Firmware/Software Versions

[AW M4]

Brought the car in recently and the dealer had to replace a few modules and reprogrammed the car per warranty. I do agree that the exhaust is now quieter overall. Suspension definitely does feel different as well. Haven't driven the car in all the different modes yet to notice a huge difference though.

[dzvero]

Originally Posted by LoveMyM3

Thanks anyways. I am going into the dealership to get the car updated. I am on one of the oldest versions so I am sure it will help update many things for me.

You will need to code your car again after the update. It will reset to default.

[LoveMyM3]

Originally Posted by dzvero

You will need to code your car again after the update. It will reset to default.

Thanks buddy! I did with Almaretto. He is the man. The only thing I plan on doing next is the GTS DCT option. Waiting to get a battery back up so I can flash

[ryou]

Thanks to aboulfad i got my cars firmware updated from F020-14-11-505 to F0202-17-03-505, it was almost 2.5 years out of date.

and there is a huge difference. The biggest difference is no more herky jerky in D2 and D3 going from 2->3, it now holds the revs if the ECU is confused, or it will hesitate just a tiny bit, before deciding to shift up.

I can now safely drive it in down on D2/D3, before this, i had to use D1, cos it was dangerous if the car decided to jerk and not deliver power when i need it.

in default mode(start up) everything is alot smoother now, it feels like a auto transmission, no sound, nothing from the DCT when it shifts.

I also am loving the new coloured HUD..looks way better/vibrant.

Cant wait to see if the car gets the 5-10% FC improvements that other ppl have reported after the reflash.

its only been a day, havnt noticed any changes in sound/suspension

[BJJfrog]

Picked up my used 2015 LCI M3 yesterday and have been following this thread for a while. Plugged in my cable and e-sys last night to figure out what version it's on.

The car is on I-Step F020-15-11-504 which from what I can tell is well before the 58.3 version where DCT and traction control were improved. I'm thinking of taking it into the dealer to get flashed to the latest software.

Bit unsure about the power delivery changes though. People that are on the newest updates, is it still worth it? Right now if I accelerate even briskly the traction control lights up way too easily.

[Wills2]

I've just had mine flashed to F020-17-07-504 and something has changed massively in terms of torque delivery, the car has lost an awful lot of urgency, the direct and rabid nature of the power delivery that was there before has gone.

It's much smoother, less spikey, I'm able to get on the throttle earlier and stay on it.

Not sure what I think really the car has lost its "edge" it "feels" slower, less of a beast which I quite liked.

But at the same time I think it'll give me more confidence.

[silverstar335]

Originally Posted by BJJfrog

Picked up my used 2015 LCI M3 yesterday and have been following this thread for a while. Plugged in my cable and e-sys last night to figure out what version it's on.

The car is on I-Step F020-15-11-504 which from what I can tell is well before the 58.3 version where DCT and traction control were improved. I'm thinking of taking it into the dealer to get flashed to the latest software.

Bit unsure about the power delivery changes though. People that are on the newest updates, is it still worth it? Right now if I accelerate even briskly the traction control lights up way too easily.

How do you tell what version you are on? I have the cable and e-sys.

[BJJfrog]

Originally Posted by Wills2

I've just had mine flashed to F020-17-07-504 and something has changed massively in terms of torque delivery, the car has lost an awful lot of urgency, the direct and rabid nature of the power delivery that was there before has gone.

It's much smoother, less spikey, I'm able to get on the throttle earlier and stay on it.

Not sure what I think really the car has lost its "edge" it "feels" slower, less of a beast which I quite liked.

But at the same time I think it'll give me more confidence.

That's the version mine was upgraded to. I agree with you that the power is smoother, torque seems to come on more progressively in low gears. The manic edge was fun, but I think the power being more usable would be better. I think they must be detuned it slightly in low gears. I used to ride 1L bikes and low gears were detuned otherwise you'd loop the bike. Reminds me of that.

[BJJfrog]

Originally Posted by silverstar335

How do you tell what version you are on? I have the cable and e-sys.

Check out this post Silverstar: http://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho...postcount=1403

Converting I-STEP to a version is in PDFs around the web, use Google for that.

[riano]

Originally Posted by Wills2

I've just had mine flashed to F020-17-07-504 and something has changed massively in terms of torque delivery, the car has lost an awful lot of urgency, the direct and rabid nature of the power delivery that was there before has gone.

It's much smoother, less spikey, I'm able to get on the throttle earlier and stay on it.

Not sure what I think really the car has lost its "edge" it "feels" slower, less of a beast which I quite liked.

But at the same time I think it'll give me more confidence.

Agree with this, mine was updated to this version yesterday and I'm not impressed, the car feels significantly slower and less spikey. Efficiency mode and gearbox setting 1 are now redundant as the car feels massively slow with this (this was my city driving settings before) and now even sport and gearbox 2 feels slower than efficient and setting 1 used to. Not impressed at all

[Wills2]

Originally Posted by riano

Agree with this, mine was updated to this version yesterday and I'm not impressed, the car feels significantly slower and less spikey. Efficiency mode and gearbox setting 1 are now redundant as the car feels massively slow with this (this was my city driving settings before) and now even sport and gearbox 2 feels slower than efficient and setting 1 used to. Not impressed at all

After doing a 1000 miles since the update I now find the car quicker in all situations you can apply more throttle and get on the power earlier.

