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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wash, Wax, Detailing and Cosmetic protection/repairs > BMW Natural Air air freshener



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      08-01-2012, 09:50 AM   #1
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BMW Natural Air air freshener

Hello everyone!

I truly hope that I'm the first guy here who's got this - it's nice to be first every once in a while Anyhoo, if this is old news, please disregard...

I've been searching for the perfect scent for a while now. Basically, I'm not a fan of anything too strong in terms of scent, I prefer natural scents. I was always concerned with the product form. There are several types of air freshener:

1) Spray-on type: this is ideal, as you can spray it into your upholstery. There is no obvious source of the scent, which I like. Spray-on air fresheners do not tend to last long though - in hot weather, I've even had them last less than a day. Another problem is the more you mist your upholstery, the more the aircon tries to dehumidify it - sometimes, I get increased amounts of water coming from the aircon after the car is stopped and restarted. Another problem is the fact that these scents can mark your upholstery - my experience with Chemical Guys Green Apple scent, which left visual marks, as well as a sticky feeling to my carpets. Not recommended!

2) Liquid type: Ambi-pur and other manufacturers make these. They tend to smell nice, some even have two reservoirs for different perfumes and you can alternate inbetween. Regulation is possible on good units. However, should the liquid drip out, things can turn VERY, VERY messy, it tends to mark and discolor plastics, etc.
---Therefore, this was a no-go for me.

3) Wunderbaum/other scented items you place in the car (california scents, etc) - not bad, but offers very little regulation in terms of scent intensity, and then - where are you going to put it? You can hide it under the seat, but I didn't really want to come up with a fixing mechanism.

4) Millefiori Milan - impregnated rubber: http://www.millefiorimilano.com/
This, up to now, is what I considered to be the best. Basically, the air freshener is composed of a aluminum casing into which impregnated rubber inserts are placed. More will be revealed later...

So, now to the BMW product:
My dealer says they've had this in for a week or two, so no-one has really commented about durability.









The air freshener comes packaged in a nice box, hinting at the "natural" line of BMW cosmetics. Even through the packaging, you can smell the scent. What you get in the starter kit is the BMW holder for the scents, and a sample of each one of the scents. Currently, 3 are available: Green Tea, Balancing Amber and Energizing Tonic.

Construction/durability: the holder is made of plastic, in terms of quality I'd give it 5/10 on materials used and 8/10 on sturdiness. Had I seen this in someone's car, I wouldn't automatically think "that's original BMW", I would consider the idea that he bought it in Chinatown. The plastic used is no where near the quality of the plastic used in the E90 interior. However, the unit does have a sturdy feel to it, especially the slider that opens and closes the vents - this has about 5 preset positions and from one position to another you feel a distinctive "click"

One side of the holder can be opened, this is where you insert the scent. The scent is a piece of rubber impregnated with the given fragrance. Overall, the scents are "decent", they're not too strong, nor too weak. BMW sells refills of your preferred scent in a 3-pack.

Installation: This is where I hoped BMW would differ from the others, but obviously, this is not the case. The attachment to the air vent is generic, i.e. rubber feet that you slide into the vent. However, BEWARE: you cannot change the up/down position of the vent once the air freshener is inserted. Every vent only has one position that the freshener can be installed in






So, the best place for me is the rear vent. However, the air freshener does not fit the rear vent exactly. Also, once inserted, you cannot adjust the dials on the rear vent.

So, all in all? I'd give this product 6/10. The price is $24, which is rather steep. To be honest, next time round, I would have gone for the Millefiori Milan air freshener, in Oxygen flavor. As you can see, the BMW air freshener is made in Italy, and the impregnated rubber is patented - this leads me to believe that Millefiori makes the freshener for BMW. While the Millefiori freshener cannot be regulated, I would place it in the rear and regulate it by means of the dial on the rear aircon outlet.

The Millefiori air freshener costs $12, half of the price BMW is charging.

I'll be glad to answer any questions.
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      08-01-2012, 11:05 AM   #2
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That's pretty cool, I hope that they make one in the future which smells like new BMW leather. You're right that the plastic of the freshener looks cheap though, could be better if you're going to be paying that sort of money for an air freshener
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      08-01-2012, 11:40 AM   #3
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So these are f/s only at the dealer ?
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      08-01-2012, 11:49 AM   #4
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Thanks for the review.
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      08-01-2012, 01:25 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by obert View Post
So these are f/s only at the dealer ?
That's where I got mine. BMW Germany does not have this listed. I dunno if it's available worldwide or EU only.
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      08-01-2012, 01:36 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by D_o_S View Post
That's where I got mine. BMW Germany does not have this listed. I dunno if it's available worldwide or EU only.
Okay thanks
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      08-01-2012, 04:13 PM   #7
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do you hav parts number? how much you paid? thnx
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      08-01-2012, 04:17 PM   #8
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never seen these before! hmm
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      08-01-2012, 04:27 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by e90sim View Post
do you hav parts number? how much you paid? thnx
Paid $24


Quote:
Originally Posted by Sean@PYSpeed.com View Post
never seen these before! hmm
For the price we need a group buy.

