8.4 UConnect Replacement - Junsun. Worth it!

[nlambert182]

Maybe it's because mine's a different model? Dunno. It seems to work ok though.

Here's where that setting is in my unit (in case yours is different):

Car Settings
System
Setting Guide
Reverse Mute - set to open (attenuation cuts the volume in half, close mutes it)

 

[NETim]

Boy! I’m just not getting it. The knobs are defeating me. I see 3 what I think are the locking tabs which I THINK are the ones that need to be moved to unlock the knobs.

Upholstery tools, screwdrivers, picks, explosives… nothing seems to work. Unfortunately the videos I’ve found are not nearly as helpful as I thought they’d be. Looks like a LOT of force is required to pull the little beggars out.


Edited to add: I did it! Both knobs are out and re-installed in the new bezel. The secret? I used screwdrivers to wedge and pop things out. Dial up more force than you believe necessary, then add 10%, hold your tongue just right and presto! I used a screwdriver with about a 3/8ths wide tip, shoved it in the slot as shown on YT videos and twisted while rotating the knob as best I could. Eventually the knobs capitulated.

Now to finish the job.

 

[NETim]

Job completed! It works! No smoke! No fires! My Ram is a manual AC model but the auto AC bezel is the one to go with anyway.

I now have Apple CarPlay. Life is good.

Sound is better than the antique Uconnect unit.

The directions were sketchy. The connections are readily apparent though.

2 negatives to contend with.

1). The “recirc” button sticks and won’t pop out when released. Pressing on the bezel immediately below the button will release it though. I’m not going to pull it apart to correct this though.

2) A Madonna song was preloaded on the unit from the factory. I deleted it but Madonna refuses to go away.

Might be the best upgrade I’ve done to the Ram.

 

[nlambert182]

Told ya those knobs were complicated.

There have been a couple of complaints that the plastic openings for the buttons/knobs are slightly undersized and some have filed them open a little more to relieve the sticky button issue. Honestly my volume knob is slightly tight but since my radio has a new volume knob, I don't even use it.

I'll add one slight annoyance... this weekend my wife drove my truck while I drove the UHaul over to move our son to college, so she connected her CarPlay to my radio. For the life of me, even when she turned off her BT and told her phone to forget the connection, the BT would NOT disconnect and allow me to reconnect until I shut the truck off and restarted it.

 

[NETim]

Told ya those knobs were complicated.

There have been a couple of complaints that the plastic openings for the buttons/knobs are slightly undersized and some have filed them open a little more to relieve the sticky button issue. Honestly my volume knob is slightly tight but since my radio has a new volume knob, I don't even use it.

I'll add one slight annoyance... this weekend my wife drove my truck while I drove the UHaul over to move our son to college, so she connected her CarPlay to my radio. For the life of me, even when she turned off her BT and told her phone to forget the connection, the BT would NOT disconnect and allow me to reconnect until I shut the truck off and restarted it.

I am loving this radio. The Madonna “bug” has been overcome. Her song was located in two different folders for whatever reason. Nuked both files and now the radio is Madonna-less.

The sticky recirc button is no longer an issue. I repeatedly ran my thumbnail between the button and the bezel on the lower edge of the button. That seemed to clean up whatever was interfering with the button.

I noticed the USB port in the console was dead….no power. I pulled the radio out. I noticed the USB connectors were disconnected…. No mechanical lock. I lassoed the connectors together with a few zip ties to prevent further issues. The USB cable is just a tad too short.

Apple CarPlay works marvelously on this unit.

 

[RamDiver]

The sticky recirc button is no longer an issue. I repeatedly ran my thumbnail between the button and the bezel on the lower edge of the button. That seemed to clean up whatever was interfering with the button.

One of the features I detest with my OEM 8.4C Uconnect or possibly the BCM, is that the recirculation switch rarely stays enabled after a restart. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't.

Due to the inconsistent behaviour, I have to wonder if there's a hardware fault.

I noticed the USB port in the console was dead….no power. I pulled the radio out. I noticed the USB connectors were disconnected…. No mechanical lock. I lassoed the connectors together with a few zip ties to prevent further issues. The USB cable is just a tad too short.

Apple CarPlay works marvelously on this unit.

Would installing a USB extension cable be a more practical solution?

Amazon.com

.

 

[NETim]

One of the features I detest with my OEM 8.4C Uconnect or possibly the BCM, is that the recirculation switch rarely stays enabled after a restart. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't.

