Hi, All,Read thru' an article in bmwe34.net, found the above topic and decided to try on it. Got the OBC from chop shop yesterday & fixed it today! Wow! it fix & work as describe in the topic. Here's how it is done.... Cost: Below RM150Time: 2 hoursIf your BMW E34 came from the factory with either an analogue clock or a digital clock/outside temperature combo it is possible to upgrade to the full On Board Computer (OBC). The clock units use the same connector as the OBC and all the wiring is already in place.Cars that had only an analogue clock do not have the outside temperature sensor mounted, so this function will not work, but all the other signals come from the ECU.Cars that have the instrument cluster with no check control (like E34 520i) will most likely have no gong so the OBC will stay quiet about ice and speed limit warnings and give a visual warning only.All other functions should work as expected - including the CODE start blocking! Part numbers: The first step is to find an OBC unit - These can be got from the stealer (P/N 65 81 8 351 055) but are big $$$ so the best bet is to find a used one from a breaker's yard or chop shop. An OBC from any BMW E34 model will do - even a BMW E32 OBC will work but as the 7 series has a bigger petrol tank some calculations such as 'range' may be incorrect. Other parts you may want to get are the turn-signal switch which has the OBC remote control on the tip and the new radio/OBC holder. The OBC will work fine without installing the new turn-signal switch and will still blend its notifications into the check control display. The mounting frame (holds together the clock or OBC as well as the radio and heater control module) differs for OBC vs clock equipped cars as the slot for the OBC is deeper than that for the clock, the OBC is approx. double the depth of the clock and the connector is located higher than on the clock. It is possible to cut away the plastic at the back of where the clock sat to allow the OBC fit but the ideal way is to replace the mounting frame. The part numbers for the two frames are: Holder radio/OBC 65 81 1 384 121Holder radio/clock 65 81 1 384 141Note:The e34's have 2 different types of OBC one for the BMW 518i,520i and a different type for the BMW 525i,530i,535i,540i.I only found this out after I bought an OBC for my 520i and got the famous PPPP error.After a closer inspection and after reading on another site, the 520i coding plug cant communicate with the standard OBC therfore a different obc is required for the 520i with another coding plug built into the back of the OBC itself. Procedure: Second step is to remove your old clock - To do this, remove the radio and the radio's mounting case and then reach inside the vacant radio slot at the side next to the clock, at the top you should feel a little lever which you need to press (push it towards the engine) and the mechanism should make the clock move out towards you and you can then pull it out the rest of the way with your fingers. The third step is to try the OBC to see if it works - The connector is clipped into the back of the mounting frame, unclip this and pull it out a bit (there should be an inch or two give in the wiring) and then plug it into the back of the OBC. Turn the ignition on and see if the OBC comes to life. Clock removedIf the OBC doesn't come up the next step is to figure out why. The list of connections is given in the table below so start by checking that there is +12v at pins 6, 8, 9 & 17. The most likely culprit is pin 17 as there will be no power to this if your car doesn't have the auxiliary horn relay installed and without power at pin 17 the OBC will play completely dead. If there is no power at pin 17 an easy solution is to cut the red-grey-yellow wire that goes to pin 17, cut it as far from the connector as possible to make life easier, and join this to the red-yellow (red with a yellow stripe, there's also a yellow wire with a red stripe! Please see carefully!) wire that provides power to pin 9. You could join these via a 5 or 10 amp fuse if you prefer and it may be no harm to tape off the end of the red-grey-yellow wire coming from the car so it can't cause any problems. Digital clock/temperature indicator---pin4: groundpin5: blue/red/yellow, temp sensorpin8: + from fuse F1pin9: + from fuse F20pin18: white/blue, chimespin19: white/red, chimespin22: grey/red, light switch OBC---pin1: violet/green/yellow, alarm systempin10: black/green, starterpin6: + from fuse F17pin9: + from fuse F20 (red/yellow)pin8: + from fuse F1pin22: grey/red, light switchpin25: yellow/red, turn signal switchpin3: white/yellow, diagnosticspin16: white/violet, diagnosticspin14: white/grey, instrument clusterpin7: black/white, instrument clusterpin4: groundpin5: blue/red/yellow, temp sensorpin20: black/red/yellow, pre-ventilationpin21: black/white, pre-ventilationpin23: violet/white/yellow, alarm systempin17: red/grey/yellow, alarm systempin26: black/red/yellow, fuel tank level sensorpin12: brown/violet, fuel tank level sensorpin11: white/black, DMEpin24: black/violet, DMEpin19: white/red, chimespin18: white/blue, chimespin15: white/brown, radiopin2: blue/brown/yellow, radioOnce the OBC is working, the next step is make it fit properly - You can either replace the mounting frame with the one designed to hold the OBC or alternatively you can cut away the plastic at the back of the original mounting frame (This can even be done without removing the mounting frame if you are careful by using a suitable saw from the front) so that the OBC will slide in all the way until the front of it is flush with the console.Next, you need to set the country setting for language, miles/km, C/F and l/100Km / Km/l. - To do this you need to access the OBC test menu by simultaneously pressing the 1000 and 10 keys so that the display changes to "TEST". With the 10 & 1 keys enter 11 on the display and then press the S/R button. "0 LAND" should now be on the display and you can alter this by using the 1000 & 100 keys and the S/R to save. The settings are from "0 LAND" to "9 LAND" and through trial and error you should be able to find the setting that is best for you. Also, some settings use US gallons while others use European gallons so take that into account.If the OBC appears to be reporting inaccurate fuel consumption figures it can be calibrated to give the correct values. - Fill the fuel tank to the maximum and reset the trip counter and