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BMW 3-Series and 4-Series Forum (F30 / F32) | F30POST > Technical Forums > F30 DIYs and Coding Discussions > DIY: Illuminated LCI AC/radio trim retrofit
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      11-20-2018, 03:50 PM   #815
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Elliott19864 View Post
I bought it off eBay for £21 delivered

Cheaper for what I could make it for
, will take a look. Cheers
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      11-21-2018, 04:38 PM   #816
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Another happy customer here. My UK dealer got the fascia panel in a couple of days (£45) and I thank KTE for his excellent suggestion of an alternative and very cheap cable: https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=813
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      11-22-2018, 05:32 AM   #817
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KTE View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by KTE View Post
If I'm not mistaken those $55 cables are almost identical to JST female to 2x male connectors, except with 3 lines between them?

Wouldn't something like this work?

If I find the trim at a reasonable cost here in the UK I'll try this cable out first, can't find the harness cheap anywhere but China (slow delivery time). Otherwise it's under £40, which is almost the cost of the trim...

Ok, to confirm my suspicion any cable similar to the above will work with a very minor modification.

Was quite busy lately with a business trip so couldn't visit a BMW dealership as I really did want to piece this together my self (just for the satisfaction ). Gave the above cable a shot as it meant it was here on my return alongside my 8.8" screen and new dash trim . Had it failed, I would've detoured to BMW to/from work some point during this week.

Here's what I did...

As I had 2, I wasn't too worried about dismantling/exposing the 3 pin connectors (within female connector shells/covers).

So for the steps:
  1. Exposing/trimming the plastic to show 3 pin cables (essentially labelled as male now)

    I simply used scissors to cut along the edge, use whatever method you are comfortable with to 'crack' open the case/shell without damaging the pins!


    You will only need to do this twice, each per "female" connector shell.

  2. Plugging in 3 pin cables into existing cabling





    As you can see, the male connector provided slots in perfectly into the female connector shown below. This is why we did not need to alter this as mentioned above.



  3. Watch your LCI dash trim light up alongside the cup holder







[SIZE="3"]NOTE: This is something I did without much research, so as usual as written across the forum, the above is merely for educational purposes and if you undertake/follow the above you do so at your own risk!

If anyone has reason to believe the above setup can cause problems, do let me know of your concerns and I will amend pics/info accordingly.

For something that cost £2.29 delivered next day, I found it a very good find and wanted to share, as eBay is full of "official BMW" cables made similarly for £40, so if this helps someone then great .
[/SIZE]
Do you have a link to this lead?
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      11-22-2018, 05:48 AM   #818
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Len_Beach View Post
Do you have a link to this lead?
Try the fourth line of your unnecessarily long quote. I also used this and the seller is a first-class guy.

If you can't work this link, go back to the original post here:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=810
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      11-22-2018, 07:01 AM   #819
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I'm using the app so can't edit quotes so I'd suggest feeding back appropriately on the usability.

Thanks for the link.
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      11-23-2018, 04:39 PM   #820
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cjn View Post
Another happy customer here. My UK dealer got the fascia panel in a couple of days (£45) and I thank KTE for his excellent suggestion of an alternative and very cheap cable: https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=813
Glad to hear others got it working, my thinking was that money could be spent on another mod instead


Quote:
Originally Posted by Len_Beach View Post
Do you have a link to this lead?
The one I bought:

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?m...2F173183792577

Although any similar lead schematics should work.

Last edited by KTE; 11-23-2018 at 05:50 PM..
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      11-25-2018, 05:05 AM   #821
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I received my £1.89 Y connector yesterday and tried it out. It works a treat.

The male fits into the BMW female perfectly. With the females, pry off the outer sheath of the connector to reveal the body of the connector and exposing the pins. These then fit perfectly into the BMW males perfectly.

