Always-live fuse on LCI F30?

bryanl0 · 11-06-2018, 04:09 PM

Hi guys,

I've looked all over and can't seem to find an answer so I'm starting a thread.

I'm trying to do a fusebox hardwire install on a Blackvue DR750 dashcam + Power Magic Pro on my 2016 328d.

A lot of threads recommend fuse 161 for BATT and 143 for ACC. But for my car, fuse 161 doesn't seem to stay on for more than 2 to 3 minutes after the engine is shut off (the power magic pro LED goes out and the dashcam shuts down). With the engine running, everything works just fine. On a side note, I gather that fuse 161 is supposed to be for the headlights, but I've pulled the fuse out and the headlights still work fine. So I'm quite confused.

Anyone who has done the job on an LCI car can point me in the right direction as far as which fuses are always live? Thanks in advance!

EDIT:
Turns out 161 IS always on and the reason the dashcam + PMP was not staying on was because I had the PMP set to switch off at 12.5V. Changed that setting to 12V and everything works fine now, although it is slightly concerning that the fuse drops below 12.5V without ignition...
Thank you to everyone who've provided input.

chhappy7 · 11-06-2018, 10:01 PM

Did you use an actual add a fuse or just wrap it around the teeth of the fuse?

bryanl0 · 11-06-2018, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chhappy7

Did you use an actual add a fuse or just wrap it around the teeth of the fuse?

I used add-a-fuse taps on both fuses. Standard size on 161 and mini on 143. Any ideas?

Thanks!

Billfitz · 11-07-2018, 08:04 AM

Leave the ignition off, open the hood, access the fuse box and open the cover, use a DMM to find a fuse that's powered. If you unlocked the car first that will power some fuses that will shut down after the car has been locked for ten minutes, so after opening the hood lock the car and let it sit for fifteen minutes before checking the fuses.

chhappy7 · 11-07-2018, 11:06 AM

I have a Blackvue DR490L-2CH, so settings may be different, but in my 2015 328i, I have it hooked to 161/143. But I do have the ground hooked up to the grounding in the battery compartment.

bryanl0 · 11-07-2018, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billfitz

Leave the ignition off, open the hood, access the fuse box and open the cover, use a DMM to find a fuse that's powered. If you unlocked the car first that will power some fuses that will shut down after the car has been locked for ten minutes, so after opening the hood lock the car and let it sit for fifteen minutes before checking the fuses.

Sorry I should have specified I’m looking for a live fuse in the trunk as that’s where I plan to leave the power magic pro. Will do some more testing on the weekend but so far I haven’t found one that stays on for even 3 minutes after ignition is switched off. Might have to resort to an inline fuse holder directly to the battery...

Thanks for the tip.

bryanl0 · 11-07-2018, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chhappy7

I have a Blackvue DR490L-2CH, so settings may be different, but in my 2015 328i, I have it hooked to 161/143. But I do have the ground hooked up to the grounding in the battery compartment.

Yeah most of the people recommending 161/143 on here have got pre-LCI cars I think. They must have changed something with the LED headlights introduced on the LCI cars. I had 161 removed and my headlights still power on and work fine...

Cheers

chhappy7 · 11-07-2018, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bryanl0

Quote:

Originally Posted by chhappy7

I have a Blackvue DR490L-2CH, so settings may be different, but in my 2015 328i, I have it hooked to 161/143. But I do have the ground hooked up to the grounding in the battery compartment.

Yeah most of the people recommending 161/143 on here have got pre-LCI cars I think. They must have changed something with the LED headlights introduced on the LCI cars. I had 161 removed and my headlights still power on and work fine...

Cheers

I just did this past weekend, and iirc on the fuse diagram I think it showed 161 as like window symbol or something... I'll get back to you. Maybe you can find the same symbol fuse and try that out.

Billfitz · 11-07-2018, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bryanl0

Sorry I should have specified I’m looking for a live fuse in the trunk

Same procedure, different place. If there aren't any that stay live then a direct connection to the battery or perhaps the main input buss on the fuse box with an in-line fuse protected wire is the way to go, keeping as short as possible section of wire between the tapping point and the fuse.

bryanl0 · 12-04-2018, 01:15 PM

Thanks for the help everyone. I got it figured out. See OP edit for details.

Billfitz · 12-04-2018, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bryanl0

it is slightly concerning that the fuse drops below 12.5V without ignition...

That's approaching the point where you should have a battery maintainer. It's not just the camera sucking juice, there's a lot of stuff in the car that's never really 'off'.

bryanl0 · 12-04-2018, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billfitz

That's approaching the point where you should have a battery maintainer. It's not just the camera sucking juice, there's a lot of stuff in the car that's never really 'off'.

