[poiuytre111]

Lovely car but then, you are among believers here of course
I like the look of the dash cam, thanks for the fuse ref, I had assumed I would need to pick up power from the OBD socket. Do you find the rear cam is helpful when reversing - I had been thinking of a cam mounted in the handle as per oem but would have needed to integrate it into something like your Blackvue DR650.

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by poiuytre111

Lovely car but then, you are among believers here of course
I like the look of the dash cam, thanks for the fuse ref, I had assumed I would need to pick up power from the OBD socket. Do you find the rear cam is helpful when reversing - I had been thinking of a cam mounted in the handle as per oem but would have needed to integrate it into something like your Blackvue DR650.

I almost bought a car without reversing camera but glad I didn't. The rearview mirror has big limitations in large car with a small rear windshield.

The reversing camera is amazing and enables me to park with confidence and precision. My other half love the guiding lines. I cant stress enough the usefulness of it in England where parking spaces and driveways are small.

However if where you live there is plenty of room for big cars to move around and pedestrians few then you might not need a reversing camera.

[JupiterBMW]

Beautiful X you have there! My wife and I both love the Deep Sea Blue, but trying to find that in an M Sport with Chestnut leather proved to be impossible for me (searched for Pre-owned)... So, we ended up with Alpine White (our second choice).

I do agree, the X Line looks much better in the LCI version of the X3. I love the M-sport for all of the other details (black window trims, M Sport interior bits, bumpers) but in the newer version of the X3, I do not like the front end of the M Sport. I think you did it perfectly!

Also, I'm curious as to your thoughts on the dash cam. I am thinking about retrofitting them into both my X3 and M3. Thanks!

[Crassus]

A few weeks ago I had a fully loaded G12 over a long weekend. It's was a contrasting experience to the X3 and great learn about what I want my next X3 to have which are:

Surround view: Makes you an expert at parking a huge car with centimetre precision.
Comfort seats: Oh boy do the seats in the X3 feel like deckchairs once you have sat in the 7-series.
Adaptive suspension: It's a lovely feature for switching between comfort and sport.

Originally Posted by JupiterBMW

Beautiful X you have there! My wife and I both love the Deep Sea Blue, but trying to find that in an M Sport with Chestnut leather proved to be impossible for me (searched for Pre-owned)... So, we ended up with Alpine White (our second choice).

I do agree, the X Line looks much better in the LCI version of the X3. I love the M-sport for all of the other details (black window trims, M Sport interior bits, bumpers) but in the newer version of the X3, I do not like the front end of the M Sport. I think you did it perfectly!

Also, I'm curious as to your thoughts on the dash cam. I am thinking about retrofitting them into both my X3 and M3. Thanks!

In LCI xLine look as good as M-Sport and in some colour combinations it looks better. To let you in on a secret I hadn't seen my car in the metal when I went to pick it up. It's a unique and lovely colour combo. White was our second choice too.

The dashcam is amazing and from all the research I did, there is no better dashcam if you want top features in a discrete package.

[sharpharp]

congrats on the car.

I looked at various dashcams for mine last year and wanted something ultra discrete, so instead of sticking one on the windscreen, I created a bespoke setup using a Mobius . With my modifications, nobody knows its even there and has a great view of the road ahead.

I'm just waiting for the next version of the Mobius (hopefully with even better clarity)

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by sharpharp

congrats on the car.

I looked at various dashcams for mine last year and wanted something ultra discrete, so instead of sticking one on the windscreen, I created a bespoke setup using a Mobius . With my modifications, nobody knows its even there and has a great view of the road ahead.

I'm just waiting for the next version of the Mobius (hopefully with even better clarity)

Interesting. I also have a Mobius sitting on top of the mirror and also attached to the centre mirror boss. After removing it from my F31 320d Sport, I fixed it temporarily with industrial type heavy duty quality velcro. This temporary fix has turned into a semi permanent affair until I can find another method of fixing. It works well.

How have you fixed yours? We ought to exchange pictures.

[Crassus]

Hello everyone
I want to give a 6 month update on the beige Nevada leather that never intended to buy but was in the car with the specs I wanted.

This is my first car with a beige interior and one of my fears was that it would show dirt and stain very easily. Thankfully, it hasn't! Because the carpets are synthetic and the leather treated, the interior doesn't stain like a white t-shirt of beige cashmere jumper would.

If you step inside the car after walking on soil, you simply let the carpets dry, vacuum clean the car and they will look as good as new. Once every three months I give the carpets a wash too which obviously makes them look fresher but keeps the car smelling fresh.

Last week my girlfriend half sat on a bit on chocolate in the car but it didn't bother me at all. We simply wiped it off and then used a leather cleaning product which quickly wipe the front seats with once a month.

