OBC Replacement Question

[str1k3r23]

So my 97 ti came with a hole where the OBC should be (beside the radio) with the wire connector hanging loose. I have confirmed that it is for an OBC rather than the plain digital clock. My question is whether or not I can just buy a used OBC and plug and play, or if there is some kind of programming key required to work with the vehicle. Thanks!

[zoner]

If you have the correct turn signal lever (OBC compatible) and plug/wiring is correct for OBC, should just be plug and play, AFAIK.

[str1k3r23]

Yep. Turn lever is marked for BC and the plug is the larger OBC style vs the smaller clock plug. Just wanted to make sure that there wasn't anything that prevented swapping the units. Thanks for the info!

[John Firestone]

You may need to slightly tweak the consumption calculations through a hidden menu if a used OBC came off an M42 car. A swap is more hit and miss in Europe and may require coding to accommodate the three additional, much more different engines that might have gone into a car.

[str1k3r23]

I was curious about the M42 v M44 related to this. Realoem lists the same part number for the OBC for both engines, but I suppose the software settings could be slightly different. I have previously seen the hidden menu howtos for the larger e36 OBC systems, but not the small ti model. Will have to search around for this. Thanks

[John Firestone]

You are welcome. I suspect there won't be much of a difference if you mix OBCs for the two engines and their DMEs, but in theory there could be.

[John Firestone]

I found a couple PDFs, the first in English, the second in German, that explain how to set the fuel consumption factor.

http://kom.aau.dk/~kod/E36_OBC_Insta...structions.pdf

http://www.e36-talk.com/attachment.p...8&d=1196709257

[str1k3r23]

Thanks. Ordered a used replacement... Will update with the results after testing.

[Marv17]

Revival from the dead. Was wondering what all is needed to swap in the obc if the ti wasn't equipped with one? Does it need any module from under the dash?

[John Firestone]

Have you seen this thread? Post #6 has some BMW installation instructions. Note the warning at the top of page 2: "Owing to the continuous revision...." The 'ti is a lovable mongrel.

[Marv17]

Thanks for the good info. One question that I have still is if the obc will work with a swapped ti? Does the engine or ecu affect the functionality of the obc unit?

[John Firestone]

I think there is some discussion of that in the thread. What kind of swap do you have in mind?

[Marv17]

I have the s52 in it it now. Don't want to do all the work and ends up not working because of engine compatability

[John Firestone]

The fuel related functions will probably be way off because of the S52 engine. Given that BMW never put one in a 'ti (that I know of), I suspect you won't be able to code the OBC to match the engine. To make them plausible, you would probably need some custom electronics to recondition the DME signals so that they are within the OBC's calibration range.

The OBC's time, temperature and average road speed functions should work.

Your call.

[Marv17]

Hmm I figured so. Found two cars in the junkyard with the obc... And the 1/2 off Sale is next weekend. Thinking if it's still worth it or not. It's practically the last thing I'm missing in my ti. Found 1998 rear seats that I've been looking for. Thanks John