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      10-02-2014, 03:10 PM   #1
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Smile BMW M235i - My Progress Thread

As a new forum user from the UK, and a 'soon to be' BMW M235i owner, thought I'd start up my proper progress thread in preparation for the impending delivery of my new vehicle!

After some very unfortunate and unpleasant experiences with my BMW 125D M Sport (brand new factory build registered back in November 2012), including two full turbo replacements, a shattered track control arm, and a heck of a lot of complaining, BMW UK finally agreed to help get me into a new car this week!

I've gone for the car I've always absolutely loved the thought of, even before its release - the M235i. After having test driven one, I instantly fell in love. Managed to absolutely nail my local dealership to the floor on the price of a beautiful pre-built (non-registered) car they had ready for sale at the showroom, and I should hopefully be collecting it early next week! Full specs of the car below:

Model:
- BMW M235i (F22) in Melbourne Red Metallic
- Sport Automatic Transmission

Interior:
LCSW - Black Dakota Leather
4AD - Brushed Aluminium Trim
4DL - High-gloss Black Interior Trim Finisher

Extras:
Z0C - Visibility Package (Adaptive Xenons, High-beam Assist)
Z0D - Sun Protection Package
ZNP - Media Package - BMW Professional ('Pro-Nav')
2VF - Adaptive M Sport Suspension
430 - Ext. Mirrors, Folding, Auto Dimming
494 - Seat Heating (Front)
674 - Harmon Kardon - Hi-Fi


Other than my previous highly troublesome 125D, every car I've ever owned has been a bit of a project for me, my most notable being my very unique looking 8L shape Audi S3.
Naturally therefore, I have a few plans for my new M235i, hence my starting a progress thread. So far, the list consists of:
- Enhanced Bluetooth retrofit (Via E-Sys)
- Cruise Control retrofit (Parts installation and E-Sys)
- BMW M Performance front bumper/splitter
- BMW M Performance rear bumper/diffuser
- BMW M Performance door sill strips
- BMW M Performance black front kidney grille inserts
- Aftermarket full exhaust system (undecided on which to go for yet)
- Aftermarket alloys (again undecided on these so far, although the Rotiform IND keep catching my eye)
- Performance remap (again, undecided on whether to go for a bespoke custom map, or an off-the-shelf map from the likes of Revo)

I'll of course keep this thread up to date with how things are moving, and with pictures! Hopefully they'll be a fair few people interested to keep up with the project!

A couple of initial questions for all you F series owners out there as well:
- Can anyone recommend some decent polishes/waxes for the Melbourne Red Metallic? Seems like it could be a tricky colour to keep sparkling!
- Whilst the car comes with Pro-Nav (ZNP), Enhanced Bluetooth (6NS) was not fitted on the factory build. I've had Enhanced Bluetooth on my 125D, and it was incredibly useful, so it's something I'd be looking to code for sure. I'm aware that because the car has Pro-Nav, the necessary hardware already exists on the build, so I've managed to get hold of an ENET (RJ45) Lead, and a full copy of BMW E-SYS 3.25.3 with PSdZData 52.1 (token and pin sorted also). Being an IT Technician by trade, I'm fairly savvy with these sort of things generally, but BMW E-SYS is totally new to me. If anyone could give me some advice on making the simple coding change of 6NK to 6NS (Enhanced Bluetooth), that would be much appreciated!
- If anyone has any proper UK price/spec lists for the M Performance parts range (most specifically, the bumpers and bodywork), I would love to see these. I can't seem to find any pricing for the bodywork parts online. I'd also be keen on getting hold of some fitting guides too, if anyone has those?


I'll look forward to speaking with everyone in the coming months!

Last edited by lazyrhino; 10-26-2014 at 12:13 PM.. Reason: Modifications to plans
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      10-02-2014, 06:41 PM   #2
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What exactly is the 'sun protection package'? Why would you need this in the UK? I lived in Portland, Oregon and always thought the UK had similar gray and rainy climate. Never had the pleasure of going over there so forgive me if I am mistaken:-)
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      10-02-2014, 10:51 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KurtCrisco View Post
Can anyone recommend some decent polishes/waxes for the Melbourne Red Metallic? Seems like it could be a tricky colour to keep sparkling!
Collinite 845. Very durable and very easy to apply / clear. Found it on a few UK sites, so I know its available.

