I bought a Mazda 6 about a year ago and it didn’t come with a Tom Tom navigation card. Should have queried this at the time but never got round to it and assumed I could always just attach my phone re android auto if required. I have never required the sat nav in past 12 months

I’m planning a big trip however and thought I’d best try to work out how to use the android auto feature.. turns out it doesn’t have it in my car as it’s a 2014 model😬

I now realise I need the Tom tom card however can I buy one off internet, or does it need matched to my car vin?

And if not, any suggestions on where I can get one cheap?

Ta

Worth considering?
“Apple CarPlay and Android Auto can now be installed in any 2014 model-year or newer Mazda vehicle that has the MAZDA CONNECT™ infotainment system”
Probably ridiculously expensive though. I got it done when I bought the car so just factored it in and it’s a worthy upgrade in my book but YMMV

Does your phone work with the car bluetooth? There was a software problem in the previous generation of Mazda 6s that meant bluetooth didn’t work (I replaced the bluetooth unit in mine and it made no difference). It’s a known issue and could stymi your whole plan.

Honestly, I’d probably just Blu-Tac my phone to the dashboard.

You can likely buy a generic SD and download the image from Mazda / TomTom directly.

https://www.mazda.co.uk/owners/navigation/?model=MAZDA6

Turns out a card will probably work if it’s never been in a car before, so second hand is out but some dodgy copy of internet may work if I can find one

Dealer wants 400 quid!!!😂

How much do Mazda want for the AA/CarPlay enablement? It was £250 on our 2017 CX5 when I enquired a couple of years ago.

I would just use your phone, whatever you buy will be instantly out of date and as I understand, won’t have traffic updates either

How much do Mazda want for the AA/CarPlay enablement? It was £250 on our 2017 CX5 when I enquired a couple of years ago.

At least 500 for the upgrade apparently

Dealer wants 400 quid!!!😂

An actual TomTom is £100. FFS.

I’d go for a card off ebay. Check feedback etc. I’ve bought Nav DVD’s for my car, and SD’s or MrsF’s to update the nav. No issues with either and about £25.

It’s ridiculous that Mazda should charge for enabling CarPlay/AA; BMW tried pulling that little scam and were, quite rightly slammed for it, as most manufacturers included it for free, like Ford do. Bluetooth won’t work for satnav, it doesn’t have the bandwidth necessary for it to operate, the connection has to be hardwired between phone and car.
I know that the SD card with satnav info for most cars cost around £250-300, because we always had to remove the card from any vehicle arriving with one and put it into a sealed envelope which went into secure storage, after some ‘disappeared’ going through the workshops some years back.

It wasn’t unusual to check the installed satnav eat arrivals to see a message about it not been activated, the owner obviously decided to use their phone rather that cough up the dosh!

I don’t use the built-in satnav in my Ford, although it’s OK, it’s just easier to set up the destination and route on TomTom on my phone and plug it in when I start up the car, ‘cos TomTom is built into CarPlay.

Until I bought the Ford, I used my phone with a cheap eBay screen mount on the windscreen and drove around 100,000 miles for BCA, and in my own car; if you can plug the phone in to get voice directions through the car audio and keep the phone charging, that’s the cheapest option, because using the satnav will absolutely eat the battery!

Have a 2015 6, hopefully I can clear some things up.

1. AA/Carplay ‘upgrade’ cost me I think about £200/£250. This involves replacing the USB module in the central storage compartment, and upgrading CMU firmware to the right level. Has to be done right otherwise you can brick the CMU. It’s totally doable yourself if you can source the part (I can grab the P/N off my module if you need). It’s very worth it. WAY better than using your phone directly.

2. Nav SD card is locked to the CMU. If you can source a CMU and nav card from a breakers then it’s a simple swap over, remove your CMU and go.

My CMU died a year or so ago, I had nav previously, paid for the CarPlay upgrade (subsequently never used nav). Got a new CMU off eBay, got an original USB module, so I could perform the upgrades required to get the CarPlay module working again, but the nav doesn’t work anymore cos the SD card I have doesn’t work with the new CMU. I assume Mazda could sort but I really don’t care.

If it’s just navigation you’re after I’d buy a £10 phone holder from Amazon and use waze on the phone