ATTENTION:

IMPORTANT - All
GENERAL MANAGER q Service Personnel
PARTS MANAGER q Should Read and
Initial in the boxes
CLAIMS PERSONNEL q provided, right.
SERVICE MANAGER q © 2015 Subaru of America, Inc. All rights reserved.

SERVICE BULLETIN
APPLICABILITY: 2014-15MY Forester Models with Clarion Audio NUMBER: 15-186-15R
SUBJECT: Reprogramming File Availability to Improve DATE: 09/08/15
Bluetooth Pairing REVISED: 02/19/20
INTRODUCTION:
This bulletin announces reprogramming file availability and a corresponding installation procedure
which will allow Bluetooth pairing to be completed successfully when using voice commands on the
Clarion audio units listed below. Pairing of phones using voice recognition is the preferred method
on these Clarion audio units. See bulletin 15-185-15 for additional details on using voice recognition
to pair phones to Clarion audio units. The procedure will involve downloading the applicable update
file from Subarunet then loading it onto a flash drive for installation.
APPLICABLE CLARION AUDIO UNITS:
CF605UL, CF625UM, CF646UH, CF735CH and CF746CH
The audio unit model number is displayed on the lower right of the faceplate as shown below.

SERVICE PROCEDURE / INFORMATION:

There have been reports of the Bluetooth pairing procedure not
starting after pressing the talk switch on the steering wheel.
To confirm if this bulletin applies, press the “Talk” switch on the
steering wheel and listen to the voice which will provide some basic
information, instructions and a list of options to select from.

Continued...
CAUTION: VEHICLE SERVICING PERFORMED BY UNTRAINED PERSONS COULD SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. IS
RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY TO THOSE PERSONS OR TO OTHERS. ISO 14001 COMPLIANT
Subaru Service Bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians ONLY. They ISO 14001 is the international standard for
are written to inform those technicians of conditions that may occur in some vehicles, excellence in Environmental Management
or to provide information that could assist in the proper servicing of the vehicle. Properly Systems. Please recycle or dispose of
trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know-how to automotive products in a manner that is friendly
do the job correctly and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that this to our environment and in accordance with all
Service Bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your vehicle will have that condition. local, state and federal laws and regulations.

Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 1

 • In some cases, a “SELECT LANGUAGE” screen may be displayed. Turn the Tune / Track
knob to scroll through available choices then press the Tune / Track knob again to select.

• After selecting the language, “Welcome!” is displayed. The unit should automatically
display the Setup / Pair Phone screen next.

• If the system automatically displays the Setup / Pair Phone screen, the procedure is
complete and reprogramming is not necessary.
• If the system does not automatically display the Setup / Pair Phone screen, the update files
to reprogram the audio unit will likely need to be installed.
Software Version Check / Reprogramming Procedure:
• Cycle the ignition off then back on.
• Without turning on the audio unit (blank / black screen), press and HOLD the TEXT button
while pressing the station preset buttons 5 & 6 simultaneously. The current software version
will be displayed as shown below, right.

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 2
 • If the 4th, 5th and 6th digits of the version ID number displayed are 504 as shown in the
photo above, the unit must be updated. If they are 505 or higher and the system does not
automatically display the BT SEL LANGUAGE screen, the audio unit will need to be
replaced with an exchange unit from Clarion.
VERY IMPORTANT: If an exchange is determined to be necessary, a detailed description of the
problem MUST be supplied in the space provided on the Exchange Form.
IF REPROGRAMMING IS REQUIRED:
Materials Required:
1 empty, USB 2.0 (do NOT use USB 3.0) storage device (flash drive) will be
needed to perform the update procedure. The device should be dedicated to storing
and transferring these updating files only. It must be a minimum of 2GB in size
and contain a FAT32 file format before downloading the update files onto it. The
following recommended and readily-available devices include: Verbatim® model#
97002, PQI® model# U273 and Kingston® model# DTSE9.
All the Clarion update files are accessible for downloading from Subarunet under: Service Operations
& Technical>>Forms /Downloads>>Gen 1 for Audio/Navi page then clicking on the following
hyperlink:

FACE PLATE ID NUMBER UPDATE SOFTWARE FILE NAME

CF605UL
470347605v087_MainMicom-USA-ML.mot
CF625UM
CF646UH
CF735CH 470347505v087_MainMicom-USA-H.mot
CF746CH

Click Here to Access the Downloads for Audio/Navigation Information on Subarunet

The Subarunet page shown above will display and contain links to the Clarion update files.
Prepare the USB Memory (flash drive)
VERY IMPORTANT: Before attempting to download any data files, confirm the PC and flash
drive you are using are not infected with any virus. The flash drive MUST be formatted for FAT32
following the steps below.
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Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 3
 USB Flash Drive Formatting Procedure:
• Install a flash drive into an available USB port on your PC.
• Click Start (this is located in the lower left corner of the desktop screen) then, in the Search
programs and files box, type “explorer”.

Start Button

NOTE: On SDS Notebook you may also press the My Documents button on the GUI Home Screen.
• As you type the word “explorer”, search results will start to appear. In the results, click on
the “Windows Explorer” option under the Programs section.

• In the next window, choose the Computer section on the left. Locate “Removable Disk”

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 4
 NOTE: Always confirm the device you are formatting is the USB Flash Drive. This drive may have
various names assigned to it by the manufacturer of the device and may not reflect the drive name
given in this example.
• Right click the picture for “Removable Disk” then select “Format”.

