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Illustrated guide to replacing Carplay/Android USB port

121K views 252 replies 89 participants last post by  Chris C.  
#1 ·
Like many of you, I eventually developed the intermittent USB issue where the connection is randomly interrupted and the music or phone call is stopped, then it reconnects (maybe) after a few seconds. Sometimes it can happen 3 times in a row, and sometimes it doesn't happen for a day or two.

I had my 5000 mile service a few weeks ago, and the dealer said "all is well" with the USB port, so they refused to address it under warranty. Despite this being a widespread issue, to my knowledge Hyundai has not acknowledged it with a TSB. I realize that I could probably try to take a video and make multiple trips to a dealer to have it fixed under warranty, but time is money and the part to fix it is $66 and my labor is free.

As a disclaimer, proceed at your own risk, etc etc. If you are not handy then try to get it done under warranty. I've hard-wired dash cams in at least 5 different vehicles now (most are not as easy as the I5 with the Dongar), so I have familiarity with removing trim pieces and working with harnesses but I am not a mechanical guru by any stretch. Most of this is very easy with really the only issue being freeing up the blue harness. I did not disconnect any batteries for this.

The part number is 96120-GI000 (that's the letter I after G, not a 1), and I ordered it from Lakeland Hyundai for $66.74 shipped. It took a week to get to me.

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As you see the part consists of the main USB harness that plugs into the plastic floor trim piece, and two connectors - one with a white harness that is super easy to replace, and one with a blue harness that is a PITA. You can see in the upper right corner of the picture where the blue harness has a small rectangular clip on the side where you push the top part to free it. Notice also the red and white tape on the wire as this will help you locate the OEM wire under the dash.

The first steps are very easy and involve removing the plastic trim piece and cubby on the floor. Start by using a flathead screwdriver to remove the two plastic clips on the left and right side. If you slide the screwdriver under the center circle to pop it up, the clips will easily come out. Then use the flathead screwdriver in the notch under the felt piece to remove it which reveals a 10 mm hex head bolt.

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Once those three things are removed, the plastic trim piece should be easily to rock back and forth. There are four plastic clips at the top that hold the piece in. If you kinda rock it some and put gentle pressure on the sides you should be able to eventually free up the entire trim piece. Do not yank with all of your might as there are two wires connected to the USB port and the 12V adapter. There is some slack in the wires, but still be careful.

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This is what the underside of the plastic piece looks like. Unclip the 12V adapter harness and then push on the clips on both sides of the rectangular black USB harness to remove it (you can look at the new USB part for reference on where to push). Once these two wires are free you can put the big plastic trim piece out of the way.

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This is how it looks once the USB harness is removed. The white harness connection is seen in the background, and the blue PITA connector is under the dash. You can unclip the white harness connector now.

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So for my hands to fit under the dash, I had to loosen the trim piece to give me room. The lower dash is made of three plastic trim pieces - under the steering wheel, the center part, and the glove compartment. The part of the center trim piece next to the steering wheel is connected to a lot of pieces and is not easily freed. The bottom right of the center trim piece is easily loosened by a gentle tug under the corner as seen in the picture.

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Here's where the fun begins. So the red part of the wire is exposed right under the dash once you remove the center trim piece a few steps ago. This picture is taken as I'm lying on the floor of the passenger foot well. As you can see in this picture, the wire is in a plastic clip right above the red part and then it runs parallel to the dash edge before connecting to a harness that is under the wires seen in this photo. If you put the two USB parts side by side you will have an idea of where the blue harness is by following the length of the wire. You can easily free the wire from the plastic clip by the red marker, so at this point the only thing connected is the blue harness.

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I laid down on the passenger side of the front row to get the best access to the harness where my head was resting where a passenger's feet would be and I'm looking up to the right. Tugging gently on the center trim piece to give me some room with my left hand, I used my phone's light and laid it beside my head and grabbed the harness with my right hand. You can easily move the other wires out of the way and you will see the blue harness. It is connected to a silver part where there are 3 harnesses or so side by side, and at this orientation it is the right-most plug (towards the driver side). If you look at your new plug, you will see there's a plastic clip on the side where you want to depress the top part to free things up (reference the first picture). If I had smaller hands this part would have been much easier but eventually I got it freed.

After the old piece is removed then you are home free. Insert the blue harness from the new part back into the now open plug (make sure you study the orientation of the harness before removing it- the clip part should be facing away from you). Then run the wire back under the plastic dash and insert the wire back into the plastic clip by the red marker.

