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      08-16-2019, 08:41 PM   #1
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Instrument Cluster suddenly stopped working

I have a 2014 BMW 320i and today its instrument cluster just stopped working. The car functions normally but I can't see speed, rpm, etc. It feels like complete loss of power to instrument cluster. I contacted the dealer to get fuse diagram because my owner's manual doesn't have that. However, to my surprise the dealer refused to give me the fuse diagram. I contacted the BMW north america customer support and they also said they don't have the information. So I checked all the fuses using multi-meter and they all seem to be fine.I do not know if it has any relation with high temperatures in our area for last few days (102+ degrees). Does any one know what the problem could be? Please excuse me if this was asked before. I did google search but did not find any specific info except may be blown fuse. Thanks in advance.
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      08-16-2019, 10:18 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BDD View Post
I have a 2014 BMW 320i and today its instrument cluster just stopped working. The car functions normally but I can't see speed, rpm, etc. It feels like complete loss of power to instrument cluster. I contacted the dealer to get fuse diagram because my owner's manual doesn't have that. However, to my surprise the dealer refused to give me the fuse diagram. I contacted the BMW north america customer support and they also said they don't have the information. So I checked all the fuses using multi-meter and they all seem to be fine.I do not know if it has any relation with high temperatures in our area for last few days (102+ degrees). Does any one know what the problem could be? Please excuse me if this was asked before. I did google search but did not find any specific info except may be blown fuse. Thanks in advance.
Without reading diagnostic codes, you really do not have a starting point.

Electronics do fail. Heat is the enemy of Electronics.

As someone once said, there is no such things as coincidence.
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      08-17-2019, 12:40 AM   #3
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I see you're in SJ. If you need a diagnostic tool to read codes, I have an OBD dongle and BimmerLink. I'm in the South Bay as well. Feel free to PM me.
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      08-17-2019, 04:59 AM   #4
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The fuse diagram is normally on or near the fuse-box itself. Dealers who say they don't have the information are A) just lazy or B) plain idiots. (My personal opinion )

The instrument cluster had a rating that goes from -40F up to 175F. Your cluster should be able to handle the 102F, but yes, heat does kill electronics.

Anyway, this is what ISTA says about the location:


This also correlates to the post found on this forum:
https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...19&postcount=5
As you can see in the link the cluster could also make use of fuses 121 and 155 which are located in the trunk/boot.

Like IK6SPEED said, if the fuses are good, get it to somebody who can read out the diagnostic codes.

Good luck!
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      08-17-2019, 10:10 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BMW_Mischa View Post
The fuse diagram is normally on or near the fuse-box itself. Dealers who say they don't have the information are A) just lazy or B) plain idiots. (My personal opinion )

The instrument cluster had a rating that goes from -40F up to 175F. Your cluster should be able to handle the 102F, but yes, heat does kill electronics.

As you can see in the link the cluster could also make use of fuses 121 and 155 which are located in the trunk/boot.

Like IK6SPEED said, if the fuses are good, get it to somebody who can read out the diagnostic codes.

Good luck!
Remember 102F was outside ambient temp. Not interior of car and temp of 6WA with sunlight heating up the dash even more.

Then again, constant exposure to high heat and then cooling cycles weakens electronics and "the weak link". Remember, these are not built to military or medical grade specs. These were built as a compromise between low cost and reliability as it's not a "mission critical" piece. Just one single part that passed which was on the edge of a spec needs to go to take the whole thing out.

So don't think I am saying all 6WA will fail at 102F ambient temp.

But there is no doubt that a few will.

Then again, perhaps OP set off nuclear device in their house and EMPs blew out the electronics. But using all available info, I'm more inclined to believe it's probably the heat given lack of diagnostic codes with no fuses blown.
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      08-17-2019, 11:01 AM   #6
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Many thanks. I will find someone to run diagnostics
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      08-17-2019, 11:03 AM   #7
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Thanks IK6SPEED
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      08-17-2019, 04:08 PM   #8
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Thanks to all who replied. I went to a local auto repair shop and the owner ran the diagnostics. In his first diagnostics, he got bunch of error codes that he said made no sense and so he ran it second times. The second run got following code
233004 PT CAN, Message(OBD sensor Diagnosis) Transmitter Kombi

He told me that he can't figure out what the error means from his database as BMW has not released the meaning of that code. So he said the whole module will have to be taken out and inspected. I am not sure yet if I want to do that. Does any one know what the error code 233004 means ?
Thanks in advance
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      08-17-2019, 04:13 PM   #9
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You need to find a bit of a better expert.
That error is pretty self-explanatory. There was no communication from cluster to whatever module sent that error.

There is no mention what module that error came from, which is pretty important.

