[slupie]

Car 2007 328iT, 06/2006 production (pre LCI)

History of the problem:

1. November 2012 I lost radio reception, FM and AM. Solution bought new diversity antenna amplifier that goes under the rear spoiler but that did not fix the problem.
Temp solution I bought a fakra connector and made a short antenna and that got me by until I had more time to dig further.

2. November 2013, intermittent Comfort Access operation and key for locking and unlocking. It would only work when the rear glass was open.

Grommet that goes from the car to the rear glass removed.



Diversity Antenna Amp right side (passenger)



Diversity Antenna Amp Plug



Tonight (12/26/2013) I started digging further than before.

1. Removed the spoiler and right side (passenger inner panel) and started tugging on the wires under the headliner. The first one that came loose was the red with Black Stripe that was completely severed.

2. Next one that was completely severed was the the Blue with Red stripe.

3. At that point I decided to pull the other two out and see their condition.

Picture of the other two wires that had the insulation already cracked



I twisted the wires together and tested the radio reception and CA operation. The test was successful so tomorrow I have to get some high flex wires and solder them in-between the hatch and the car. once that is done I'll button everything up and enjoy normal car operation again.

Since I replaced the roof rails with the filler strips per this DYI http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17396 I knew how to tear apart the interior.

Diversity Antenna Amp replacement DIY

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=645962

E61 seems to suffer from similar issue, just the wires are routed differently. Just search for E61 broken wires in google. Fortunately for E61, BMW sells replacement wiring harness. Replacement wiring harness for E61 can also be found on eBay.

12/27/2013 Update - soldered in new high flex wires and everything works as it should.

[krhodes1]

Well done! Just imagine how much the dealer would have charged for this one... I've done this repair on several Volvo wagons over the years - guess I have it to look forward to on the BMW too.

Does BMW sell a replacement harness? Though I think you probably made the better repair with the high-flex wire, unless they have improved the part.

[slupie]

Patrick BMW was asking $135 just to read codes plus any additional diagnostic fees to find the problem. Then more money to fix. The wires I bought wasn't the right color but who cares for $3. I already had soldering iron, solder and shrink tubbing.

BMW does not sell replacement harness for E91, since it is not as common issue as it is on E61. Next time I see F31 I have to look on how the wires are routed on that car.

The stereo install place that sold me the wire sees a fair share of Audis and BMWs withe the same problem.

[Dark_Knight_335]

Wow...way to troubleshoot and persevere to find the root cause man! I don't think I'd have the balls to dig into my car like that but kudos for those of you that can- and do!

[fazman]

Originally Posted by Dark_Knight_335

Wow...way to troubleshoot and persevere to find the root cause man! I don't think I'd have the balls to dig into my car like that but kudos for those of you that can- and do!

once u have an old enough spare car to toy with... you will build up the courage to tinker. I learned a lot on my eclipse and then learned a bunch more on my pickup truck. so working on the e90 has turned out to be more simple (the german way to do things is to place things in hard to reach locations, compared to Japanese).

i just wish i had a garage and a lift... then i would tackle much bigger jobs.

[Dark_Knight_335]

Originally Posted by fazman

once u have an old enough spare car to toy with... you will build up the courage to tinker. I learned a lot on my eclipse and then learned a bunch more on my pickup truck. so working on the e90 has turned out to be more simple (the german way to do things is to place things in hard to reach locations, compared to Japanese).

i just wish i had a garage and a lift... then i would tackle much bigger jobs.

Oh yes- many of my fellow gear head friends wished they had a lift!

[supermeggah]

slupie:

I have the same problem with radio reception and have tried a new diversity amplifier. I got reception when i put a loose cable on specific place on the circuit board of the div. antenna.

I dont understand where you got the loose ends from on the picture.
Is it the wire ends that goes into the amp connector plug or is it a connector under the headliner you pulled them out from?

You say you tried malfunction by twisting parts togheter, which parts?

" Removed the spoiler and right side (passenger inner panel) and started tugging on the wires under the headliner. "

Doesnt understand this part. You just pulled and the cable snapped? Where to find the other cable end (opposite to the div. antenna plug end)?

Want to try this on my car but I am not sure how you did it

Regards
Andreas

[slupie]

Originally Posted by supermeggah

slupie:

I have the same problem with radio reception and have tried a new diversity amplifier. I got reception when i put a loose cable on specific place on the circuit board of the div. antenna.

