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      11-24-2013, 02:05 PM   #1
Anlo
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Drives: BMW 530iA Touring -07b
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E61 LCI MULF2 Bluetooth module toasted?

Last week I bought a 2007 BMW 530iA Touring (LCI). A wonderful car, but I'm having trouble pairing my iPhone 4 with it. The car can't find my phone and my phone can't find the car. Just to clarify: I don't even get to the point where the pin code should be entered.

The car is equipped with:
S644A Preparation f mobile phone w Bluetooth
S609A Navigation system Professional
S676A HiFi speaker system
Bluetooth version 9226711 (compatible with iPhone 4)

It's NOT equipped with:
S6FLA USB/Audio interface
S620A Voice control

I have tried a lot of suggestions found in different forums:

- Removing all previously paired phones from iDrive (there were none).
- Removing all bluetooth devices from my phone.
- Turning off Wifi in my phone.
- Resetting the network settings in my phone.
- Leaving the Bluetooth search in car and phone active for a couple of minutes (~12 minutes actually).
- Trying to pair with my wifes Sony-Ericsson X10 mini (also supported by the 9226711 version). It finds my iPhone but not the car, and the car finds nothing.
- Deactivating and then reactivating Bluetooth in iDrive.
- Disconnecting the MULF2 module overnight, driving 2x20 minutes with it disconnected and then reconnecting.

I have now found out that the previous owner also had problems with Bluetooth. He had the car at the dealer and they suggested to exchange the MULF2 module, but I don't know how much they actually troubleshooted the problem. I did manage to get a screenshot from BMW displaying the MULF2 data:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/h2fjo44qd0gv6ig/bluetooth.png

Before shelling out the money for a new MULF2 module, I would really like to be more certain that it will solve the problem.

When disconnecting the optical MOST bus from the module, I can see red light flashing at both ends (both at the module and in the disconnected cable).

With the module disconnected, Bluetooth is deactivated in iDrive and I can't check the checkbox. When connected, I can deactivate and reactivate Bluetooth in iDrive.

From what I've read, a toasted module won't give red flashes in the MOST connector and it's not possible to check the Bluetooth checkbox in iDrive. Of course, my module might be just slightly toasted so it still seems to work when looking at the iDrive menu. But on the other hand, I guess there could be other faults as well, for example a bad Bluetooth aerial?

Is there anything I can do to pinpoint where the fault is located?
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      11-27-2013, 02:06 PM   #2
Anlo
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I found a way to test the Bluetooth antenna: Disconnect the antenna lead from the MULF module, it's the single cable on the right hand side. Place the telephone near the antenna connector of the module and try to pair it with the car. If pairing is successful, but you can't pair with the antenna lead connected that suggests the Bluetooth antenna is bad and the module is fine. But, in my case, I still didn't get the car and telephone to find each other.

Suspecting the MULF module even more, I removed it from the car, took it inside and opened it up. Looking for cracked connections, swollen capacitors and signs of moisture but I found nothing strange. There is a company in Australia (http://www.bmwbluetooth.com.au/) that repairs MULF modules, do you know if there are any repair guys in Europe? On the other hand, instead of spending AUD 400 for a repaired unit I could get a brand new from schmiedmann.se for GBP 400 / EUR 480 / USD 650.

I had a slightly crazy thought of placing the module in the kitchen owen, to reflow the solder or something. But I have no idea whether that is possible or what temperature and time I should use...

Since my car doesn't have USB or Voice control, my module is the MULF2 LO variant. Is it possible to replace it with a MULF2 HI module? The HI module is actually less expensive than the LO module, "just" GBP 280 / EUR 340 / USD 460.

If I replace the module, will the car need coding?

The part number of my module: 84109149656 (MULF2 LO)
The latest revision of the MULF2 LO: 84109226711 (12 revisions later than my module, I guess they have had some problems with this unit)
The latest revision of the MULF2 HI: 84109229740

If it is possible to replace my LO module with a HI module, I guess it should be possible to mount the other pieces of the USB retrofit kit as well?
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