FS: E70 refurb/virginized instrument cluster.

[rbryantaz]

BIMMERPOST / Classifieds

Asking Price:

USD 235.00

Shipping Costs Included

Item Interest

This is a used reprogrammed instrument cluster from a BMW X5 to be equivalent to a factory "uncoded" instrument cluster.

Asking $225 shipped.



This cluster is compatible with e70 gas engines including the 3.0l N52, 4.8l N62, 4.4l twin turbo N63, and 3.0l turbo N55. Diesel engines used a different cluster with a lower RPM tachometer.

A regular used cluster CAN NOT be reprogrammed even by BMW and will always show a "tamper dot" (between the trip miles and actual miles) indicating that the mileage is not accurate which will create an entry on your vehicle history report if you take it in for emissions or to the dealership for service. This flag on your history report can seriously devalue your car and should be avoided.

This cluster requires "coding" using NCSexpert or by a mechanic with BMW programming tools and will show the tamper dot until the coding is performed but the hard work of getting it to the state where it can be coded has been done.

The cluster has a few light scratches that are very hard to see when installed. The outer bezel can be easily swapped with your original if desired.


Background of this cluster:

I did some research to figure out how to reset the cluster back to "uncoded" state to match how the BMW replacement clusters that bmw sells for $1500. I did this because I bought a used X5 that had a faulty cluster which would "reset" randomly on hot days dropping all of my guages to 0 and losing the clock so it had to be replaced. I bought the X5 as a second car for and paying an extra $1500 was not an option. My day job is as a computer engineer and I have a background as a technician so I was able to figure it all out (but it took a lot of time and research).

I bought 2 used clusters for testing and was able to get both recoded. I kept one for my own use and am now selling this one. This cluster was tested in my personal 2007 4.8i and worked perfectly for a week before being removed and reprogrammed back to an "uncoded" state with a new chip it is now re-programmable to match any e70 X5 with a gas engine.

Suggestions for coding:

I suggest coding the cluster to enable "digital speed display." The process of coding a new option into the cluster will cause the cluster to update the VIN in the cluster which will remove the tamper dot. I have performed this procedure on my personal X5, it is not sufficient for some reason to simply write the VIN to the chip before the cluster is installed, the car performs some extra step to remove the tamper dot which occurs when programming.

This cluster has been set to "0 miles" but this WILL NOT change your vehicles mileage any more than getting a new cluster from BMW (for $1500) would.

As soon as you drive with this cluster it will be written with your vehicles actual mileage by the rest of the control system which is why it is important that it start with a cluster with less miles than the car has.


A warning on used instrument clusters:

A used instrument cluster from a vehicle with more miles than your car will cause your car to inherit that cars miles after a short time which is normally less than 100 miles of driving. This cluster will not cause that and can safely be driven with a tamper dot until it is coded.

Once again this cluster is intended to replace a faulty instrument cluster and will not change a vehicles mileage, it simply allows for this cluster to be set to the correct mileage without the dreaded "tamper dot" which would drop a vehicles resale value.