with the tracks. Also, yes, the iphone 5 works absolutely fine with the radio over bluetooth. So making/receiving calls, checking address book and scrolling through missed/dialled calls all works fine.

I did notice that when I was driving with my mobile in the armrest the signal indicator on the radio was significantly better. However the real test will be tomorrow night when I am on the phone to the missus on the way home from work, and to see if I drop calls in all the normal places!! Here's hoping the advanced telephone prep was actually worth it. 

However, as stated before, I am shocked they have pulled the MDI port from the vehicle due to the telephone prep, and I will be making a complaint to both my sales rep and to VW regarding this.

Cheers for the info Nick. Hopefully it will boost the signal and not be a total waste of money and a con! Have you had a chance to try the climate screen yet? Probably not cold enough down there. I'm at my parents in the highlands tonight and its to be -2 so I cheated and shoved the car in the garage!

Forgot to ask, is the sound quality just the same as normal even though its over Bluetooth?

[orcades]

Thanks NickNotts for the first post. Wish I'd known about the missing MDI port earlier - as I've ordered Advance Tele Prep and Heated Screen. The car will be used mainly around the Scottish Highlands and Islands. So my logic was Advance Tele Prep as phone signal crap outside any towns, heated screen as it gets a tad chilly in winter. However if given a choice, I'd take MDI port over Advance Tele Prep. It's possibly too late to change my order now, and perhaps Bluetooth connectivity will suffice, but I wish I'd been informed earlier about the missing MDI port.

[mac7]

In Germanhy the MDI port is a separate option rather than being standard like it is here. It can be specified with any of the radios or sat navs and the advanced phone prep.

So I think the OP's car might be a mis-build, with this option accidentally left off. It will be interesting to hear what VW UK have to say about it.

[Sootchucker]

Also, shouldn't be a problem to retro fit, as all the connectors into the back of the main unit in the glovebox are identical. You just need the Aux/USB unit to be swapped out for the MDI unit.

Dealer should be able to do that quite easily, assuming it was a mid-build.

[NickNotts]

Morning guys, sorry been away all week. OK, official answer from my dealer is that the MDI was removed due to the telephone prep but said the ipod by USB should still work, and I was then asked to contact VW direct.

So I did, and got through to the MD's office as he was covering for customer services. Very nice chap who fully understood my complaint and agreed the brochure was lacking in information over the extra and that it doesn't state the MDI is removed.

He himself is a mk7 driver, though not GTI, and says he couldn't live without his ipod in the car either. So he was personally going to find out about this one and get back to me. He's due to speak to the factory today to get the low down and confirm whether it can be retro fitted or not. He's also confirming the connectivity options for the front USB port and what can be used in it. So watch this space!

On another note, the prep actually works! Where I normally lose a call 3-4 times on the way home in the same places, I didn't lose it once. The call stayed connected for the whole 20 miles and on one night I even took a detour out to Sherwood Forest where I have before had no coverage for a whole 5 mins and it stayed connected. So it works, and I have to say I think it is worth it. But that's my opinion, and I know others will think differently. 

Anyway, I will update as soon as I hear back from VW HO.

[Andyduz]

Thanks for the update. Ordered the phone prep myself and currently use a iPod for music so will be watching this one closely.

[Happy Hippo]

Hi Nick, very useful info, have you had any update from your VW contact yet? My dealer is telling me that the MDI socket is available with any permutation in Europe but he can't get an answer as to why its left off in the UK. Thanks

[NickNotts]

Only update I have is that David phoned on Tuesday to apologise for the delay in getting information from the factory. He confirmed that it definitely was removed due to the prep, but no news as to the reason and retrofitting.

So will keep you posted when I do hear. Had the car two weeks almost now, so getting a bit impatient.

[corgi]

I suspect this is a well known issue within VW in the UK.

I called my dealer to mention this to them as I have spec'd the advanced phone prep...

Firstly, they said that they the MDI port is standard on Golf but they would check.

The following day they confirmed that the MDI port is deleted with advanced phone prep and offered me a £250 goodwill gesture... I hadn't complained, at that stage, because I will still be able to stream music over bluetooth... so on the face of it there was no need to offer me any money they didn't need to...

So, I suspect that VW UK have made some sort of a c0ck-up by not stating that choosing this option deletes the MDI port... they tell the dealer offer a goodwill gesture if it is queried...

[Sootchucker]

Nick, been browsing over at the German Forum (motor-talk.de), and there is a discussion going that VW have quietly slipped in a new "multimedia AUX-IN and USB interface for iPod / iPhone". Using this new socket (which has a chip inside it), it enables the USB port to have a standard Ipod cable plugged in and get full functionality like with a MDI socket.

Don't know if it's available here yet, but might be worth enquiring. The guys over on the German forums are citing it being a €70 option.