Just got the car, a 2005 A8 W12. The MMI screen is in the bootloader mode and is power cycling over and over again. The fuse has been pulled and thats the only way to keep it from resetting and trying again. The screen says "search cd players". According to the people I purchased the car from, they attempted to upgrade the software using upgrade the upgrade CD's and about half way through the system froze up (when trying to start applications). Accordingly, they disconnected the battery, and the rest is history. I do have the upgrade CD's. The CD player will still load the CD's without issue. Any idea's why the bootloader screen isnt detecting the CD player to install these updates? Anything else I can do?

 

Dang... Does not sound good that is for sure. Sorry man. Wait for S4, mister, or Mp4.2 to comment on this one. Hopefully you won't have to have your MMI repaired...

I'm hoping because you bought the car from someone so dense that you got a lot taken off the price.

 

The MMI control box could well be electronically wiped out from the upgrade attempt. To determine this any better, you need to find out what version the car was at before the attempt and what version they tried to which they tried to upgrade. In particular, if they tried to upgrade to 4140 (aka 41.40) using that generation of upgrade disk (i.e. one back--not the current one) and skipped past the 33.60 (that is, it was being upgraded from a 1xxx or 2xxx series), prior field experience reports from A8 and Q7 owners say that is a fatal error and the MMI control box locks up permanently. A 2005 would probably have shipped with a 2XXX version of MMI (2710 maybe??), so it's a likely explanation. It's a $2000 ish repair from reports at the dealer, so unfortunate. On the other hand, if they tried to go all the way to 4610 from any prior version, per the Audi instructions that should not be catastrophic if done in reasonable fashion (including not letting battery wear down during the hour'ish long install).

If you can't get more particulars on the update attempt, you need to get the car scanned. Either VAG-COM or the dealer. If it can't see the MMI controller, that's also confirming the first point above.

Other thing I can think of is the MMI control buttons on the console are messed up--the old coffee or soft drink spill. Can explain screen cycling, though not being stuck in the bootloader area as far as I know. Can at least check feel of buttons for stickiness, and anything caught around edges. I've had bits of detailing cloth get snagged at button edges which leads to screen cycling, and it then displays only the start up screen (with the Audi wallpaper) before it cycles. If it's that simple, try cleaning edges of buttons--either dry or w/ rubbing alcohol but not water based cleaners

 

Thanks a ton for the replies. Got my started on the track of some investigation through the system components specifically. I checked the buttons and controls and everything seemed fine.

I stumbled across another forum with a guy who told me the "search cd players" error happens when the MOST loop has been broken somewhere. So I'm guessing the update got major screwed up somewhere and maybe fried a component. I was just going to start plugging the optical loop in the place of the devices on the network one by one but I decided to start with my satellite radio unit (since I had a spare from my other A8 I came from). As soon as I replaced the unit, the bootloader screen dumped the update off of the update disc I had in the CD player and installed up to 3360!

So the system appears to be back in total order. For anyone else that might encounter this specific issue: check your MOST loop for breaks, whether it be a defective device or a physical break in the fiber. VAG-COM wouldn't read anything on the MOST network.

 

Well potentially new problem:

When I press TEL on my control panel, its telling me that telephone is not installed. If I got into the software upgrade menu and look at the devices on the network, I see the regular ones, but no mention of anything bluetooth. I dont even know what the module is supposed to be called though. SDS is present in the menu, is that the same thing? What should be my next step on trying to get my bluetooth going again? Coding in VAG-COM? Hidden menu tricks?

 

Also, I'm now noticing that for the first few minutes that the car has been turned on, the sound system shuts off for a half second and then turns back on. I can hear the amplifier (or something)clicking on and off in the back. It only happens for the first few minutes the car is on, then it seems like its working just fine. I think I'm going to attempt to brave the updates again this evening. I'm thinking that because I actually recovered from the bootloader, that obviously not all of the devices on the network were properly updated.

 

Not sure if all the U.S. W12's had it automatically, but mid-2005 was the break point for 4.2's. f you see the OnStar button in the overhead console, you don't have it.

 

I know the car has bluetooth. I don't have the OnStar system.

Where is the module located so that I can try to replace it with another one to try it out.

Also, VAG-COM says when I run a most loop scan that it is having an error reading channel 77 on the most loop, which would be the telematics. The previous owner told me they used bluetooth on the car all the time before the software update. But hey, its better than nothing. I'm coming from an 04 A8L with the OnStar so if I have to continue to live without BT, then so be it

 

it has all the symptoms of water damage in one of the units, this is very common on the Q7, water gets under the carpet and damages the phone unit causing erratic sound operation and jamming the fiber optic network.
you can run a test thru the system and it will tell you what is not responding properly.

 

I was told the bluetooth was functional up until the point of the attempted update. If i were to check the bluetooth module itself though, where would I find it? Is it under the passenger floorboard with that whole mess of electronics down there?