So if anyone ever considers beige Nevada leather don't fear that it's a precious interior that will easily permanently stain.

[plymjack]

Nice looking car - hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoy ours....

[kozzi]

Enjoy your X3. I have always been a fan of DSB!!!

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by plymjack

Nice looking car - hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoy ours....

I absolutely am. After driving the 7-series for a few days, I was very happy and at home back in the X3. Sometimes I wish I could buy the X3 again but factory order with options such as surround view, rear blinds and adaptive suspension for the terrible b-roads in my neck of the woods.

The turning radius of the car could be a bit better, and the steering wheel is on the slightly heavy side when parking. However, I love the natural of predictable handling and road feel that comes with not having too many aids.

[BMWrules7]

Originally Posted by Crassus

Hello everyone!
Last weekend I traded in my F30 320d Luxury for a roomier X3 xLine xDrive20d. It wasn't my original intention to buy a deep sea blue one with beige interior, but when it was offered to me I couldn't refuse it. When I saw it in person my jaw dropped. The colour has depth but is vivid and the beige leather and headliner make the car feel very spacious - it's a lovely cabin to be inside.

I test drove the X1, X5, X3 and Mercedes GLC but in the end the X3 won me over. It strikes the best balance between comfort, handling, ease of parking and visibility. Here it is:

Beautiful! Although, your camera appears to be on mirror mode!

The X3 has that bimmer Magic where everything is just where it should be. Plus, those x3 seats are so comfy.

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by BMWrules7

Beautiful! Although, your camera appears to be on mirror mode!

The X3 has that bimmer Magic where everything is just where it should be. Plus, those x3 seats are so comfy.

I live in the UK. My camera isn't mirrored.

Thank you. I'm super pleased with the colour, and in combination with the rims, it shows off the lines of the car very well. I wish I could afford to wash the car more regularly!




Over christmas I hired roof bars and borrowed a roof box from a friend. We were two adults and a 6 month old baby plus lots and lots of luggage and Christmas gifts for the little one. I was amazing that a roof box is effectively another boot and is a great way of boosting the donkey capabilities of your X3.

Come spring, I will buy bars and a Thule box. Below is a photo of the car with the box and the stats during a 467 mile journey across the UK. Before leaving the house I filled the tank and the instrumental panel displayed a 500 mile range. We arrived at the destination with 30 miles of fuel to spare.

[hoho_leung]

Originally Posted by Crassus

Thanks everyone!
This past weekend I hardwired my BlackVue 650 Dashcam to the car using the Power Magic Pro I used in my F30 3-Series. It's a high spec but very discrete dashcam that works brilliantly.

In the 3-Series it was painstakingly easy to get working, but in the F25 I had a few frustrations. Firstly I made the mistake of trying to hardwire the dashcam to the fusebox behind glovebox! I connected the yellow cable to the fuse for the headlights and the red one to a fuse for the radio/entertainment. Not only was the fuse box cumbersome to access but the dashcam only worked for a 1-2 minutes and then cut from power - This despite me trying a few different fuses. After swallowing my pride I decided to consult the manual and learned about the fusebox in the right rear of the car.

Again, the same thing happen there, the dashcam worked intermittently despite connecting to the right fuses. I think the ECU or power management system in the 2016 F25 is more sensitive to "foreign" devices than my 2012 F30 in which the hardwiring worked with the first fuses attempted.

Thankfully the hardwiring has been working for the past 24 hours both when parked and when ignition is on.












You wouldn't believe it but I had not seen the car in the metal when I went up north to pick it up. My original intention was to order a grey one with black interior, however I couldn't pass on the opportunity to buy one that's immediately available to take home with a £4,000 discount. Not having seen it in the metal added to the surprise. I have had more comments about the colour than the rims.

I also considered buying an M-Sport with M-Suspension deletion but we found black headlining to be claustrophobic. Even with a panoramic roof, the cabin of the M-Sports felt smaller than they were.

Can't you just connect the positive and negative wire of cigarette lighter? I use to do this for dashcam for all my Japanese vehicle. I am going to do this to my X3 but I believe there is no difference.

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by hoho_leung

Can't you just connect the positive and negative wire of cigarette lighter? I use to do this for dashcam for all my Japanese vehicle. I am going to do this to my X3 but I believe there is no difference.

If connected to the cigarette lighter the camera only works when ignition is on. If hardwired to the battery it films when I am away from the car.

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Crassus

If connected to the cigarette lighter the camera only works when ignition is on. If hardwired to the battery it films when I am away from the car.

Yes it does. Several of us on the bmwland forum looked at this option and after discussions with others decided against it, because there is a well publicised risk of battery discharge warnings if parked up for long periods.

There are other solutions that use a back up battery specifically designed and created for this scenario.