For depth, I hear good things about Dodo products. I would look for forums like autotopia and the like to get ideas of what is available locally.

Myself - I prefer Chemical Guys, Adam's VRT (I don't use his polishes, but VRT rocks), 1Z Einszett (all of it), and Meguiars is always safe.
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      10-03-2014, 01:20 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sstarrx3 View Post
What exactly is the 'sun protection package'? Why would you need this in the UK? I lived in Portland, Oregon and always thought the UK had similar gray and rainy climate. Never had the pleasure of going over there so forgive me if I am mistaken:-)
The Sun Protection package consists of a Grey Shade band across the windscreen, and mildly tinted glass in the rear windows to try and reduce glare for rear passengers in direct sunlight.
Generally speaking, our climates are similar yes, but when it's Sunny over here, the light is often very direct (believe it or not, I've got more sunburnt on one day at the beach in the UK than anywhere I've ever been abroad), so the package can be very useful for helping with light glare

Quote:
Originally Posted by hoppy6698 View Post
Collinite 845. Very durable and very easy to apply / clear. Found it on a few UK sites, so I know its available.

For depth, I hear good things about Dodo products. I would look for forums like autotopia and the like to get ideas of what is available locally.

Myself - I prefer Chemical Guys, Adam's VRT (I don't use his polishes, but VRT rocks), 1Z Einszett (all of it), and Meguiars is always safe.
Thanks for that advice on polishes, waxes etc., will definitely look into those. I've always sworn by Autoglym products, but never used them on such a bright red.

Last edited by lazyrhino; 10-03-2014 at 02:53 AM..
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      10-08-2014, 03:03 PM   #5
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Apologies I haven't posted any updates on here yet, but that's because I still haven't yet got behind the wheel of my new car!

BMW UK have unfortunately managed to make a complete hash of my supposed 'goodwill' credit, which is holding things up considerably! Fingers crossed for a collection this weekend!

In the meantime, my BMW ENET cable arrived today, and I've had a play with E-Sys this evening on my current F21 1-Series, and seem to have got the hang of some coding basics (adding/removing features at least)! Should hopefully be ready setup to add Enhanced Bluetooth as soon as I get the new car on that basis!

Will hope to be able to put up some photos of the new car over the weekend!
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      10-11-2014, 06:51 PM   #6
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Finally taken delivery of my M235i this Saturday!

So yesterday afternoon (Saturday 11th), after all the hassle and faffing around with BMW UK, I was finally able to pick up my new M235i from my local dealership!

Even though it's only been a few hours, so far I can safely say, I'm absolutely over the moon with it. The way the car drives is absolutely fantastic, seems even better with this one than the version I originally test drove before purchasing, but best of all, the noise is just to die for! I've attached a couple of pictures that I managed to snap whilst collecting it at the dealership - they're far from amazing, but will hope to take some proper ones over the next few days!

A couple of questions though that some of you may be able to answer:
- Initially, after being switched off and switched back on, the car was not saving any changes I made in IDrive. I believe it's now saving them, so put it down to potentially a lack of battery power (the dealer did warn me the battery was a little low upon collection), and suggested I took it for a drive to charge it a little.
- Despite not having Enhanced Bluetooth as a specified option, I can stream music via Bluetooth in full (including album art), pair multiple phones, and use a standard lightning cable to connect my iPhone for music playback. The only features of Enhanced Bluetooth that appear missing are the office functions i.e. Messages etc.
Does the Pro Nav therefore come with more functionality than I originally thought? I initially got hold of E-Sys in preparation to code Enhanced Bluetooth myself, but wondering if it's even worth doing now, considering I have most of the functions I needed already?

Will update this thread next with some proper photos! Any answers to the above are certainly appreciated!
Attached Images
    

Last edited by lazyrhino; 10-12-2014 at 01:01 PM.. Reason: Pictures hadn't uploaded from my phone, doh!
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      10-12-2014, 01:10 PM   #7
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So day two of owning my M235i, and still loving it of course! Had to amend the above post to make sure the photos showed, damn phone didn't upload them through the Bimmerpost app, so apologies for that!

Took her on a slightly longer run today, and did a sort of 'motorway eco driving' experiment, just to see what sort of mpg I could manage, and averaged 32mpg on both journeys - far better than I was expecting. Admittedly this was driving it in Eco Pro, but still, impressive for the size/power of that engine!

