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      01-16-2022, 09:58 AM   #287
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fizzius View Post
So how do you find out where your ATM telematics unit is? I have a 2016 340i msport that has a build date if 2015/8.
Fold down your rear seats and flip up the trunk floor while sitting in the back. You'll see a large fuse box on the passenger side. If you have a TCB it will be next to it on the driver side trunk floor. If not, you have a TCB2, and it will be up in the roof attached to the shark fin.
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      01-16-2022, 10:13 AM   #288
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sspade View Post
Just got off the phone with BMWNA and they confirmed that my 2016 320i is equipped with NBT Evo ID 4.2.

They also confirmed what I already knew (via letter) that my vehicle is not eligible for the upgrade(s) needed to keep ConnectedDrive services active.

Also interesting to note, they did specifically mention aftermarket options being a possibility.

Anyone have insight on the easiest way (preferably software) to upgrade an NBT Evo ID 4.2 headunit to add functionalities including keeping ConnectedDrive operating?
I just want to address some misinformation in this thread in the hopes that others don't use it with their dealership or BMWNA and end up putting their foot in their mouth like me.

NBTEvo is not the ONLY hardware requirement to be eligible for the telematics hardware retrofit BMW is offering. To be eligible, your car needs to be equipped with NBTEvo and a 4G ATM (telematics unit). There is a small population of vehicles equipped with NBTEvo and 3G ATMs (ask me how I know!). BMW is not offering an upgrade path for 3G equipped cars and is deactivating all 3G ATMs next month and removing/blacklisting all associated VINs in their Connected Drive database.

For the ATM, simply go look if the model # on your ATM (mine was in my trunk). If it references 4G you are eligible, if it references 3G you are SOL.

Professional Nav vs. EntryNav vs. the base HU might also be a requirement but I did not have that issue.

One tried and true DIY retrofit path exists to keep all services, which I have PMed you about
To clarify, the cars that were delivered with ID4 NBT EVO were delivered with either a TCB (3G), or a TCB2 (4G). The cars delivered with a TCB2 are eligible for a hardware upgrade that swaps the TCB2 for an ATM. The physical wiring used for the TCB is different than the wiring used for both the TCB2 and ATM, which use the same (OABR/Ethernet).

I've found the tech document linked below to be very helpful. The relevant information starts on page 21. It specifies which models have a TCB vs TCB2.

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/at...8;d=1441950445
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      01-16-2022, 06:53 PM   #289
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Quote:
Originally Posted by joesid View Post
Fold down your rear seats and flip up the trunk floor while sitting in the back. You'll see a large fuse box on the passenger side. If you have a TCB it will be next to it on the driver side trunk floor. If not, you have a TCB2, and it will be up in the roof attached to the shark fin.
Ok trying to do this from my phone. Here is what my trunk looks like. Don’t see the TCB you mention so assuming it is in the roof and therefore eligible for the upgrade.

https://flic.kr/p/2mXF93X


Last edited by Fizzius; 01-16-2022 at 07:37 PM..
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      01-17-2022, 01:43 PM   #290
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fizzius View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by joesid View Post
Fold down your rear seats and flip up the trunk floor while sitting in the back. You'll see a large fuse box on the passenger side. If you have a TCB it will be next to it on the driver side trunk floor. If not, you have a TCB2, and it will be up in the roof attached to the shark fin.
Ok trying to do this from my phone. Here is what my trunk looks like. Don’t see the TCB you mention so assuming it is in the roof and therefore eligible for the upgrade.

https://flic.kr/p/2mXF93X

You're correct! It would be in that spot to the right. Your car *should* be eligible.
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      01-17-2022, 02:27 PM   #291
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Has anyone looking into a DIY to upgrade the antennarecevie to 4G?
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      01-19-2022, 05:26 PM   #292
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The dealer upgraded my 2016 F30 to 4G last week. They kept it overnight. It came back with all my coding wiped out. I recoded the car, thanks to Shawn, who provided me with the latest E-Sys PSDZData file and launcher. While I was at it, I activated the rear fog lights. All is good.
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      01-19-2022, 06:55 PM   #293
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Received the notice today that there is no technology upgrade available for my 2014 428i F32.