A little insulation tape around each will ensure they all remain in place. Top stuff.
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      11-27-2018, 05:14 AM   #822
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I order a Y cable from ebay (£30) and the trim from BMW (£34) yesterday. Should all be here Monday

There was loads of Y cables for around £1/£2 from china, which are probably spot on but I didn't have the balls to risk it lol.
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      11-27-2018, 05:24 AM   #823
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If anyone’s interested, I have the LCI trim panel and Y cable available for sale out of my F36.

Also got the LCI AC panel with white/orange illumination.

(uk)
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      11-27-2018, 02:28 PM   #824
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I've just retrofitted the LCI climate control panel including stereo and climate display.

I already have IHKA3 so just need to code the colour change.

I'm planning a software update at an independent in a few weeks. Can I leave the old panel installed for this or does the original need to be fitted?
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      11-28-2018, 12:11 AM   #825
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Thic F30 posted an install YouTube video this past weekend.

Enjoy!

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      01-03-2019, 11:44 AM   #826
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Good lamp https://www.ebay.fr/itm/170653859724...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT/
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      01-05-2019, 07:31 PM   #827
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Did mine. For such a small change it looks worlds different!
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      01-10-2019, 05:53 PM   #828
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Wait in my 2018 340i I have ambient lighting around the hvac unit on the center console? Didnt even notice
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      01-11-2019, 07:58 AM   #829
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Len_Beach View Post
I've just retrofitted the LCI climate control panel including stereo and climate display.

I already have IHKA3 so just need to code the colour change.

I'm planning a software update at an independent in a few weeks. Can I leave the old panel installed for this or does the original need to be fitted?
Len

I just did the retrofit and I made my own Y-cable.

Everything works but I find that the light around the trim appears to be more white then orange even though the other ambient lights are orange.

Do I need to code that it should be orange?

Thanks Tony
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      01-11-2019, 08:04 AM   #830
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Quote:
Originally Posted by _Tony_ View Post
Len

I just did the retrofit and I made my own Y-cable.

Everything works but I find that the light around the trim appears to be more white then orange even though the other ambient lights are orange.

Do I need to code that it should be orange?

Thanks Tony
Is it possible that there is a problem with your home-made cable? Try setting the lighting from Classic to Sport (assuming you have that option) and see what changes. Coding should not be the cause, if it's wired to the LED under the dash, above the cup holders, and should work in exactly the same way..
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      01-11-2019, 08:48 AM   #831
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Quote:
Originally Posted by _Tony_ View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Len_Beach View Post
I've just retrofitted the LCI climate control panel including stereo and climate display.

I already have IHKA3 so just need to code the colour change.

I'm planning a software update at an independent in a few weeks. Can I leave the old panel installed for this or does the original need to be fitted?
Len

I just did the retrofit and I made my own Y-cable.

Everything works but I find that the light around the trim appears to be more white then orange even though the other ambient lights are orange.

Do I need to code that it should be orange?

Thanks Tony
You do need to code to activate the transition between orange and white.

Roll the brightness dial up and down at night when the dash is orange and this should change the climate panel to orange.
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      01-14-2019, 12:48 PM   #832
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Found this one: Would I have to buy a Y-Wire Harness? https://ebay.us/P5dxDK
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      01-14-2019, 01:43 PM   #833
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Quote:
Originally Posted by xcviwp6 View Post
Found this one: Would I have to buy a Y-Wire Harness? https://ebay.us/P5dxDK
Seems like you don't need an adapter with this chinese aftermarket part.
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      01-20-2019, 11:06 AM   #834
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Does the complete LCI trim (incl radio and climate control buttons) fit on pre-LCI models using the Y cable harness?
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      01-20-2019, 11:12 AM   #835
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DraZziW View Post
Does the complete LCI trim (incl radio and climate control buttons) fit on pre-LCI models using the Y cable harness?
No, the Y-Cable only feeds the LEDs.
The LCI controls only work if you have IHKA3 Module, which was used from 03/2014 builds onwards.
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      01-21-2019, 03:26 PM   #836
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I did this mod tonight, jeez the radio/air con controls were PITA until I figured it out.
I have plastic trim tools which made the job pretty easy eventually.
Nice mod.
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