Maps fail to install after JP/KR/US/CN/NAR to EU conversion
Applies to: MIB2 High (MHI2 / MHI2Q, including MIB2.5); MIB2 Standard / MHS2; MIB1 Harman (MHIG); MIB2 Std PQ Technisat and MST2 Delphi; MH2p (Audi and Porsche); Units converted from Japan, Korea, US/Canada (NAR), China, Asia or GCC/ROW to EU
Converting an imported MIB head unit to EU firmware is often only half the job. Owners regularly find that EU maps then refuse to install, the update menu finds nothing on the card, the install hangs or times out, or the maps install but navigation shows N/A or 'database not available'. In almost every reported case something from the old region is still active: the firmware, the navigation database, the coding, the speech (SDS) region or the map FEC. This article covers how to recognise the problem, the likely causes and the steps owners have used to fix it.
How to recognise the problem
The problem appears after a region conversion or firmware change. Typical symptoms reported by owners:
- Map update from the settings menu loads but reports that no map update is found on the SD card or USB stick.
- Map install from the red engineering menu hangs, freezes around 90% or times out at the Speech_Check step.
- Maps install but the navigation application shows N/A, question marks or 'Navigation database not available'.
- Message 'Navigation Data in system Infotainment is invalid' or 'Map not valid'.
- The unit accepts the old US map card but not the EU card.
- Navigation hangs on 'Initialising, please wait' while other functions work.
- Address search returns nothing or is very slow although tapping a destination on the map works.
Likely causes
Notes point to several causes, and more than one can apply to the same unit. Check each before assuming the hardware or map download is at fault.
- Firmware is still the original region. On a unit still running JP, KR or US firmware, EU maps cannot be used; FEC codes alone do not change that.
- Incomplete conversion. If the user-defined update was not selected with all modules set to update, some modules stay on the old region.
- Leftover navigation database from the previous region that was not formatted before installing EU maps.
- Navigation region in coding still set to the old region (byte 03 of the navigation coding in module 5F, or a region value of 00/NAR).
- SDS region adaptation (SDS_Region_F / SDS_Region_Flag) still on JP, NAR or missing. This is linked to installs that stall at Speech_Check.
- Wrong, missing or conflicting map FEC, or the original region's FEC still active after the firmware change.
- On MIB2 Std PQ Technisat and MST2 units, the map folder number on the SD card does not match what the converted unit expects.
- A modified metainfo2 file that was edited incorrectly.
Before you start
Several fixes involve flashing firmware, patching the unit or changing coding. Before any of these, note the current firmware train and part number, back up the unit, coding and adaptation values, and keep the car on a stable power supply or battery charger for the whole process. Use firmware and map packages that match your exact platform and variant; do not mix maps between platforms (for example MHI2 maps on an MH2p, or RNS850 maps on an MMI 3G+ unit).
Step 1: Confirm the unit is actually on EU firmware
Read the firmware train from the green menu or with a diagnostic tool (VCDS, ODIS, VCP, OBDeleven). If it still shows a JP, KR, US, CN or AS train, convert the firmware first. Owners report that patching alone does not make a US or JP firmware accept EU maps. On a US MHI2Q unit such as MHI2Q_US_AUG22_P4213 the advice was to convert to EU first and then patch the EU firmware.
There is disagreement on order for very old Japanese software: one report says the conversion tool fails on old firmware so EU firmware must be installed first, while other reports run the M.I.B. conversion first. If the conversion fails on old software, try updating first.
- Run the EU conversion from M.I.B. (Advanced settings), which changes coding and train, and let the unit reboot.
- Enable user-defined SWDL updates, then run the firmware update in user-defined mode with all modules selected. Several owners skip AMP modules.
- On MHI2Q units converted to the 5092 EU train (MHI2Q_ER_AUG22_P5092), one owner had to repeat the 5092 update up to two times before EU maps would install.
- If the AIO firmware package misbehaves, one confirmed fix on a Japanese MIB2.5 unit with MHI2_ER_VWG13_K4525 was a manual SWDL install of the non-AIO firmware, then patching via M.I.B., then installing maps via SWDL.
- One confirmed case on a firmware lacking SWDL succeeded only after using an older M.I.B. version for conversion, or coding the speech region manually.
Step 2: Format the navigation database
Leftover map data from the previous region is one of the most common causes. Format the navigation database after conversion and before installing EU maps. Owners do this from M.I.B. (Advanced settings, format nav DB) or with a coding tool via basic settings. One opinion is that formatting is unnecessary, but others note it does no harm and removes leftover files.
- One confirmed MIB2 Japan-to-EU case also formatted internal memory from basic settings and re-added the FEC container with M.I.B. before the map update worked.
- On MH2p, formatting alone did not help when the FEC was wrong; see Step 4.
