Acura 3G TL Navigation Modding: Custom Splash Screen, Trip Computer, and OK-Button Nag Removal

Confirm which navigation software you are running. The procedure below targets the orange v3.40c and v3.50 discs; v3.30f/3.30G are also confirmed. From the navigation disc, copy just two files into your working folder: BNHH401A.BIN and BN2HHMLD.BIN. All three modifications are stored inside BNHH401A.BIN; BN2HHMLD.BIN is only the loader. Download DumpNAVI, and keep CEBin and bysin.exe (Improved DumpNAVI) on hand as fallback repackers. Grab AngryDad's patches if you are on v3.50, or kennyc's pre-trimmed executables if you are on v3.40c (the archives use the password kennyc). Critical rule for the whole process: after any single mod is applied, carry that same updated BNHH401A.BIN forward into the next mod. If you pull a fresh copy off the disc between mods, you will discard the changes you already made.

Start from any picture you like and size it to 380x234 at 256 colours, then scale it to 480x234 so it stretches to fill the display. Convert it from RGB to indexed colour (in Photoshop this is Image > Mode > Indexed Color) and set the colours field to 173. Export it as an 8-bit bitmap named Back.bmp. Keep the file at or under 113,068 bytes (114,688 bytes on disk). A follow-up post pinned down the exact limits that prevent boot lag: BMP with no more than 256 colours, named Back.bmp, dimensions no larger than 480x234x256, no larger than 110 KB (113,068 bytes), and no larger than 112 KB (114,688 bytes) on disk. A splash image that violates any of these is the usual cause of a delay before the welcome screen appears.

Place DumpNAVI.exe, your Back.bmp, and BNHH401A.BIN together in one folder. Open a command prompt (Start > Run, type cmd), then switch to that folder using the drive letter and cd commands. Run: dumpnavi BNHH401A.BIN update Back.bmp. When it reports completion, the new boot image is embedded in the BIN. If you only wanted the wallpaper, skip ahead to the burning step; otherwise continue with the two executable patches, always using this now-modified BIN.

On v3.50, first unpack the firmware with: dumpnavi BNHH401A.BIN extract. This drops the contents into a folder named BNHH401A. Copy HMIManager.exe out to the folder holding AngryDad's trip computer patch, run the patch against it, then reinsert it with: dumpnavi BNHH401A.BIN update HMIManager.exe. On v3.40c, skip the patching: use kennyc's already-trimmed HMIManager.exe (archive password kennyc) and run only the update command. Optional extra noted by AngryDad: replacing diag.exe in the 401a firmware with the diag.exe from a 404a image exposes a trip-computer screen inside the diagnostic menu, where data can be logged to the card; holding Menu for about five seconds on that screen opens a trip-computer calibration menu.

The nag removal lives in navi.exe. On v3.50, you can extract only that file to avoid wading through the rest: dumpnavi BNHH401A.BIN extract navi.exe. Copy it to AngryDad's OK-button patch folder, run the patch, then run: dumpnavi BNHH401A.BIN update navi.exe. Be aware of a v3.50-specific snag: after patching, navi.exe is a few bytes larger than the original compressed slot, so DumpNAVI refuses the update (it reports the patched file at 3028352 bytes against the original 3028315 bytes). Two ways around it: substitute kennyc's trimmed v3.40c navi.exe, which fits, or repack with CEBin or bysin.exe, both of which accept an oversized replacement. On v3.40c, simply update the BIN with the trimmed navi.exe and no patching is needed.

When a patched executable overshoots the slot by more than roughly 1,500 bytes, hex-trimming is impractical and CEBin is the reliable path (this also covers v3.30f/3.30G owners who have no matching pre-trimmed file). Put CEBin, your target BIN, and the replacement files (Back.bmp, navi.exe, HMIManager.exe) in one folder. Create a plain text script listing the image and each replacement, for example: image BN2HH12C.BIN replaceFile navi.exe C:\navimod\navi.exe replaceFile Back.bmp C:\navimod\Back.bmp replaceFile HMIManager.exe C:\navimod\HMIManager.exe Substitute your own image BIN name (BN2HH12C.BIN corresponds to the v3.30f disc) and your own file paths. Then run: cebin yourfile.txt -s tempfile.bin.

Burn two files onto a blank CD-R: your modified firmware BIN and the BN2HHMLD.BIN loader. Both must be present; a disc carrying the firmware image by itself will be rejected. At the car, turn the ignition to ACC. Open the trunk, eject the navigation DVD if it is loaded, and insert your burned CD. The screen will throw a disc read error. Press and hold GUIDE, MENU, and CANCEL together for about five seconds to open the diagnostic menu, then give it another five seconds to finish loading. Touch the version button on screen, then press LOAD DISC to write your firmware into the unit. When it finishes and complains that it cannot read the navigation DVD, remove the burned CD and reinsert the original navigation disc.

If a load fails or the unit falls into an endless boot loop, it is fully recoverable. Put the original navigation DVD back in, hold GUIDE, MENU, and CANCEL for five seconds to reach the diagnostic menu, then use version followed by LOAD DISC to restore the factory firmware; this works even while the system is looping, and it leaves phone pairings, phone books, and radio presets intact. If the unit will not accept a disc at all, perform a hard power cycle: with the key removed, pull fuse No. 7 from under the dash, wait about five minutes, then refit it. Once everything is working, keep a safe backup of your finished custom BIN, since it holds your wallpaper, trip computer, and nag-removal changes all at once and would otherwise have to be rebuilt from scratch.