[98741]

Still on the learning curve, but getting there.
I did a search and didn't find answers, so I apologize in advance for asking dumb questions. I got only a partial manual set with my car.
1. How do you control the middle rear headrest going up and down on a 5-seat model? I know the left and right rear headrests go up and down with the doors and weight, but can't figure out the middle one.
2. I have the cold and comfort package. What do the buttons on the side of the rear seats control? I feel something lumbar-like going on, but can't seem to connect a button with a specific action.
3. Is there a massage function on any other seat aside from the driver's seat on these cars?
4. Is there any way to make the data scroll on the screen? For example, the NAV unit will say W COLORA...instead of W COLORADO BL. I have the same question about the RDS data on the radio as well.
That's all for now.....I think.
PS - I'm in the market for anthracite footrests, winter floormats, a flashlight, and some TPMS sensors - if anyone has any of these used, shoot me an IM....


Modified by sethdallob at 4:46 PM 11-1-2006

 

[jimay]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (sethdallob)

1. You grip it by hand, squeeze it to release it, then tell your kid not to touch it again.
2. Round button moves the lumbar thingy up, down, in, out. Square button starts the rhumba.
3. All four seats.
4. Not sure, don't think so. Fuggedabout the RDS. It scrolls .... very ... slowly. Have fun trying to get it to store a station name. Most of the time it isn't what the RDS shows. I blame the radio stations. VW couldn't have made a mistake here...

The owners manual is deliberately cryptic. It's designed to force you to make friends with other Phaeton owners.

 

[98741]

I completely agree about the owner's manuals. They are very weird in the layout and levels of detail.

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (sethdallob)

Hi Seth:
Welcome to the Phaeton forum community. We quite firmly believe that there is no such thing as a 'dumb' question here... simply because all of us have asked the same questions at some time in the past!

Jim did a pretty good job of answering your questions in his post above (Hey, Jim, maybe we'll draft you to be a moderator...). There's not much I can add, but I'll try anyway:
1) The middle headrest on the 5 seater is entirely manually operated, you just pull it out when you want it, and push it back when you don't need or want it. I think there might be a button to press when you want to stow it away in the aft (retracted) position.
2) The buttons on the sides of the rear seats control the massage function and the lumbar support.
3) I think all four outboard seats have a massage function. The give-away is the square button, about the size of a postage stamp.
4) No, no scrolling, either for street names or for RDS data.
Michael

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: Couple of dumb

Quote, originally posted by jimay »

I blame the radio stations. VW couldn't have made a mistake here...

Jim:
Believe it or not, any problems that exist in North America with the RDS text are, in fact, the fault of the radio stations, not VW.
There is a specification published for RDS (Radio Data Service) broadcasting that states that radio stations may broadcast two different types of text: An 8 character static station identifier, which must remain fixed and unchanged (e.g. WABC FM), and a 64 character dynamic (scrolling) text field, which may contain (for example) the lyrics of the song being played. In the United States, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) does not enforce the rules of this standard, and as a result, many broadcasters have elected to animate the 8 character static field, and thus send out the names of the songs or the lyrics on that channel, rather than the 64 character dynamic channel.
Because the folks who make car radios (Panasonic, Siemens, etc.) assumed that the broadcasters would follow the rules of the RDS standard, they did not design the radio to frequently re-check what was being broadcast on the static text channel. This makes sense, because the contents of the static channel are supposed to be static - never changing. So, if a radio station just happens to be broadcasting the name of the song (e.g. "Jumpin Jack Flash) on the static channel when the radio scans that particular frequency, you might get the word 'Jumpin' being captured and displayed beside that station name for the duration of the time you are using the radio (the duration of that power-on cycle).
This problem - failure to adhere to published standards - is so widespread in the USA that many major car manufacturers - Mercedes and VW included - have simply disabled the display of RDS text on their NAR model cars, rather than having to cope with owners constantly complaining to the dealers that 'The radio ain't working right'. The radio is, in fact, working perfectly... the problem is that the broadcaster is not following the rules of the RDS standard.
Below you will find a few pictures that I took of my Phaeton radio display during a recent trip to the USA. At the bottom, you will find a picture of the display I took when I was back home in Canada. The CRTC (Canadian Radio and Television Commission) enforces the RDS standard - if the broadcaster does not comply with the RDS specifications, they lose their licence. Compare what you see on the USA photos to what you see on the Canadian photos... same car, same radio.
Michael
RDS Display in USA
In this particular circumstance, the station was broadcasting 'WCSX' as data in the 'fixed' 8 character RDS field when I turned the radio on. So, the radio stored this information, even though the radio station changed the fixed message text every 5 seconds or so, as can be seen in the display at the top fo the screen.

However - when I turned the radio off and then back on again, the radio station happened to be broadcasting the word 'Jumpin' at the time the car scanned that fixed message frequency - so, the word Jumpin' stuck this time.

RDS Display in Canada
Canadian broadcasters are required by law to adhere to the RDS standard, which forbids changing the text of the fixed 8 character display. So, what you see looks like this... always the station names, which are what should be transmitted in the 8 character fixed display.