Anyone knows if there is a way to pay for the upgrade to swap out all the 3G hardware with 4G or is it actually "impossible"? Also wondering what would be the rough cost for it.

If it is indeed impossible then oh well I have a special car that is truly disconnected from the prying eyes
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      01-20-2022, 12:23 PM   #294
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F34 2014 with ID4. Not eligible unsurprisingly.

I am only disappointed about the loss of e-call. Would pay if I could hold on to just that.

It seems an upgrade is a huge undertaking. From what I can tell there is a 4G telematics unit that they started putting in the F34s in 2016MY but its the old VOIP one. The new VoLTE telematics units have a different number of connectors on them and it appears that upgrading to one would require a lot of other modules in the car to be changed as well. Unsure of what every connector goes to but that is my assumption.

At the very least it seems I would need a new HU which already prices this out of sensible upgrades on my car. Probably too expensive.

Pretty upset that they are not offering any solution. I do wonder though if you did the retrofit would you even be able to subscribe again? I am worried that even popping in a 4G modem won't help as we will be VIN locked out of the services?

I will look at the wiring diagram in ISTA too just to double check what is impacted by swapping to the new modules but I suspect it won't be good.



On a separate note.... Anyone who had this upgrade done know which modules would have to be recoded if we were to do this through e-sys? Really want to avoid any more ISTA upgrades since I have a retrofitted alarm and bunch of other stuff...
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      01-20-2022, 01:48 PM   #295
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F34 2014 with ID4. Not eligible unsurprisingly.

I am only disappointed about the loss of e-call. Would pay if I could hold on to just that.

It seems an upgrade is a huge undertaking. From what I can tell there is a 4G telematics unit that they started putting in the F34s in 2016MY but its the old VOIP one. The new VoLTE telematics units have a different number of connectors on them and it appears that upgrading to one would require a lot of other modules in the car to be changed as well. Unsure of what every connector goes to but that is my assumption.

At the very least it seems I would need a new HU which already prices this out of sensible upgrades on my car. Probably too expensive.

Pretty upset that they are not offering any solution. I do wonder though if you did the retrofit would you even be able to subscribe again? I am worried that even popping in a 4G modem won't help as we will be VIN locked out of the services?

I will look at the wiring diagram in ISTA too just to double check what is impacted by swapping to the new modules but I suspect it won't be good.



On a separate note.... Anyone who had this upgrade done know which modules would have to be recoded if we were to do this through e-sys? Really want to avoid any more ISTA upgrades since I have a retrofitted alarm and bunch of other stuff...
The ATM modules are programmed to a specific VIN, and the VIN can't be changed. The ATM VIN must match the VIN of the iDrive unit. The VIN programmed into an iDrive unit can be updated to match an ATM that's been obtained from a parts car. Doing so allows functional Connected Drive services as long as the Connected Drive account is set up using the VIN of the donor ATM.

For your car, you'd need an NBT EVO iDrive unit, an ATM that's VIN matched to the iDrive unit, and various adapters + harnesses to update your existing wiring. It can be done, but it's a lot….
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      01-20-2022, 03:23 PM   #296
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Just scheduled to have this done at my local dealer the beginning of next month. Hopefully they won’t get back to me after having it for the day and tell me something like they didn’t order all the parts or something.
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      01-21-2022, 11:45 PM   #297
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The following is a summary taken from various threads on Bimmerpost, including multiple F30 threads and 2 active F80 threads, as well as threads on other internet boards.

ATM (and older TCB), which are the TCU/modems/4G hotspots”, are all VIN locked to your car via the eSim contained within associated with your VIN in the BMW Database. Services associated with that VIN when it left the factory are what is offered on the BMW Connected Drive Store. If you have a 2014-2015 (or even 2016) BMW with a 3G TCU (TeleCommunications Unit), your VIN will NOT be able to sub to Connected Drive/Remote Features as your vehicle is in the Connected Drive database with a 3G TCU.

