VW T5 Transporter dashpod hacking

Parts you will need:
VAG-Tacho    (Clone lead here)
XVI32 Hex editor
VW Transporter van

(Remember this can brick your dashpod, Everything in the guide worked for my dash doesn’t mean it will work with your dash!!!!!!!)

One thing that I have always found strange is that the needles and display light up with the ignition but the gauges don’t?

So I set about seeing if I could change this?  First of all I connected up VAG-Tacho to the dash and selected VDO new and pressed connect.

After it gained access you then need to click read eeprom,  this will take a couple of minutes. Once it finished open the memory buffer and check there what looks like a eeprom dump.

Then click file and save.

Save the file twice, one called original and the other called modded. Leaving VAG-Tacho running, now open your hex editor.

Open the modded eeprom that you saved earlier,  once the file is open you will need to find the line 23A (This line is correct for a standard T5 dash without MFA/DIS)
and then find the correct cell.

Once found change the value to to desired value. It will be something like 3X, where X is value you change, Most T5 comes with 3B

3              – displays only

5              – gauges only

7              – displays and gauges only

9              – needles only

B              – displays and needles only

D             – Needles and Gauges only

F              – all lit up

I changed it to 3F 

Then save as the modded eeprom file.

Now back to VAG-Tacho. Click file and Read File, select the modded.eep file and load into memory.

You can now load the modded eeprom back into the dash.

Once complete you can then disconnect and reconnect, after it reconnected click the restart button and hay-presto one lit up dash pod 😀

Remember messing with the eeprom can brick your dashpod, you do this at your own risk!

Here a video of the dash just lighting up with only the ignition.