MMI Keeps Freezing

[CMA415]

I purchased a 2015 Audi A4 B8.5 S-line in Januray this year (2023) and have not had any problems until the past month or so. I've noticed that the MMI has begun freezing, and the only way to get it to work again is to reset the MMI using the three button reset mehod, and even after resetting, the screen will then stay black for a period of time. Sometimes it can take up to 15 minutes for the screen to turn back on. I have tried turning off the ignition, removing the keys and waiting a few minutes when the screen freezes, however the MMI will stay turned on with the frozen screen unless I reset. This does not happen in any particular menu screen. I can be in the radio, media, navigation, or any other menu and it will still freeze. If the radio is on or music is playing from my phone via bluetooth, this will stop playing and the screen will freeze. Pressing any buttons does nothing apart from the 3 button reset method. This can happen 2 minutes after turning the car on, or 30+ minutes into a drive. I have updated my firmware to the latest version (HN+_EU_AU3G_K0942_3) and initially thought this was resolved, however the MMI still freezes. Has anyone else experienced an issue like this, or is there anything more I can check? All I have do so far is update the firmware. Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

[JMKC82]

Hi Conor,

Did you have this issue before you updated the firmware?

On my previous 2017 A4 B9, a 3rd party company was updating my maps, and at the same time they said they 'had' to update the firmware.  I started having issues like you mentioned as well.  I ended up reverting back to the original map and firmware and the 3rd party company was close to bricking the unit i think as it took them the whole day to fix it.  It is difficult to roll back firmware updates i am told.

Lesson to be learnt for me, don't update firmware unless you absolutely need to.

Thanks, Joe

[CMA415]

16 hours ago, JMKC82 said:

Hi Conor,

Did you have this issue before you updated the firmware?

On my previous 2017 A4 B9, a 3rd party company was updating my maps, and at the same time they said they 'had' to update the firmware.  I started having issues like you mentioned as well.  I ended up reverting back to the original map and firmware and the 3rd party company was close to bricking the unit i think as it took them the whole day to fix it.  It is difficult to roll back firmware updates i am told.

Lesson to be learnt for me, don't update firmware unless you absolutely need to.

Thanks, Joe

Hi Joe,

Yes, I had the issue before I updated my firmware. The firmware I had when purchased the car in January was HN+_EU_AU3G_P0814 and I had no problems up until the past month or so where it has randomly started freezing. I did some research online and thought maybe updating to the latest firmware may help, however this doesn't seem to be the case. Maybe there could be a loose cable somewhere. Thank you for your input. 🙂

[JMKC82]

Hi,

Something i don't like doing, but a full factory reset of the MMI?

I would have done this first before updating the firmware.

Thanks,

[CMA415]

12 minutes ago, JMKC82 said:

Hi,

Something i don't like doing, but a full factory reset of the MMI?

I would have done this first before updating the firmware.

Thanks,

Thanks Joe. Sorry, I also should have mentioned that I had factory reset the MMI before I proceeded with the Firmware Update. I did this the first time I noticed this happening a month or two ago, but completley forgot.

[CMA415]

Over a month on and this is getting increasingly worse. The MMI now freezes more regularly, and resetting only makes the screen blank before anything re appears about 20 minutes later. I thought the battery could be the issue as it is 9 years old. I replaced the battery however the MMI still cuts out. I have checked all the cables in the boot of the car near the aplifier and I've checked all fuses relating to MMI. Everything looks ok. No water, no corrosion, no blown fuses. At this rate it might be time to find an Audio repair specialist.

[CMA415]

This is still an issue, but it now happens less regularly. I found that this happens more often in hot weather, or when I have the drivers heated seats turned on... If this is turned off, the MMI is fine. But if it is a really hot day, it still plays up. I still have no clue what this could be, but for now I'm willing to live with it.

[PZpirate]

Just had my MMI stop functioning - only indicated "trying to initialise"! Audi Oxford wanted the car for a day and to charge around £600 for a software upgrade! - availability of service slot was end of October. Checked another forum: (e-tron) and someone there had a similar problem; held the radio button (by the gear selector) in for 30 seconds and this re-booted the system. It also worked for me! All working correctly so far. Others may have had similar experiences with Audi dealerships?