Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade

Epic · 9th October 2018, 15:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by rishi_kapoor

Now my new BMW came without Apple CarPlay enabled, BMW India is selling this is as a premium feature only on 530d MSport. Being an Apple user forever I was disappointed that this was not even available as an option to purchase from BMW India.

Wow!! This is fantastic!! I have always found it stupid to cars at this price point to come without this basic feature. It's the same case with our Mercedes GLC 220d Sport and mind you, this is the top of the line variant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rishi_kapoor

So, I did my research and found a solution on internet by www.bimmercarplay.com

Any idea if there is something like this for Mercedes? How much did you have to pay for this activation?

graaja · 9th October 2018, 16:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhi182

...
If you have a half decent multimeter, it would be great if you check the resistance on the antenna terminals and post back

An antenna's impedance cannot be measured with a multimeter. The regular multimeters measure the DC resistance. Whereas an antenna will be rated for 50 ohm impedance at its resonant frequency - 2.4GHz in this case. The DC impedance would be infinite which is what a multimeter will measure.

abhi182 · 9th October 2018, 17:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by graaja

An antenna's impedance cannot be measured with a multimeter. The regular multimeters measure the DC resistance. Whereas an antenna will be rated for 50 ohm impedance at its resonant frequency - 2.4GHz in this case. The DC impedance would be infinite which is what a multimeter will measure.

Indulge me if you can

The aliex antennas look like a closed loop circuit

graaja · 9th October 2018, 18:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhi182

Indulge me if you can

The aliex antennas look like a closed loop circuit

Here you go

Checking Zero.

Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade-zero.jpg

Measuring impedance between the antenna pins.

Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade-antenna.jpg

Except for some antennas like folded dipole antennas (the antennas we used for TV a couple of decades back), the DC resistance of an antenna is usually infinity.

abhi182 · 9th October 2018, 18:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by graaja

Here you go

Checking Zero.
Attachment 1806348

Measuring impedance between the antenna pins.
Attachment 1806347

Except for some antennas like folded dipole antennas (the antennas we used for TV a couple of decades back), the DC resistance of an antenna is usually infinity.

Thanks!
Really nice DMM BTW

aseemsood · 16th October 2018, 16:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by graaja

I found the below product in AliExpress. Is this the antenna?

Wifi Antenna

Dear graaja,

Is it possible to find original BMW antennae part number and purchase it the way you purchased the M-Suspension parts?

graaja · 16th October 2018, 17:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhi182

Really nice DMM BTW

Thank you

Quote:

Originally Posted by aseemsood

Is it possible to find original BMW antennae part number and purchase it the way you purchased the M-Suspension parts?

I have checked EKTA database for the latest cars, but antenna is not listed as a separate part number. It should be part of the Head Unit itself. I am talking with the dealer to have them enable CarPlay in my GT, and he is trying to get the necessary code. I will ask him about the antenna as well when he gets back, and update here.

But I doubt if they will be able to give a separate part number, as they too check the EKTA database and if the part number is not there, it may not be possible to officially order it from BMW.

Axe77 · 21st October 2018, 23:04

Loved this thread - came across it following Graaja’s posts on my GT thread. Thanks for the useful videos as well as the additional gyan by Abhi. Most helpful. Cheers

manishk123 · 8th December 2018, 16:33

Happy to report that my G30 is back from its first service and the CarPlay continues to work. Not sure if they did a software update during the service, but considering its been a year since the car was delivered, it's likely to have been done.

Maverick5490 · 8th December 2018, 17:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by manishk123

Happy to report that my G30 is back from its first service and the CarPlay continues to work. Not sure if they did a software update during the service, but considering its been a year since the car was delivered, it's likely to have been done.

The software update is not a part of service and will be carried out only in case of any errors or information from BMW. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

jezza · 29th December 2018, 08:26

I activated CarPlay in my X5 after purchasing the activation code from bimmercarplay and installling using a USB flash drive. However, my phone gets disconnected intermittently and one has to delete the phone from Bluetooth settings and add again. Has anyone else faced this issue?

Also, CarPlay only seems to work wirelessly in my case. Is it also possible to use CarPlay over USB in BMWs? CarPlay over USB in my CLA is much more stable and I don’t mind keeping my phone plugged in.

