Preface Fringe conditions and notes

“MEDIA-IN” multimedia interface product information 

Preface 

You can connect portable music players (hereinafter referred to as external data storage 

mediums) such as Apple iPod/iPhone/iPad, other high-quality MP3 players but also 

simple USB memory devices to your original Volkswagen radio or radio navigation 

device with the handy multimedia interface MEDIA-IN. It allows you to enjoy music 

content playback on the sound system of the car. Customers can take their music 

database with different popular audio formats into the car. The car radio or navigation 

device installed ex works is used for safe and convenient control. The buttons of the 

optional multifunctional steering wheel can additionally be used for control. The folder 

structure and title information (ID3 tag) on the data storage medium are shown clearly in 

the display of the car radio or navigation system. In addition, title information can also be 

shown on the optional multifunctional display in the instrument cluster. The music player 

is charged when connected to eliminate the trouble of possibly discharged batteries. 

Functional impairments of the vehicle are possible because the accuracy of the software 

in mobile data storage mediums cannot be guaranteed by Volkswagen and software 

versions of the device manufacturers can change. These impairments are not the 

responsibility of Volkswagen. Selected data storage mediums and software versions are 

therefore continuously tested for compatibility with the multimedia interface. 

Fringe conditions and notes 

• This product information is valid as of MEDIA-IN software version 0240 (market 

launch CW 22/11). Update your multimedia interface, if necessary. 

• Only external data storage media or USB mass storage devices that are specified 

after USB 2.0 are supported. 

• External data storage media must be structured according to the FAT file system 

FAT16 (< 2 GB) or FAT32 (> 2 GB) (FAT: File Allocation Table). 

• Complex file structures on the external data storage medium (many files in one 

folder, many folders and subfolders, non-playable files, etc.) can lead to delays in 

the reading of the audio files. The response time can additionally be affected by 

the connected device. 

• The folder structure on the external data storage medium should not exceed 8 

folder levels. Folders should not have more than 1000 entries. 

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• Apple iPods (exception: connection of an Apple iPod Shuffle with USB adapter) 

and Apple IPhones must be connected with the iPod specific adapter cable 

(adapter cable available via VW accessories). 

• USB extension cables or USB hubs may not be used to connect external data 

storage media. 

• If an external data storage medium is divided into several partitions, only the first 

partition with playable audio files will be played. 

• Memory card adapters are not supported and may lead to malfunctions. 

• An update of the manufacturer software on an external MP3 player (firmware 

upgrade) may lead to malfunctions during operation at the multimedia interface. 

• Connected external data storage media must possibly be turned on first and/or an 

according data mode selected on the device. 

• Please refer to the user manual of the respective manufacturer for operation of 

the external data storage medium. 

• Audio files with MP3, WMA, OGG Vorbis and AAC format on external data 

storage media can be played, displayed and controlled on the radio. 

• Play lists with the formats PLS, B4S, ASX and WPL are supported. 

• The information stored in play lists determines a specific play sequence of stored 

audio files. Audio files are not stored in play lists. A play list can be played only if 

the titles the play list refers to are stored in the same position on the data storage 

medium. The play list can otherwise not be played. 

• Files with the "3GP" format and of the "WMA lossless" type cannot be played. 

• WMA audio files (Windows Media Audio) can only be placed on the device if they 

are not copyright protected with DRM (Digital Rights Management). 

• DRM protected files can generally not be played on mass storage. (For instance 

"M4P" format files). 

• So-called MTP players (Media Transfer Protocol – identified by the logos 

"PlaysForSure" or "ReadyForVista") react strongly to requests from the 

multimedia interface depending on factors like battery charge and storage level of 

the memory. It may take up to a few minutes for the MTP player to be ready. 

• The connection between multimedia interface and audio player can be separated 

without data loss at any time regardless of the display in the music player. 

• The multimedia interface provides the usual 5 V voltage for USB. 

• The rubber pocket can be removed if small parts have fallen into the built-in 

storage compartment. 