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (PanEuropean)

For more information:
Wikipedia - Radio Data System
and
Phaeton - RDS Radio Text Function
Michael

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (PanEuropean)

Lastly, here's the story straight from the horse's mouth, the US NATIONAL RADIO SYSTEMS COMMITTEE - note especially point 3 on page 4 of the document, where it states "the RDS Standard strictly forbids dynamic changes to the PS." That's the specification that the radio is built to.
Of even greater interest is the commentary on page 6 of this document, which reads:
During the update to the RDS standard a movement was made to specifically prohibit stations from dynamically changing the PS name. In some countries broadcasters have used the PS display as a text messaging feature similar to radiotext. Since the receiver can store and display only eight characters at a time a receiver might display a message totally unrelated to the program service (i.e. a receiver might display “and” during a preset recall on a station transmitting a PS sequence of “Radio 1”, “Get up”, “and”, “dance!”). The design intent of PS is to provide a label for the receiver preset which is invariant, since receivers incorporating the alternate frequency (AF) feature will switch from one frequency to another in following a selected program. To combat unintended usage of the PS, the RDS standard adopted strict wording on the use of the PS feature.
Michael


Modified by PanEuropean at 12:09 AM 11-2-2006

 

[murphybaileysam]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (PanEuropean)

Michael: I think I have it figured out. With the over 10,000 posts here, and who knows how many elsewhere, and everything else you are doing.....you must have a team of elves working for you! Just make sure to let them have time off for the Holidays so Santa can use them during the busy season.

 

[Motorista]

Re: Couple of dumb "what's that button do" and "where's the button f ... (PanEuropean)

Regarding the no-scrolling, I believe there are two other ways that you can get more information about your current location. Following is a summary from memory, as I'm driving a different car this week.
1) observe the indications in the navigator screen (I believe this is referred to as the JC523?). If I remember correctly, you need to have active navigator guidance and be in "split screen" mode, where the left third or so of the navigator screen shows a larger and more detailed version of the directional arrows replicated in the small screen on the instrument panel. To activate split screen mode, you need to press the "map" button twice.
2) Switch the JC523 (navigator screen) into "location" mode: this will display dynamically current address, longitude/latitude coordinates and direction of travel - quite an interesting display. As I recollect, this mode always displays the full street name and town you are in, or US road number if you are in a rural area. Again writing from memory, to activate this mode you need to press one of the right hand buttons in the horizontal row below the screen: the "other settings" one if I remember well.
Sorry for being a bit vague, will post a more precise description when I get back home late next week.
Stefano

 

[murphybaileysam]

I'm looking forward to your more precise description! Any improvement to the Nav display will be a big help. I have used the split screen but am interested in the "location" mode you mention that will display current addresses.

 

[Itzmann]

Re: (murphybaileysam)

I'm afraid "location" mode is not available on our 2004 version cars; instead, we have "manual."
You would have to replace your infotainment system for a newer one. Or your Phaeton.

 

[Motorista]

Re: (murphybaileysam)

Ok, I checked and the button is marked "info", and is second from right, bottom row. Mine is an 05, don't know if this feature is available in the 04's. In any case, in mine this button activates a screen that provides:
- full town, state and street (or road number if outside urban areas) of current location in the top half of the screen; and
- longitued and latitude of current location, in the bottom half.
The top half relies on a combination of the satellite data and the cd data, so if you have the wrong cd the info is approximate and often off the mark. The bottom half relies on the satellite and updates in real time as you drive, which is quite interesting.
An additional feature of this mode: if you nav on and switch to info, you also get navi to give you a verbal updated direction message, such as "continue on this road", or "left turn in fifteen miles", etc. I suppose it assumes that you need a reminder that you are headed in the right direction.
Stefano

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: (Motorista)

Quote, originally posted by Motorista »

An additional feature of this mode: if you nav on and switch to info, you also get navi to give you a verbal updated direction message, such as "continue on this road", or "left turn in fifteen miles", etc.

Wow! I didn't know that it did that. Thanks a lot for pointing that feature out, Stefano.
Michael

 

[car_guy]

Re: (Motorista)

Quote, originally posted by Motorista »

An additional feature of this mode: if you nav on and switch to info, you also get navi to give you a verbal updated direction message, such as "continue on this road", or "left turn in fifteen miles", etc. I suppose it assumes that you need a reminder that you are headed in the right direction.

You can also get Navi to repeat the last verbal direction by pressing (not turning) the knurled knob on the right hand side of the steering wheel. However, the small screen between the tach and speedo must be in the nav mode when you press the knob.

 

[Motorista]

Re: (car_guy)

And I didn't know that, Steven! Thanks for posting.
Stefano

 

[PeterMills]

Re: (Motorista)

I was interested in Stefano's post above:
"2) Switch the JC523 (navigator screen) into "location" mode: this will display dynamically current address, longitude/latitude coordinates and direction of travel - quite an interesting display."
My 2006 UK Phaeton has the manual button bottom row second from right. Has anyone with the same spec. managed to get the display Stefano is describing? I cannot seem to.
PETER M

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: (PeterMills)

Hi Peter:
There are two different part numbers for J523s - one for NAR and one for ROW. The ROW unit supports the electronic owner manual - that appears when you press the button entitled "MANUAL". The ROW unit does not support that function (legal worries, I suppose), so VW changed the label on the button to INFO on the later production NAR vehicles, and when you press the INFO button, you see the lat/long displayed.
Michael

 

[PeterMills]

Re: (PanEuropean)

Michael, thanks for claryfying that. On some Phaeton features there are several ways to get to a result; however in this case I take it from what you say that there is no other route to latitude and longditude etc info if you have the ROW J523.
PETER M

 

[PanEuropean]

Re: (PeterMills)

Correct.

 

[PanEuropean]

Photos re-hosted.

Michael