Hi everyone!

I'm new here and while I learn about my Cooper, I have alot of questions!

Steering wheel audio controls - can anyone skip tracks or am i missing something? When I am connected via bluetooth, wether it's Deezer or Spotify, I cannot skip songs on the steering wheel. When I press the up or down button, the little screen above the steering shows the small Mini Connected logo and says "not possible". In some other posts, people suggested pressing up and down, followed by the OK button but that doesnt work either.

The only way I can skip tracks is with the buttons on the audio unit directly or the Mini Connected dial.

I am using an iPhone 4s. I have not tried with music files through iTunes directly.

Any ideas?

thanks

 

Mine works... sometimes. But a lot of the time I'll skip a track only for it to revert my playlist back to the original order instead of keeping it on random so I've started using the button below the radio to change songs.

 

Not to thread-jack, but can you fast forward or rewind with the steering controls?

If so, I haven't figured it out. In my last car, pressing and holding the respective steering button would FFWD, but there doesn't seem to be that functionality in my MINI.

The head unit's PREV/NEXT buttons when held do it, but wondering if it was possible through the steering wheel! Thanks!

 

I haven't tried the fast forward / rewind, but I highly doubt this'll work. Like I said, pressing one of those buttons gives me the "NOT POSSIBLE" message.

Can you confirm that you have this message as well?

 

Unfortunately, I have never received the "Not Possible" message.

I'm sure you've tried this but, have you tried having the iPhone connected via the USB button?

I've never used Pandora / Deezer / Spotify in the car, but for me, both bluetooth and USB connections work perfectly with the MINI steering controls. THey display the meta data (song titled) and pressing okay selects the song.

I've got a sneaking suspicion that it is the bluetooth meta data handling for the apps you're using which is the culprit rather than the MINI software, maybe they're using something nonstandard to communicate.

 

I have tried via USB but only with Deezer and Spotify.
I also do think it may be "app" related.
I will try uploading songs to my iPhone directly and try that.
I just thought the apps would work the way they did in my old car where i could switch songs via the steering. I guess every car is different!

 

Hmmm, this has me thinking:

1. Have you updated the SW (apps on your iPhone) between your old car and the MINI

2. If your old car didn't have as integrated a BT setup where it would show you a list of songs when you clicked your buttons, maybe it COULD be the MINI's more "integrated" approach which could be the culprit. That is to say, if your older car only detected the track (next position) data, there's not much more that your old car had to do with it, apart from knowing where to go. The MINI may not be able to detect/ access the song titles and can't display them (an app bug), therefore the MINI can't manipulate the inputs (the MINI bug). I'm thinking if the MINI can't "fully" connect with the app, there are some functions which can't be triggered.

 

My old car did not display any information on the screen. It simply read BT Audio. So I never saw song title or artist.

In the Mini, I see artist and song title on the center console screen, and i can switch songs through the console, however, not through the steering. The steering does not display song title either.

There havent been any updates to my apps since switching cars

 

You are 100% correct. The up/down MFSW controls are for navigating through songs in a playlist, or defined in the current search you have conducted within the media system. Pressing up and down will list all of the songs in the Heads up display or screen above your steering wheel. That type of list information is not available within streaming applications (your next song hasn't been determined until the current song has finished). If the application on your phone doesn't support the media listing feature, your mini will display "Not Possible".

If you try the same thing with your iTunes library, USB media, or Internal media library, you will see the music list control that mini was going for with the MFSW controls.

Hope that helps!

 

thank you for that information! it is very clear...

one thing, can you let me know what you mean by Internal Media Library? I juts got the car and I feel I have so much to learn.

thanks!

 

I believe that's the Hard Disk/Flash Storage in the MINI itself, to which you can transfer music.

 

Great! Glad to help :-)

I should have been a little clearer about the internal media library. Some of the new F56s come equipped with an internal solid-state drive that you can store music on. You can plug in a flash drive with music on it, and transfer it to your car. I think you need to have the connected or connected + visual boost XL package to get this option. I bought mine off the lot and had no idea it included this for at least 2 weeks. I don't think it's advertised all that well.

 

Nice!
thanks.

 

Thank you for the advice. I can confirm that i can skip tracks via bluetooth and usb when using itunes.

One more question if you dont mind... When im plugged via usb, i see the album artwork. However, through bluetooth, i dont. I just see the artist name, song, album name, etc.

Is this normal?

 

It all depends on both sides of the connection. The new mini supports an audio profile called AVRCP. This profile is what allows the control of the music from your car to your phone (play, stop, next etc.). Not all that long ago AVRCP version 1.4 was released. This includes all of the features from before, but also the ability to send information such as album information and artwork. I think (if I remember correctly) the iPhone 4s only support up to version 1.2, maybe 1.4 but with limited functionality. So unfortunately, I don't believe your phone hardware will allow the streaming of album artwork. If you have a friend with a iPhone 5 or 5s I would test it to see if the new phone fixes the problem.

I have an iPhone 5 and the album artwork does show up over bluetooth. Hope that helps!

 

Sorry- I can't resist writing just to say that the audio dial was really poorly designed. First, it should be on the left side of the wheel. That way whichever hand is free can push buttons (right hand goes to the head unit itself). Second, the top & bottom buttons should be volume up & down. It only makes sense! Arrows are for back & next.

Ok rant over, back to the topic...

 

That's a great point. I agree, of all the previous cars I've owned, audio controls have always been on the left side of the steering wheel -- and I never realized that would be the logical place to put them.

The placement of the cruise control have been on stalks (though left / right side stalks for CC) depended on the car.

 

On a side note, does it drive anyone else crazy that the center of the volume **** on the head unit turns? I feel like the middle should be a fixed position (so the power symbol stays pointed in the right direction)

Might just be my OCD, but I use my volume buttons on the steering wheel solely because I don't want to turn that ****. Hah!

 

I'm so happy I'm not the only one that feels this way (or has the same OCD). When I find it off center, I execute an elaborate two handed dance to get the center **** pointed up using the steering controls to maintain volume.

Did this on my last car too.

 

Phew! I'm glad to hear I'm not going crazy. It makes me so angry if a passenger turns the volume up or down and then I have to sit and stare at that little power symbol mocking me the entire rest of the drive so I don't end up looking like a complete fool.