• Formatting the data storage medium may eliminate problems detecting USB 

storage media. Caution: formatting will delete all information on the storage 

media. 

• Some USB sticks have an unstable reaction to mobile phone emissions and have 

to be newly initialised to ensure their function. 

• Please ensure that the adapter lines used are not jammed or bent sharply. This 

may damage lines or even lead to functional failure. 

• The message "device not functional" during music playback indicates a 

malfunction of the connected device. Briefly separating the connection to the 

multimedia interface may remedy that problem. 

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• USB sticks or USB plugs offering no ground shield on their USB contacts should 

be avoided, due to a lacked or instable connection. 

• Please ensure to eject the iPod plug of adapter line from iPod connection port 

correctly. Carefully push both side lips of iPod jack before drawing the lines, to 

eject the iPod-adapter line from player. Any damages by force or raw power 

cannot be covered by the Volkswagen warranty regulations. 

Support 

Please contact your local Volkswagen customer support if you have any questions. 

Applicability: 

Passat CC (PR no. UF6) as of CW 09/08 

(PR no. UF8) as of CW 22/09 

Golf, Golf Variant, Bora/Jetta, Touran, (PR no. UF6) as of CW 22/08 

Golf Plus, Tiguan, Passat/Passat Variant, (PR no. UF8) as of CW 22/09 

Eos, Touareg 

Phaeton (PR no. UF6) as of CW 45/08 

Phaeton (PR no. UF8) as of CW 22/11 

Scirocco (PR no. UF6) as of CW 45/08 


Polo (PR no. UF6) as of CW 14/09 


Sharan (PR no. UF6/UF8) as of CW 20/10 

T5 (PR no. 9WF) as of CW 34/09 

(PR no. 9WE) as of CW 22/10 

Caddy (PR no. UE1) as of CW 22/08 

Version: 23.03.2011


Multimedia interface MEDIA-IN (in the photograph: USB adapter 000 051 446 B) 

Volkswagen accessories retrofit solution 

5N0 057 342 / 5N0 057 342 B (located in the glove box) 

5N0 057 342 A / 5N0 057 342 C (located in the central armrest with storage shelf of glove box shelf) 

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USB sticks / hard drives: 

Manufacturer Model Capacity Comments 

Acer 128 MB, 1 GB 

Apacer 2 GB, 4 GB 8 GB in part defective 

Bufallo 

CN Memory 

Corsair 

Dane-Elec 

HD-PS500U2 

mini station 

turbo USB 

SD card 2 GB 

Blue Pearl 128 MB 

Flash Voyager 

Mini 

Emtec Flashdrive 

500 GB Observe hard drive formatting. 

4 GB 

Voyager 8 GB, 16 GB 

zLight 1 GB, 4 GB 

zMatePen 1 GB 

1 GB, 8 GB, 

16 GB 

Hama Flash Pen Nizza 16 GB 

Icy Box 

Portable hard 

drive 

Inovix IMP-65 1 GB 


IOmega SPHDU 500 GB Observe hard drive formatting. 

Kingston 

Lacie 

U3 Data 1 GB 

Data Traveler 

2 GB, 4 GB, 8 

GB, 32 GB 

Data Traveler 2 2 GB, 32 GB 

Little Disk 2,5 

HDD 

ItsaKey 8 GB, 16 GB 

XtremKey 16 GB 

Lexar Jump Drive 1 GB 

LG 

USB Drive 1 GB 


128 MB, 2 GB 

X-Tick 2 GB, 4 GB in part defective 

Maxfield Blackline 512 MB 

My Flash A-data 1 GB, 8 GB 

OCZ 

Throttle eSata 

Drive 

Philips USB Flash drive 8 GB 

PNY 

Attache 

Premium 

32 GB Connection via mini USB 

32 GB 

Version: 23.03.2011


Pretec 256 MB, 4 GB 

Qimonda Memory 1 GB 

Ridata EZ Drive 2 GB, 4 GB 

Samsung 

SanDisk 

Mighty Drive 4 GB 1 GB and 2 GB in part defective 

S1 Mini 120 GB Observe hard drive formatting. 