In continuation from the questions I posted yesterday...
- My car has now definitely continued saving my IDrive changes, so I'm fairly certain the battery life was the cause behind the saving data issue.
- Managed to code Enhanced Bluetooth in full this morning, and the only extra functionality I gained through doing this was the Office utility via Bluetooth, which seems to be working well for texts from my iPhone. Emails aren't working so far, but plan to have a play with this over the next few days.

I've also sent over my application to get signed up for my BMW ConnectedDrive stuff online. Tried calling them today to check the process and they said I'd done it correctly, and I should wait a couple of days for them to come back to me with my Username and Password.

Anyone used any of the web applications with ConnectedDrive yet? I'm interested in potentially setting up the iCloud access, would be really useful to me! If anyone has any experience using this, do let me know, would be keen to know what it's like!
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      10-12-2014, 01:46 PM   #8
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Looks good congrats!!
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      10-12-2014, 01:50 PM   #9
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Very nice,
It'll look even better when you replace the crappy std M235i diffuser with the M performance diffuser.
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      10-12-2014, 01:54 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com View Post
Looks good congrats!!
Thanks! Really loving it so far, such a fantastic engine.

Quote:
Originally Posted by bimmerfile View Post
Very nice,
It'll look even better when you replace the crappy std M235i diffuser with the M performance diffuser.
Absolutely, that's possibly the part I'm most looking forward to, combined with the M Performance Exhaust system!
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      10-13-2014, 05:05 PM   #11
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Unfortunately I haven't been able to get anymore decent pictures yet - the weather here is terrible at the moment, constant rain!

Anyway, a few more questions for the M235i aficionados out there:
- What do people think is the optimum/safest running in/breaking in procedure for the car? My dealer told me there was no specific running in period or process, but advised me to "be a little careful", but not to be too nice to the car either as that would be equally detrimental as ragging it from the off the whole time!
I ask because I was a bit of a child this evening, and managed to take it above 6.5k revs, and now I'm sitting here naturally worried I might have hurt my new car! Not a nice feeling!
- Are the side M badges (wing) supposed to be in the same "Smoked Grey" colour as the rear badge? These badges had originally been deleted on the build, so I got the dealer to re-apply them as a goodwill gesture, but the ones they've applied are in the bright silver/chrome. Surely this is incorrect, or am I going mad?

Any answers/comments or thoughts are of course much appreciated! Keen to know what people think!
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      10-13-2014, 05:11 PM   #12
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The break in period is 2,000 km, not exceeding 4,500 RPM and 160 km/h. During that time, vary the RPMs while driving. I changed gears every 10 to 15 minutes while cruising...

Source - My BMW delivery specialist at the Welt.

The side badges on mine are bright chrome accents.
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      10-13-2014, 05:15 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SmallTownBoy
The break in period is 2,000 km, not exceeding 4,500 RPM and 160 km/h. During that time, vary the RPMs while driving. I changed gears every 10 to 15 minutes while cruising...

Source - My BMW delivery specialist at the Welt.

The side badges on mine are bright chrome accents.
Hmmm, so could I potentially have caused any issues by taking it a little further than 4,500rpm? I'm worried now!
It's annoying, my dealer were adamant there wasn't a set running in period.

Ok maybe I'm wrong about the side accents as well then, maybe they are meant to be silver/chrome. Yours weren't re-applied I take it, they came on the factory build?
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      10-13-2014, 05:22 PM   #14
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Can't speak to whether you've done any damage; might depend on how long you revved it, engine temp, etc...

My side badges are factory stock.
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      10-13-2014, 05:32 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SmallTownBoy
Can't speak to whether you've done any damage; might depend on how long you revved it, engine temp, etc...

My side badges are factory stock.
It was only momentary, up to nearly the limit before the car automatically shifted up of course, so hardly a severe length of time. Still worrying me though!

All these Motorsport/tuning professionals though always advise a far harsher break in with new cars, to bed the parts in properly. They say that an easy break in actually causes more damage than driving it hard? Supposedly, the piston rings need to be broken in quickly, and the slow break in process can cause potential long term leaks, through poor initial seating?
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      10-13-2014, 05:36 PM   #16
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Opinions vary on this site. Many say don't bother, whether or not you're keeping the car longer term.

