Question for all new Astra, Corsa or Insignia owners. Weird time / clock

[dutchy]

Strange things are happening to my 2013 Astra J. Don't know if any of you that got a new Astra, Corsa or Insignia have noticed the same but I set the correct time and the next day it's roughly half an hour behind. I'm pretty sure I did set it it up correctly. This has happened twice now. Anyone else got this or is it just me that's getting old.

[chrissn89]

I would call your dealer I recall hearing something down the Holden end (at work) about some cars doing the same thing.

[guy 27]

Mine doesn't turn on. Maybe I should put the battery in it.

[dutchy]

So this afternoon, I reset the clock to the correct time and later, it was again about half an hour behind. I have already sent Opel Brisbane an email for their response.

[Vectracious]

My Passat would sync the time off the RDS signal from the radio - maybe the Astra does the same thing and it's on the Adelaide timezone???

[Jsm50l]

I would agree with the last comment I lthink it is set on Adelaide time when the car might come from oversea but Holden Adelaide do the fine tuning on the car

[dutchy]

I searched in the settings menu but can't see anywhere a timezone setting. Rds is on I noticed so I'll turn it off and see how it goes. Never knew rds can sync time as well !!! Thought it only did station names, advertisement and song titles etc.... If rds indeed changes this clock time, then its pretty useless on this system :(

[dutchy]

And it would mean that every car would have the same "problem" them. It's very annoying if the time keeps changing. Can it also be the gps system that changes the time

[Vectracious]

I think I remember reading that the Passat would sync time from the RDS in the manual - but it's been over 2 years since I had that car so I might be talking rubbish. However I do remember the clock in the passat (clock in the display was conneced to the radio/satnav unit) was very accurate and would need no adjusting.

[dutchy]

Just checked, put the correct time in the clock, rds was off (cant even turn that on), regional rds was off and withing a few minutes, the clock jumped 36 minute back in time. So its not the rds. Must be a software glitch then. I'll wait for Opel's reply.

[Vectracious]

bugger - hopefully its a quick fix then.

[dutchy]

bugger - hopefully its a quick fix then.

Do hope so. If it is software, one would say at least all cars with the Navi900 would have the same issues.

[dutchy]

Its been driving me nuts because you cant rely on the displayed times so I did some investigating. It does indeed seem to be connected to rds signals. One radio station that I contacted had indeed an incorrect time set in their system. Once they put that on the correct time, the clock didnt change. The moment I put it onto another channel, the time changed again :mad2:
In the settings menu, the option to turn on or off the rds signal is non-operable. Allthough it says the rds is off, it is actually active and even syncs when the radio and whole system are turned off. I went into Opel during the weekend and checked the Navi900 on another Astra they had in stock and it did exactly the same thing. As you cant go any further into the rds menu, it is up to Opel to activate this through an update. They will let me know when that is available. Another option would be to contact each radio station asking them to check if they send out the correct the correct time in their rds transmission.
Lucky I dont live near the qld/nsw border, clock would be going back and forth the whole day.

[Vectracious]

pretty poor of the radio stations to not have the correct time on their equipment thats sends the signal out - they probably think the number of cars out there that use the RDS time signal to sync clocks are minimal so it doesn't matter.

The VW I'm pretty sure did have the option to turn RDS off so you wouldn't get the song info displayed, but whether that extended to the time sync as well I don't know. In any case, the stations in melbourne had the correct time.

[rambo1984]

I have the same problem on a Vauxhall Agila that my parents own. I have taken it in so many times to the dealer and they dont find a fault.

[dutchy]

yeah, pretty bad of the stations hey Vectracious and just annoys the hell out of me. Got to double check on my phone if the time is correct (specially for me if you work on the clock with set appointments).

Any others that can't access the rds menu under settings - radio on a Navi900 ? UNEEQ or any of the others with an opc ?

[dutchy]

I have the same problem on a Vauxhall Agila that my parents own. I have taken it in so many times to the dealer and they dont find a fault.

If they turn off rds, does it still show radio station calls (ie. track names, station name and advertisement) ?

[rambo1984]

If they turn off rds, does it still show radio station calls (ie. track names, station name and advertisement) ?

We dont get all those features here. All we get on the FM AM radios are the radio channels name ie Radio 1, Radio City. Now on my Corsa as soon as you have the RDS on s few of the larger stations must send something as I have seen the time change when the radio has been on like when our clocks go forward or backwards

[dutchy]

if you see track titles and station calls, that is through rds signals.

[rambo1984]

if you see track titles and station calls, that is through rds signals.

Our radio stations dont send the track info just the radio name

[dutchy]

ah, ok. Do you get local traffic info ?

[rambo1984]

ah, ok. Do you get local traffic info ?

We do get traffic reports on RDS but only with the local BBC stations. BBC are like the state TV/Radio stations. They are funded by a license fee we all pay if we live at an address. It can be hit and miss though. You can be in say Merseyside but the RDS will give BBC Radio Lancashire traffic reports rather than BBC Radio Merseyside. The commercial stations don't have that feature, but if you know the local area & commercial stations they tend to have the best traffic reports in the rush hours.