S2 Portable 320 GB Observe hard drive formatting. 

Cruzer 2 GB, 4 GB 

Cruzer Black 8 GB 

Extreme Cruzer 

Contour 

8 GB 

Ultra Backup 16 GB 

Sharkoon 4 GB 

Sony 

1 GB 

Micro Vault 4 GB, 16 GB 

Sungoo 2 GB 

takeMS 

Transcend 

MEM-Drive Mini 

Metal 

4 GB, 8 GB 

JetFlash 512 MB 

JetFlash 120 4 GB 

StoreJet 25 

mobile 

JetFlash V20 4 GB 



Trekstor DataStation 

pocket x.u 

Woxter 

Rugged 16 GB 

Pocket X-Div 

Disco Duro 2,5" 


128 MB 

Verbatim Store'n'Go 4 GB, 8 GB 


60 GB 

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Other devices: 

Manufacturer Model 

Dension 

Webradio USB 

stick 

last tested 

firmware Capacity Comments 

1.02 - 

Online connection and bit 

streams depend on mobile 

phone used and content 

provider. An Internet 

connection may incur 

additional charges. 

Version: 23.03.2011


Portable music players: 

Manufacturer Model 

Aiptek MP-1003 256 MB 

Apple 

Archos 

Cowon 

Creative 

last tested 

firmware Capacity Comments 

iPod Mini 1.4.1 4 GB, 6 GB 

iPod Shuffle 

1G, 2G, 3G 1.1 1 GB, 2 GB, 4 GB 

iPod Nano 1G, 

2G, 3G, 4G, 5G 1.0.3 

1 GB, 2 GB, 4 GB, 

8 GB, 16 GB 

iPod Nano 6G 1.0 8 GB, 16 GB 

iPod 4G 3.1.1 20 GB, 30 GB, 60 GB 

iPod Video 5G 1.3 30 GB, 60 GB, 80 GB 

iPod Classic 6G, 

6.5G 1.1.2 

iPod Touch 1G, 

2G, 3G, 4G 4.2.1 

80 GB, 120 GB, 

160 GB 

8 GB, 16 GB, 32 GB, 

64 GB 

iPhone 2G, 

iPhone 3G, 

iPhone 3GS, 

iPhone 4G 4.2.1 8 GB, 16 GB, 32 GB 

iPad 4.2.1 16 GB, 32 GB 

No playback of copy 

protected files (e.g. ".m4p" 

files). 

