RNS510 OEM Navigation System

The anouncement of the new generation of VW navigation systems last year had a lot of us very excited. Volkswagen/Audi have never been known for being particularly “techie” like the other German car makers, let alone the luxury Japanese brands which usually lead the way as far as in-car entertainment and electronics. As the market becomes more and more media-hungry and tech-savvy, it was only a matter of time before VW either caught up or ended up dead in the water.

The previous OEM navigation system (known as MFD2) is adequate for what it is: Navigation. Media compatibility and integration were always either non-existent or frankly sorely lacking. The optical drive basically became unusable since the map DVD had to be loaded at all times in order for the navigation system to, well… function. There was the option to have a CD changer stashed in the arm rest but integration with the navigation unit was always rudimentary and track information was not available on the screen, let alone on the muti-function display between the gauges.

Then you have the stock head units. While good at what they do and all capable of playing mp3 CDs and integrated satellite radio (with paid subscription), there’s not much else they can do. For almost three years I had no major issues being able to satisfy my needs music-wise, but navigation became a necessity and I resorted to an aftermarket system (as described on this post) which worked well for the most part. However, I never truly felt comfortable with it. I swapped the location multiple times and even getting the dash tray to make it look and feel as unintrusive as possible left something to be desired.

Fast forward to Summer 2008: When the time came for my wife to upgrade her aging 2001 Honda Civic, she decided to switch over to the dark side and buy a Volkswagen (finally). Being interested in the Jetta SportWagen (new model for 2009), I sought the opportunity to finally bring the GLI’s in-car entertainment and media capabilities, not to mention navigation system and integration, into the current decade. And since the cost of these units is rather prohibitive (over $3,000.00!!), we decided to order her car with it for the option invoice price so that I could retrofit the unit into my car. And so the journey began.

Doing the research itself took longer than I thought. I was basically unable to do the swap until a couple of months after the purchase, which only made it difficult as my wife became more and more attached to the unit. I had to keep reminding her that she was not even interested in it when I suggested it and the only reason why we got it was so I could swap it out. Then the complications doubled, as not only did I have to figure out how to successfully swap the RNS-510 into my car but also how to make the GLI’s Premium 7 head unit fully functional into her car. After some brainstorming with some pretty knowledgeable people over at VWNavi.com, I had gathered all the necessary instructions and parts to get to work, at least as far as the head units was concerned (Media-IN or MDI for short, will have to wait; look for its own dedicated entry when I get around to it).

I won’t bore myself going over every single technical detail but let’s just say that the head unit swap itself was rather easy. After having acquired the correct antenna adapters and a GPS antenna with a FAKRA connector, it was all a matter of disassembling the dashboard (something I’m getting exceedingly quick at) and simply exchanging them out. The rest was all a matter of Vag Com magic. The P7 was also rather easy to swap into my wife’s new wagon, thankfully.

The unit performs admirably well. It plays CDs, DVD audio and DVD video (although not while the car is in motion for the latter). It also has an SD card slot in which you can carry not only music but POIs (points-of-interest) that the navigation unit can grab and copy to its local database. It also comes with an integrated HDD with about 20GB of capacity (meh but ok) to which you can copy mp3 files for playback. The optional MDI (which will shortly find its way into the car) also allows you to connect any USB based storage device, be it an mp3 player, a thumb drive or a portable HDD and use it as storage for music; anything connected to it is fully browseable through the unit’s touch screen and multifunction steering wheel. The optional iPod cable lets you connect and charge your iPod and use it in the same manner.

Navigation is where the unit really shines though. I must admit, getting used to it took a little work coming from a simplistic yet exceptionally functional Garmin Nüvi. Yet, integration with the audio system and MFD between the gauges is nothing short of impressive. Audio quality is also stellar. At first I was a bit disappointed in that the unit did not seem to speak street names. However, it does. It just doesn’t in the same context as Nüvi. For example, Nüvi units will tell you the name of the street in which you should turn, etc. On the RNS-510, it will also do it, but only when the context is necessary; it will say “turn left in 500ft towards Seattle” while the name of the road you’re on is highlighted both on the screen and on the MFD instead of simply saying “turn left onto I-5″.

So far however, it has not led me astray- and that’s a challenge considering how completely disoriented I can become, particularly in the dark. The screen functionality is also amazing; map zoom levels are fully customizable and very responsive, for instance. You can navigate from several hundred feet up in the air or almost corner by corner and controls are quick and intuitive enough that you don’t need to distract yourself unnecessarily while driving; it all comes naturally after using it for a while. VW truly did their homework on this thing. Audio controls are incredibly intuitive as well. The balance and fader controls are represented by an image showing a birds-eye view of the cabin. Clicking anywhere in the image with your finger on the touch screen will make the sound biased towards that end of the car. Neat. DVD video quality is also quite amazing; it almost looks like a high-def display. Blacks look good and not washed out and although I don’t anticipate to use this feature too much (simply no opportunity) it’s still a neat addition for those folks that would like to have it. Maybe I’ll find myself using it on a long ferry ride if I ever need to.

DVD audio is something I’m particularly pleased about. Burning a Dual Layer DVD disc holding 8.5GB of music could mean that you could haul around your entire music collection in a handful of discs at all times and simply swap as necessary since the navigation maps are installed into the HDD making the optical drive available for use. Plus the added benefit of having an SD card slot for music playback and importing of POIs is just the icing on the cake… and I haven’t even delved too much in the added functionality that MDI will signify…

I’m extremely impressed and happy with this unit. As Ferris Bueller would say, “If you have the means, I highly recommend you pick one up…”