So it has lost that "spike" but gained control and as we all know power is nothing without control.

So I'm fairly happy.

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by Wills2

After doing a 1000 miles since the update I now find the car quicker in all situations you can apply more throttle and get on the power earlier.

So it has lost that "spike" but gained control and as we all know power is nothing without control.

So I'm fairly happy.

...after 1000 miles you have become more adjusted to the power delivery is my guess. Putting power down vs spinning is a good thing for most.

[Wills2]

Another observation is the MDM now allows a lot less slip when the wheel is straight, before it would allow the wheels to spin up in 1st and 2nd still giving you the throttle now it takes the throttle away...not cool, bogs down too much in cooler temps.

[M4_CaptFlashheart]

my car, M4, went in for a service recently. When I was driving it home I felt it was slower or not as urgent anymore. I took it back to dealers and asked if software or anything had been changed and they said not. Strange that I'm reading similar things here. I wonder if they did change it but didn't want to tell me?

[skipole]

Originally Posted by M4 UAV

my car, M4, went in for a service recently. When I was driving it home I felt it was slower or not as urgent anymore. I took it back to dealers and asked if software or anything had been changed and they said not. Strange that I'm reading similar things here. I wonder if they did change it but didn't want to tell me?

Probably just a result of the battery being unplugged for 30+ mins, which resets the adaptive throttle settings...?

Total n00b here, so hopefully someone more intelligent can chime in, but my understanding is that the throttle "learns" your driving style and habits and adapts the throttle response accordingly over time. Unplug the battery = reset this and force the car to learn again.

[JoeFromPA]

Originally Posted by Wills2

Another observation is the MDM now allows a lot less slip when the wheel is straight, before it would allow the wheels to spin up in 1st and 2nd still giving you the throttle now it takes the throttle away...not cool, bogs down too much in cooler temps.

I feel the opposite personally. I wonder if your tires are simply slipping MORE now that the temps are lower. I love MDM now.

[Wills2]

Originally Posted by JoeFromPA

I feel the opposite personally. I wonder if your tires are simply slipping MORE now that the temps are lower. I love MDM now.

Not sure, with the CSC5P the car came with, with the wheel straight MDM (euro version) the tyres would spin up all the way through 1st and then into second.

Now with the updated software on PS4S the throttle is taken away instantly.

[Icyman077]

Just got a major update from the dealer today after having some alarm and iDrive issues. This car feels like a beast again to me. However it might be me since my firmware was so old.

[jdherman]

I just had the M Performance Sports Chassis Retrofit Kit installed on my car and asked to get the latest I-Level (I-Step or ISTA/P) installed.

The service advisor (SA) said that the tech said that there wouldn't be much updated and did I really want to do it. I said yes.

When I did the profile download to USB before and after the update I went from F020-15-07-504 (P3.56.3) to F020-17-07-504 (P3.62.3, I think).

However, the SA showed me the attached report and said that he didn't think anything was updated because all of the items in the State column say "not called". But the report agrees with what my profile downloads said, that I went from F020-15-07-504 to F020-17-07-504.

Does anyone know if the SA was right about the meaning of "not called"?

I paid for the firmware update and want to be sure that I got what I paid for.

Thanks.

[MRCUR]

Originally Posted by jdherman

I just had the M Performance Sports Chassis Retrofit Kit installed on my car and asked to get the latest I-Level (I-Step or ISTA/P) installed.

The service advisor (SA) said that the tech said that there wouldn't be much updated and did I really want to do it. I said yes.

When I did the profile download to USB before and after the update I went from F020-15-07-504 (P3.56.3) to F020-17-07-504 (P3.62.3, I think).

However, the SA showed me the attached report and said that he didn't think anything was updated because all of the items in the State column say "not called". But the report agrees with what my profile downloads said, that I went from F020-15-07-504 to F020-17-07-504.

Does anyone know if the SA was right about the meaning of "not called"?

I paid for the firmware update and want to be sure that I got what I paid for.

Thanks.

This looks like a report prior to the update being run. You can see what the current versions are and the targeted ("tar.") versions are. The state being "not called" makes me think this report was printed prior to the tech executing the updates.

Your car was certainly significantly out of date prior to the update.

[LOW4LYF]

Originally Posted by jdherman

I just had the M Performance Sports Chassis Retrofit Kit installed on my car and asked to get the latest I-Level (I-Step or ISTA/P) installed.

The service advisor (SA) said that the tech said that there wouldn't be much updated and did I really want to do it. I said yes.

When I did the profile download to USB before and after the update I went from F020-15-07-504 (P3.56.3) to F020-17-07-504 (P3.62.3, I think).

However, the SA showed me the attached report and said that he didn't think anything was updated because all of the items in the State column say "not called". But the report agrees with what my profile downloads said, that I went from F020-15-07-504 to F020-17-07-504.

Does anyone know if the SA was right about the meaning of "not called"?

I paid for the firmware update and want to be sure that I got what I paid for.

Thanks.

You can be sure that almost every single ecu got updated since there is a 2 years gap.
The SA had just no idea what he is talking about!

[jdherman]

Originally Posted by MRCUR

Your car was certainly significantly out of date prior to the update.

I agree. That's what made the Service Advisor's comments (from the tech) so puzzling.

Is the download profile to USB method an accurate way to determine what version of firmware you have? If so, then I should be updated given the version it showed.