For me, I should think that BMW would hardly recommend a break-in regimen that jeopardized the car's performance and/or could create a warranty claim.
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      10-13-2014, 05:45 PM   #17
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The break in procedure is right in the manual. It also says you can gradually use more power as you get closer to the 1200 miles. Personally after 600 Miles I have done a couple of gradual full throttles. I cant see how that's going to hurt it. If something was going to happen it would have already and If something is going to happen I want it to right now.
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      10-13-2014, 06:07 PM   #18
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I wouldn't worry about momentarily going over 4,500rpm. I went all the way to redline at about 1,100km and the car is still fine at 10,000km.
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      10-14-2014, 02:30 AM   #19
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Thanks for all the comments, some very helpful information. Will try not to worry about it too much!

Furthermore, I seem to have discovered an issue this morning - my fuel gauge needle is no longer lighting up in the "daytime dash mode", where everything is white as opposed to orange. In the night mode, where everything is orange, it illuminates just fine
I could have sworn it used to illuminate in the day mode too, it's almost invisible now! Am I going crazy or should it be lighting up?
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      10-26-2014, 02:24 PM   #20
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Thumbs up Progress update, with Cruise Control retrofit instructions

Right, time for a proper update to my thread, as things are certainly moving along nicely now!

First things first, just to clear up on a few of the questions I'd posted previously:
- Side M Badge Accents: As you may have spotted my mentioning of this before, having investigated this at length (and checking out some other M235i/M135i cars at my local dealership), I was able to confirm that, the side accents that had been fitted to my car were indeed wrong! They're not meant to be bright chrome, they're supposed to match the 'Smoked Grey' colour of the boot badge! I raised this with the dealership, and after showing them the evidence, they agreed that the badges fitted were indeed wrong. For some reason though, their parts search was only bringing up the badges in bright chrome for the car, none in the smoked grey. The situation looked as though I might either have to leave the current badges applied, or just go without, but after a week or so of my dealership doing some digging however, they did fortunately manage to find the correct part number, but listed under only one model of car - the current shape X5 M Sport. These were then ordered and fitted yesterday (26/10/2014), so I'm pleased that's now resolved!
- Fuel Gauge Needle Illumination: So to summarise here, I'm a muppet. The needle never lit up in daylight, since new, and I was just imagining it. My genius astounds me.

But as an update on how things are moving forward, I've now managed to check two things off of my original list:
- Enhanced Bluetooth retrofit (Via E-Sys)
- Cruise Control retrofit (Parts installation and E-Sys)

I completed the Cruise Control retrofit myself yesterday, despite being told by BMW it wasn't possible! You should never say never, because I now have full Cruise Control (with Brake) function installed and running in my M235i, which previously only had the speed limiter function available! The process was in fact fairly straightforward, so for anyone else who wants to have a crack at it...


Parts
For the install, you'll only realistically need two parts from BMW - the new switches themselves, and possibly the screws that are used to apply them (I ordered these as a 'just in case I lost any' fallback, but didn't end up using them). There are actually two different versions of the switches - a set for post 03/2014 cars, and pre 03/2014 cars:
http://realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?...92&hg=61&fg=35

As my car is a post 03/2014 build, it required the slightly newer switch version, but I've listed both switch part numbers below:
Switch Unit (Up to 03/2014) - 61317849407
Switch Unit (From 03/2014) - 61317849411
Screws - 32307848333

So here are the parts I ordered below:



The parts, altogether, set me back a grand total of £185.11 - many thanks to Cotswold BMW (Cheltenham) for your generous discount!


Tools
Very few tools are actually required for the job, although, it's important to remember that physically fitting the new switches is just one part of the process - in order to actually make them functional, they must be coded to the car using E-Sys. If you don't have E-Sys, or aren't sure how to use it at all, I advise asking someone else to help you code the car!

You'll need:
- A T20 Torx screwdriver or equivalent bit set
- A very small flat head screwdriver
- 16mm socket and ratchet (preferrably with some decent leverage)
- A computer running E-Sys to code the new switches (no Token is required, as only VO coding is involved)


Step 1
As the process of fitting the new switches requires the removal of the driver airbag, and ultimately the steering wheel, it's VERY IMPORTANT to disconnect the battery as a safety precaution (not doing this could result in some serious injuries).
So, first things first, disconnect the negative battery terminal, see picture below. I advise putting at least one of your rear seats down, just in case the boot somehow shuts, because if it does with that battery still disconnected, you won't be getting it open again very easily!


