2007 X3 ULF bluetooth retrofit

4. install eject box in arm rest

Lifted up the rubber cover, loosed the 4 torx screws that hold the trim piece in place



Used a little bit force to pull the trim piece up. It came out easily. Put it away. It's not needed any more. The new trim piece is used to finish the installation. Following pic shows the wiring harness for eject box



I used a tiny nail to push on the 3 clips to release the connector from its seat. See following pic for a close up. After connecting the wires, I latched the connector back to its seat. It's a MISTAKE. Instead it needs to be tucked in a corner to make room for the eject box. It's a whole lot harder to unlatch it again after all the wires are connected



A picture of the new arm rest trim piece with the eject box



And a final look. I didn't purchase any cradle. The part comes with an empty tray in place which is good to store some small items like keys, coins. I was really puzzled by the only button on the eject box with a bluetooth symbol. It turns out that it functions as both a pairing button and a eject button for the cradle (or empty tray in my case).



5. install ULF in trunk

Before doing anything, write down the pairing code that's shown on a sticker on the ULF. Open instrument panel on driver side by pressing the button on the wall.



It was straightforward to locate the 54-pin connector for ULF. But I wasn't sure which one is the BT antenna connector. I found two connectors in creamy/purple color. I didn't trace the wire to find the BT antenna plate. Too much work. By trial and error, the shorter one worked for me. But there is slight static noise for voice coming off ULF.. Anyway, here's the pic of the one I used:



The one that didn't work for me



Finally found 2 screws from my toolbox to fasten ULF to the mounting bracket.

My car recognized the ULF when I turned on ignition. An entry "telephone" is automatically added to the screen. No dealer coding required!

6. Pairing

To pair my phone, I started with engine off, pressed and held the BT button on eject box, waited couple of seconds, turned on ignition, waited couple of seconds, released the button, my car entered pairing mode. Everything went smooth after that.

7. usage tip

Press and hold the talking button on steering wheel for about 1 sec, after hearing the beep, say "help".

8. things I like

Phone paired without problem. View all contacts from nav screen. Voice quality is pretty good, except for a slight static noise in the background. voice recognition is pretty accurate. Can read SMS on nav screen.

Hope someone found this useful.