Hello All
I have been following this thread with much interest, and just wanted to share my experience.
I have a MY17 A4 B9 Avant. Around the beginning of Dec 20, I noticed that my GE overlay was beginning to smudge / blur, as noted by many others on this forum, and which I assumed was due to the ending of GE for some of the models within the platform. Around the middle of Dec 20, I also noticed that my GE wouldn’t load – again, as noted by many others.
Following on from this, I sent an email to Audi Digital Services. In it, I explained the issues I was having, and what I understood to be the cause of these issues, ie the demise of GE. I also asked whether there is an update available, and whether my vehicle was eligible. They replied (albeit a week later) confirming all that I had mentioned in my email to them. They mentioned that there is a replacement service, Audi Connect ‘Satellite Map’, which can be downloaded via a free software update and reactivated at your local Audi Partner; furthermore, my vehicle was eligible for the update.
I booked the vehicle in at my local dealer, and forwarded them the email, just to ensure they understood what I was looking to achieve (ie the software update, as opposed to a map update). However, when I dropped the vehicle off on the day, the Service advisor thanked me for the email trail, as they were unaware of the update, and had to liaise extensively with the Digital Services team to ensure they had the right information for the update.
Having collected my car, I can confirm that the update does work, and importantly, it was FOC. It is not the same as the previous GE, but there is a satellite imagery overlay, which is what I was seeking!
In summary, there is an update available (but which is model dependent), and which is free of charge. It would appear that the dealers do not necessarily have the information for the update, and that they should liaise with Audi Digital Services for the update.
I hope that this helps, and is of use to others to have their vehicle updated.