Gemini 104 1.2.05 4 GB only in hard drive mode 

106 4 GB 

AV 500 1.5.13 30 GB only in hard drive mode 

iAudio7 1.16 4 GB, 16 GB MTP player 

iAudio U5 1.13 4 GB MTP player 

S9 2.08 8 GB MTP player 

J3 2.23 8 GB 

Zen V01.21.01.E 16 GB, 30 GB MTP player 

Zen X-Fi 1.03.01 32 GB MTP player 

Zen X-Fi Style 1.03.04 8 GB 

Zen Stone Plus 2 GB 

Difrnce MP3000 4 GB 

Energy 

System 

Lunnatic 3600 

Duo V2.611.102 2 GB 

EU3C Infinity M250 10.01.02 4 GB 

iRiver Clix 1.15 2 GB, 4 GB MTP player 

MPIO FY900 01.00.0019 8 GB 

Odys MP X10i 4 GB 

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MP5 X60 1.00 4 GB 

MP X66 Neo 2.2 8 GB 

Olympus M:robe 2.12 5 GB 

Philips 

GoGear 1 GB 

GoGear Spark 2.74 2 GB 

Rok Rugby 256 MB 

Samsung 

SanDisk 

Sony 

StormBlue 

YH-925 GS V1.59ET 20 GB 

YP K3 3.05 2 GB MTP player 

YP-P2 1.20 8 GB MTP player 

YP-T10 1.29 8 GB MTP player 

Sansa Clip V02.01.16A 1 GB, 2 GB 

Sansa Fuze V01.01.11F 2 GB MTP player 

Sansa e250 V01.02.18E 2 GB MTP player 

Sansa e280 

V03.01.11E, 

V01.02.18F 8 GB MTP player 

Sansa View V01.01.06F 16 GB 

Walkman NWZ- 

E436F V1.02 4 GB MTP player 

Walkman NWZ- 

A826 1.01 2 GB MTP player 

Walkman NWZ- 

S618F 2 GB 

Walkman NWZ- 

A845 1.00 16 GB 

MP-288 2 GB 

Teac MP-60 2 GB 

Transcend T.sonic 840 1.61 8 GB 

Trekstor 

iBeat censo FM 2 GB 

Pocket X.u 80 GB 

Watson MP3 184-6 4 GB 

Yakumo Hypersound XD 256 MB 

MTP player, V01.01.18E 

and V01.01.29F 

not functional 

MTP player, player has to 

be turned on manually 

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The listed devices were tested merely for functionality; there is no claim to 

completeness. 

Some connected devices may behave differently. 

A device connected to the multimedia interface MEDIA-IN should always be protected 

against mechanical effects and other sources of damage. We will assume no liability for 

possible damage to connected devices. 

Version: 23.03.2011


Known properties of devices 

Manufacturer Model Keyword Description 

Apple 

iPod 3 rd Gen. Loading 3 rd gen. iPods cannot be supplied with 

voltage via MEDIA-IN. When the iPod 

battery is empty, it must be loaded with an 

external voltage supply. 

iPod/iPhone 

Loading Is the battery of a connected device is 

empty, a basic charge must be established 

before the device is recognised. The device 

can thus not be used immediately after it is 

connected. 

Loading In some cases, the iPod does not detect that 

it needs to switch to loading. The iPod is 

switched off after 2 minutes of break time as 

a result. In this case, the iPod must be 

separated from the interface and connected 

again. 

General function Different iPod models or software versions 

(firmware versions) may behave differently. 

Malfunctions of connected devices cannot be 

prevented. Only switching the device on and 

off can help. 

Volume adjustment The volume of iPod/iPhone can be 

additionally increased or lowered via AUX 

level on the radio or radio navigation system. 

The level should be adjusted if there is 

noise. 

Browsing Jumping to the current title in browser mode 

is not possible after the device is connected. 

The required information is not available. 

This function can be used only after a title 

has been selected via browser. Please note 

that starting the engine is equivalent to 

connecting a device in a technical sense. 

Mix If you open the file browser in mix mode it 

will not jump to the current title. The current 

title cannot be market in mix-mode. These 

functions are available again only after 

deactivation of the mix mode. 

Repeat title Different iPod models or software versions 

(firmware versions) carry out the "Repeat 

title" function incorrectly. 

Winding It is impossible to wind back to the previous 

title in some Apple devices (manufacturerspecific 

behaviour). 

Title information Some devices sporadically do not deliver 

information on title changes. Title information 

is not updated when the title changes as a 

Version: 23.03.2011


Apple 

iPod/iPhone 

iPhone 

result. 

Play lists The play list structure on Apple devices 

prevents customary execution of functions 

that refer to a folder. 

Scan The scan function cannot be used if the play 

list has only one title. 

Sorting The song lists are not transferred with 

alphabetical sort from iPod/iPhone with 

some models. 

Remote control 

interruption 

Audio interruption 

during playback of 

uninterrupted albums 

Error message "No 

audio files available" is 

shown 

No music playback via 

car speakers 

If music playback of iPod/iPhone is 

interrupted, e.g. by a call on the hands-free 

headset or a change of the source, the 

iPod/iPhone may subsequently no longer 

react to the remote control. In this case, the 

device must be separated from the 

multimedia interface MEDIA-IN and 

connected again. 

Even songs marked as uninterrupted can 

lead to audio interruptions during song 

changes. This is caused by the lacking 

processing mechanisms of the iPod if 

connected to additional devices. 

