Becker Map Pilot (Card) Problems

Iceageuk

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Hi Everyone, just registered with the site (be gentle lol). Need to put it out there for some help, advice regarding the problem i have. I apologise for the length of the thread but want to include all the details, hopefully to save time.


I bought a 2012 C class (W204) model a few weeks ago. Have always wanted to own a Mercedes and must confess i wish i had done this sooner. Lovely car, drive etc. I knew the car came without the Becker card for the SatNav as the seller was totally upfront about it.


About 2 weeks ago i managed to find a Becker card for sale from another, very genuine Mercedes owner who had recently upgraded to a newer model C class. He had taken the Becker card out of his older C class (now successfully sold) and wanted to sell the card separately. The card was immaculate and was still in its original box. When i placed it into the socket in the glove compartment of my car, it was recognised but i was asked for a pass code. I was still at the sellers house and he also came to have a look. He was adamant that he had never initiated any security codes etc. We both thought (quite logically) that i would be able to sort this out quite easily by getting in touch with Becker and explaining the problem. I decided therefore to keep the card as the seller was quite genuine (prefer to buy face to face as well to be honest).


I emailed Becker and explained in detail the problem. Think the reply was fairly generic in nature, but followed their advice to reformat the card, download the content manager and then to synchronise the card with the data on the content manager. I even spent another 89 euros to purchase the up to-date European map bundle as thought this would definitely allow the card to be recognised by my car. Installed it and it was recognised, with all map data being displayed. Switched it off, then back on and it went back to asking for the pass code?? I have emailed Becker several times since and have had one generic reply telling me to do the same things as they had previously said. The other messages have been ignored. I have rung Becker and spoke to someone, who i can only describe as totally not interested. She was unhelpful to the point of being rude, saying it was nothing to do with them as the cards were someone else's responsibility. She told me to email again and ask for a link that would take me to a site where i could register the card??? When i asked her to give me the link she refused! Have emailed Becker again but have had no reply.


This seems a ludicrous situation to be in. I (as you guys do) have a premier car but for some reason cant seem to get something simple like the Nav unit working even after speaking to the manufacturers, who also claim a premier status by being suppliers to MB. Even after spending the 89 euros to up date the card i still cant get someone to take ownership of the problem.


Any suggestions please? Is there a hotline or something similar at MB i can contact? Has anyone else had similar problems with Becker? How was it resolved? Who can i write to at Becker to make an official complaint?


Many thanks in advance,

Mike (frustrated owner).
 

Tony Dyson

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Hello and welcome.
Becker, are you sure or Garmin? my 2014 has a Becker Map Pilot system and the software is loaded on an internal SD card fitted to a Cassette that slots into a receptacle fitted in the glovebox, what you're describing is very different to mine, your VIN should identify what system was factory installed, enter your VIN here and press 'get datacard', https://www.datamb.com/
 
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Iceageuk

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Hello and welcome.
Becker, are you sure or Garmin? my 2014 has a Becker Map Pilot system and the software is loaded on an internal SD card fitted to a Cassette that slots into a receptacle fitted in the glovebox, what you're describing is very different to mine, your VIN should identify what system was factory installed, enter your VIN here and press 'get datacard', https://www.datamb.com/

Hi Tony,
Thank you very much for taking the time to reply. Much appreciated. Thank you also for the link ref datacard. Have done this and printed out datacard. Only reference to SatNav is "NAVIBOX PREINSTALLATION".

System is definitely the Becker Map Pilot. I have the cassette you describe and it also fits into the glove box receptacle. Like i say after downloading the 2019 European maps it dd initially work and started by displaying Becker etc. The second time of starting (and subsequent tries) it asks for pass code. I think the issue is this......
The person i bought the Becker Cassette or unit from had bought the car it was originally installed in from either a private seller or dealership who may have set up a pass code. He would not have known this as the it worked ok in his car. The problem has only come to light after it was taken out of the original car when i bought it and tried fitting it to my car. It seems to recognise its not the same car and therefore requests a pass code. Problem obviously is that the person i bought the BMP from has no knowledge of the original code, nor does he have any way of making contact (after several years) with the place or person he bought the car from. Can appreciate the necessity for introducing safeguards against theft, but this seems to be a ludicrous situation to be in.
Thanks again though for your reply.
 

Tony Dyson

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Hi Tony,
Thank you very much for taking the time to reply. Much appreciated. Thank you also for the link ref datacard. Have done this and printed out datacard. Only reference to SatNav is "NAVIBOX PREINSTALLATION".

System is definitely the Becker Map Pilot. I have the cassette you describe and it also fits into the glove box receptacle. Like i say after downloading the 2019 European maps it dd initially work and started by displaying Becker etc. The second time of starting (and subsequent tries) it asks for pass code. I think the issue is this......
The person i bought the Becker Cassette or unit from had bought the car it was originally installed in from either a private seller or dealership who may have set up a pass code. He would not have known this as the it worked ok in his car. The problem has only come to light after it was taken out of the original car when i bought it and tried fitting it to my car. It seems to recognise its not the same car and therefore requests a pass code. Problem obviously is that the person i bought the BMP from has no knowledge of the original code, nor does he have any way of making contact (after several years) with the place or person he bought the car from. Can appreciate the necessity for introducing safeguards against theft, but this seems to be a ludicrous situation to be in.
Thanks again though for your reply.

