BMW 3 Series - On board computer thingy..

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On board computer thingy..

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Category: Technical & Model Specific Forums
Forum Name: BMW 3 Series
Forum Discription: This forum will deal with any issues on the BMW 3 Series (E21, E30, E36, E46, E90, E91 & E92)
URL: http://www.bavarian-board.co.uk/forum_posts.asp?TID=24303
Printed Date: 02-May-2024 at 00:57

Topic: On board computer thingy..

Posted By: Rhys
Subject: On board computer thingy..
Date Posted: 17-November-2005 at 15:21

I've been playing with the obc in my compact. It's a digtal display job with two buttons underneath (one with a clock symbol to swithch back to the time and a reset button) the functions been controled by the button on the end of the indicator stalk. Usualy goes through a cycle of.
Time
Temp
Ave-MPG
Ave-MPH
Milage left in tank
(maybe not in this exact order.)
The temp is in deg F. everything else is in Miles.

I was setting the clock by pressing both buttons etc. but decided to have a play and found out how to change the clock from 24h to 12h, but have also noticed the display comes up with '01' and when I press the stalk it goes through '01' '02' '03' '04' whatever this does I don't know. Also on two occasions I have managed to get '1000' up on the display, and ny pressing a button (can't remember which one) it goes up, got it to '1015' and I haven't a clue what it does.

I thought I might be able to set the temp to deg C, as the dealers haven't a clue how to do this.

Anyone have a clue what this all means and what it does?
(sometimes the display lights up fully with everything showing)

Any ideas?

-------------
V reg Rustbucket Merc C220 Cdi estate
J Reg Saab 900i 16v
'63 Ford Anglia 105e deluxe
R reg Honda PC50 moped..

No BMW as yet...

Replies:

Posted By: Stephen 325TDS
Date Posted: 17-November-2005 at 18:18

This might help .... Stephen E36 On-Board Computer (OBC) Hidden Codes and Tests There are many interesting functions available on the E36 OBC that are not documented in the owner's manual, including http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Setting the Country Code#Setting the Country Code - - hidden tests for the instrument panel . Contents: http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Programming the OBC to Display Contents in a Desired Order#Programming the OBC to Display Contents in a Desired Order - http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Accessing Data in the OBC#Accessing Data in the OBC - http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Unlock the Display#Unlock the Display - http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Test Codes#Test Codes - http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Setting the Country Code#Setting the Country Code - http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Information on other OBCs:#Information on other OBCs: - Programming the OBC to Display Contents in a Desired Order When you repeatedly press in on the turn signal stalk, the OBC display cycles through the various information types that it has in memory. The default sequence is: CONSUM1, CONSUM2, EXT. TEMP, SPEED, LIMIT, DIST and TIMER. If you want to change the display order, use the following procedure: Press in and hold the turn stalk for about 5 seconds. The OBC display will change to *Prog 1. Press the button corresponding to the first function you would like to have displayed in the sequence. For example, if you would like the outside temperature to be displayed first, press the TEMP* button. The display will then change to *Prog 2. Continue pressing the OBC buttons in the order you want, up through nine entries. You don't have to enter all nine - if you would like the display to cycle only between TEMP and RANGE, simply enter those two items as Prog 1 and Prog 2. When finished, press the SET/RES* button to store the sequence in memory. To revert to the default order, simply press SET/RES as soon as *Prog 1* is displayed. Accessing Data in the OBC The OBC contains a lot of data, and displays the data in a manner determined by the country code that is stored in it. The technique to access this data is as follows: Press the 1000 and 10 keys simultaneously. You should see *Test-Nr.: appear in the display. The table below lists the available test codes that are available. Enter a test code number, using the number keys, followed by the SET/RES* key. However, to access codes other than 1, 10, 14, 19, and 21, you have to first unlock the OBC, using the procedure described below. Read the results. For test numbers 10 and 11, enter a new value (if desired) and press SET/RES. Return to the normal display functions by pressing CHECK or any other key. Unlock the Display. Most of the test sequences require you to first unlock the display before. Enter test code 19 using the above procedure. The display should read *LOCK: ON. Then enter an unlocking code consisting of the sum of the current month plus date (for example, if today is July 11, enter 18). Then press SET/RES, and the OBC is now unlocked. Test Codes*. Following is a listing of the available tests, along with with my notes as to what I think each test means. Note that the display uses European conventions for decimals (i.e., the number 61,7 is 61.7 for us Americans). You will see that I don't have good explanations for several of these test codes -- if you have any information that can help me make this table more complete, please email me at mailto:ebaines@att.net -
Test Code No.	Display	Notes	Display Must Be Unlocked First?
01	All LED display elements are lit	Verify that the display is working properly	No
02	VBR: n,n l/100km	n,n = instantaneous fuel usage in liters/100 km	Yes
03	VBR: n,n l/h	n,n = instantaneous fuel usage in liters per hour	Yes
04	RW-VBR: n,n l/100	n,n = average fuel usage in liter/100 km.	Yes
05	RW: nnn km	nnn = range in km	Yes
06	--	Not used	Yes
07	TMTL: nn,n l	nn,n = fuel remaining (in liters)	Yes
08	V: n km/h	n = instantaneous speed in km/h	Yes
09	UB: nn,nn V	nn,nn = system voltage (should be around 13,80)	Yes
10	LAND: n xxx *	Country code -- for US drivers should be set to 2 USA -- see http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Setting the Country Code#Setting the Country Code - description below	No
11	EINHEIT n: xx *	?? There are two EINHEIT displays: the values for xx in EINHEIT 1 can range between B0 and BF, and for EINHEIT 2 range between 0F and FF (mine is set to B3 and FF, respectively). Press the 1000 or 100 key to switch between EINHEIT 1 and EINHEIT 2.	Yes
12	VANK nn km/h	nn = average speed	Yes
13	ANK: nn:nn	nn:nn = ETA (will display --:-- if the OBC's distance function is not in use)	Yes
14	ROM: dd.mm.yy	dd.mm.yyyy = Software version date. Mine is 25.06.1991	No
15	DIAG: nn nn nnn xx	Diagnosis code? Mine is 01 05 255 FA	Yes
16	PORT: nn nnnnnnnn	Port codes? Press 1000 or 100 key to cycle port numbers. For example, PORT 01 is 10101000	Yes
17	PROM: nn nn	?? Mine reads 00 12	Yes
18	HORN: xxxx	DTON or DTOFF? (Single tone horn versus dual tone)	Yes
19	LOCK: xx	xx = ON or OFF. See http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e36_obc.htm#Unlock the Display#Unlock the Display - description above for method.	No
20	KVBR: nnnn	nnnn = Fuel rate calibration factor. Mine is set to 1000	Yes
21	RESET?	Reset all defect codes? Also erases all stored values in the OBC (i.e, fuel consumption, avg. speed, timer, etc) and clock.	Yes

Setting the Country Code. If your OBC suddenly starts displaying everything in German, and you would like to put it back to English, use test sequence number 10. Once you're into test number 10, press the 1 key several times, and you'll see the display cycle through various country options. For example, 0 is for Germany (the display reads LAND: 0 D * - I assume D stands for Deutschland). As you cycle through the options, you'll see choices for the Great Britain, USA, France, Canada, etc. Once the display is on the country you want, press the SET/RES key to store your choice into memory -- for US drivers the display should be set to LAND: 2 USA * . Then press the CHECK key, and the display will reflect the units of the country you've chosen.

Information on other OBCs:

If your E36 is not equipped with the upgraded OBC, you can reset the language of the display using the procedure on the http://home.att.net/~ebaines/language.htm -
I have information on the http://home.att.net/~ebaines/e28_obc.htm -
Here is a link to a page that covers the OBC for the E32 7-series.: http://home.iae.nl/users/bts/obc.htm -
This page covers the E39 (540i): http://www.ideaphile.com/bmw/540-obc.html - http://www.ideaphile.com/bmw/540-obc.html

This page last updated: November 20, 2000

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Posted By: LuxAuto
Date Posted: 18-November-2005 at 15:33

Rhys, you beat me to it, was going to post this question myself.

I too have tried what you have mentioned to no avail!

Stephen, thanks. Will give it a try tomorrow!

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