In other Bimmerpost F30 threads, some users have replaced their 2G or 3G TCB at their own expense by a BMW Dealer. In the threads, if asked if they can now subscribe to Connected Drive features, they all go silent, despite being very active up to that point. Note, changing out a replacement TCU is not a DYI upgrade as the new eSim/IMEI must be registered by ISTA’s connection with the BMW master database. Between the new TCU, install labor, iLevel upgrade and tax, pics of invoices posted on the internet show this cost is $1,400-$1,500. If you retrofit the 4G TCB in your vehicle, that would be the price. However, the Connected Drive database, a separate BMW Database, will still only show offerings for your 3G VIN. Stupid, yes, but you will not get that changed based on every report thus far.

There is a way to retrofit an ATM and keep all Connected Drive features currently discussed in the F80 forum. Between the ATM, wiring harnesses,FSC codes, remote coding etc it also would run a similar price as what the BMW dealer replacement cost above, somewhat depending on exactly what you had from the factory and what you were planning to reuse.

As noted above, you could buy the parts from a “parts” car. Problem with that is BMW deactivates VINs sold as salvage on most salvage auction sites (who then list the part on eBay or other sites). Even if not deactivated, if car was part of fleet or other group, you cannot register it with Connected Drive. Of course, many parts in a wrecked “parts car” do not work (for obvious reasons). There is a NBT EVO HU for sale in the classified with 2 connectors missing making it unusable longterm. There is a thread in Electronics about someone having an issue where there reception goes in and out because if this. But that’s what you get from many “parts cars”. Buyer beware. And as many have found out the hard way, the donor VIN many sellers give you aren’t correct and cannot be read in the TCU as they are masked.

Plus I haven’t even touched on the fact that many of these ATMs need replacements as BMW is currently doing for eligible cars. You might actually be buying the uninstalled retrofit ATM from a BMW Dealership that the mechanic or janitor took home. Imagine purchasing non-refundable FSC codes for the VIN, paying a coder to set everything up and going through all that install work/coding etc only to find your unit hit one of these speed bumps? Major frustrations and additional expense straightening that out.

Even worse, the person in the UK that was making the $250 retrofit wiring harness that several members had successfully used is no longer making them. That adds to the complications as a source for future retrofit wiring harnesses isn’t known at this time. It is also beyond most individual’s abilities.

Another big issue is you must have a NBT EVO HeadUnit to work with an ATM, but 99.9% of the 2014-2015 BMW HU are NBT, not NBT EVO. Only some F22 are NBT EVO. So in addition to the ATM retrofit expense of $1,400-$1,500, you also need to swap your HU to a NBT EVO. As noted, with the chip shortage, these prices have taken off on eBay and other sources. The good news is this gives you Apple Car Play as well as a much better NAV plus the better sounding SiriusXM chips(providing you buy a USA and not ECE model), as well as other features, not to mention a faster/slicker HU. Touchscreen can also be added to later units for additional costs. And if you install a HW 3.1 unit or above, Remote Services and some other features are also possible.

So that’s the bottom line to a successfully retrofit that will still be working a year from now. Roughly $1,400-$1,500 as detailed above plus the cost of a NBT EVO unit. I personally would never spend that much and cheap out with anything less than the latest NBT EVO HW. But that’s me personally. Why spend over $2k on an upgrade and try to save several hundred so you do not get all the features? Makes no sense to me.
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      01-24-2022, 10:36 AM   #298
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Ouch. I figured as much. Unfortunate that the car doesn't (I think) support wifi so you can't even keep it running off a hotspot or anything.

Oh well. E-call is a loss but the rest is just a glorified key. Except ventilate. Never tried that one.
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      01-26-2022, 02:00 AM   #299
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Good to know
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      02-01-2022, 06:17 AM   #300
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So far, go good!

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      02-01-2022, 07:05 AM   #301
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So far, go good!


Hmm..

That's not an iDrive 4 Evo iDrive system you have there, that's something called "HU_ENTRYNAV." That has a 6.5 screen vs the ID4 8.8 inch screen.

