I bought the Carly for BMW app when I had my E90 and it worked great. At the time, I was able to buy a much cheaper OBDII wireless interface compared to their version. Unfortunately, it does NOT work with my F10 so I haven't been able to use the app on my new car. Buying their OBDII interface is on my things to buy list, but since I put tires, rear brakes and plugs in the car since I bought it....I figured I better let some time go by before I spend $75 on that. I would definitely recommend the Carly app to anyone who wants an easy way to code their car and doesn't worry about the fact that there are some things you probably can't do with it.

 

I was curious because the Carly adapter appears to be just to be a rebranded WiFi OBD. I assume they code in something that lets the app know. I'm out of funds on this adventure, but I may at some point buy the unbranded Carly BMW device and see what happens.

 

Don't waste your money on the cheaper OBDII adaptor. They have programmed their software for the F10 to work only with their specific adaptor. My generic adaptor worked on about 90% of the coding for my E90, but it wouldn't work for doing service resets and other add-ons. On my F10, it will let me look at diagnostic codes but it will do absolutely zero coding. If you are going to spend the money on the Carly app.......bite the bullet and get their adaptor. You are still saving a tremendous amount of money in the long run.

 

First of all thanks for the great write up
second; its true that option 2 (Laptop and ISTA- E-sys) is more in depth option; but i use e-sys rarely now since ive coded everything as i please, and its not easy to carry your laptop with you whenever you need to do anything.
So i highly recommend getting the mobile software since you leave the OBD reader in the car and you have your mobile with you always

 

excellent write up.. i'm debating between the two BimmerCode and Carly too.

I mainly wants to code few basic things on my F10 (X5 2014) so do you still think Bimmercode is a better way to go? Dealer and Laptop doesn't work well for me.

 

excellent write up.. i'm debating between the two BimmerCode and Carly too.

I mainly wants to code few basic things on my F10 (X5 2014) so do you still think Bimmercode is a better way to go? Dealer and Laptop doesn't work well for me.

It really depends on what your budget is. The biggest issue I have with BimmerCode is that it lacked support for two of the 6 modules in my car. Carly BMW can code all 8. If you have the money, I would go with Carly BMW at this time.

Now in defence of BimmerCode. I emailed its creator and he did ask that I email him support logs as he is always looking to increase compatibility. Your 2014 might be more compatible than my 2011. If you are looking for the cheapest possible route than BimmerCode is the way to go.

 

You read my mind with this post. I have been looking into Carly BMW for about a week. I have found the ObdII pieces all over eBay ranging from $45-$118. The problem I have is that none of them say that they support the F10. No matter if it is the android (mine) or iphone (wife phone), they only state that they are compatible up to e60. Is there a version that I am missing that specifically supports F10. They are all the generation 2 apparently.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Bimmerfest mobile app

 

The Gen 2 in my first photo is the iPhone version and is compatible with the f10. You can also verify on the Carly Website. I dont think you are missing anything, they may just be using an old Specifications list. The Carly app updates the adapter from time to time as well. For example, I had a hard time coding anything until it updated my Carly adapter.

 

If one has a late 2013+, NBT-- then there is no need to buy the iDrive Add-On. But you will need the Carly Connected Car (Generation II) plug in device-- don't waste money on a generic/universal OBD scan tool-- they are not the same.

There are some items you can code that need to be "checked out & adjusted" to suit your needs. This is not feasible with having someone remote code your F10 . For example you can set the temperature of your seat heaters-- the Back is separate from the Bottom cushion-- I have some back pain so I have one of my three setting setup to have a very high heat on the back and no heat on my butt. Same with adjusting the sensitivity of your rain sensor, DRL brightness, and etc.

The Carly device is very handy and easy to use-- plug it in and get your phone . . . Yes, it is somewhat limited in comparison to coding with a laptop-- but it is so much easier for MOST things. I just wish the Brake Hold function could be coded to come on by default.

And Sam-- thanks for the time and effort to make the review.

 

Please ignore.

 

I was able to code FEM in my F15 without any issues. I'm very pleased with bimmercode, did everything I want, easier and cleaner interface plus Stephen (developer) was fast in responding and support was excellent. He even told me some things was missing but immediately added me to their beta version and solved my issues.
Give it a try

 

I read about Bimmercode expert mode only in German though basic options show English text. Is this true?