Step 3: Check navigation coding and SDS region
After conversion, check that coding and adaptation really read EU. Several confirmed cases were caused by M.I.B. not changing the region flag during conversion.
- Set navigation country/region in 5F coding (byte 03) to EU.
- Set SDS_Region_F / SDS_Region_Flag in adaptation to EU. A missing SDS adaptation caused the Speech_Check timeout in one confirmed case; fixing it, and updating maps from the customer menu rather than the red menu, resolved it.
- Check long coding for remaining US items (for example satellite radio) and set them to EU.
- If the update menu finds no maps and the region still reads NAR, one confirmed fix on an MHI2Q unit was: format the nav DB, run a user-defined update in the red menu with region/variant ignore enabled in the green menu, apply the navigation activation patch to enable EU navigation, then retry the map update from settings.
- One report warns against installing EU firmware with region and variant ignored from the green menu, as speech problems followed.
Step 4: Check the map FEC
The unit needs a valid FEC for the map region, and conflicting FECs from the old region can block it. Back up the existing FEC container before changing anything.
- One note gives 023000EE as the EU maps FEC and reports that 23300ee was a wrong code. M.I.B. normally adds the map FEC during patching.
- Leftover region FECs: in one confirmed PQ case the NAR FEC was still active and the unit only read NAR maps until it was deactivated. On a CN unit, an FF-type map FEC was reported as incorrect; restoring the original FecContainer was part of another fix.
- For non-EU map regions the region code must match: on an Australian unit, replacing the EU code with the Australian code 023D00EE and rebuilding the FEC container was suggested.
- On MH2p (Porsche), a confirmed fix required correcting the FEC to match EU navigation, using MH2p maps, and installing from the SD slot rather than the red menu.
- On MHIG (MIB1 Harman) units converted from Japan, such as MHIG_EU_VW_K1550 or MHIG_EU_AU_K1555, several owners could not get EU FECs accepted; maps showed N/A even after patching. No confirmed fix is recorded for these.
Step 5: MIB2 Std PQ Technisat and MST2 map folder number
On converted MIB2 Std PQ (Technisat) units, renaming the map folder on the SD card from 00 to 01 is the most consistently confirmed fix: the unit still accepted the US card but rejected the EU card until the folder was renamed. One owner disputed this for a SEAT unit, so it does not fix every case. Editing the navconfig or navtarget.ini file on the card is reported as an alternative.
On MST2 units converted from China, the expected folder may be 02 if target.ini is unchanged. One CN MST2 case still showed 'Navigation Database not available' after trying folder numbers, so this is not a guaranteed fix.
Step 6: Retry and reinstall if needed
If everything above is correct and maps still will not install, owners report success with:
- Reinstalling the head unit firmware, then running the map update again (confirmed by one owner after reformatting the card in several file systems had not helped).
- Using a different, good quality SD card formatted FAT32 and verifying the map download.
- Using the original, unmodified metainfo2 file with converted maps; a manually edited metainfo2 caused errors in one confirmed case.
What did not help or should be avoided
Some approaches failed or carry risk according to the notes:
- Reformatting the SD card in different file systems and sizes did not fix a coding or firmware problem.
- Adding FEC codes to a unit still on US or JP firmware did not make EU maps work.
- Changing region and navigation region directly in the green menu left one unit stuck on the start-up logo.
- MHS2 units from US cars: several owners could not get maps working even with EU coding and an OEM EU card. One suggestion is that these units cannot be given maps and need an MHI2 navigation unit instead; this is not confirmed.
- Japanese MMI 3G units use a different hard drive partition size, so formatting alone may not let them accept EU maps.
- China Std2Plus MST2 units without internal GPS cannot gain navigation through conversion.
- Direct EEPROM editing was used in one suggested fix, but other notes advise against it and suggest changing region with the latest M.I.B. instead.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need to change firmware, or is patching and adding an FEC enough?
- Owners report that a unit still on JP, KR or US firmware cannot run EU maps; FEC codes are not the limiting factor. Convert the firmware to EU first, then patch and install maps.
- Should I format the navigation database after conversion?
- Most notes recommend it, as leftover data from the old region is a common cause. One opinion says it is not strictly needed, but formatting is reported to do no harm.
- Why does the map install stall at Speech_Check?
- In confirmed cases the SDS region adaptation was missing or still set to the old region. Setting it to EU and running the update from the customer menu instead of the red menu fixed it.
- My converted Technisat unit takes the US card but not the EU card. Why?
- The converted unit expects a different map folder number. Renaming the map folder on the SD card from 00 to 01 is the most widely confirmed fix for MIB2 Std PQ units.
- Maps installed but show N/A on a converted MIB1 Harman unit. Is there a fix?
- Several owners hit this on MHIG units converted from Japan and could not resolve it; the EU map FEC was reported invalid. No confirmed fix is recorded.