MFD Help please! "Audio off" "External system not connected" etc

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Arya Ebrahimi

Arya Ebrahimi

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Dec 2, 2003
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Rockville, MD
Good day everyone. I am working on a 2004 Land Cruiser with 220k miles. I purchased the truck with the following problems:

Radio not working
Navigation not working
Backup camera not working

The climate control and trip info do work.

I did a bunch of research on here and determined(after checking all the fuses) that the MFD was likely the cause of the problem. I sent it off to autobeyours.com for repair and when I got it back nothing was different. I spoke with the folks at autobeyours.com and they insisted they made repairs and then tested the unit in a Prius(their only test platform) and everything worked. They offered to revisit the repair and provide me with a video of it working on their test platform if I wanted to send it back. Before I do that I thought I would check to see if there are any other known sources for the problem.

I was trying different things, and I noticed that when I opened the slot of the Nav dvd drive the DVD did not eject. Now, I don't know if there is a DVD in there to begin with, but would this be an indication that the DVD drive is bad and would that cause my problems as well?

Any insight is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Ary
 
It's good news if you still have climate control through the screen. That means that the AC amplifier works and screen is at least getting communication from the stereo. If you're just not getting sound, and the screen says something is unplugged or check connection then assume the amp under the seat and or nav ecu is unplugged, or PO did something to it.
Having the nav ecu, dvd changer, or back up cam ecu unplugged doesn't hurt anything and wouldn't inhibit sound from the stereo, which comes from the amp.
You follow?
 
To check your nav ecu, unhook the battery, wait a few and plug it back i. Have someone listen down there for it to boot up. If it doesn't boot, check connection. Assume it's dead. No power.
 
Were you able to resolve this problem? I am having the same issue with my 2007. It began when the accessory leg of the fuseble link blew, after jumper cables where put on backwards. All climate functions/ trip info and touch screen work as they should, but no nav, backup cam or stereo. When Audio is selected, screen says audio off. When Map is selected "External system not connected" appears.
 
Last edited:
schlaker said:
Were you able to resolve this problem? I am having the same issue with my 2007. It began when the accessory leg of the fuseble link blew, after jumper cables where put on backwards. All climate functions/ trip info and touch screen work as they should, but no nav, backup cam or stereo. When Audio is selected, screen says audio off. When Map is selected "External system not connected" appears.
Click to expand...
I have similar issue with 2003 LX. Disconnected the nav unit to see why I kept getting "unable to read disc" error (or whatever it says) despite being a pristine DVD. (Prior to disconnecting I ejected the DVD -- learned that lesson the hard way...) Then when I was driving around I noticed I had no radio at all, audio screen just says "audio off." I reconnected the nav drive, and it doesn't power up like it did before and even with everything connected I still get "audio off" on the screen. Other than getting a used "working" nav drive off of eBay, any other suggestions? I'd hate to spend the money if that won't solve the problem. I clearly don't need navigation from 2001...
 
But I think I may have found the culprit: thanks to many helpful discussions/threads on this site, I learned (Land Cruiser n00b) that there are in fact THREE fuse boxes. I checked all of the potential culprit fuses: accessories (ACC), power outlets, CIG, etc, and then finally found the fuse box in the passenger side foot well, which has the fuse for radio as well as a couple other possibilities, and indeed the radio fuse (10 amp, red) is blown. Auto parts store closed so I can't test the fix, but will try in the morning. Assuming that works, I'll be installing a newly-ordered Grom BT3. :::crosses fingers:::
 
Curious to know if the replaced fuse in the passenger fuse box fixed your problem? I'm having the same issue with my navigation and back up camera, but I've got my radio working.

Jon
 
Jon, thanks for reminding me to respond here. Yes, indeed, the passenger foot well fuse was blown. Replaced it and the radio went back to working just fine.

Installed the GROM BT-3 today, super easy, and it's great.

Now if I could only get the GPS box to read the DVD and the center console six-disc changer to work, I'd be almost like brand new!
 
If your Navigation, Menu, Backup Camera (and bluetooth/Grom Vline if you added them) don't work or stopped working after your last battery disconnect, but AC, Trip Info, and Radio work fine, there is potentially a VERY easy fix:

Disconnect the battery again, then reconnect after a few minutes. When you then restart the car successfully (the first attempt may fail after cranking, but that's fine), make sure to do nothing and keep the shifter in Park for at least 1 minutes. You should see the MFD display show a message like "System loading... Do not turn off car..." Make sure to wait for it to finish, then the MFD should show the normal navigation map, then you can start driving as usual.

I noticed that whenever I did not let that message/page finish (when I turned off the truck, or shifted to drive or reverse), then it gives me the problem (Nav, Backup cam, Menu, Vline don't work).
 
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