Hence the reason your vehicle is was not eligible for the upgrade.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by sspade View Post
Anyone else with a 2016 that supposedly cannot be upgraded?

If we're talking about mid sequence 2015's being at the bleeding edge of a hardware change the enables the software upgrade to work….

What sort of edge am I at?
Check the label for your telematics box in the trunk and see if it says 3G or 4G anywhere, that should give you a definitive answer.

If it says "4G" - which I'm guessing it does for a 2016 MY, then you're good to go for this upgrade offer.

You can also run the iDrive to the main ConnectDrive menu and see if "4G" displays on the upper left hand corner of the screen.

.
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      02-01-2022, 07:20 AM   #302
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
Hmm..

That's not an iDrive 4 Evo iDrive system you have there, that's something called "HU_ENTRYNAV." That's has a 6.5 screen vs the ID4 8.8 inch screen.

Hence the reason your vehicle is was not eligible for the upgrade.
Could have gotten back info from BMWNA, I have no idea. I have little trust in anyone on the other end of customer service line regardless of what company outsources them. Usually uneducated, poorly paid, sad souls that do more harm than good.

So... in other words, no one with the small screen is eligible for the upgrade?

I thought we already determined that the screen alone is not a full proof indicator of whether or not a vehicle is equipped with the newer comm tech required for upgrade?
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      02-01-2022, 07:42 AM   #303
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Could have gotten back info from BMWNA, I have no idea. I have little trust in anyone on the other end of customer service line regardless of what company outsources them. Usually uneducated, poorly paid, sad souls that do more harm than good.

So... in other words, no one with the small screen is eligible for the upgrade?

I thought we already determined that the screen alone is not a full proof indicator of whether or not a vehicle is equipped with the newer comm tech required for upgrade?
The screen aside, you have a 3G ATM, that's the limiting factor.
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      02-01-2022, 07:52 AM   #304
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The screen aside, you have a 3G ATM, that's the limiting factor.
I do understand. There's just so much conflicting information that its funny... and I like pointing that out. Even the so called experts have contradicted themselves on this topic. BMW could have been more transparent on the situation... they definitely caused most of the confusion.

Im personally "over it." I knew full well what I was getting when I purchased CPO for $16k. The most basic LCI F30 offered, nothing more.

Just thought I'd stir the pot this morning when I noticed mine still able to transmit data. Interested to see how long it will last... then code the ConnectedDrive option off the HU.
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      02-01-2022, 07:57 AM   #305
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Apparently other manufacturers have sold vehicles as new as MY2020... to unsuspecting customers who's nearly new vehicles are no longer able to stay "connected."

Anyone have experience with different makes? I'd actually be pissed if I bought a new car recently and was counting on connectivity for some particular reason, only to find out that its not possible anymore.
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      02-01-2022, 08:25 AM   #306
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sspade View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
Hmm..

That's not an iDrive 4 Evo iDrive system you have there, that's something called "HU_ENTRYNAV." That's has a 6.5 screen vs the ID4 8.8 inch screen.

Hence the reason your vehicle is was not eligible for the upgrade.
Could have gotten back info from BMWNA, I have no idea. I have little trust in anyone on the other end of customer service line regardless of what company outsources them. Usually uneducated, poorly paid, sad souls that do more harm than good.

So... in other words, no one with the small screen is eligible for the upgrade?

I thought we already determined that the screen alone is not a full proof indicator of whether or not a vehicle is equipped with the newer comm tech required for upgrade?

In the 2016 model year, if your vehicle doesn't have the $1,950 Navigation 8.8 inch (ID4 EVO) option, then it has ENTRYNAV standard (6.5 display), which for that year, still ran on the older 3G network.

Only the NTB iDrive 4 EVO option for the 2016 model year was upgraded to initial 4G telemetry and is eligible for the revised hardware..


.
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      02-03-2022, 01:45 PM   #307
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11/2015 will be electible right?
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      02-03-2022, 01:53 PM   #308
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11/2015 will be electible right?
Maybe, depending on equipment. My 10/15 was...
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