# 2009 Routan SEL Radio Very Glitchy



## [email protected] (Feb 15, 2018)

I am the "new" owner of a 2009 VW Routan SEL. I purchased this vehicle with 120k mile for a very good price. Overall, I am pleased so far but one thing that bugs me is the RADIO SYSTEM. Whenever I start the car after it has been shut off, I never know whether the radio remembers where it was or even if it will turn on sooner or later. Here is a short list of what I am experiencing:

1) The BIGGEST frustration upon starting Routan is that the backup camera often does not display on the radio screen when I shift into Reverse. Sometimes it will finally display after a minute or so and sometimes it takes FOREVER.
1) Starting with the radio last tuned to an FM station, sometimes, bingo, the radio starts right up on the last station I was listening to. Other times it takes up to 1-2-3 minutes for the radio system to kick in with this station playing.
2) Same experience as above but with the radio set to play music I have on the hard drive. Wait, wait, wait and maybe it will recall where it was and start playing.
3) Too often - same as above but the radio forgets which radio station it was on or which song it was on the hard drive.

So far, my local VW dealer and local Chrysler dealers have been of no help. The VW dealer asked for my VIN number and when they ran it they said there was nothing in their system that showed up as a need for a fix.

I've seen where there is a Mopar bulletin for radio glitches with Chrysler Town and Country models of my vintage (Bulletin # 08-001-11) which involves inserting a disc (Mopar Part # 68141348AA) to "flash reprogram" the radio, but the symptoms listed for this fix don't match up well with what I am experiencing.

Any advice/guidance would be much appreciated.

Thanks.


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## Zambee500 (Jun 23, 2011)

What radio code? Look at bottom right-hand of head unit, underneath the 3.5mm jack or USB input. Small letters, three letter code. Probably REN or REZ. Depends whether you have navi or not on your touchscreen. If you have REN (no navi), I think I still have the last software update on DVD-R that I could send to you if you want to try updating the software and gracenotes. If so, just PM me.

Even with the last software update, the system can just go squirely on occasion. I've never had the thing where it doesn't remember the radio station presets, but I have had it where it starts DVDs/CDs over at the beginning of Track 1 everytime you start the vehicle. And other times when the HDD is either frozen or not recognized so cannot access stored mp3s. It can do this for days or weeks and then all of a sudden works fine again.

A couple things I would suggest. First, make sure the HDD is not completely full. That seems to cause issues on a number of various platforms.

Secondly, I would reset the electrical system and see what happens when you reconnect. Either remove the positive from the battery and leave it disconnected for awhile, or disconnect both positive and negative terminals and touch the terminals together (disconnected from battery) to fully discharge the static electricity in the system. Then reconnect. It often makes electrical gremlins go away in these vehicles. Try that and report back. 

IMPORTANT: If you have REN or REZ head units, you must remove the 30 amp fuse in the TIPM that goes to the amp/radio head unit prior to disconnecting or reconnecting the battery. There were reports of power surging that can brick the head unit, and it is a very expensive replacement. (Probably a good idea to remove this fuse for all head units when connecting/disconnecting battery in the 5th gen Chryco vans.)

Here is the TSB on it: http://www.wkjeeps.com/misc/Patriot/TSB/tsb_0800309.pdf

And here is a chart of all the fuses and relays, as well as a picture of the TIPM on "page 4" of the first post with all fuses and relays labelled. The TIPM is located under the hood at the back of the engine bay directly in front of the driver's seat. Remove the M12 fuse before disconnecting the battery and reinsert the fuse after the battery is reconnected.

https://forum.chryslerminivan.net/showthread.php/122513-5th.-Gen.-Fuses-complete


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## Zambee500 (Jun 23, 2011)

A couple other thoughts. In addition to determining if you have RER or REN, also find out what software version (and gracenote version) is installed on your system:

Press the Menu button on the right side of the radio.
Press the System Setup on screen button.
Press the System Information on screen button.


If you have REN, you need to update to software version 9.292. (Then update gracenotes to version 4602.) This will bring you up to early 2012. After that, MyGig stopped supporting the REN head unit as it was replaced in model year 2010 with a better non-navi touch screen MyGig system. I will tell you, when I updated my REN system, it originally had software version 9.214 and mine was very very VERY buggy. The software update helped tremendously, and also includes a fix for a potential HDD corruption that can brick the whole system if you use the HDD.

If you have RER, it is a bit trickier. Ultimately you want to have software version 2.403 or 2.499. If you have version 9.xxx (earliest software versions) you must first update to version 9.713, and once updated to 9.713 you can then update to 2.403 or 2.499. If you have anything 9.713 or higher, or anything 1.xxx or 2.xxx you can update directly to 2.499. As with REN, the final gracenotes update for RER was to version 4602. Map updates require purchase ($200) at the dealership.


IMPORTANT: Never ever mess with screen calibration settings. Unless you want to replace the head unit.


Search for eBay seller jkforward to get software/gracenote updates for a very nominal fee, which basically covers cost of discs and shipping. Updates can take up to an hour, and interrupting the update can brick the head unit. So make sure you have enough gasoline and only update with the engine running.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/mygig-software-update-cd-gracenotes-dvd-combination-includes-iPhone-fix-/222820955928?oid=222438882042


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