 

@Op

VERY VERY nice write up! Something I will correct you on, however in your initial analysis.... You said:

=====================

We have 4 options that I know of to perform coding on our F10s:
Dealership (Single time, No idea on price)

=====================

This is not actually an option. A dealer not only will not do pretty much any programming (for any price), they CAN NOT. They update modules "en mass", with software updates, and do not offer any of the convenience features that you can do via any of the other 3 methods you mention. The only thing the dealer can offer is coding a battery (obviously), and programming the auto start stop to remember last setting. Thats it.

So, Even for those with the money to pay for the dealer to program it, option 1 is not an option.

Other than that, excellent write up, and great contribution to the site! its the kind of post that should be stickied imo, since coding is something that comes up ALL the time, and this wonderful post is going to end up buried.

 

Not sure about expert mode only in German or not. When you go into expert mode, it's just like coding via cable/laptop... you search for the module you want and change the codes as if it's from a laptop

 

I am trying to find out if Bluetooth Audio streaming can be activated using Bimmercode's expert mode. I have emailed the developer and even he is not sure! If anyone could give a definitive answer, it would be much appreciated

 

So, is it true that not one of these apps has figured out how to code the no dazzle/Euro LED auto-high-beam function?

 

I believe that is true. Coding from a phone app is not going to get it done (yet)-- you will need to connect a laptop and use the appropriate software. Had mine coded remotely for the headlights. It seems to wok pretty well-- even though it is active by default on mine car, it rarely comes in to play because I am nearly always in a bright urban area and traveling too slow.

 

Id agree with Rick. While several updates have come out for both apps since I wrote this. I dont think it can code that feature. But I also dont think I would see it displayed as an option for me to begin with.

 

The antidazzle feature has been DEcoded for US cars with Adaptive Headlights. The feature is also found on the HID Adaptive Headlights as well as the LED lights. There seems to be different opinions on how "effective" some of the different methods of REcoding the Anit-Dazzle-- not everyone recodes this the same way and the results are not always the same.

As I indicated I have not actually been able to use this feature much . . . so far, I'm pretty well satisfied with how it works. But it is very difficult to properly assess how well it works unless YOU are in a car in oncoming traffic. When the system is active, I have not been "flashed" by oncoming traffic much at all-- where it concerns me is coming up on slower traffic from the rear-- very difficult to determine if the high beam is "splitting" properly so as not to dazzle the driver in front. There is quite a bit of discussion on this topic in the Coding forum.

My previous car was a Mercedes-Benz, another brand loaded with features/gadgets/etc-- however, coding these in a M-B can be very difficult, expensive, and some irems are "impossible". For example to disable the Stop/Start, I had to add a $65 piece of hardware (plug-n-play) to the wiring in the drive's door. Getting Video In Motion coded from a USB stick will cost about $100. I had my BMW 'coded' a few days after I got the car, and I was not yet even familiar with some of the features . . . so the Carly has been a great purchase for me to change some things.

 

I used the Carly app on my E90 and it was money well spent. The $20 adapter that I purchased won't work on my F10 so I finally purchased the genuine Carly adapter this week and I'm looking forward to what it can do. For anyone who's never coded their car before, the Carly app is an incredibly affordable, easy to use choice that does almost everything that you can do with a computer and cable. It doesn't do everything but it covers the important things. and the Carly folks are regularly updating their devices so don't be surprised if the tire pressure feature mentioned above doesn't show up in the not to distant future.

 

This is very upsetting. And it makes these apps worthless to me. The best thing about coding is turning on the non-US-stupid version of LED/HID lamps, which turn on full high beams and turn at all sort of angles as it uses the camera in your rear view mirror to see where cars are ahead of you. It's fantastic to see the light beam change intensity, angles, etc. But you have to change the "build" of the car in coding what's called "VO" coding, different than typical FDL coding done in the apps. I would have imagined the apps would've figured this out, 3-4 years after this has been figured out by us civilians doing coding.

 

I watched a video of the LED Adaptive Lights in action and I can't say that I was impressed with them in real world use. The guy had several people flash their high beams at him before they went into action and with all of the random swinging, turning off and on and such, it wouldn't surprise me if those things fail long before normal headlights do. They look like a neat gadget but to me, they look like they are convenient for the BMW driver but annoying to everyone around them. Some would argue that makes them the perfect BMW feature.