You're right. I'll hook up a trickle charger tonight and see how that goes. Weird thing is I've read plenty of posts of people getting a battery discharge warning on their iDrive; I've never gotten anything like that and the car starts fine every time

Billfitz · 12-05-2018, 07:44 AM

I've never gotten a warning either, but after the battery on my last car died at 30 months I've become very pro-active in the winter, as that's when I drive the least, while the drain on the battery is the highest. If it's going below freezing I plug it in if I'm not driving the next day. I'm less concerned about being able to start it than I am about the battery life, which is going to be a lot longer if the current the car uses when it's just sitting is provided by the maintainer instead of the battery.

bryanl0 · 12-07-2018, 05:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billfitz

I've never gotten a warning either, but after the battery on my last car died at 30 months I've become very pro-active in the winter, as that's when I drive the least, while the drain on the battery is the highest. If it's going below freezing I plug it in if I'm not driving the next day. I'm less concerned about being able to start it than I am about the battery life, which is going to be a lot longer if the current the car uses when it's just sitting is provided by the maintainer instead of the battery.

That's fair. I drive the car a good amount everyday so that'd be less of a concern for me. That said, I did plug it in the other night and charged it to full. But the dashcam still wouldn't stay on without ignition with the 12.5V cutoff setting. I'm thinking perhaps somehow the fuse doesn't get the full voltage from the battery? (I've taken a voltmeter directly to the battery before and it was definitely above 12.5V, even before I plugged in the trickle charger)

Billfitz · 12-08-2018, 08:22 AM

It's technically possible for the car to have circuitry that reduces the voltage to the fuse, but I doubt that it does. The more likely explanation is voltage drop that naturally occurs because of the resistance of the wire between the battery and the PMP. If the camera works with the setting at 12v and the voltage at the battery stays above 12.5v then I'd do that.

11-06-2018, 04:09 PM	#1
bryanl0 New Member 1 Rep 10 Posts Drives: 2016 328d xDrive Join Date: Nov 2018 Location: Vancouver, BC iTrader: (0)	Always-live fuse on LCI F30? Hi guys, I've looked all over and can't seem to find an answer so I'm starting a thread. I'm trying to do a fusebox hardwire install on a Blackvue DR750 dashcam + Power Magic Pro on my 2016 328d. A lot of threads recommend fuse 161 for BATT and 143 for ACC. But for my car, fuse 161 doesn't seem to stay on for more than 2 to 3 minutes after the engine is shut off (the power magic pro LED goes out and the dashcam shuts down). With the engine running, everything works just fine. On a side note, I gather that fuse 161 is supposed to be for the headlights, but I've pulled the fuse out and the headlights still work fine. So I'm quite confused. Anyone who has done the job on an LCI car can point me in the right direction as far as which fuses are always live? Thanks in advance! EDIT: Turns out 161 IS always on and the reason the dashcam + PMP was not staying on was because I had the PMP set to switch off at 12.5V. Changed that setting to 12V and everything works fine now, although it is slightly concerning that the fuse drops below 12.5V without ignition... Thank you to everyone who've provided input. Last edited by bryanl0; 12-04-2018 at 01:18 PM.. Reason: figured out the problem
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11-06-2018, 10:01 PM	#2
chhappy7 Major 519 Rep 1,171 Posts Drives: TBD Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: Hanover, NH iTrader: (0)	Did you use an actual add a fuse or just wrap it around the teeth of the fuse? __________________ 2020 X3 M40i 2015 328i - Sold @ 104,000 miles
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11-07-2018, 08:04 AM	#4
Billfitz Lieutenant General 8243 Rep 16,081 Posts Drives: '15 328iX GT Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: New Hampshire iTrader: (0)	Leave the ignition off, open the hood, access the fuse box and open the cover, use a DMM to find a fuse that's powered. If you unlocked the car first that will power some fuses that will shut down after the car has been locked for ten minutes, so after opening the hood lock the car and let it sit for fifteen minutes before checking the fuses.
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11-07-2018, 11:06 AM	#5
chhappy7 Major 519 Rep 1,171 Posts Drives: TBD Join Date: Mar 2018 Location: Hanover, NH iTrader: (0)	I have a Blackvue DR490L-2CH, so settings may be different, but in my 2015 328i, I have it hooked to 161/143. But I do have the ground hooked up to the grounding in the battery compartment. __________________ 2020 X3 M40i 2015 328i - Sold @ 104,000 miles
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12-04-2018, 01:15 PM	#10
bryanl0 New Member 1 Rep 10 Posts Drives: 2016 328d xDrive Join Date: Nov 2018 Location: Vancouver, BC iTrader: (0)	Resovled Thanks for the help everyone. I got it figured out. See OP edit for details.
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12-05-2018, 07:44 AM	#13
Billfitz Lieutenant General 8243 Rep 16,081 Posts Drives: '15 328iX GT Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: New Hampshire iTrader: (0)	I've never gotten a warning either, but after the battery on my last car died at 30 months I've become very pro-active in the winter, as that's when I drive the least, while the drain on the battery is the highest. If it's going below freezing I plug it in if I'm not driving the next day. I'm less concerned about being able to start it than I am about the battery life, which is going to be a lot longer if the current the car uses when it's just sitting is provided by the maintainer instead of the battery.
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12-08-2018, 08:22 AM	#15
Billfitz Lieutenant General 8243 Rep 16,081 Posts Drives: '15 328iX GT Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: New Hampshire iTrader: (0)	It's technically possible for the car to have circuitry that reduces the voltage to the fuse, but I doubt that it does. The more likely explanation is voltage drop that naturally occurs because of the resistance of the wire between the battery and the PMP. If the camera works with the setting at 12v and the voltage at the battery stays above 12.5v then I'd do that.
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