Retrofit M-Drive (M-Button)??

Hey guys, I currently have an M3 sans MDM / M-Button. Now that all M3s come with a \"simplified\" M-Button as standard (even without I-drive), I was wondering if it would be possible to retrofit this on to our cars....

I brought this up to my CA, and he stated that it is in fact possible and had already been done once to his knowledge. He said it only involved a flash and swapping the steering wheel.

My questions for you guys are:

-Does anyone know if this is true? If so, do they know the person(s) in question who have done the retrofit?

-Are the functions contained within the M-Button truly worth the trouble of doing something like this?

I know that a TON of owners would be interested in this if true. There is a similar thread out there, but most of the posts are 2 years old, so I figured I\'d get this started.

Thanks for any help that you can provide.

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=241151

z335is wrote

There is a similar thread out there, but most of the posts are 2 years old, so I figured I\'d get this started.

As I said above, most of the posts in that thread are almost three years old though. In light of the new information I figured I'd get something new started rather then have people flip through 10 pages of an old thread with mostly outdated info. Thanks though.

Ah, sorry - missed that part. I agree there's a lot in there and some is old. But the latest posts seemed to be pretty encouraging. No problem with a new thread as long as we don't end up with two parallel discussions with neither of which having all the current info.

mkoesel wrote

Ah, sorry - missed that part. I agree there's a lot in there and some is old. But the latest posts seemed to be pretty encouraging. No problem with a new thread as long as we don't end up with two parallel discussions with neither of which having all the current info.

No problem man. I'm just trying to get some fresh discussion on this and possible pull in more people who might know about the retrofit.

Are the "M button" functions really that worthwhile to spend the money on a retro fit? I'm not saying they are or aren't, but I was under the impression that it was kind of a gimmick.

Hmm , I thought there'd be more interest in this. No one has any info / insight?

I'm going to guess that no one has any info on this. That being the case, does anyone know where I could direct this question to at BMW? It's something I'm very interested in.

z335is wrote

Hmm , I thought there'd be more interest in this. No one has any info / insight?

I've been pushing for a possible solution to this as well. It doesn't seem like there is much interest / support for it on this board though (at least anymore). Maybe just try calling BMW of Amercia and see if they can put you in touch with someone?

I suggested a simple test in the other thread: add 2MD to the vehicle order, code the car and see what happens.

Owner assumes all risks.

Technic wrote

I suggested a simple test in the other thread: add 2MD to the vehicle order, code the car and see what happens.

Owner assumes all risks.

Excuse my ignorance on the subject Technic, but how would one go about doing this if they were interested? Do you think there's a chance it could work?

z335is wrote

Excuse my ignorance on the subject Technic, but how would one go about doing this if they were interested? Do you think there's a chance it could work?

BMW CODING success

What I know is that, if the MDM software/hardware is present in the car -regardless if MDM itself is factory installed or not- then adding the code to the VO may enable it.

However, if the software is not present then either nothing will happen or errors will be generated after coding.

Owners assume all risks.

Did anyone ever end up following through on this? I'm very interested in whether it worked or not.

Technic wrote

I suggested a simple test in the other thread: add 2MD to the vehicle order, code the car and see what happens.

Owner assumes all risks.

What does the 2MD code stand for?

JulieDriving wrote

What does the 2MD code stand for?

MDM

BMWsully wrote

Did anyone ever end up following through on this? I'm very interested in whether it worked or not.

PM Mike Benvo. AFAIK it is still on his list of TODOs, but I haven't heard any news about it lately.

Technic wrote

MDM

Not to nitpick Technic, but 2MD is actually MDrive. There is no option code for MDM (nor Sport Servotronic, nor Sport+ Power for that matter) - it's just included as part of MDrive.

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=676825

(for anyone subscribed to this thread)