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by Peter_R

Yes it does. Several of us on the bmwland forum looked at this option and after discussions with others decided against it, because there is a well publicised risk of battery discharge warnings if parked up for long periods.

There are other solutions that use a back up battery specifically designed and created for this scenario.

I have a battery discharge protector.

It enables me to set the camera to switch off after 3, 6, 12 or 24 hours or when the car battery drops below a certain voltage. It's plug and forget setup. I don't have to switch the camera on or fiddle with cables anytime I have to drive.

It's a lot more hassle free than having a backup battery that my wife won't bother to charge. So far I haven't had a single problem even when the park has been left parked for a few days in the cold.

[Kugaman1]

I have a power magic pro power saver addition wired in to my car with the front and rear BlackVue cams.

Its perfect to keep on recording when you leave your car to go shopping etc....

However, recently when spending a night away in a hotel, I got in the car the next morning to find a battery discharge fault on the dash.
This error went away after driving the car for 30 mins or so and then turning the ignition off/on.

It would appear that the power magic pro cuts power to the dashcam at 12v...... apparently this is too late for my bmw..... at 12v it sees the battery as having a problem and throws up a fault......

Its a shame the power magic pro cant be made to cut off at 12.2v.......

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Kugaman1

I have a power magic pro power saver addition wired in to my car with the front and rear BlackVue cams.

Its perfect to keep on recording when you leave your car to go shopping etc....

However, recently when spending a night away in a hotel, I got in the car the next morning to find a battery discharge fault on the dash.
This error went away after driving the car for 30 mins or so and then turning the ignition off/on.

It would appear that the power magic pro cuts power to the dashcam at 12v...... apparently this is too late for my bmw..... at 12v it sees the battery as having a problem and throws up a fault......

Its a shame the power magic pro cant be made to cut off at 12.2v.......

Yes...that what I was eluding to in my previous post. What is not appreciated is that the car's electronics only allow the battery to charge to 80%, so if doing short runs it is quite possible to get repeated warnings. Therefore it needs "topping up" when it starts warning you.

This the reason I purchased a trickle charger that gets used regularly. In fact it is on charge for 2 months whilst in the Caribbean.

[Crassus]

^^
What's the make of the battery and how often do you have to charge it?

Originally Posted by Kugaman1

I have a power magic pro power saver addition wired in to my car with the front and rear BlackVue cams.

Its perfect to keep on recording when you leave your car to go shopping etc....

However, recently when spending a night away in a hotel, I got in the car the next morning to find a battery discharge fault on the dash.
This error went away after driving the car for 30 mins or so and then turning the ignition off/on.

It would appear that the power magic pro cuts power to the dashcam at 12v...... apparently this is too late for my bmw..... at 12v it sees the battery as having a problem and throws up a fault......

Its a shame the power magic pro cant be made to cut off at 12.2v.......

Did you get a battery discharge warning that you just have to confirm with an OK or does the car show something else? Did it hinder any functionality of the car?

[Peter_R]

Originally Posted by Crassus

^^
What's the make of the battery and how often do you have to charge it?

It is the original OEM battery supplied with the car. The car was an ex BMW Manager's car from head office with many electrical extras. It was trickle charged twice (2 weeks) in the garage before I collected it. Because of the anticipated electrical load with all accessories running it was fitted with the heaviest duty battery as supplied for the very cold Canadian market. The BMW Tech at Oxford, carried out a stock check and found there were non in the UK. It was put on order just in case. Anyway a new one was not required because once I carried out long runs it was fine with no further warnings. I do not charge in summer. Once we get to end of October, I start trickle charging and once we go on holiday (Jan to March) it is coupled up permanently.

By the way, the warnings I saw on mine were general saying some non essential services were disabled or words to this effect.

If you are in the habit of doing short runs in cold weather, it is worth investing in a CTEK charger that charges ALL types of batteries.

[Kugaman1]

There was a message saying to contact my BMW centre as the battery was not working correctly....
However, after driving for a few miles then turning the car off and on, it cleared and hasnt come back since......that was over a month ago.....

[Crassus]

Originally Posted by Kugaman1

There was a message saying to contact my BMW centre as the battery was not working correctly....
However, after driving for a few miles then turning the car off and on, it cleared and hasnt come back since......that was over a month ago.....

That's bizarre. The only thing I get is an occasional battery discharge warning when starting the car. All I have to do is press OK to confirm that I read the message.

Interestingly I never received these warning on my 3-Series despite it having the same equipment and engine as the X3. Further more in the 3 series is didn't have to spend an hour fishing for s fuse that enabled the camera to work when ignition is off. For some strange reason it seems like the X3 is more sensitive to 3rd party devices siphoning juice when ignition is off.

FYI I only let the camera run for 6 hours.