First A7 any advice

[Paulblue]

Hi, I’ve just bought my A7 2013 245hp s line 83,000. First impression is love it, drives well, cabin looks and feels comfortable and luxurious, haven’t really played with the toys yet. Had my first issue today, stop/start didn’t work, then coup hours later the dash looked like a Christmas tree, every warning light possible. Took it to my local garage, battery check had 65% health and 23% state of charge. Alternator checked all ok, replaced battery £400 including coding. Has anyone else had the same issues ?
Assuming this issue is fixed I’d also appreciate any advice or experience with updating the mmi firmware and maps and also adding CarPlay. I’ve looked around and there are a few options available. Any other help, advice and tips are very welcome. Many thanks.

 

[aj84]

Welcome!
Great choice - I didn't have any experience with the Pre-factlift A7 but did with the factlift (2015) and to date is still one of my only missed cars I've had!

Symptoms you've had are classic battery so you should be ok now given alternator is tested ok - I suppose you could dig deeper on whether you've got any current leaking but it is possible it was on the first / original battery or maybe even second - either way most likely past its life.

Funnily enough, I had this issue even on my E-tron which is only a few years old so it does happen In that case, also battery replacement (12v not the main one!)

On carplay - I'm sure someone will chime in but I did not think that version of the MMI could do it - I'm pretty sure even mine did not unless it was a certain version which could not be installed.
Might be worth posting what version yours is on currently

 

[Paulblue]

Thanks for the reply and support. I’m hopeful that the new battery will cure the problem. And yes I don’t think my mmi will do CarPlay, it’s the 3G plus with mmi touch. I’ve been looking at the aftermarket hardware that adds it but unsure how well it works, if anyone has done this I’d appreciate their opinion. I’m also looking at updating the maps and firmware if anyone has got any advice or recommendations again it would be greatly appreciated.
im looking forward to enjoying my new car.

 

[Corb2000]

I had an aftermarket Integrated Automotive IMI-1000 CarPlay / Android unit fitted to my 2016 facelift car which has the HD MMI (I know that CarPlay can be activated on my car but couldn’t get that done easily due to covid at the time). It works well enough, requires a few more button presses than the standard setup but I wouldn’t be without it now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Paulblue]

thanks for the reply, can I ask which one you purchased. I’ve looked at a few different ones but would like to know which ones work well. Appreciate your advice

 

[Paulblue]

Audi A7 (2011-2018) 9" Flip-Out Android Screen Upgrade and Wireless Apple CarPlay

With our android screen upgrade you can transform the interior of your car! We will replace your old screen and upgrade it with a whole new system modernising your interior and adding a bunch of features such as: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Reverse camera compatibility Android 10 or 11 Video...

autostyleuk.com

AUDI A6/A7 2011-2018 (C7) Retrofit CarPlay and Android Auto Kit – Integrated automotive UK

integratedautomotive.co.uk

Audi Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto MMI Retrofit Interface (A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 Q5 Q7)

Benefit from Screen Mirroring, Waze, Google Maps, Spotify, Apple Music, WhatsApp and more with our Audi Wireless Apple Carplay & Android Auto Interface Kit. Compatible with most Audi's 2010-2019. We are UK Based and offer a 1 Year Guarantee. These MMI interfaces are Plug and Play - no coding...

bavarian-automotive.co.uk

a few of the options I’ve found for retrofit CarPlay, different prices and options…would be interested to know if anyone has experience of any of these options. Thanks.

 

[Corb2000]

The IMI-1000 from Integrated Automotive is the one I had fitted.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Paulblue]

The IMI-1000 from Integrated Automotive is the one I had fitted.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The IMI-1000 from Integrated Automotive is the one I had fitted.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for the reply. Do you mind if I ask a couple of questions how straightforward is it to fit, would a normal audio fitting shop be able to fit it. How is the function and response of the apps, sound quality, any issues with original mmi ….any advice from your experience is much appreciated.

 

[Corb2000]

I spoke to Integrated Automotive before buying the unit to ask if they knew of a fitter near me and had it fitted by a car audio place that they had worked with before. It took him just over half a day I think.

With the unit installed I would say:

Sound quality - noticeable improvement with quality media sources (lossless digital files and Spotify both sound better than my Bose setup did before) Note I also have a bigger sub woofer as a replacement for the weedy standard unit.

DAB signal - the unit looses the DAB signal more often than before, this can be a bit irritating

Integration - it takes a week or so to learn how to operate the CarPlay functions using the car’s media buttons. That becomes second nature over time but can require more button presses to do some things than with the standard setup - eg to answer the phone you have to have the CarPlay unit selected as the media source

Overall I think adding CarPlay is one of the reasons I’m still running the car after nearly 8 years and over 105,000m - I never use the built in navigation now and access to Spotify, WhatsApp and text messaging via Siri is all good stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Paulblue]

I spoke to Integrated Automotive before buying the unit to ask if they knew of a fitter near me and had it fitted by a car audio place that they had worked with before. It took him just over half a day I think.

With the unit installed I would say:

Sound quality - noticeable improvement with quality media sources (lossless digital files and Spotify both sound better than my Bose setup did before) Note I also have a bigger sub woofer as a replacement for the weedy standard unit.

DAB signal - the unit looses the DAB signal more often than before, this can be a bit irritating

Integration - it takes a week or so to learn how to operate the CarPlay functions using the car’s media buttons. That becomes second nature over time but can require more button presses to do some things than with the standard setup - eg to answer the phone you have to have the CarPlay unit selected as the media source

Overall I think adding CarPlay is one of the reasons I’m still running the car after nearly 8 years and over 105,000m - I never use the built in navigation now and access to Spotify, WhatsApp and text messaging via Siri is all good stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you for your information, it’s much appreciated. It’s good to know it works and it’s also not gone wrong in that time. I’ll contact them with regard to fitters near me.