Step 2
A. Firstly the airbag needs to be released or 'unlocked' from the steering wheel. Locate the two opening holes on the underside of the steering wheel (on either side), and using a long and fairly flat ended implement (i.e. your T20 screwdriver or key), push firmly upwards into these. You might have to move the tool around a bit until you find the right angle, but when you're pushing it in the right direction, you should feel a 'spring like' resistance - these are the airbag release clips.


B. Once you push the clip in the right direction against the spring, the airbag should pop forwards out of its mounting automatically.


C. Repeat this for both sides, and the airbag should come free. The first side is always easier than the second, as the second takes all of the weight once the first side is released. Have a hand ready to catch the airbag as it loosens, as I'm sure you don't want to scratch that steering wheel!


D. Once the airbag has come free, you'll need to disconnect it. Remove the clip shown in the photo below.
E. As the steering wheel is going to be removed next as well, be sure to remove the other electrical connector to the right of the airbag connector, as otherwise this will snag when trying to remove the wheel. You may need to use your small flat screwdriver to help loosen this clip.


Step 3
A. Next the steering wheel needs to be removed. Removing the airbag will have revealed the central bolt that connects the wheel to the steering column. Use your 16mm socket to undo this bolt.


B. Remove the bolt securing the wheel once fully unscrewed, but be sure to hold the wheel in place, to stop it from falling.


C. The wheel is now free to be removed. Be sure to take a photo, or mark where the wheel sat initially in terms of the notches on the thread/seat of the steering column. If you do not do this, your steering wheel may end up misaligned when refitting it later! When ready, remove the steering wheel.



Step 4
A. On the lower underside of the wheel, remove the T20 screw.


B. With the wheel facing towards you, remove the T20 screws on the inside of the wheel, either side of each button cluster (silver screws).


C. The front facia of the wheel is now ready to be removed. Carefully free the plastic clips holding it in place, and it should lift free. There are 3 on the top part of the ring, two on either side of the lower half of the ring, and two either side of the lower spoke towards the bottom M Badge. Be VERY careful undoing the clips, as otherwise, a replacement facia will be needed!


Once the facia is removed, your wheel should look like this:


Step 5
NOTE - I advise completing the removal of the switches illustrated in this step one side at a time, so as to ensure you've got enough free hands to hold/support loose parts! Furthermore, this step illustrates the process used for a steering wheel with paddle shifters. The method may vary for vehicles with a manual transmission (more than likely just skip section A.).
A. Remove the T20 screws from either side of the inside of the wheel just below the switch panels, which release the paddle shifters.


B. Lifting the paddle shifters off the back of the wheel will reveal the T20 screws that secure the switch panels you are replacing. Remove these screws to release the switch panels. You can disconnect the cables for the paddle shifters if you wish and remove these, however this is not necessary to complete the install.


Step 6
A. The switch panels on either side should now be free, and should fall away from the wheel easily. Lift the right hand side one gently, as this houses the connector that needs to be removed next.


B. Remove the cable connector from the back of the right hand side switch panel. This connector was quite stiff for me, and took some force to remove. Be careful.


C. Remove the earth cable (brown), by lifting the spade connector from its contact. This gives you the room you need to remove the switches and their bridge cable.


D. Remove both switches, carefully freeing the bridge cable connecting them from its housing around the bottom of the steering wheel centre. Take a picture of how the cable was threaded if you wish, to make it easier when threading the new bridge cable into the wheel.


Step 7
A. Firstly, connect the cable connector you removed in Step 6, B. to your new switches, and then place them in their mounting positions either side (leaving the bridge cable free initially), and secure them by reinserting their T20 fixing screws that you removed in Step 5, B. (on the underside of the wheel). Next, thread the bridge cable carefully back into place, making sure it's out of the way as the previous one was. Be sure to remember to reconnect the earth cable you removed earlier too (Step 6, C.).


B. Reposition the paddle shifters (if applicable), and then secure these by reinstalling the T20 screws you removed in Step 5, A.
Next, reinstall the facia you removed in Step 4, by clipping it back into place first, and then re-adding the two T20 screws either side (Step 4, B.), and the one T20 screw the lower underside of the wheel (Step 4, A.).