After a firmware update of your iPod/iPhone 

or resynchronization of your music database 

the iPod may report that there are not stored 

files. Please switch off the iPod/iPhone 

completely once and switch if back on. 

If headphones are connected to an 

iPod/iPhone that is connected to Media-In, 

the iPod/iPhone switches music playback to 

the headphones. Please remove the 

headphones from the iPod/iPhone. 

Skip without function If a skip is triggered in mix mode while a 

podcast with episodes is played, the iPod will 

ignore this command. 

incoming calls/network 

search 

If an Apple IPhone is operated on the 

MEDIA-IN interface, noise may occur during 

incoming calls or during network search. 

Error message The message "This accessory was not 

developed for use with an iPhone" can be 

ignored. 

distorted audio playback If an Apple IPhone is connected to the MDI 

and used as a phone (incoming or outgoing 

calls), it can lead to short-term distorted 

audio playback on the Apple IPhone. This 

can be remedied by setting the Apple IPhone 

to airplane mode during the connection with 

the MEDIA-IN. 

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Apple 

iPhone 

Sounds In rare cases, the music on the iPhone 2G 

(1. generation) can be played back distorted 

or with crackling for 2 to 3 seconds. This 

cannot be influenced by changing the 

settings of the vehicle environment. 

No playback It may happen sporadically (e.g. after 

winding or skipping) that an iPhone on the 

MEDIA-IN interface does not playback 

anything. The iPhone will not start playback 

again until the iPhone is briefly disconnected 

and then reconnected. 

iPod Touch Title skip Skipping back one song on the iPod Touch 

(skip backward) will always cause the iPod 

Touch to jump to the previous title. Other 

devices always skip back to the beginning of 

the song after the third second of playback. 

SanDisk Sansa View The player must be switched on to be 

recognised by MEDIA-IN. 

Philips GoGear Spark Playback The player always starts with the first song 

on the storage medium. 

all all Firmware versions Different software versions (firmware 

versions) may behave differently. 

all all Combination with handy 

preparation 

iTunes-Tagging (only for USA) 

The player should not be simultaneously 

connected via Bluetooth and MDI. 

If iTunes-Tagging (Tag-Button) was supported by your radio / navigation system, you 

can store special track- or title-information on your music player, by using a compatible 

music player from range of Apple iPod/iPhone/iPad as well as a special adapter line 

(5N0.035.554.A resp. 000 051 446 J). Prediction was a radio station broadcasting this 

information in the equivalent format. 

Please notice that just a limited range of Apple music players are possible for a use with 

the iTunes-Tagging function. 

Compatible Apple-players: 

• iPod Nano since 5th generation 

• iPod Touch (all generations) 

• iPhone (all generations) 

Version: 23.03.2011


Available connection adapters from Volkswagen accessories for 

multimedia interface MEDIA-IN (ex factory / retrofit): 

000051446A adapter for multimedia jack MEDIA-IN to mini USB 

000051446B adapter for multimedia jack MEDIA-IN to USB 

000051446C adapter for multimedia jack MEDIA-IN to iPod 

000051446D adapter for multimedia jack MEDIA-IN to 3.5mm jack 

000051446J adapter for multimedia jack MEDIA-IN to iPod 

(iTunes-tagging, only for USA, for RCD 510 / Premium 8, adapter in preparation) 

Volkswagen Zubehör GmbH compiles the content of this overview with great care and ensures regular updates 

thereof. The information serves merely as non-binding general information and does not replace careful individual 

consultation. Technical features and equipment of the described products are only examples. Such features and 

equipment may vary especially depending on the country. We reserve the right to make changes at any time. You can 

get current binding information on technical features, equipment or properties of our products exclusively from your 

authorised dealer or importer. Volkswagen Zubehör GmbH assumes no liability for the topicality, correctness or 

completeness of the information on these pages. 

Version: 23.03.2011

Preface Fringe conditions and notes

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