help after update failed and car is dead

[heifetz17]

I attempted to update the TCP, KAFAS, ICAM, and BDC through esys and it ended with a few errors, but now the car is completely dead, drawing several amps out of the battery at rest, and no modules are responding at all.

It’s at my indy shop as I don’t have a dealer close by, but they’re at a loss. They said there’s no terminal 15 power to the obd port and they may have to put a call into BMW to figure out how to proceed.

I’m going to try and find the error report in esys to send them. Other than that anyone have any idea of what could have happened?

[crystalworks]

Who was doing the update? Was a voltage stabilizer (power supply) used during the process? F15's require a fairly sizeable power supply during the updates. 100A minimum is what BMW uses I believe.

[heifetz17]

I was and no, which was totally my mistake.

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by heifetz17

I was and no, which was totally my mistake.

Then you're likely in for some pain. The car will have to go back to BMW as an indy won't know how to deal with this.

You could try and find a coder/programmer service who has the tools to reflash the affected modules. But that would require them all to be removed, shipped out, and reflashed. Even then, I'm not sure you'd have a lot of luck as the car-specific data on the modules might be corrupted so they are unrecoverable. It would be a gamble as to whether someone could recover your modules, have to clone them, or replace with fresh "virgin" modules and program to your X5. I really don't know how all of that would work.

The world of BMW modules as far as coding is fairly well uncovered at this point... but the world of BMW modules for programming/cloning is an entirely different level of black magic.

I wish you luck.

[heifetz17]

The indy is a BMW specialist with dealer diag equipment and a close relationship with BMW. BMW actually comes into their shop once a year to complete recalls on cars in the area, so they’re definitely the right shop. The closest dealer is about 350 miles one way. That kind of tow bill would be prohibitive.

I’m a bit worried now that we’ll have to replace modules, but hopefully at least not every module. I was only updating four, so surely the rest are down as collateral damage and not corrupted as well.

[Qsilver7]

Uh oh! Did you see anything like the pic below in the sky the day it happened?

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by heifetz17

The indy is a BMW specialist with dealer diag equipment and a close relationship with BMW. BMW actually comes into their shop once a year to complete recalls on cars in the area, so they’re definitely the right shop. The closest dealer is about 350 miles one way. That kind of tow bill would be prohibitive.

I’m a bit worried now that we’ll have to replace modules, but hopefully at least not every module. I was only updating four, so surely the rest are down as collateral damage and not corrupted as well.

Oh, I hope they can help you. But I also have dealer level diag equipment and software. I can not clone modules in most cases (some older Bimmers I can) or recover them if corrupted. That requires specialized hardware. BTW, the dealer does not have the hardware either... they will call Germany (or South Carolina) and tell them they need a new CAS, DME, or whatever for your VIN and then put it in. The dealer does not have the capability to repair a borked module in most cases.

That's the main reason I bought a dedicated power supply for updating I-levels in the modules. I did not want to have to worry about borking a module because of voltage drop/droop. Still scares the hell out of me that it's "only" a 75 amp unit and not 100 like BMW recommends. It has always worked fine for me but the newer F and G chassis cars have so much more electronics that they require a larger supply during processing the updates/programming.

Good luck. To you and your shop. I hope I'm incorrect about needing new modules or to send yours out. Hopefully yours can be recovered.

[crystalworks]

Did a quick search for BDC repair... as I think that is the module that is most important and likely causing most of your issues (it's responsible for terminal control). You might try and call this outfit and see if they can give you any hope.

https://www.bimecu.com/fem-bdc-cloning-repair

[heifetz17]

Thank you! I think you’re correct. According to the esys logs there are a lot of timeout errors in the BDC and appears that’s where the updates failed. Dang it!

[RED_Y_]

Yeah if your tried to perform the update with no external power source your BDC probably went to sleep mid-process. Very hard to guess how bad things are, but you most certainty need professional help here. Might be something as simple as take the unit out and send for re-flash to the new modules required. TBH I would not trust local indy shop with this unless they have a pro level coder/software guy who does DME unlocks and works with modules. This is a scary situation to be in but I hope it is not as bad as it looks.

[Variante Alta]

Wow, a nasty problem and cautionary tale for all would-be garage coders. I’ve coded all sorts of stuff in my various BMWs over the years and hook up the charger for all but the most brief of coding sessions - think I’ll change that to _all_ codling sessions, no matter how brief. Best of luck getting that sorted out, please keep us in the loop on the ultimate solution.

[Tomcat_F15_STL]

Not to pile-on as I feel bad for the OP, too.

This is my go-to power supply for vehicles..



Added a pair of jumper cables to it and I never have to worry about going low volts during a session.

[acediac]

Originally Posted by Tomcat_F15_STL

Not to pile-on as I feel bad for the OP, too.

This is my go-to power supply for vehicles..


Added a pair of jumper cables to it and I never have to worry about going low volts during a session.

Do you just hook this up to the battery or the engine bay battery terminals or somewhere else? How does this prevent the situation where the car can go to sleep halfway during programming?

100A sounds like a lot, do the electronics really need so much power even for programming?

[crystalworks]

Originally Posted by acediac

Do you just hook this up to the battery or the engine bay battery terminals or somewhere else? How does this prevent the situation where the car can go to sleep halfway during programming?

100A sounds like a lot, do the electronics really need so much power even for programming?

Yes, you hook it up under the hood and then plug it in.

The 100A is necessary to prevent voltage drop while modules are booting/writing/etc. Newer BMWs absolutely do, older ones needed "only" ~50A. The system wants a stable ~14v at all times, even while fans, pumps, etc are cycling on/off during the update process. When doing a full vehicle update, you'd be surprised what cycles on and off. That power supply is doing the job of the alternator, which remember, provides +180A depending on the model of F15.

[Tomcat_F15_STL]

Originally Posted by acediac

do the electronics really need so much power even for programming?

Yes, without a doubt.

[heifetz17]

It’s been a while without an update but it was in fact a corrupted BDC due to loss of power and failed update. At first the shop ordered a b new BDC out of Germany but it was on ridiculous back order and then Bimmer ECU solutions came to the rescue and were able to remotely recover and reprogram the BDC. I’m back on the road!

[Tomcat_F15_STL]

Glad to hear you are back in business! It is good that Bimmer ECU is a resource when things go really sideways.

What did they sock you for the work?

[heifetz17]

Originally Posted by Tomcat_F15_STL

Glad to hear you are back in business! It is good that Bimmer ECU is a resource when things go really sideways.

What did they sock you for the work?

$650, but it was better than replacing it!