C. Reinstall the steering wheel by reversing the instructions from Steps 2 & 3. Be sure to remember to align your wheel correctly, according to the picture/record you took before you removed it, and to reconnect all relevant cable clips. Make sure the steering column bolt is done up tightly too. The airbag should simply push/clip back into place - you do not need any tools for this. Before you install the airbag, make sure all wires are tucked reasonably well away, to avoid any snags or breakages! Lastly, reconnect your battery. Once complete, give yourself a pat on the back, and observe your newly installed Cruise Control switches!


Step 8
Last, but by all means not least, you need to code the car to allow the usage of the new switches, and ultimately enable Cruise Control to operate successfully.
Prior to coding the car, the LIM button will still work as normal, and you won't see any IDrive or dash errors, so you don't have to do the coding immediately if you don't want to.
WARNING - If you do not understand the below terminology, or are unfamiliar with E-Sys, get someone else to do it for you. Mistakes could be costly, and result in a car that won't even start!

Once you're ready to go, get yourself connected up to E-Sys (with the car running on idle of course), and add option 544 to the FA. Once you've done this, you'll need to VO code the new FA to the below ECU trees:
- FEM_BODY
- ICM
- KOMBI


Whilst coding, my IDrive showed me a few errors, one of which was a DSC error, asking me to take the car for immediate service. As alarming as these may be, ignore them, and proceed. They'll be gone once you restart the car.

When the coding is completed (with no errors), you should have some working Cruise Control buttons. Restart your car, and you should end up with something like this:


Take her out for a test drive, and enjoy your newly retrofitted Cruise Control with Brake functionality!


I'll be sure to keep adding more updates as and when anything else moves forward, but that's all for now! Hopefully the above guide is helpful too!

Last edited by lazyrhino; 02-19-2017 at 06:23 AM.. Reason: Updated picture URLs
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      11-22-2014, 11:04 AM   #21
lazyrhino
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Time for another update! As anyone viewing other threads on here may have spotted, I had a couple of unfortunate issues with the car over the last week and a half or so. I managed to end up with a nasty stone chip in the main roof panel on the car that went right back to bare metal (no idea how mind you), and also, a nice car parking/trolley dent in my passenger door! Wonderful!
Of course this upset my car OCD something fierce, so I set about repairing these issues! (See original thread here - http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1058972)

I was pretty much able to resolve things to a standard I'm happy with. I ended up repairing the chip myself with touch up paint and touch up clear coat, before polishing the whole lot back in to match the rest of the paintwork. It took a couple of attempts, but I'm pretty pleased with the results.

Before:


After (At a glance):


After (Close up):


Frankly, I don't have a camera powerful enough to actually make out the chip well enough - auto focus certainly seems to struggle to find it! Ultimately though, I'm pretty happy. To the untrained eye, it's near enough invisible. Only someone with a keen detailing eye would be able to catch it I reckon.

Furthermore, with regard to the dent I'd managed to pick up in my passenger door - I took it over to a place near me that I'd heard great things about before one evening after work, called Dent Rewind.
In less than an hour, they had the dent fully removed - good as new. I'd always been sceptical about PDR (Paintless dent removal), but to say I'm converted would be an understatement. The engineer was forced to use the Glue Pulling method as he couldn't get far enough inside the panel to push it out, but the finish is spectacular. He even gave the whole panel a proper machine polish for me, all for an incredibly reasonable price!
For anyone UK based, I would highly recommend their services - http://www.dentrewind.co.uk

Through all of this however, I've ended up tempted by something that was originally another solution - wrapping the roof. Personally, I think the roof would look fantastic in black, but I'm a little nervous about doing it as I've never had a panel wrapped before.
Suppose I'm concerned about potential later issues when trying to remove the wrap, or potential damage to the paintwork when the wrap is applied.

Any comments from anyone who's had a wrap done?

Last edited by lazyrhino; 02-19-2017 at 06:27 AM.. Reason: Updated Picture URLs
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      11-22-2014, 12:22 PM   #22
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I don't have a full panel or roof wrap but I have racing stripes on my MINI. It's not as "reversible" as people say it is because of weathering of the paint. I had a section of the stripes that were damaged and had to be replaced. When the vinyl was removed there was a very clear shadow effect where they had been. That is, that section had not been exposed to the sun and other environmental contaminants and it was obvious. If you wrap the roof and decided in a couple of years that you wanted to take it off, it's likely that your roof would be a slightly (but noticeably) different shade than the rest of the car. At least that was my experience with the stripes which are the same material that would be used in a full wrap.
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