Akshay1234 · 29th December 2018, 10:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by jezza

I activated CarPlay in my X5 after purchasing the activation code from bimmercarplay and installling using a USB flash drive. However, my phone gets disconnected intermittently and one has to delete the phone from Bluetooth settings and add again. Has anyone else faced this issue?

Also, CarPlay only seems to work wirelessly in my case. Is it also possible to use CarPlay over USB in BMWs? CarPlay over USB in my CLA is much more stable and I don’t mind keeping my phone plugged in.

Try keeping your phone in the storage area, ahead of the gear lever. See if it disconnects less. In that case your car is probably missing the wifi antenna. In BMWs carplay is only wireless. Frankly, on the cars which have the wifi antenna, it works pretty much flawlessly.

Turbanator · 29th December 2018, 14:13

BMW India to Officially Enable Apple CarPlay at a Charge.

I understand we can now officially get Car Play activated from BMW Dealerships at a payment of around 90,000. This is possible on most of touchscreen iDrive based models, and perhaps one generation earlier but I am not sure completely. You can get VIN checked for this upgrade from the dealership.

jezza · 29th December 2018, 16:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Akshay1234

Try keeping your phone in the storage area, ahead of the gear lever. See if it disconnects less. In that case your car is probably missing the wifi antenna. In BMWs carplay is only wireless. Frankly, on the cars which have the wifi antenna, it works pretty much flawlessly.

Thanks Akshay, let me try this out. In case my car does not have the WiFi antenna, can I get it retrofitted by my dealer? Do you have a part number I can give them to order?

graaja · 29th December 2018, 16:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turbanator

BMW India to Officially Enable Apple CarPlay at a Charge.

I understand we can now officially get Car Play activated from BMW Dealerships at a payment of around 90,000. This is possible on most of touchscreen iDrive based models, and perhaps one generation earlier but I am not sure completely. You can get VIN checked for this upgrade from the dealership.

This is good news. Though the cost is a little high, as it would keep warranty concerns away, I think it is worth the cost.

I have asked the service manager at my dealership to check this. Do you have any other contact at your dealership who can verify my VIN and tell if it is possible to do this upgrade? I would be very grateful

21st October 2018, 23:04	#68
Axe77 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Mumbai Posts: 8,038 Thanked: 24,232 Times	re: Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade Loved this thread - came across it following Graaja’s posts on my GT thread. Thanks for the useful videos as well as the additional gyan by Abhi. Most helpful. Cheers
	(1) Thanks

8th December 2018, 16:33	#69
manishk123 BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: mumbai Posts: 548 Thanked: 725 Times View My Garage	re: Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade Happy to report that my G30 is back from its first service and the CarPlay continues to work. Not sure if they did a software update during the service, but considering its been a year since the car was delivered, it's likely to have been done. Last edited by manishk123 : 8th December 2018 at 16:36.
	() Thanks

29th December 2018, 08:26	#71
jezza Newbie Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Delhi Posts: 15 Thanked: 22 Times	re: Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade I activated CarPlay in my X5 after purchasing the activation code from bimmercarplay and installling using a USB flash drive. However, my phone gets disconnected intermittently and one has to delete the phone from Bluetooth settings and add again. Has anyone else faced this issue? Also, CarPlay only seems to work wirelessly in my case. Is it also possible to use CarPlay over USB in BMWs? CarPlay over USB in my CLA is much more stable and I don’t mind keeping my phone plugged in.
	() Thanks

29th December 2018, 14:13	#73
Turbanator Team-BHP Support Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 7,043 Thanked: 30,069 Times	re: Enabled! Apple CarPlay in my BMW 5-Series (G30). EDIT: Dealers now offering the upgrade BMW India to Officially Enable Apple CarPlay at a Charge. I understand we can now officially get Car Play activated from BMW Dealerships at a payment of around 90,000. This is possible on most of touchscreen iDrive based models, and perhaps one generation earlier but I am not sure completely. You can get VIN checked for this upgrade from the dealership. Last edited by Turbanator : 29th December 2018 at 14:18.
	(3) Thanks