Android head unit causing dash issues?

PaddyH · 04-22-2024, 02:00 PM

Hi Guys, first time poster here. I’ve found a couple of similar posts to this but thought I’d ask my own question.

Recently bought a 2007 E93 335i. The cars been great up until today. I fitted a Chinese Android head unit on the weekend as I wanted CarPlay and it’s worked fine for the past few days. However, today the dash warning lights started playing up. First it was a red ‘car on a lift’ light and a yellow circle with a triangle in the middle and an exclamation mark (DSC module failure). A reset of the head unit seemed to sort this. Then on the next start up I had a load of warning lights and all of the needles were bouncing around. Again, a reset of the head unit seemed to sort this out. Just been out to more problems and it seems the head unit has frozen!

My question is…….. Are these dash issues just a coincidence or could the head unit really be causing them? If so, how?

Thank you,

Paddy

BRG_N54 · Yesterday, 11:05 AM

Your new head unit is causing a greater load on the electrical system than prior. Normally the symptoms you describe are a bad voltage regulator. The regulator could have been going bad prior, but the new component exacerbated the issue.

I would start by checking the car's voltage while running, easiest to do with the secret KOMBI menu. You also might want to check for parasitic drain, which could have also been introduced from your new electronics.

ctuna · Yesterday, 07:58 PM

If the new stuff is alway's on it will drain the battery .
Or if it prevents the car from going to sleep it will drain
the battery .

04-22-2024, 02:00 PM	#1
PaddyH Registered 0 Rep 1 Posts Drives: 2007 E93 335i Join Date: Apr 2024 Location: plymouth iTrader: (0)	Android head unit causing dash issues? Hi Guys, first time poster here. I’ve found a couple of similar posts to this but thought I’d ask my own question. Recently bought a 2007 E93 335i. The cars been great up until today. I fitted a Chinese Android head unit on the weekend as I wanted CarPlay and it’s worked fine for the past few days. However, today the dash warning lights started playing up. First it was a red ‘car on a lift’ light and a yellow circle with a triangle in the middle and an exclamation mark (DSC module failure). A reset of the head unit seemed to sort this. Then on the next start up I had a load of warning lights and all of the needles were bouncing around. Again, a reset of the head unit seemed to sort this out. Just been out to more problems and it seems the head unit has frozen! My question is…….. Are these dash issues just a coincidence or could the head unit really be causing them? If so, how? Thank you, Paddy
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Yesterday, 11:05 AM	#2
BRG_N54 Second Lieutenant 298 Rep 256 Posts Drives: Green '07 & Arctic '08 335i's Join Date: Jan 2023 Location: Monterey Peninsula iTrader: (0) Garage List 2008 BMW 335i [0.00] 2007 BMW 335i [0.00]	Your new head unit is causing a greater load on the electrical system than prior. Normally the symptoms you describe are a bad voltage regulator. The regulator could have been going bad prior, but the new component exacerbated the issue. I would start by checking the car's voltage while running, easiest to do with the secret KOMBI menu. You also might want to check for parasitic drain, which could have also been introduced from your new electronics.
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Yesterday, 07:58 PM	#3
ctuna Lieutenant General 1917 Rep 13,111 Posts Drives: 325xi 06 wagon MT Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Santa Cruz, Ca iTrader: (0)	If the new stuff is alway's on it will drain the battery . Or if it prevents the car from going to sleep it will drain the battery .
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