MMCS removal questions

[dynafit]

Hey,

I have a few questions I need to know about the MMCS (multi communication system) in my Lancer Evolution 8 2003 model.
Firstly, its all in Japanese, and I am Australian - in Australia. The buttons, the screen, the gps info everything.
What I want to know is:

1)Can the MMCS display (screen) be removed and replaced with an aftermarket head unit from any audio store, and the air conditioner still work? obviously it wont display the air con temps/flow directions on the new unit just as long as it still turns on and cools the car.

2)Can you disconnect the battery without the MMCS breaking and requiring a new CD to reinstall everything? (there are no Australian/English versions of the CD's and the gps is hardcoded into japan, so reprogramming is not an option). This point ties in with the first, as new sound system would be the reason for disconnecting the battery. Also for future reference if the MMCS was to stay, and new parts like fuel pump or ecu was to be installed and battery disconnected I don't want my sound system stuffed up for good and have to replace MMCS anyway.

3)Can you install a second head unit (single din) somewhere else in the car and have them both working at the same time?

4)Can you remove the MMCS screen, and the dash fascia, and replace with a "stock" (read: mitsubishi australia) replacement fascia, then install a single din head unit. This point ties in with the first as i want the air conditioning to work.

5)Can you plug your phone into the RCA ports (red white yellow) and play music through MMCS? My unit does not read CD's of any kind. Normal, mp3, data, dvd, nothing.

I have read a lot and cannot find a real answer to my problems, so I am creating a thread myself. I have called Mitsubishi Aus and they don't know -.- Any and all help is much appreciated.

Regards,
Lachlan

[dynafit]

I've done some testing myself, beginning to knock the points off one by one.

Bought an RCA cable and tested point 5. This works with audio only, as i havent been able to figure out how to play a video from my phone projected on to the mmcs screen, however that is not the goal.

Audio works through the yellow and white ports only. If you connect all three ports, you get sound out of the left hand side of the car only. upon disconnecting the right hand port (red) full sound emerged! And further testing proved that you need one of the cables to be plugged into the yellow socket and the other to be in the white for sound to work. (If no cable is in the yellow hole, the VTR menu does not appear)
The best way i have found for this to work is using the white cable in the white hole, and the red cable in the yellow hole. That way, the MMCS screen stays jet black, as opposed to using the yellow cable and the white cable which makes the MMCS screen snowy.

Disconnecting the battery will be the next step, as that seems to be the key point in most of the above ideas.

[magic animal]

I dont think if you disconnect the battery it will cause any problems as i have had all my mmcs stuff unplugged and it all still works fine it just takes a little while to reset its self.
Im just ripping it all out and putting a uk heater control unit in and new center panel.

[dynafit]

Let me know how that goes, I'm interested to find out whether the MMCS unit is 'talking' to the other devices in the car and when removed if they still continue to function.

[magic animal]

As far as i could see when i unplugged all the mmcs stuff and tried the heater controls i have to replace the jap ones everything worked as it should you of course lose the mpg and average speed that you get with the mmcs but i don't really mind about that but everything else was fine.
All the plugs on the back of the units are the same as the UK version so everything is inter changeable.

[dynafit]

Originally Posted by magic animal

As far as i could see when i unplugged all the mmcs stuff and tried the heater controls i have to replace the jap ones everything worked as it should you of course lose the mpg and average speed that you get with the mmcs but i don't really mind about that but everything else was fine.
All the plugs on the back of the units are the same as the UK version so everything is inter changeable.

Is it possible to connect an aftermarket amplifier to the MMCS?
Are there RCA-out holes?

[magic animal]

Not on the back of mine no but there may be some slightly different units out there.
But thats half the reason im changing mine out.

[dynafit]

Don't suppose you know the front and rear speaker hole sizes?
I'm not sure if they are 6" or 6.5"

[magic animal]

No Idea mate sorry.

[dynafit]

6.5" fit nicely.
Bit more progression made in regards to mmcs. Had some time free on the weekend and I progressed some more.
Pulled apart the dash fascia (I will be writing a guide on how to do this as nobody else has..) and disconnected the double-din display. Then turned the car on and performed numerous tests, for example: turning all lights on, changing air conditioning temperatures/locations, brake lights. Everything seems to work as normal.
I am picking up an aftermarket head unit this afternoon and then this weekend I will be installing it. This will tell me if the CANbus wiring will have any effect on foreign equipment installed. (if things stop working when new head unit is installed then I will have to either put the old double-din display back in or take the car to an auto electrician for further testing).

Also, found out the answer to point number 4. You can change the dash fascia over from Japanese to Australian/non-Japanese, however it will be a LOT of work. The picture below shows the differences between the two. As you can see, you need to move the Hazard lights to the top, move the Air Conditioning to the bottom, and the air vents that were on either side of the mmcs display change shape. This is a problem because the tunnels that are located behind the vents are of a different shape. If you were to change the fascia, you would need to change the tunnels behind, all up resulting in major work. Furthermore, you would need to remove the DVD player from below the air conditioning, as this is where the new air conditioning dials will be installed, and unless you get a double-din screen, you would need to make a 'pocket' to fill the hole left by using only 1 din for the head unit.

[MarkM]

double din will work just fine, there will just be one plug unused

[dynafit]

Originally Posted by MarkM

double din will work just fine, there will just be one plug unused

Which one would that be? There is a white one, and a black one. Both with numerous wires coming out.

[dynafit]

Head unit arrived yesterday. Single din Alpine. Neither of the connectors that went into the MMCS would connect with the alpine, however it came with its own wiring harness, so it would need to be hard wired to fit.
New problem - the unit is too large to fit where the mmcs screen used to go. It will fit where the dvd player sits (at the bottom below the air con) but the wiring wont reach, and I'm not sure the brackets are interchangeable.

Trying bracket swapping tonight.

Also, with the mmcs screen removed, the radio still works! The only way to tell what channel you are on is to listen until they say the name. Very strange, as what would happen to the wiring for the new head unit? Find out on saturday i guess when i install it.

[dynafit]

Aftermarket Head Unit (HU) successfully installed!
The bracket that was on the DVD player can be swapped. I put the screen back in as an aesthetic feature, as having a hole there with wires sticking out doesn't look very nice.
You can't get a pocket to fill the gap left by the screen, as the pocket is also too deep and wide, so that's why I put the screen back, and left it disconnected.

When you put everything back together, make sure you take the faceplate off the HU so you can put the surround back on, and clip the faceplate on after (or it won't fit!).

Everything works. Radio now gets all Australian stations with great reception (when no head unit installed it managed to get the stations but very poor quality), air conditioning works, lights work, nothing has broken as a result of removing the mmcs.
I will post a picture of the new HU wiring tonight, and write up a guide on how to remove the dash.