I dont understand where you got the loose ends from on the picture.
Is it the wire ends that goes into the amp connector plug or is it a connector under the headliner you pulled them out from?

You say you tried malfunction by twisting parts togheter, which parts?

" Removed the spoiler and right side (passenger inner panel) and started tugging on the wires under the headliner. "

Doesnt understand this part. You just pulled and the cable snapped? Where to find the other cable end (opposite to the div. antenna plug end)?

Want to try this on my car but I am not sure how you did it

Regards
Andreas

The wires go from the right (passenger) side of the amp plug along the washer hose into the grommet that goes between the trunk lid and the car. The 4 wires join a bundle right under the headliner on the right (passenger) side of the car.

Once I got the headliner down I started pulling on each of the wires individually on the inside of the car.

Please reread my original post

Removed items 6, 7 & 8 in the diagram below to be able to lower the headliner

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...49&hg=51&fg=40

"I twisted the wires together and tested the radio reception and CA operation. The test was successful so tomorrow I have to get some high flex wires and solder them in-between the hatch and the car." - After I pulled the 4 broken wires that go from the diversity amp through the grommet into the car I twisted them together and covered with electrical tape so I could test if that was the only problem or the diversity amp was bad also.

[supermeggah]

Ok, I took the cable grommet away and now the cable goes down(with the washer hose) from the top of the hatch and "inside" the inner roof liner.

I looked at the part description of what to take off to get inside the liner but im still unsure of how to get them away.

So far Ive unscrewed this:
1: 3 torx screws inside the channel for the bagage insight protection.
2: Snapped away plastic cap inside the trunk, so I can see the rubber pad for the hatch close damper from the inside.
3: Snapped away the lamp and its glass.

The plastic with the channel for the bagage protection still seems to be fitted pretty hard...

PICTURE OF CURRENT STATUS:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4x...it?usp=sharing
Any chance for a step by step guide

Looked at the link you provided in the original post, but didnt see any tips of getting the liner away

Sorry if my technical english is a little bit of, but Im from sweden

[supermeggah]

Did some research and found out what was necessary to remove to reach under the roof liner.

http://workshop-manuals.com/bmw/3_se..._roof_pillar_/

[slupie]

Originally Posted by supermeggah

Ok, I took the cable grommet away and now the cable goes down(with the washer hose) from the top of the hatch and "inside" the inner roof liner.

I looked at the part description of what to take off to get inside the liner but im still unsure of how to get them away.

So far Ive unscrewed this:
1: 3 torx screws inside the channel for the bagage insight protection.
2: Snapped away plastic cap inside the trunk, so I can see the rubber pad for the hatch close damper from the inside.
3: Snapped away the lamp and its glass.

The plastic with the channel for the bagage protection still seems to be fitted pretty hard...


PICTURE OF CURRENT STATUS:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4x...it?usp=sharing
Any chance for a step by step guide

Looked at the link you provided in the original post, but didnt see any tips of getting the liner away

Sorry if my technical english is a little bit of, but Im from sweden

You need to remove the C-pillar cover and the battery compartment cover to get to the rest of fasteners and plastic push rivets. The top portion of the D-Pillar cover is held in place with 2 or 3 of the snap in rivets. Once you have everything removed start working your way from the top front towards the rear to unsnap the pop rivets on the upper portion of the D-Pillar cover.

[slupie]

Originally Posted by supermeggah

Did some research and found out what was necessary to remove to reach under the roof liner.

http://workshop-manuals.com/bmw/5_se..._roof_pillar_/

You are looking at a wrong car. yours is E91 not E61.

[supermeggah]

Originally Posted by slupie

You are looking at a wrong car. yours is E91 not E61.

Sorry wrong link, earlier post updated.

http://workshop-manuals.com/bmw/3_se..._roof_pillar_/


I borrowed a multimeter today and when I read the voltage with the connector unplugged and igntition/radio ON I get this:
If you look at the connector when its in place from front to rear

12+ v
0 v
. No wire
5+ v
. No wire
0 v

When I read the voltage with the ignition/radio ON and connector plugged in I get this voltage:
12+ v
5+ v
. No wire
5+ v
. No wire
0 v

Sounds this like a proper reading?
I did the reading over and over again for the second wire, because it was different when plugged in or not... but always 0v when disconnected and 5v connected.
Anyone knows where to find electric diagram for the diversity antenna?

Nothing happened when I pulled the wires from the roof liner, and I couldnt see any parts of the cable that was damaged.