one of the OBC's average fuel consumption monitors. Run the fuel tank nearly empty and fill the fuel tank again to the maximum. The amount of fuel it now takes to fill the tank is the amount used to cover the distance recorded on the trip meter so, from this, work out the actual fuel consumption of the car and then compare this to what the OBC reported as the average fuel consumption. If these two average fuel consumption figures are not exactly the same then you need to calibrate the OBC by entering a new correction factor. The fuel consumption correction factor is a locked function of the OBC so before you can access it, you must first unlock the OBC - Access the OBC test menu by simultaneously pressing the 1000 and 10 keys so that the display changes to "TEST". With the 10 & 1 keys enter 19 on the display and then press the S/R button. Add the current day and month (as it is known to the OBC) and enter this value and then press the S/R button, the OBC should now be unlocked. To access the fuel consumption calibration factor you once more need to simultaneously press the 1000 and 10 keys so that the display changes to "TEST". With the 10 & 1 keys enter 20 (Be careful not to enter 21 as this will reset the OBC) on the display and then press the S/R button - you should now see something like 1000 CORR, this is your current correction factor. To calculate your new correction factor use the following:new_correction_factor = old_correction_factor * actual_mpg / obc_mpgEnter your new correction factor into the OBC using the 1000/100/10/1 keys and then press the S/R button. If you want to relock the OBC - enter function 19 again then press the C/F button to lock.Much of the information contained above came from internet posts by: Priit Varik, Mark M and Al and from http://home.iae.nl/users/bts/obc.htm Happy Trying!! 5 series :yahoo:
OBC retrofit for E34
- Thread starter 5series
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i have one on my e30, but the display doesnt light it. It is still workin as i can see the desplay in the afternoon. anyway, i am not sure whether theres a bulb which i can change or to change the whole thing.......my mechanic is also lost.......
teejay
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royalness....
there is a set of bulbs for the E30 OBC,
i have a few spare sets , bulbs i soldered in cost about rm$1.00 each of 2
there is a need to remove the AC panel in front as the bulbs housing slides at the sides, it will take about half to 1 hour depending on the switches on the front panel
if you buy from bmw, it cost euro$ 23.00......
there is a set of bulbs for the E30 OBC,
i have a few spare sets , bulbs i soldered in cost about rm$1.00 each of 2
there is a need to remove the AC panel in front as the bulbs housing slides at the sides, it will take about half to 1 hour depending on the switches on the front panel
if you buy from bmw, it cost euro$ 23.00......
In fact when I checked with majority of workshops (including the famous one in the forum) around town, nobody confirm the OBC is able to use in a local made E34. All were saying unless your E34 is an imported one, otherwise, there isn't any connection to the ECU, don't waste money.
As the article was so interesting & it doesn't cost much for the upgrade, hence, decided to take it a try. Ehhhh... it works.
That's also proof that our local mechanics are not expert either! Most of the time, they will tell you "this one cannot.... that one cannot....." cos' they are NOT SURE or DON'T KNOW. Damn!!
That's why a lot of our "Ultimate Driving Machines" became their "tester" & turned it to "Ultra Demaging Machines".
Anyway, most of my problems solved and my next upgrade is to fix an outside tempreture sensor to obtain the right reading. Has anybody here fixed that before? Can we transplant the E32/E39 tempreture sensor to E34? How's the set up?
As the article was so interesting & it doesn't cost much for the upgrade, hence, decided to take it a try. Ehhhh... it works.
That's also proof that our local mechanics are not expert either! Most of the time, they will tell you "this one cannot.... that one cannot....." cos' they are NOT SURE or DON'T KNOW. Damn!!
That's why a lot of our "Ultimate Driving Machines" became their "tester" & turned it to "Ultra Demaging Machines".
Anyway, most of my problems solved and my next upgrade is to fix an outside tempreture sensor to obtain the right reading. Has anybody here fixed that before? Can we transplant the E32/E39 tempreture sensor to E34? How's the set up?
ALBundy
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Its not difficult to see which e34 can have the OBC fitted (just make sure the check control module is there on the left hand side of the engine bay). I went through it as well, and got the dreaded PPPP error message. AS for the temperature sensor, I think its not a big problem to fix it.
Rgds
Rgds
Faiz
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Al,
As you know my udm is a local model that came with OBC fitted (i think). Only that the temp display shows an error (-37 deg) every time I startup. I can't reset it - is it becos there is no outside temp sensor otr there is one but is faulty? Check control in the dash produces a sound alarm when I turn the ignition on. (Ah Wai says it should be working even in local models).
Regards, Faiz
As you know my udm is a local model that came with OBC fitted (i think). Only that the temp display shows an error (-37 deg) every time I startup. I can't reset it - is it becos there is no outside temp sensor otr there is one but is faulty? Check control in the dash produces a sound alarm when I turn the ignition on. (Ah Wai says it should be working even in local models).
Regards, Faiz
5series, i think you have mistaken, there are 3 bulbs, one for the buttons and two for the display panel. The display panels ones are soldered to a lightbox. I think thats what Princess was tryin to say?......hence need to solder and the bulbs are not common bulbc, more like leds
E34EuroTouring
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E34 OBC. Can one of you help me find a second hand OBC ?. I need one for retrofit, and possibly one to gut so I can retrofit the keypad with something more useful and relocate the controls elsewhere.
Let me know if you find one in a chop shop or elsewhere. Many thanks.
:yes:
Let me know if you find one in a chop shop or elsewhere. Many thanks.
:yes:
