I had a 3G to 4G TCU upgrade to prove a point.

[Barvelh]

My 2015 finally stopped giving me updates on its condition (and stopped responding to my requests) on 3/10/2022... sad day.

Mine too.

Hoping to try this swap if I can find a 2016/17 box.

Best

[imkazaam]

IMO, it would be better to get an aftermarket module, that could allow your phone to securely connect directly to your i3, bypassing BMW's servers and the cell towers. Trading that little bit of convenience for all the data collection is not for me. I wonder how many people out there feel the same way (whether they care about the data collection or not).

[alohart]

IMO, it would be better to get an aftermarket module, that could allow your phone to securely connect directly to your i3, bypassing BMW's servers and the cell towers.

Smartphones have Bluetooth (very short range), WiFi (short range), and cellular (long range) radios. Connecting directly to an i3 via Bluetooth or WiFi wouldn't be very useful due to their short ranges and pairing requirements.

The cellular radio's behavior is determined by a SIM card or eSim. Pairing occurs automatically and can't be controlled by the user. If a smartphone paired with a cellular device in an i3, phone call and Internet data connections would be broken until the phone paired with a cell phone tower. So how would connecting directly to an i3 via a cellular signal work assuming one still wanted to use a smartphone for phone calls and Internet access?

Seems like an Internet-connected server would be required, and this server would have to know how to connect to the cellular device in every i3 using this proprietary in-car cellular device. Hmm, sounds exactly like the system that BMW set up but doesn't manage very well.

[airman2482]

Well, here is an update on my 2017 i3 REX and the 4G TCU replaced under the original BMW factory warranty ...

Wait, yours is a 2017? What's your build date?

Are you sure your original box wasn't 4G? My July 11 2016 had a 4G box, despite the screen indicating 3G.

Well, here is an update on my 2017 i3 REX and the 4G TCU replaced under the original BMW factory warranty ...

Wait, yours is a 2017? What's your build date?

Are you sure your original box wasn't 4G? My July 11 2016 had a 4G box, despite the screen indicating 3G.

Yes I’m sure it was a 3G telematics box (aka “TCB”). My actual build date was 04/17.

I was told the reason why the TCB was replaced in December 2021 was because it became intermittent and didn’t work (for whatever reason) consistently. My remote services weren’t working properly, the dealer checked logs and after testing, found the TCB module was faulty.

Since my BMW i3 was under original factory warranty until the end of February 2022, the dealer was obligated to “make it work” again, and the replacement part was the 4GLTE TCB part.

The invoice showed almost the exact same thing the other i3 owner (the OP) who had his 3G TCB replaced with a 4G-LTE TCB except my invoice was a warranty invoice and didn’t show any prices.

I just renewed my connected drive yesterday after remote services stopped working. (When I brought up the BMW app, the screen message stated the services stopped, expired or something like this)

The first thought when the remote services stopped was: “oh oh, my car has been removed from the BMW database”.. base on the OP’s post. I logged into the BMW website, connected services renewal was offered, and I immediately renewed until April 2023.

I think it was luck that my 3G TCB failed under the BMW original factory warranty, and BMW honored their warranty. Just a “stroke of luck”. Otherwise I think the services would have stopped on 22FEB2022 as others have stated in this and other forums.

Another poster in another forum stated everything was going to stop in Feb 2022 on my car and the TCB I got installed wasn’t 4G-LTE… etc. he’s full of “hot air”. (That’s what the BMW tech people stated along with ‘opinions are like …….. everyone has one’)

I’ve been in areas where there is no 3G service. (Shutdown) (brought at old iPhone 3 to see if there was any reception, and there was no 3G)

My i3 works fine.

Lucky I guess.

I’m buying a FiskerOcean when they finally come out, and getting the new i3 when it ever gets imported here, it’s being released in Asian markets first.

Thought of an i4, but want a bit better battery range (comparing it to other vehicles in price range)
——-
BTW, I wouldn’t be sore at BMW, I have a Mercedes’ ML350 which has a 3G telematics box, and Mercedes’ “TeleAid” ceased, no resolution to fix it. Not happy with this, but tech changes and the car company (no matter who it is) doesn’t have any obligation to change. (unless of course it’s in the agreement when you purchased the vehicle)(yes I think it sucks, but that’s “progress”….)

[EvanstonI3]

Yes I’m sure it was a 3G telematics box (aka “TCB”). My actual build date was 04/17.

My 2017 also has a build date of 04/17 and it has an original 4G Telematics Control Unit.
I'm unclear why you continue to insist the original on your car was "3G", particularly when other owners with cars that have earlier build dates also have 4G Telematics.

[airman2482]

Yes I’m sure it was a 3G telematics box (aka “TCB”). My actual build date was 04/17.

My 2017 also has a build date of 04/17 and it has an original 4G Telematics Control Unit.
I'm unclear why you continue to insist the original on your car was "3G", particularly when other owners with cars that have earlier build dates also have 4G Telematics.

FYI: I’m not insisting anything.

I’m just stating FACT. I saw the invoice and the unit they took out - I looked at the part myself BEFORE I brought it in, and saw the new part after I rehooked up the RoadTop box. They wouldn’t work on it under warranty with the RoadTop box connected.

And FYI, I have 2 other friends who have 2017 model year cars I helped put RoadTop units in and they did NOT have the new 4G LTE telematics unit installed in mine in their i3 either. Both of them no longer have connected drive.

[airman2482]

The question I ask is: Has anyone done a conversion from NBT ID4 with TCB to a NBT EVO unit with ID5 or 6 and an ATM and got BMW to recognize the new ATM telematics box so connected drive can be used?

I may have a working connected drive setup, but the older NBT ID4 is slower. Would be nice to have built in CarPlay with the newer setup and remote services active.

[EvanstonI3]

The question I ask is: Has anyone done a conversion from NBT ID4 with TCB to a NBT EVO unit with ID5 or 6 and an ATM and got BMW to recognize the new ATM telematics box so connected drive can be used?

I may have a working connected drive setup, but the older NBT ID4 is slower. Would be nice to have built in CarPlay with the newer setup and remote services active.

maybe you should start a new discussion thread for that? It gets lost here in this one.

[EvanstonI3]

And FYI, I have 2 other friends who have 2017 model year cars I helped put RoadTop units in and they did NOT have the new 4G LTE telematics unit installed in mine in their i3 either. Both of them no longer have connected drive.

well, also FYI- on every other forum where someone with a 2017 stated they only had 3G and lost Connected Drive it turned out their subscription had expired. That's been my experience so far. They were going off the icon on the screen. Your experience as a data point is an outlier and does not make sense when BMW was known to have been putting the 4G modules in since mid July 2016.

I am not saying you are wrong and I am not looking for an argument. It just does not make sense to me given everything I have encountered over the past year.

I would be interested in seeing what the label looks like on your new TCU. particularly where it says "MODEL:"

[airman2482]

And FYI, I have 2 other friends who have 2017 model year cars I helped put RoadTop units in and they did NOT have the new 4G LTE telematics unit installed in mine in their i3 either. Both of them no longer have connected drive.

well, also FYI- on every other forum where someone with a 2017 stated they only had 3G and lost Connected Drive it turned out their subscription had expired. That's been my experience so far. They were going off the icon on the screen. Your experience as a data point is an outlier and does not make sense when BMW was known to have been putting the 4G modules in since mid July 2016.

I am not saying you are wrong and I am not looking for an argument. It just does not make sense to me given everything I have encountered over the past year.

I would be interested in seeing what the label looks like on your new TCU. particularly where it says "MODEL:"

Yes, the screen still states “3G”.. I know what you mean.

FWIW: One of the two 2017 i3 owners I know tried to renew his connected drive and services and the person at BMW exclaimed he was “out of luck”…

It’s kind of crappy outside today, and I have a pile of stuff in the back seat, I’ll post a pic this weekend, I have to clean the car out after the winter, now that it’s highway construction season in Minnesota. (It seems there are only two seasons here in MN, winter and highway construction seasons, with a brief pause for the changeover)

And yes, this is a good idea to start a new thread!

Let me dig up the invoice, I’ll begin by giving the old and new part numbers from it.