• When the “Format” dialog box appears, make sure the option labeled “File System” is set to
FAT32 and the Quick Format box is checked as well. Then, click the “Start” button.

• Click “OK” when the following window appears.

• The drive will start formatting and display this

window when it is finished. Click “OK” to
comcomplete the process.

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 5
 File Download Procedure:
Now that the flash drive has been formatted, the update file must be downloaded. Download the
update file to your PC from the Subarunet links. The screenshots below will take you through the
steps required to get the selected update file onto your flash drive and ready to use.

Double-click on the file you want to download

and it will begin the transfer to your computer
Downloading automatically.

You may receive the

warning below during the
file download. Click on the
drop down next to Discard
and Keep the file.

Once the download is complete, you will need to locate the update file, unzip it then save the
unzipped version to the USB flash drive. NOTE: If you have not already done so, follow the
procedure above for re-formatting (removing any existing files) your flash drive.
• Plug the freshly formatted USB flash drive into your computer.
• Go to your Windows Start screen, select “Computer” (or click on My Documents if you are
using the SDS Toughbook) then click on “Downloads”.

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 6
 SDS Toughbook screen shot

Once your list of downloaded files opens, locate and click on the downloaded update (in this
example, “470347605v087_MainMicom-USA-H.mot”) you are looking for. TIP: Click on Date
Modified and you can sort the downloaded files by the date they were added which will bring the
newest file to the top.

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Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 7
 • Double clicking the update file will bring up a dialogue box with a Security Warning. Click
on “Run” to continue.
• Click on “Browse”.

• As shown below, click on “Removable Disk” which is your USB flash drive where you want
the unzipped update file(s) to be saved. Click “OK” then click on “Unzip”.

• The update file will unzip and be saved to your flash drive.
• Confirm the update file (and flash drive) is ready to use by going back to Start > Computer
(or My Documents on the SDS Toughbook) and double clicking on “Removable Disk”
to display the drive’s contents as shown in the examples below. If OK, proceed with the
software installation procedure below.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
• Do not change the update file names after downloading them.
• Do not save any other version update files onto the same flash drive.

Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 8

 CAUTION: Confirm one last time the file on the USB flash drive and the head unit it will be
installed in match per the table below before installing it.
FACE PLATE ID
UPDATE SOFTWARE FILE NAME
NUMBER
CF605UL
470347605v087_MainMicom-USA-ML.mot
CF625UM
CF646UH
CF735CH 470347505v087_MainMicom-USA-H.mot
CF746CH

NOTE: Because of the time it takes to perform these updates, SOA recommends connecting the
Midtronics GR8 Diagnostic Battery Charger to the vehicle and utilizing the Power Supply Mode
feature when performing these updates. Once the GR8 is connected to the vehicle, as long as
the battery is fully charged, it takes less than 3 minutes to boot-up the charger, select the Power
Supply Mode, and have the vehicle’s battery voltage stabilized and ready for updating. VERY
IMPORTANT: This information is applicable to the Midtronics GR8 Diagnostic Battery Charger
ONLY. It does not apply to any other brand / type of “generic” battery charger whatsoever. ONLY
the GR8 and its Power Supply Mode feature has been tested and approved by Subaru of America, Inc.
(SOA). If the GR8 indicates the vehicle’s battery must be charged, charge the battery using the GR8
before proceeding to update the audio unit while using the Power Supply Mode.
Reprogramming Procedure:
NOTE: If a GR8 is unavailable, this reprogramming procedure can also be done with the engine
idling.
• Turn (or push) the ignition switch to “ACC ON” with the Radio switched OFF.
• Insert the USB drive into the USB port.

• Without turning on the audio unit (black screen), press the TEXT along with station preset
buttons 5 & 6 (press all 3 buttons) simultaneously. The current software version will be
displayed as shown below, right.

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 9
 • With the version ID displayed, press the CD/AUX button along with station preset buttons
5 & 6 (press all 3 buttons) simultaneously. The updating will start automatically.

• IMPORTANT: Do not remove the USB or turn the ignition off while software is updating.
The updating procedure will take approximately 8 minutes to complete.

1 2

3 4

• When the update completes, the system will reboot automatically. The display will go to an
Audio Off (black) screen.
• Once the screen goes black, switch the ignition OFF and remove the USB drive.
• Turn (or push) the ignition switch back to “ACC ON”.

Continued...
Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 10
 • Press and HOLD the TEXT button while pressing the station preset buttons 5 & 6
simultaneously. Confirm the software version is now M 347505V087.

○ If YES: the procedure is complete.

○ If NO: perform the software Reprogramming Procedure again.

WARRANTY / CLAIM INFORMATION:

For vehicles within the Basic New Car Limited Warranty period or covered by an active Subaru
Added Security Gold plan, this repair may be submitted using the following claim information:

LABOR FAIL LABOR

LABOR DESCRIPTION
OPERATION # CODE TIME

CLARION AUDIO UNIT BLUETOOTH PAIRING UPDATE A031-148 ZQT-48 0.6

REMINDER: SOA strongly discourages the printing and/or local storage of service information as
previously released information and electronic publications may be updated at any time.

Always refer to STIS for the latest service information before performing any repairs.

Bulletin Number: 15-186-15R; Revised: 02/19/20 Page 11