RNS-510 HDD replacement/SSD swap DIY

[tmiw]

More because i'm new to this and would need to find all the correct firmware/maps for my unit (USA). Its a bummer its ide, i have a few ssd sata drives i could have used..

https://www.vw.techliterature.com/consumer/ has the RNS-510 firmware discs for the US models (search for "RNS 510"). You'll still need the maps disc though (~US$150-200 new from VW, possibly cheaper used). Hope this helps!

[failurbydesign]

You could do a block by block copy but why would you bother?

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

More because i'm new to this and would need to find all the correct firmware/maps for my unit (USA). Its a bummer its ide, i have a few ssd sata drives i could have used..

[kamold]

Has there been any luck cloning the old drive to the new?

You could do a block by block copy but why would you bother?

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[failurbydesign]

Has there been any luck cloning the old drive to the new?

[tmiw]

seems about normal (when compared to my system start-up).

As for the delay in the Compass showing up in the MFD....you may need to consider that the RNS is communicating with satellites in order to determine it's position and direction. Wondering if the compass would show up any quicker if you started to drive off fairly soon after starting up? Are you in a garage or similar when you filmed this (i.e. any possibility that Satellite reception could be compromised)? - nothing to do with map-loading, that's a given, altho', the RNS does route re-directions faster than any GPS I have seen (including the latest Garmin 3790T series)

First video was outside and the second one was under a carport (but still pretty much outside). I've also used Sirius satellite radio from the carport before without a problem, but that may or may not mean anything. It also seems to have gotten the GPS lock by the time the map finishes loading, according to the GPS Viewer.

I think for all the RNS510 does it's worth the longer boot-up times, otherwise it's a bit like doing all your word processing on your smartphone because your PC takes longer to turn on.

Agreed. The SSD swap seems to have other benefits even if it doesn't help boot times, which is why I might still do it. Just not right this second.

[FJ Steve]

seems about normal (when compared to my system start-up).

As for the delay in the Compass showing up in the MFD....you may need to consider that the RNS is communicating with satellites in order to determine it's position and direction. Wondering if the compass would show up any quicker if you started to drive off fairly soon after starting up? Are you in a garage or similar when you filmed this (i.e. any possibility that Satellite reception could be compromised)? - nothing to do with map-loading, that's a given, altho', the RNS does route re-directions faster than any GPS I have seen (including the latest Garmin 3790T series)

[Ryan_R]

In your first video you turn it on at ~14 seconds and the map is ready at 40 seconds. That's at an "on" enough stage for me (as I said before, I've never needed to do anything elaborate on the RNS510 before setting off, just select a different music source and show the maps usually), so that 26 second wait time is eaten up by me getting my seatbelt on, and if I need to reverse the load times are further masked by the rear view camera video.

As for the compass delay, I've honestly never noticed it before...

I think for all the RNS510 does it's worth the longer boot-up times, otherwise it's a bit like doing all your word processing on your smartphone because your PC takes longer to turn on.

[tmiw]

Was able to make another video where the VW logo appeared on the 510. Seems to have taken about the same amount of time to start. Weird. If this is the usual amount of time to boot, I think I can get used to it. *shrug*

[tmiw]

No, it won't start any faster. The load is from internal flash modules on the board of the rns510.

That's what I figured.

FWIW, here's the video I took after getting off work. For some reason it didn't show the VW logo this time (the car had been off for ~3.5 hours or so) and it definitely took less time to get to the radio screen. I'll probably have to let the car sit overnight and make another attempt.

[kamold]

No, it won't start any faster. The load is from internal flash modules on the board of the rns510.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

[tmiw]

Sometimes if I'm concious of those delays I'll start the car before I sit in it, plus let the engine warm up a tad more. That said, I've never got lost within the first 30 seconds of a trip though

'A minute or two' sounds like an exaggeration, and I have a slower version C unit.

I'll make a video demonstrating it when I get off work today

[Ryan_R]

Sometimes if I'm concious of those delays I'll start the car before I sit in it, plus let the engine warm up a tad more. That said, I've never got lost within the first 30 seconds of a trip though

'A minute or two' sounds like an exaggeration, and I have a slower version C unit.

[tmiw]

You can replace the drive in any model, so yes, but you need to use the right type of drive. I don't know of any 120GB drives, only 128GB. Check the first page for HDD specifications.

And no, it won't make the processor any faster, but it will improve the speed of the scrolling through the music menus. The speed of the unit is limited by the units processor, not the HDD.

Hope that helps!

Since the maps are on the hard drive as well, would this help with the navigation performance? I have a US spec RNS-510 (revision F, firmware version 3690) and it seems to take a minute or two for the unit to fully start. The radio portion starts relatively quickly but if I push the Nav button I see a "loading" screen with a progress bar for the rest of the load time. There's also no compass or radio information on the MFD until the unit finishes loading.

(If not, then I may have to start considering switching back to the stock RNS-315, even though I like the added features of the 510. )

[ian.perry]

Well now that all the software installation is done, I can confirm - 4020 preserves the existing partition scheme, and even seems to preserve the data (maps/media files).

Now I have a nice big 54GB media partition. Thanks guys

[Ryan_R]

About to install 4020 on my C unit (currently running 38xx with 90/5/5) and while I think the partition sizes will be kept it's always nice to have additional confirmation.