C6 Color DIS LCD failure and fix
01-05-2013, 07:04 PM
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C6 Color DIS LCD failure and fix
Hello everyone,
The color LCD screen on the DIS on my wife's 2006 C6 A6 Avant went black suddenly, leaving her without all the valuable information that is displayed on it. Really, without it you don't have a ton of stuff so you really miss it. I did a bit of research on the problem and found that the "easy" fix is replacing the entire gauge cluster at nearly $2000 for the part alone! You can find used ones from wreckers for around $400 to $600 but they can be of suspect condition and there is the issue of mileage and coding. I also found that this is a very typical problem with Audi DIS LCD displays whether color or monochrome red. You can even find replacement LED screens for the monochrome red on eBay.
The best part of my research was finding a guy who can repair this problem at a very, very reasonable cost. Tom from http://www.speedosolutions.com/ is simply awesome. He was extremely helpful from the get-go, helping me determine if my LCD was repairable in the first place. He kept in constant contact with me and went above and beyond. He knew that I was on a tight timeline since the car was out of commission so he went the extra mile to make sure that I had my gauge cluster back in time. I can't say enough about that part. You rarely come across people who do that for customers and Tom did. He's also a car enthusiast and that's always good. I highly recommend his service. Instead of who-knows-what a dealer or independent mechanic would charge, Tom got my cluster up and running for under $250.
Here are some photos of my process. I took out and reinstalled the cluster myself which saved a bunch of money. There are some instructions online but it is pretty straight forward. There are a few tricky areas that I'll try to explain the best I can.
Tools needed: Basic hand tools (screwdrivers, Torx bits, sockets), trim removal tools can help, and several small jeweler's screwdrivers. Audi's instructions call for a special hooked tool. I did not have access to that so I got creative and bought these from Harbor Freight. The black "spring removal tool" looked closest to the illustration of the Audi tool and actually worked very well.
In order to get the gauge cluster out, you have to remove the entire trim surrounding it and the MMI screen. To get that trim out, you have to remove the vents. You can see in the photos what had to be removed. The instructions advise to get the center stack vents out, use the four jeweler's screwdrivers inserted into four clips to disengage them. You go through the vents and can sort of even see the clips. Once the clips are disengaged, locate holes where the hook tool is used to pull out. The clips are shown below after I removed the vent.
I managed to break one through brute force. I admit I did not use the proper number of jeweler's screwdrivers. I JB Welded the clip back on and it has held pretty well.
Here is the center vents removed.
You can see in a couple of the photos that the glove box switch and the computer control have been removed and inside are large bolts. There are about 8 of them that need to be removed in order to get the trip out. Removing the vents allows access to a couple of those bolts. The other are easily located once you have things exposed.
Here is how those switches are removed. Gently pry out the plastic bar in the middle, locate holes inside, grab on with hook tool and pull.
The headlight control has to be removed as well which requires access from the side panel of the dash. In addition to the headlight control, the outside vent has to be removed.
Once all the bolts have been removed and the trim can be removed, this is what it looks like. (The cluster was taken out already.) The cluster is screwed on to the trim as is the MMI screen. Removing the cluster just requires it to be unscrewed and disconnecting one wiring harness.
Once you get your cluster back, installation is just the reverse steps and was easier.
Money shot! It was so great to see the DIS all lit up again!
There was no coding needed. Mileage was not affected. It was really just plug and play. I did not drive or even start the car with the cluster out. I think that could cause some serious errors. It was really nice to find Tom and as I stated, his work and how he handled things was first class. I am very glad there's a guy like him, especially since I'm sure the DIS on my A4 B8 will go out someday sooner than later.
Thanks for reading and I hope this helps!
The color LCD screen on the DIS on my wife's 2006 C6 A6 Avant went black suddenly, leaving her without all the valuable information that is displayed on it. Really, without it you don't have a ton of stuff so you really miss it. I did a bit of research on the problem and found that the "easy" fix is replacing the entire gauge cluster at nearly $2000 for the part alone! You can find used ones from wreckers for around $400 to $600 but they can be of suspect condition and there is the issue of mileage and coding. I also found that this is a very typical problem with Audi DIS LCD displays whether color or monochrome red. You can even find replacement LED screens for the monochrome red on eBay.
The best part of my research was finding a guy who can repair this problem at a very, very reasonable cost. Tom from http://www.speedosolutions.com/ is simply awesome. He was extremely helpful from the get-go, helping me determine if my LCD was repairable in the first place. He kept in constant contact with me and went above and beyond. He knew that I was on a tight timeline since the car was out of commission so he went the extra mile to make sure that I had my gauge cluster back in time. I can't say enough about that part. You rarely come across people who do that for customers and Tom did. He's also a car enthusiast and that's always good. I highly recommend his service. Instead of who-knows-what a dealer or independent mechanic would charge, Tom got my cluster up and running for under $250.
Here are some photos of my process. I took out and reinstalled the cluster myself which saved a bunch of money. There are some instructions online but it is pretty straight forward. There are a few tricky areas that I'll try to explain the best I can.