 

I've had this in my F80 for 3 years, used it almost every night. You'll get someone upset maybe once every month, at most. But 95% of the time, it's amazing tech, and every car should have that thing standard.

 

grilodan ---- love that picture, good eye.

 

Hi guys... i was thinking of getting Carly BMW and do some basic coding for my 2014 535xi, but it seems that a couple of things I wanted to do (head-up display additions and headlight turn on sensitivity) is not available when I look on their website what the tool can do. Also, i read in some review that while using their tool to code one thing, either it does not work, or it causes issues where the check engine light comes on or other error codes and you have to revert all together. I am just asking opinion if anyone has done it recently and what can be expected and should I be skeptical.
My other option is just to pay the remote coding guy that is here on the forum....good reviews for him looks like.

 

I will be using the Carly app sometime in the next week. I'll let you know if I have any issues. I'm planning on trying to add the following:

Comfort open sunroof immediately
Comfort close using remote
iDrive Logo (change startup logo)
Sport display (displays HP and Torque)
Digital speedometer (shows the true speed on the dash display)
deactivate legal disclaimer
activate video in motion

I may tweak the seat heating as well. The Carly app is not nearly as useful on the F10 as it was on my E90. Several of the codings that I did on that car are standard features on the F10 (angel eyes as DRL's and comfort open being a couple examples).

 

At this moment in time, I can't recommend the Carly app based on my experience tonight. I bought the Carly app in 2014 for my E90 with the understanding that all updates would be free but battery registration and service reset would have an additional cost. When I went to code my F10, it popped up a message that in order to do any iDrive related coding, I would now need to pay $13.99 for that option, on top of the $45 for the app that I previously purchased and $79 for the adapter. It's nice to be able to easily change the coding whenever you want, but if they want to constantly bleed you for cash and don't offer some of the features, I'm not sure if I can recommend it. I sent them an email and explained my frustration with the new fee, but I'm feeling like sending the adapter back and getting a refund just out of general principle.

 

It sounds like they're following the BMW business model ie. screw the customer for features that are already built in but not activated.

 

I hear ya, I know the price is a lot, but considering that I don't own a laptop (or didn't at the time), gotta factor that in a little. My experience with ESYS has been so/so. It works great but does have a decent learning curve.

 

For me, the price isn't an issue so much as the general principle. When I bought the app, it was advertised that future updates would be included at no charge. That they want another $14 to perform a task that was previously included is insulting. Plus, they've configured their app where you must use their adapter. What's to keep them from adding a line of code to force you to upgrade to their Gen 3 adapter even if you already own one of their Gen 2 adapters?

So, I went from being a fan to being very skeptical of them. As you said, if you don't have access to a computer to do the software coding yourself, it's not a bad option even if there are some limitations. It's just important to realize that at some point, they are likely to announce that access to each module now has a fee and the cost of the app, adapter and needed in-app purchases could easily surpass $200 in the future.

 

Flatland-- you're right. I paid less than $20 for my Cable and the coding software did not cost anything other than the time and bandwidth to down load it.

Nevertheless, I'm glad I bought the Carly Adapter and the App. The only "add-on" I will probably ever buy is the Battery Reset (when I need a new battery). I find using the Carly very handy and easy. I always have my iphone with me and Carly stays in the glove box. I have used it on a few friends' BMWs to change a few things for them. Overall, I'm happy with the purchase.

 

FYI, I recently became the proud owner of a '14 535. I wanted a couple of simple things coded to make the care "mine." At first, the service department was willing to give it a shot when I took the car in for initial squawks. Unfortunately, it didn't take long for them to say they either couldn't do it, or it was impossible. The requests were simple. A language change option for one besides English, Spanish and French, add a few things like the compass and digital speedo, and so on. They couldn't get past the first one without BMWNA saying it was impossible, which completely contradicts multiple posts on these forums. Never having coded a car, I found a local shop specializing in German cars, and they quickly got one done, but they were stuck on the rest. So, I took a look at BimmerCode and Carly, and went with the former for starters.

Man, what an app!!! For fifty bucks including app and connector, you have easy, plug and play, access to many dozens of parameters. Go into expert mode, and on my F10, it connected with all ECUs except the ACSM (which I didn't want to mess with anyway...yet), giving me literally thousands of choices. While many are in English and/or are self explanatory, most in expert mode sind auf Deutsch and require that you either speak a little German or use a dictionary or translation app. Even then, some are rather cryptic, so some research is required, but if you're smart enough to earn enough to buy a BMW, and you're interested enough that you're here, you won't have too many issues, if any. I found BimmerCode intuitive to use, even in expert mode, and even though there's no manual or help file. BTW, Carly's supposed manual isn't much of a manual either.