Also, clearing the previous errors doesn't always do you any favors.

Was there connection at all with Kombi (instrument cluster)?

It's still likely that the power supply to cluster is not working.
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      08-17-2019, 05:05 PM   #10
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Try looking for a shop here www.bimrs.org and here www.bimmershops.com . Hopefully you can find a shop that has more up to date BMW information.
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      08-17-2019, 07:06 PM   #11
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I did not know if there was any connection to instrument cluster. He did not remove any cables and just attached his instrument to the port. I was watching from the side and had no idea why he decided to ignore the codes he got in first run until he told me that those codes make no sense.
Looks like I will need to take it to the dealer.
I asked on this forum first because I don't trust the BMW dealers in my area. They try to rip you off as much as they can.
Thanks a lot.
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      08-18-2019, 02:32 AM   #12
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My advise, contact jh_f30 since he offered it himself. Dealers are nice when you have warranty but they don't take the time (or aren't allowed), or have the knowledge to do real diagnostics. Find a real (BMW) specialist who cares about what he/she's doing.

Look for alternatives before going to a dealer you don't trust anyways.
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      08-18-2019, 07:05 PM   #13
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I had my instrument panel on my E92 die. Dealer replaced the entire panel under CPO. Fortunately, I have a dealer I trust (BMW of Reading (PA))
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      08-18-2019, 11:43 PM   #14
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wilbur_the_goose , thanks for the info. How much warranty instrument cluster comes with? I don't have exact mileage reading and I can't read my mileage now.
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      08-19-2019, 01:43 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BDD View Post
wilbur_the_goose , thanks for the info. How much warranty instrument cluster comes with? I don't have exact mileage reading and I can't read my mileage now.
4 year/50,000 Miles.

A 2014 would be pretty much be out of Factory Warranty now, regardless of miles.
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      08-25-2019, 03:00 PM   #16
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I am experiencing a similar situation, but my entire NBT does not turn on. Chimes and such are gone too. Tested every fuse, all is well except for fuse 155. Inchanged the fuse with 4 different fuses, no luck. What would cause that to not have a current?

TIA

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      08-26-2019, 04:02 AM   #17
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There's always the change that the NBT itself died... (or is missing :/ )

Fuse 155 is used in earlier production cars with navigation. Later production uses fuse 121.
Was F155 blown? If so, did the replacement fuse also blow?

Can you insert/eject a CD? Did you tried reading the fault codes?
If you really want to be sure the car is receiving power than you can always pull uit the unit en measure for power on the quadlock connector (pin 15, red/yellow if I'm not mistaken)
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      09-19-2019, 05:43 PM   #18
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Thanks to all those who replied to my post.
I took my car to a European car service shop and they found that my car battery voltage had dropped which caused series of internal fault codes.
They disconnected and reconnected the instrument cluster and it started working again.
They recommended that I change the battery and upgrade the software to avoid the problem happening again. I paid them to do both.
I understand changing battery but never understood how the software upgrade would reduce the likelyhood of problem coming back!.
Anyway, the reason I am posting my findings is that if some other BMW owner faces a similar problem in future they can take a look at their car battery in addition to fuse.
My car is 5 year old so I guess, it was time to change the battery but funny thing is I never had any car start-up problem. It always started for me in first attempt but internally there were several low voltage related error codes as per the mechanic!
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      09-19-2019, 06:23 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BDD View Post
Thanks to all those who replied to my post.
I took my car to a European car service shop and they found that my car battery voltage had dropped which caused series of internal fault codes.
They disconnected and reconnected the instrument cluster and it started working again.
They recommended that I change the battery and upgrade the software to avoid the problem happening again. I paid them to do both.
I understand changing battery but never understood how the software upgrade would reduce the likelyhood of problem coming back!.
Anyway, the reason I am posting my findings is that if some other BMW owner faces a similar problem in future they can take a look at their car battery in addition to fuse.
My car is 5 year old so I guess, it was time to change the battery but funny thing is I never had any car start-up problem. It always started for me in first attempt but internally there were several low voltage related error codes as per the mechanic!
To my knowledge, the electrical system prioritizes start-ups when the battery is in a low voltage situation, that way, instead of draining the battery to keep auxiliary systems running and leaving you stranded, it powers down the other stuff to make sure you can at least start the car and get to where you need to go.

Also, not sure if "upgrading the software" actually means registering the new battery, but that is something that should be done. Just do a search for "battery registration".
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      09-20-2019, 04:05 PM   #20
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jh_f30 , Thanks that explains why car continued to start when battery voltage dipped.

The software upgrade they recommended was complete software upgrade of all internal systems.I do not know how that is related to problem but I did it anyway. The battery registration was separate.
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