Tools needed: Basic hand tools (screwdrivers, Torx bits, sockets), trim removal tools can help, and several small jeweler's screwdrivers. Audi's instructions call for a special hooked tool. I did not have access to that so I got creative and bought these from Harbor Freight. The black "spring removal tool" looked closest to the illustration of the Audi tool and actually worked very well.
In order to get the gauge cluster out, you have to remove the entire trim surrounding it and the MMI screen. To get that trim out, you have to remove the vents. You can see in the photos what had to be removed. The instructions advise to get the center stack vents out, use the four jeweler's screwdrivers inserted into four clips to disengage them. You go through the vents and can sort of even see the clips. Once the clips are disengaged, locate holes where the hook tool is used to pull out. The clips are shown below after I removed the vent.
I managed to break one through brute force. I admit I did not use the proper number of jeweler's screwdrivers. I JB Welded the clip back on and it has held pretty well.
Here is the center vents removed.
You can see in a couple of the photos that the glove box switch and the computer control have been removed and inside are large bolts. There are about 8 of them that need to be removed in order to get the trip out. Removing the vents allows access to a couple of those bolts. The other are easily located once you have things exposed.
Here is how those switches are removed. Gently pry out the plastic bar in the middle, locate holes inside, grab on with hook tool and pull.
The headlight control has to be removed as well which requires access from the side panel of the dash. In addition to the headlight control, the outside vent has to be removed.
Once all the bolts have been removed and the trim can be removed, this is what it looks like. (The cluster was taken out already.) The cluster is screwed on to the trim as is the MMI screen. Removing the cluster just requires it to be unscrewed and disconnecting one wiring harness.
Once you get your cluster back, installation is just the reverse steps and was easier.
Money shot! It was so great to see the DIS all lit up again!
There was no coding needed. Mileage was not affected. It was really just plug and play. I did not drive or even start the car with the cluster out. I think that could cause some serious errors. It was really nice to find Tom and as I stated, his work and how he handled things was first class. I am very glad there's a guy like him, especially since I'm sure the DIS on my A4 B8 will go out someday sooner than later.
Thanks for reading and I hope this helps!
01-05-2013, 09:45 PM
#2
AudiWorld Super User
Great write–up and photos, and the recommendation of a great repair shop. Thanks for posting, should be a great help to anyone needing to fix a faulty DIS. Hopefully, the DIS on my '06 Avant won't fail.
01-06-2013, 05:56 AM
#4
Great write up thanks for taking the time to document your repair for others. Don't need it yet but never know.
01-06-2013, 06:13 AM
#5
AudiWorld Member
Any parts you buy from Audi are going to be over priced. This is but another way to make money off of us.
I like your write-up and the picture help a lot I am sure. Hopefully I dfon't have to walk down this path anytime soon.
I like your write-up and the picture help a lot I am sure. Hopefully I dfon't have to walk down this path anytime soon.
01-06-2013, 04:14 PM
#7
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My pleasure, guys. I always try to contribute when I can.
As I said, when this happened, I was surprised to find out how often it does happen. I hope none of you get it but believe me, it can happen. According to Tom at SpeedoSolutions, the Magnet Marelli made gauge clusters, which who makes the C6 cluster, are the worse as far as durability. (He works on all Audi, VW, and BMW clusters.) He recently told me he has a 2007 Q7 cluster being sent to him for the same problem.
The problem with my DIS was the backlight went out. If I shined a bright flashlight on the DIS I could see the graphics faintly, otherwise the DIS was just black. Tom's repair involved replacing a couple of parts to get the backlight running again.
As I said, when this happened, I was surprised to find out how often it does happen. I hope none of you get it but believe me, it can happen. According to Tom at SpeedoSolutions, the Magnet Marelli made gauge clusters, which who makes the C6 cluster, are the worse as far as durability. (He works on all Audi, VW, and BMW clusters.) He recently told me he has a 2007 Q7 cluster being sent to him for the same problem.
The problem with my DIS was the backlight went out. If I shined a bright flashlight on the DIS I could see the graphics faintly, otherwise the DIS was just black. Tom's repair involved replacing a couple of parts to get the backlight running again.
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01-25-2017, 07:19 PM
#8
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Thanks for the write-up - unfortunately my 2008 A6 C6 just developed the same DIS LCD problem. Strangely the display went completely black driving home yesterday, and then mid-ride it came back on, but at maybe half the normal brightness, and it's been intermittently out and back on at a much reduced brightness level since. I gave Tom a call and spoke to him - great guy. I'll be sending him my cluster once I can get it out (weekend project!). For anybody else with the same problem, I believe Tom with SpeedoSolutions is probably by far the cheapest way to get your LCD display back up and running (spent a couple hours scouring the web for replacement parts, rebuilders, etc.).
Also potentially very helpful, I found a video of the dashboard removal process which combined with your writeup I think will help me quite a bit (also thanks for the Harbor Freight tool suggestions!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i6EWgrfrUU
Also potentially very helpful, I found a video of the dashboard removal process which combined with your writeup I think will help me quite a bit (also thanks for the Harbor Freight tool suggestions!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i6EWgrfrUU
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