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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > AUDIO/VIDEO + BLUETOOTH + Electronics/Alarm/Software > **Bluetooth Retrofit Guide** for TCU and ULF



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      03-19-2013, 09:46 AM   #375
fares52
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Thanks, I found some online instructions that were very helpful. One last question, I don't have a sunroof or bmw assist so will I need a new FZD?
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      03-19-2013, 11:50 AM   #376
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Thanks, I found some online instructions that were very helpful. One last question, I don't have a sunroof or bmw assist so will I need a new FZD?
No no. You should still have the space on the left side to insert a mic.
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      03-23-2013, 07:39 PM   #377
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Since my car is not prewired will I still need to repin and modify the mic and antenna harnesses? I'm hoping that since I'm not prewired when I order them they won't need modifying. Am I correct with this assumption?
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      03-23-2013, 08:01 PM   #378
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Originally Posted by fares52 View Post
Since my car is not prewired will I still need to repin and modify the mic and antenna harnesses? I'm hoping that since I'm not prewired when I order them they won't need modifying. Am I correct with this assumption?
I'm not sure what you mean, but anyway, if you're not prewired, you *don't have* wires for the antenna or mic in your harness. And the mic and antenna don't come with wiring. And getting it requires replacing the whole harness, which isn't going to happen.

Basically: if you aren't prewired, get the mic. Get some shielded twisted pair wire on ebay (about 18' I think) and some 3-pin .100" spaced female headers. You can make the mic wiring out of that. Then get a 2.4ghz duck antenna (rp-SMA, should be about $3), an SMB-RPSMA connector, and an SMB extension cord. If you search around, you can find that I've posted pictures of what I did using just this approach.
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      03-24-2013, 11:05 AM   #379
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Okay. I thought I could order the wiring from BMW and it would plug right in. I think it'll make more sense to me once I have the Mic and Antenna in hand.

thanks for all your help.
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      03-24-2013, 12:02 PM   #380
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So basically, in some respects its a little easier if you are not prewired because no modification of harnesses is needed?
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      03-24-2013, 07:12 PM   #381
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So basically, in some respects its a little easier if you are not prewired because no modification of harnesses is needed?
Nah, not really. It's just a bit of a pain. If you PM me to remind me tomorrow night or so, I might as well do another 'exactly what I did' kind of thread start to finish. It's helpful info even if it's been rehashed, and I've got a lot of pics.
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      03-29-2013, 05:43 PM   #382
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This thread is great but for those of us with Combox's its still a little unclear. To be honest I'm still not sure what the difference is between an Ulf, a Mulf, a TCU and a Combox.
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      03-29-2013, 05:55 PM   #383
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This thread is great but for those of us with Combox's its still a little unclear. To be honest I'm still not sure what the difference is between an Ulf, a Mulf, a TCU and a Combox.
Ulf and MULF are the same thing (someone correct me if that's wrong). At least, both get tossed around on here meaning the same thing. Perhaps a version difference. Anyway, that box handles USB and Bluetooth. The TCU handles telematics, IE cell data connection. It's used for BMW assist (which needs a constant internet connection to handle SOS and the iPhone app). The confusing bit is that it also handles Bluetooth, but I believe not USB (so with a TCU, you can have bluetooth without 6FL). The COMBOX replaces all them with one thing on newer cars. It handles cell data if you're subscribed to BMW assist or connected drive and it also handles bluetooth (and includes A2DP stereo streaming, unlike the MULF or TCU).
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      03-30-2013, 02:15 PM   #384
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A member here just tried to activate my bluetooth for my ULF.. It shows up on the idrive with a bluetooth serial number.. But the box wont get the check mark in it and turn on..

I have the antenna but I don't have the mic hooked up yet. Also, have not let the car sleep yet. Will any of these things keep the bluetooth from turning on?
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      03-31-2013, 11:04 AM   #385
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Originally Posted by alexwhittemore View Post
Get some shielded twisted pair wire on ebay (about 18' I think) and some 3-pin .100" spaced female headers. You can make the mic wiring out of that.
Alex,
Will this work for the mic wiring?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-Pin-100-St...item2eb1a51cf3

I'll connect one end to the combox and the other to the mic in the fzd.
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      03-31-2013, 11:05 AM   #386
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Yeah for the mic end those are just the ticket. For the MULF and you just need to crimp on some pins straight from BMW and add them to the existing connector.
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      03-31-2013, 06:11 PM   #387
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Will the bluetooth work correctly without the mic hooked up?
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      03-31-2013, 06:19 PM   #388
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Well, no, obviously you won't be heard . If you mean does everything else work, like pairing and making calls, yes. I did the coding before paying for the mic and wiring just to be sure it'd all work.
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      03-31-2013, 06:50 PM   #389
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Did you need to cut or fabricate the area in order to fit the mic in the fzd?
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      03-31-2013, 09:00 PM   #390
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Nope. There's a slot for it where it just snaps right in.
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      04-01-2013, 11:53 AM   #391
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Quote:
Originally Posted by alexwhittemore View Post
Well, no, obviously you won't be heard . If you mean does everything else work, like pairing and making calls, yes. I did the coding before paying for the mic and wiring just to be sure it'd all work.
Well, I had my coding done but we couldn't get the blue tooth to activate..

I am at a loss now of how to get this to work.
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      04-01-2013, 01:38 PM   #392
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr.Ritz View Post
Well, I had my coding done but we couldn't get the blue tooth to activate..

I am at a loss now of how to get this to work.
Full car SG_RESET.
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      04-01-2013, 02:41 PM   #393
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Originally Posted by alexwhittemore View Post
Full car SG_RESET.
ok.. Ill see if I can get in contact with him again to run that command.

Do you have idrive?

TeL option shows up on my car and bluetooth too.. just doesn't work

Last edited by bender rodriguez; 04-01-2013 at 02:48 PM..
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      04-01-2013, 02:59 PM   #394
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr.Ritz View Post
ok.. Ill see if I can get in contact with him again to run that command.

Do you have idrive?

TeL option shows up on my car and bluetooth too.. just doesn't work

I don't. Is he coding 2urad directly, or simply adding the $644 option? Because the former shouldn't be necessary, but it's possible to get the BT icon to show up without working by directly setting BT to on in the radio.

Edit: for the record though, I did also code this in a car with idrive and the procedure was the same.
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      04-01-2013, 03:58 PM   #395
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I think he was just adding the $644 option and he reset the module not the whole car.
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      04-01-2013, 07:09 PM   #396
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr.Ritz View Post
I think he was just adding the $644 option and he reset the module not the whole car.
That'll probably be why it's not working (the second part)

Most people report success doing that, but at least in my case, both the 2urad and the 2MULF required reset. For whatever reason (I assume timing), independently resetting one then the other didn't take care of it, and I had to reset the full car.
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