I see, then that would be the PIN code, a user would set up from the settings menu, if you can get into the settings menu you could try disabling the Pin Code or just go for a factory reset? good luck in your endeavours.


upload_2019-6-30_15-32-23.png

Factory reset
You can reset your Becker® MAP PILOT
to the factory settings.
All settings apart from the language are reset to their factory settings. The last destinations and your home address are also
deleted.
> Select Factory reset in the system settings.
> Select Yes.
The Becker® MAP PILOT is reset to the
factory settings
 

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Iceageuk

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Hi Tony,
Once again, thanks for replying. Have tried re-formatting the drive and installing new up to date software, but still no success. Think the problem with factory re set or disabling the pin settings is not being, at this stage to get into the actual settings menu. Appreciate the time you have taken to include the file showing menu etc, if i get that far lol it will be very useful. Not sure what to do next. Have written again to Becker and Harman. Waiting to hear back.
thanks, Mike
 

400ixl

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As per the thread on the other forum. It is an anti theft mechanism, so if you could just factory reset it would defeat the whole purpose of the PIN.

A previous owner will have manually set a pin, it may have been prior to who you bought it off. But essentially without that pin it not going to work. You have to enter that pin, then go an disable the function.

Does the seller know the person that bought their old car, could they go and re-fit it to that and disable the pin? However it may even need the pin there now it has been fitted to another car.

I assume the seller got it as part of buying the previous car already fitted. If they bought it themselves or secondhand then they either knew the pin code or set it themselves.

Either they can give you the code, or disable it through the old car, or it is worthless and you should be getting your money back. Don't waste time with Becker as they will unlikely help as they can't guarantee you haven't stolen it.
 
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Iceageuk

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As per the thread on the other forum. It is an anti theft mechanism, so if you could just factory reset it would defeat the whole purpose of the PIN.

A previous owner will have manually set a pin, it may have been prior to who you bought it off. But essentially without that pin it not going to work. You have to enter that pin, then go an disable the function.

Does the seller know the person that bought their old car, could they go and re-fit it to that and disable the pin? However it may even need the pin there now it has been fitted to another car.

I assume the seller got it as part of buying the previous car already fitted. If they bought it themselves or secondhand then they either knew the pin code or set it themselves.

Either they can give you the code, or disable it through the old car, or it is worthless and you should be getting your money back. Don't waste time with Becker as they will unlikely help as they can't guarantee you haven't stolen it.

Hi, thanks for the feedback.
I realise the implications relating to the possibility of the unit having been stolen, just think there needs to be some protocol that c an take into account individual circumstances etc. Also Becker allowed me to update the unit for 89 euros and that was after i followed their advice on what to do. Just feel taken advantage of to be honest. Thank you for taking the time to reply though. Much appreciated.
Mike
 

Srdl

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I think you might be able to get it reset using Star, which means a Mercedes Dealer or a good Indie. Have a chat with the guys at Comand, who are forum sponsors, http://www.comand.co.uk/ and they should be able to give you a definite answer. @Alfie may see this.
 
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Iceageuk

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Hi Steve,
OK thanks for that. Will give it a go.
Mike
 
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Iceageuk

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Hi Everyone,

Just thought i would post the final outcome after so many replies etc. Thank you all for feedback and suggestions, very much appreciated.

Firstly let me say (perhaps it should have been expected), that Becker and MB themselves were not in the least bit helpful about this issue. Very disappointing i must confess. The seller of the BMP Card has been wonderful and was quite happy to offer full refund as he was totally unaware of any issues regarding the pin number etc.

I thought i would try one last time with this and put the card into the system last night. Again it asked for the pin code, again i tried entering some random default numbers, 1-2-3-4, 1-1-1-1, 0-0-00 etc etc. All with the same lack of success as on previous attempts. I then just tried 4-3-2-1...and it worked lol. Have now re-set the code and disable the pin security feature. Works well. Just thought i pass on my small success lol. Would seriously advise all potential purchasers of the BMP Card to make sure they either have the pin code or it has been disabled on the unit. Expect no help whatsoever from the relevant manufacturers.

thanks again to everyone who has offered advice.

Mike
 

Tony Dyson

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Result! just goes to show if you're going to password protect something, how important it is to set a proper password!
 
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Iceageuk

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Result! just goes to show if you're going to password protect something, how important it is to set a proper password!
very true lol.
Mike
 

JanerMerc

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Hi Iceageuk
I have just found your post after searching Google for answers relating to my Becker Map Pilot problem. My problem is identical to yours, literally word for word, my Becker Unit just stopped working one day, I emailed Becker and they sent me an email telling me to download software and synchronise maps, I did this and it didn't fix it so about 15 emails back and forth, generically from them, the last advice was to format the unit which I did and it locked the unit now asking for an unlock code. I gave up with Becker at this point and booked the car into my local Mercedes dealer who updated the head unit, checked the cradle and car and after a £90 bill told me that they couldn't unlock the Becker unit and I had to go back to them. I contacted Becker again to ask if I could send the unit back to be repaired and they sent another generic email about "downloading software and synchronising maps". When calling customer service they are useless and pass the buck telling me to email, I have since sent an email of complaint as this has been going on since the beginning of September......if you have any advice please help me!
 