Long story short, no problems so far. Everything I've tried to code has worked first time out...flawlessly. There are a gazillion things you can add, delete, or tweak to make the car serve you better. Many should be on (or off) by default, but they aren't. BMW's have always been fun to drive and tinker with, but this is a whole new level, so much so that I bought the companion app BimmerLink too, and that's where one tiny, but potentially major issue, showed up. Bimmerlink lets you view sensor data, perform diagnostics and read/clear error memory. I tired clearing some of the errors just to see how it worked. All but one could be cleared, and that's the rub...maybe. There's one error you can clear, but as soon as you do, it pops right back up. Translated from German, it means "Control Device Connected (or detected - I forgot exactly). Either way, this could be used in a sticky situation against you. I'll have to confirm, but I feel like the mere act of connecting any of these apps via the OBD port will write the error to memory, and you can't clear it without using the app. Catch 22.

Regardless, this app and the adapter were worth every red cent. I paid the shop fifty bucks to make one change. Now, for the same amount of money, I can make hundreds, if not thousands, at any time. Two thumbs up IMHO.

 

So you got the compass to work? I couldn't. I tried adding languages (which it did) however that got the whole system stuck in French.

 

Yes. There are two places I made compass active, and I'm not certain which one worked, or whether it was both required. I guess I could test it, or at least go back and check where the two parameters were. I'll do that when it cools off some. Temps in the car were way over 100 today with no AC on. There's actually a third place you can get a compass: XDrive display, which also gives pitch and roll values, but the background pic is an X5, so it looks sort of strange.

Language coding can also be done in more than one place. If you set the default to UK English i/o USA English, you get a dozen and a half or so more choices, one of which is of course, German. That actually helps a little since after you run through all the menus, you learn some of the tech terms in German if you don't already. It's easy enough to switch back and forth fro iDrive once set that way.

The app scared the @#$%^ out of me earlier today. I coded it to switch off the radio etc. immediately, instead of after x minutes, and when iDrive rebooted, the engine quit. I thought it was bricked, but the app said successful and I just pressed start, the engine fired right up, and all was back to normal except one thing I've noticed. With some codes, even though they seem unrelated, it's necessary to reset the time after a reboot. No problem, it's worth the minor annoyance to have all of these options available.

 

That's weird. I just got out of the car to verify which parameter I used and was typing the reply when your post notification came in. Here's the deal on the compass. It's similar to a boat or aircraft whiskey compass, with the front top half showing. It appears in the center of the instrument cluster just above the odometer, but only if you cycle through with the BC button on the left hand stalk. The setting is not retained after shutdown of the engine, so you have to enable with the BC button whenever you want to use it. BTW, this is also where I enable a zero corrected digital speedometer, even though I have the HUD, which I am also enhancing in terms of what's displayed. Enabling the compass only takes a change to one code (Kompass, not Compass which appears elsewhere and doesn't do anything I can see).

Using BimmerCode, connect as usual and navigate to Instrument Cluster (KOMBI) and go into expert mode. Then, go to 3003 FZG Ausstattung. Once there, scroll down to Kompass_Graph_Enable. Press that and change inacktiv to activ. Back up until the code button appears and press code. After 30 seconds or so, it'll code and reboot. After everything is booted up again, cycle through BC button presses until the compass appears above the odometer. Done.

 

Thanks, I'll give that a try in E-Sys.

I tried the speed thing but, from my understanding, it doesn't work.

 

Next test drive I might try to compare the HUD, Analog, and digital with a radar up the street and old school...with a stopwatch and distance markers. Regardless, I gotta say BimmerCode is proving to be worth exponentially more than its cost. My wife is even jumping on board and now wants me to tweak hers.

 

I wouldn't trust the speed signs. They aren't calibrated after they're installed. I pass by 2 every week and either my speedo is off by 2mph at 35 (my speedo says 37 and the radar shows 35) or the radar readout is jacked. Though the speeds are consistent.

The only true way of getting an accurate speed is a measured mile (multiple miles will be more accurate).