Due to the inconsistent behaviour, I have to wonder if there's a hardware fault.




Would installing a USB extension cable be a more practical solution?

Amazon.com

.

It would be a much more practical and even elegant solution. However, it would mean abandoning all of my years spent at Farm Boy U getting a degree in Baling Wire Engineering.

Besides, i have a bunch of zip ties on hand,

 

[nlambert182]

Ok, so I've had the radio for a bit and thought an update was necessary.

About 3 weeks ago when I cranked my truck, my volume controls reversed, so up is down and down is up on the steering wheel controls and the OEM radio knob. The volume knob on the radio itself works properly.

I contacted Junsun to ask about it and while they were responsive and have remained responsive, they seem to be stumped. I've had to take multiple screenshots, videos, etc to send to them. Now... I have to do some old school Nintendo style magic touches so that it will send a log file to timbuktu for them to look at.

They've not yet been able to tell me where there may be a canbus (or some other) setting that may reverse the controls back. Their last message this morning was to send the radio back and they'll replace it. But I have to wait with no radio until they confirm receipt of mine.

I told them if I have to go through the trouble of moving those HVAC controls to a new panel, I'll find an OEM radio and re-install it. They did offer to send me one of their cameras for free to fix my resolution issue (mentioned the OEM is CVBS format while their radios are AHD format) but haven't answered if it's a plug and play in the tailgate. If not, I'm not interested. If it is, I'll try their new camera and give them more time to figure out the volume issue. It appears to be a bug, likely after a firmware update pushed to it.

Anyhoo... radio still works great EXCEPT for the reversed volume controls.

 

[diymirage]

Ok, so I've had the radio for a bit and thought an update was necessary.

About 3 weeks ago when I cranked my truck, my volume controls reversed, so up is down and down is up on the steering wheel controls and the OEM radio knob. The volume knob on the radio itself works properly.

I contacted Junsun to ask about it and while they were responsive and have remained responsive, they seem to be stumped. I've had to take multiple screenshots, videos, etc to send to them. Now... I have to do some old school Nintendo style magic touches so that it will send a log file to timbuktu for them to look at.

They've not yet been able to tell me where there may be a canbus (or some other) setting that may reverse the controls back. Their last message this morning was to send the radio back and they'll replace it. But I have to wait with no radio until they confirm receipt of mine.

I told them if I have to go through the trouble of moving those HVAC controls to a new panel, I'll find an OEM radio and re-install it. They did offer to send me one of their cameras for free to fix my resolution issue (mentioned the OEM is CVBS format while their radios are AHD format) but haven't answered if it's a plug and play in the tailgate. If not, I'm not interested. If it is, I'll try their new camera and give them more time to figure out the volume issue. It appears to be a bug, likely after a firmware update pushed to it.

Anyhoo... radio still works great EXCEPT for the reversed volume controls.

ive had a Junsun in my truck for a while now and i absolutely love it

having said that, there are 2 "wierd" things that happened with mine, im thinking an "update" did something odd

i used to have reverse volume just as loud as forward, that has changed and is now softer

secondly, i have manual HVAC controls (SLT model) and they have always worked great
(and still do)

but how when i make a change to the manual setting (say, i crank the heater to defog the windshield) my radio screen will change over to the HVAC screen, showing buttons and settings
the cool thing is these settings and buttons will be set to whatever i just manually set them to, and even if i make a change to the manual button it will show the change on the screen
BUT, that screen is like an oil gauge, it only shows what is going on and i cant use it to make changes

not very bothersome, but a little weird


maybe ill send Junsun an email and ask them about it
i love chatting with them, seems each time i reach out to them the send me something free




next time you talk to them, ask them if there is a setting for your back up cameras resolution, a lot of these android radios have that and that allows the radio to know how to interpret the signal

 

[nlambert182]

I did ask about the setting, but they told me it was the type of camera and not a setting that I could adjust.

If they'd just find the way to reverse the volume controls back I'd be ok with it. I can figure out the camera and could easily fit the right type of camera in the tailgate between our 3D printers and one of our whiz electrical engineers. But if the idea is that I need to uninstall, ship back on my dime, and wait a couple of weeks with no radio and no truck until they decide to send me a replacement I think that's a deal breaker for me.

My HVAC controls used to go full screen when I changed anything, but I realized there is a minimize button that will just make them pop up in a little bar across the bottom of my screen.