[UNEEQ]

I get track names, but I can't get them to scroll which is annoying...

I'm presently working with Opel to identify issues and room for improvement with the Navi in the hope that they (the manufacturer) will release a firmware update to enhance the functions and resolve any issues.

Needless to say there have been a lot of complaints from the Holden owners about this unit (at least I have this on good authority), so it's an issue that GM are addressing. Since it's been in the Holdens for a couple of years now, I can't say how quickly they are addressing it, or that we will see an outcome in the near future, but it's a work in progress and I'm trying to help them to drive it as hard as possible to make the unit a better device for everyone.

I'm not getting any weird time issue though...

[dutchy]

We do get traffic reports on RDS but only with the local BBC stations. BBC are like the state TV/Radio stations. They are funded by a license fee we all pay if we live at an address. It can be hit and miss though. You can be in say Merseyside but the RDS will give BBC Radio Lancashire traffic reports rather than BBC Radio Merseyside. The commercial stations don't have that feature, but if you know the local area & commercial stations they tend to have the best traffic reports in the rush hours.

So there is an issue then. That is rds and that sends out station info including their set time which in some cases, can be wrong. If the option is there to turn it off, I would. We do not get traffic info so rds is not really as usefull as it would be in for instance Holland.

[dutchy]

I get track names, but I can't get them to scroll which is annoying...

I'm presently working with Opel to identify issues and room for improvement with the Navi in the hope that they (the manufacturer) will release a firmware update to enhance the functions and resolve any issues.

Needless to say there have been a lot of complaints from the Holden owners about this unit (at least I have this on good authority), so it's an issue that GM are addressing. Since it's been in the Holdens for a couple of years now, I can't say how quickly they are addressing it, or that we will see an outcome in the near future, but it's a work in progress and I'm trying to help them to drive it as hard as possible to make the unit a better device for everyone.

I'm not getting any weird time issue though...

Would be great if they can update the firmware. I cant scroll radio text either but I rather have rds off completely if that option can be activated, which is currently not possible to activate or de-activate. The time changing issue is a fault of the stations having set a wrong time. Besides that, if you drive for instance near the nsw border, time jumps if you're listening to a nsw based station. I just want the damned rds turned off :mad2: Otherwise the system is rather good and the sound quality is pretty decent.

[Nurb608]

I'm gathering they have read the manual in regards to these issues and the RDS-text scroll freeze is in the options?

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt57/nurb608/Navi900RDS_zps0408e4b7.jpg

[dutchy]

I'm gathering they have read the manual in regards to these issues and the RDS-text scroll freeze is in the options?

http://i597.photobucket.com/albums/tt57/nurb608/Navi900RDS_zps0408e4b7.jpg

Yes, I showed that at Opel Brisbane too. Now the one on the top of the picture that says "RDS", I am not able to change that option, it is set to OFF constantly and even though it says OFF, it is still on and cannot be changed.

[Nurb608]

Definitely strange.

[UNEEQ]

...

As promised on the phone, here is some more info on my experience with the Navi900 unit.

The iPhone I have connects and works initially, but the minute I use an audio streaming app on my way to or from work, or Safari for services such as youtube (the boys like to play movies in the back and listen through the car as the iPhone isn't relly loud enough on its own), it starts to randomly play up. Mostly resulting in no sound and I'll have to turn the Navi off, then disconnect, on again, then reconnect to regain control, then activate the app and select my stream station again. This is something I can't really do whilst driving as it is complex and distracts me from the road. The CD400 does not have such an issue. It just simply works!

(My partner's) iPhone 4S comes up saying device not compatible!!!! It's the year 2013, it's a 2013 model OPC and iPhone 5's were released September 2012, so we're behind the times with technology, but so it would seem too is the Navi. I'm forever patching firmware on IT systems to ensure that all current technologies are compatible. Is there a firmware update process for the Navi, and is there one available to resolve these issues?

Another frustration, is that the radio stations transmit track information (and so does my iPhone, or the USB stick I have – not so much transmit as the Navi picks up the MP3 Tag data), but try as I may, I CAN NOT get the information to scroll, which is fantastic if you only ever want to see who the artist is, but It would be nice to see all the information on the screen, and the info button only expands on the name a little bit, long artist and track names are cut off – this applies to what I'd guess as over 98% of tracks. I've played around with all the RDS settings to no avail.

I look forward to your response on this.



...
Thank you for your feedback on the radio functionality. I have personally tested our vehicle range with an Iphone 4 (with various firmware versions) and can confirm what you experience is consistent with our infotainment operation.

Vehicle software updates can be conducted through our Opel Dealer network, however I have reviewed the technical data that ...(The Dealer)... supplied us from your vehicle and can confirm that your vehicle has the latest radio software.

We will raise your feedback with our colleagues in Germany for potential future functionality with smart phone integration with our infortainment systems.


Nothing on the RDS though. I've re-queried it, but as yet haven't got a response. This response was only on Wednesday, so let's give them a little time to test things out :)