Lol
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      08-01-2012, 10:22 PM   #10
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Damn, I'm all for having a sleek looking Air Fresher but $24 dollars!!! It'll probably last just 1 week.
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      08-02-2012, 02:31 AM   #11
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The Millefiori ones last 2 months, I'm guessing this will be similar, since they make it.
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      08-02-2012, 04:25 AM   #12
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Odour Elimination

It amazes me that even professionals still think they can eliminate odours by shampooing the interior, and spraying a deodorizer. Nothing is farther from the truth, technically, an odour is an invisible gas, and so it can permeate any material or crevice. Many odours are caused by micro-organisms such as bacteria, mould, and mildew. Not only does shampooing not eradicate these odours, it spreads them over a much wider area

A semi-permanent odour removal system;not a counteractant ( 'cover-up')DrivePur


“Allergen and germ removal systems” http://www.autopia.org/forum/autopia...l-systems.html
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      08-03-2012, 12:33 PM   #13
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I think the best air freshener is reqular use of Zaino Z-9 and Z-10 on the leather
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      08-06-2012, 07:08 AM   #14
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Back with more info...

After 2 days of the scent, my head and eyes started hurting... took it out and felt much better.

I passed the unit on to a friend of mine, thinking I must be allergic to something in the fragrance. He called me today, saying he had to remove it from the car because he started sneezing like mad.

Just FYI, then again YMMV.
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      08-06-2012, 09:40 AM   #15
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Part number

83122298516
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      08-06-2012, 10:19 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by D_o_S View Post
Back with more info...

After 2 days of the scent, my head and eyes started hurting... took it out and felt much better.

I passed the unit on to a friend of mine, thinking I must be allergic to something in the fragrance. He called me today, saying he had to remove it from the car because he started sneezing like mad.

Just FYI, then again YMMV.
Weird I wonder if anyone else has this same problem
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      08-10-2012, 08:58 AM   #17
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I'm not saying it sucks, everybody is different - you might love it!

I've decided to stop playing with these things and enjoy the "natural" smell of my BMW. Every once in a while, I spray the carpets down with some Mountain Dew Brise (air freshener spray thing for household use) with Oust odor eliminators. The smell doesn't last, but I do get the "new car" smell afterwards.
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      08-12-2012, 02:08 AM   #18
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I would like to try the Millefiori fresheners. Do you guys know the difference between the Linea and Quadro lines? Which to get? I will have to get these online without smelling them first, where can I buy rubber refills for them?
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      08-12-2012, 10:56 PM   #19
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I bought my BMW about a month ago and was surprised to find these "scent wafers" under the front seats of my car. Especially since I'd expect some sort of clean scent when picking up a new car from BMW but they are pina colada - I've never been a big fan of scents like that. Anyway, I've grown to like it and they have actually lasted very well. In fact, my friend got in the car the other day and commented about how good it smelled. I checked out the website and have decided to buy a pack of these things. They have them in all different scents and most of them come bulk, but they also have a sampler pack. That is probably the way I'm going to go until I can find what I like. I'll report back after some use. I've attached the link below:

http://wonderwafers.com/carairfresheners.html
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      08-17-2012, 06:17 PM   #20
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Has anyone here tried the Millifiori one mentioned above? I am about to buy one for $12.00 on Amazon. Thanks
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      08-26-2012, 03:08 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TClev View Post
I bought my BMW about a month ago and was surprised to find these "scent wafers" under the front seats of my car. Especially since I'd expect some sort of clean scent when picking up a new car from BMW but they are pina colada - I've never been a big fan of scents like that. Anyway, I've grown to like it and they have actually lasted very well. In fact, my friend got in the car the other day and commented about how good it smelled. I checked out the website and have decided to buy a pack of these things. They have them in all different scents and most of them come bulk, but they also have a sampler pack. That is probably the way I'm going to go until I can find what I like. I'll report back after some use. I've attached the link below:

http://wonderwafers.com/carairfresheners.html
UPDATE:So far I've tried "Nu Car" and "Leather" scents. The Nu Car scent reminded me a lot of cough syrup, not very appetizing. Leather, on the other hand, is spot on. If you like the smell of leather, this is definitely the one for you. I'll post another update when the leather starts wearing off and I try another scent.
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      08-27-2012, 03:54 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TClev
I bought my BMW about a month ago and was surprised to find these "scent wafers" under the front seats of my car. Especially since I'd expect some sort of clean scent when picking up a new car from BMW but they are pina colada - I've never been a big fan of scents like that. Anyway, I've grown to like it and they have actually lasted very well. In fact, my friend got in the car the other day and commented about how good it smelled. I checked out the website and have decided to buy a pack of these things. They have them in all different scents and most of them come bulk, but they also have a sampler pack. That is probably the way I'm going to go until I can find what I like. I'll report back after some use. I've attached the link below:

http://wonderwafers.com/carairfresheners.html
I use these too. I like the leather scent.
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