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Iceageuk

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Hi Iceageuk
I have just found your post after searching Google for answers relating to my Becker Map Pilot problem. My problem is identical to yours, literally word for word, my Becker Unit just stopped working one day, I emailed Becker and they sent me an email telling me to download software and synchronise maps, I did this and it didn't fix it so about 15 emails back and forth, generically from them, the last advice was to format the unit which I did and it locked the unit now asking for an unlock code. I gave up with Becker at this point and booked the car into my local Mercedes dealer who updated the head unit, checked the cradle and car and after a £90 bill told me that they couldn't unlock the Becker unit and I had to go back to them. I contacted Becker again to ask if I could send the unit back to be repaired and they sent another generic email about "downloading software and synchronising maps". When calling customer service they are useless and pass the buck telling me to email, I have since sent an email of complaint as this has been going on since the beginning of September......if you have any advice please help me!

Hi Janer,

Firstly, apologies for very very late reply. Meant to get around to it but to be perfectly honest just completely forgot (although we have moved house over the last few weeks so have been a bit side-tracked sorry).

Understand completely the problems you are having. Mercedes blame Becker and Becker just don't like talking with customers it would seem. I tried everything that I could, but only solved the problem by accidentally putting the correct code combination in. Inm y case it was 4,3,2,1 as opposed to 1,2,3,4 etc. Have you managed to sort it out now?

Mike
 

JanerMerc

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Hi Mike
No worries, I really appreciate you replying to me!
Nope, it's still not sorted, I sent a complaint email to Becker on the 5th December and got a reply from them on the 20th December (like you I've been real busy, I've been away and with Christmas, only just got around to looking at emails)
The reply I got from them is the following...

We apologize for the inconvenience.
After looking at the emails again in detail, we noticed something that we had previously overlooked. The error in communication has arisen because it happened at the beginning.
We should clarify the following points before continuing. How does your registered email read? With the email ********@msn.com we can not find an account with us.
Here is a screenshot that shows you which software and which firmware must be installed. (In your screenshot we are not aible to see the account or Software version) But first we have to fix the error message as soon as we know your account. We only get the error message (No Unlock Code) fixed if we format the device completely. Then we have to reinstall the device. For this we need your account. See you soon and thank you for your patience. We are sure that we can reinstall your device if there is no other defect.

I am not a computer whizz kid so this is all a little bit too much for me and I know if I phone the Becker "helpline" they will just tell me to email the technicians.
Did you have to register your email address with them to be able to fix the problem? And where did you enter the number? As on my screen in the car it just shows a message and nowhere to enter a code???

Any help would be greatly appreciated :)

Janer
 
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400ixl

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Firstly, edit your post to remove your email address.

I believe they mean when you created an account on the Becker website to be able to download the firmware.

https://www.beckermappilot.com/shop/login/

Click on the login option and what email did you use to create an account there?
 

JanerMerc

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Apologies, I am new to this so I will remember not to put my email address on here next time.

I don't think I created an account, (I clicked on your link, entered my email address and clicked forgotten password but nothing has come through, checked spam and junk) however, as they advised in a previous email I was able to connect my unit to the software and followed their instructions to format the unit. Would I have been able to update/format the unit without logging in?

Many thanks
 

400ixl

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Firmware maybe, but not map updates as they need to be purchased against an account which has to be registered.
 

Srdl

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Iceageuk

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Hi Mike
No worries, I really appreciate you replying to me!
Nope, it's still not sorted, I sent a complaint email to Becker on the 5th December and got a reply from them on the 20th December (like you I've been real busy, I've been away and with Christmas, only just got around to looking at emails)
The reply I got from them is the following...

We apologize for the inconvenience.
After looking at the emails again in detail, we noticed something that we had previously overlooked. The error in communication has arisen because it happened at the beginning.
We should clarify the following points before continuing. How does your registered email read? With the email ********@msn.com we can not find an account with us.
Here is a screenshot that shows you which software and which firmware must be installed. (In your screenshot we are not aible to see the account or Software version) But first we have to fix the error message as soon as we know your account. We only get the error message (No Unlock Code) fixed if we format the device completely. Then we have to reinstall the device. For this we need your account. See you soon and thank you for your patience. We are sure that we can reinstall your device if there is no other defect.

I am not a computer whizz kid so this is all a little bit too much for me and I know if I phone the Becker "helpline" they will just tell me to email the technicians.
Did you have to register your email address with them to be able to fix the problem? And where did you enter the number? As on my screen in the car it just shows a message and nowhere to enter a code???

Any help would be greatly appreciated :)

Janer
 


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