Then pop the corner of the center dash trim piece back into place and connect the white harness and the USB harness back into place (there's a yellow TOP sticker to help with orientation). Be sure to reconnect the 12V power adapter harness as well. Grab the center trim piece and pop it back into place by pushing where the four white clips are. Put the 10 mm bolt back in then the felt cover, and pop the two plastic clips on each side.

Hopefully I will have no more Carplay issues now. If you are as frustrated with the intermittent dropping and the dealer as I was, hopefully this will be helpful to somebody!
 
#8 ·
Thank you for the great write up and detailed post on this. I have this issue. The car spend 5 days at the dealer and after multiple calls 'they could not find anything wrong'. It is now to the point that I can't use the port. I'm also concerned about how they will go about replacing it. So, this is a great post. I will give it a try myself.

Thanks again for posting!
 
#10 ·
Glad to help!

I don't think Hyundai has a USB-C port yet that would replace this--but I do wonder if they change it in future model years if it would be retroactive--I imagine so.

The replacement part to me seemed identical in quality and build to the OEM part. TIme will tell if it's better. I wonder if there was a bad batch as plenty of people have not had the issue.

I don't think it could be relocated easily. The center USB part is a cylinder with a plug on the end, so the construction is completely different. I agree though it would make more sense in the future for the entertainment USB to be between the two seats.
 
#15 ·
The connections were tight. My guess is there may be a bad wire or internal connection. So far so good.
 
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#17 ·
I ordered one from there yesterday. Looks like it will be coming from Miami. I think shipping was $5 to arrive around December 9. From calling around yesterday, most of these places are dealerships that don't have them in stock but can get them within a few days. That is probably why they say they will ship in 2 to 4 days.
 
#20 ·
Definitely agree it gets worse over time. So far so good for mine over the weekend after making the change.
 
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#22 ·
FYI, everyone I fixed this issue by just disconnecting the USB harness (both connectors) and applying a tiny bit of noalox conductive grease to the pins (you could try without the grease). Have not had the issue since. I assume it was a bad connection because it would drop out when using the heater in the car and the thermal expansion or heat cycling caused the bad connection. Also tapping the center console could cause it to drop out.
 
#23 ·
That's interesting. It worked best for me when the temperature was moderate and now that I am using the heat, I am having the issue more often again like I did in the summer. I'll give that a try tomorrow since the part won't arrive until next week. I can give it a week long test to see how this goes and then decide what I want to do with the part.
 
#28 ·
Once again I want to thank Hodog16 for this excellent write up/guide. I finally took my harness off today and your instructions were right on. I had the intent to try Noalox paste first on the connections and report back on results but after taking the harness off, I don't see the benefit of using the paste. The only connection it could potentially improve is the power one and I don't believe that's the issue. I thing it is a defect with the USB-A micro board (picture attached)

I have purchase the OEM hardness and will replace it. I will report back in a couple of weeks if issue is resolved

Hodog16, any connection issues since your replacement?

Thanks again

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#30 ·
Glad to help! So far so good with daily driving. Working great.
 
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#29 · (Edited)
I am still good with just the Noalox. I put it on on November 24 and have driven the Ioniq quite a bit since then and have not had it drop once. I am not sure why it works either but my results are pretty undeniable so far. It hasn't worked for this long since the first two weeks I had the car. I bought the harness but they said I could bring it back if I don't open it which I plan on doing. It is possible that there are multiple issues going on here too so some people might need to replace the harness.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Noalox seems to be optimized for aluminum, but it probably does not matter that much. I think any dielectric grease (e.g. search Amazon) would help if there is a corrosion problem (oxidation). I routinely use Dow Corning 4, but it might not be readily available, or available in a small tube. It feels like these greases are "conductive", but they are actually insulators. The main purpose is to block moist air from oxidizing the metal of the contacts of the connectors. If you get into a situation where a connector problem is solved by dielectric grease, it really does feel a bit like magic.
 
#34 ·
Seeking the wisdom of the forum, after waiting a week for my part (USB hardness), I just received notification from dealer the Hyundai cancelled the order. I call them...they had no reason/explanation, just 'order was cancelled by Hyundai'
I have the old hardness out and ready to put a new one in

Any thoughts on how I can get this part other than randomly calling dealers...?
 
#35 ·
When I ordered mine it did not sound like it was a hard part to get. I would call a random dealer (like Lakeland where I ordered mine) and ask the parts person how many are in inventory—they will tell you if it’s backordered now which may be the only explanation why they would cancel it.