[user-2539]

re-read step5 in my OP, you need 7 wires.

apologies, i've made some corrections in RED below

I just did a reverse camera retrofit on my 2021 model i3, I wanted it to be OEM, just like BMW would have done it at the factory, here's an overview:

ps. to start with, my vehicle has rear park sensors, no front park sensors, no cameras, the label on the head-unit under the rear seat is labelled: NBT EVO HU and it supports Apple CarPlay.

1. to drill the hole in the bumper, makes a clean smooth hole (buy the 17mm diameter version): https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/293307887115

2. to remove the bumper and seat and plastic panels - various videos on YouTube. Pepppie's video above is very good and perhaps another that shows the removal of the inside plastic floor sills and plastic kick-panel cover (i hate breaking bits on the plastic panels, so worth investing a bit of time, looking at videos, to see how and where they click-in etc.) Don't forget about the 2 screws holding the bumper on, located behind the license plate.

3. to attach the camera to the bumper, I used this (BMW Part# 51127305103]): https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/196708948005 ps. this holder has a slight angle to it, the face is not 90 degrees, i oriented it, so the camera looks to the ground, not to the sky

4. purchased this cable harness (cables are all labelled as to where they need to go and connector pins are attached at the cable-ends): https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000210781167.html

5. you'll need to route 7 cables from the camera. 5 cables go to the head unit under the rear seat (for the initial 3 listed here, just pop the pins into the empty socket holes in the A42 connector): A42/21 FBAS+, A42/24 FBAS-, A42/23 video feed shield, power, ground (for the latter 2, I spliced into existing cables, used to power the head-unit, but added an additional in-line 3 amp fuse - like this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/174712185473). The final 2 cables go to the R3 CAN3 terminator connector, on the passenger side, under the dash, behind the fuse panel (when you see the connector pairs next to each other, it's the one on the right, for RHD vehicles): R3/12 k-can3 high, R3/25 k-can3 low (there's no need to disassemble the R3 connector plug, just locate the black - position 12 and green - position 25, existing cables and splice-in / solder and insulate, further back down the cable). To access the R3 connector, unhook the fuse panel from its hinges, it will drop down to give you more space to work.

6. cable harness routing (as per the pink route in Pepppie's post above). however for the cables that go to the front of the vehicle (under the passengers dash), i routed them down the LHS (my vehicle being RHD), by unclipping the plastic sills that run down the LHS from front to back: https://bmwi.bimmerpost.com/forums/a...1&d=1755236419

7. to route the cable from outside to inside the vehicle, it's difficult to use the existing rubber boot / grommet, so i routed the new cable harness through the existing mesh cable protector, broke-out at the top, and drilled a new 12mm hole, through the carbon fibre chassis, about 1 inch above the existing rubber boot / grommet, then used a new rubber grommet like this https://ebay.us/m/ya1nM0, then routed the cables through the new grommet. To drill you'll need to loosen a few panels / bits, to get the drill 90 degrees to the surface. To ensure NO water ingress into the vehicle, I used: Würth PU adhesive / sealer Prod# 0893236130 - brilliant stuff ! (any PU adhesive / sealant shout work, including the stuff they attach vehicle windscreens, put some on the outside, over the grommet and cable entry area to seal it up. I wouldn't use silicone, as I don't think it will adhere to the carbon fibre chassis, and wont be as effective)

8. purchased a BMW original camera (used condition) off eBay, model#: 66539475687 or whichever is compatible with your vehicle(before fitting the camera into the holder, complete the coding, and check the camera doesn't need to be rotated 180 degrees, if the image appears upside down. it's difficult to get the camera out the holder once inserted (potentially breaking the clips that hold on to it) and also wasted time / effort to remove the bumper and license plate, if you find it's orientated incorrectly.

9. coding hardware used (for iPhone): https://amzn.eu/d/2zqfJUM (OBD2 to ethernet) and https://amzn.eu/d/8PbzVVe (ethernet to iPhone lightning connector)

10a. coding: activate VO option 3ag (reverse assist camera) - used BimmerUtility (using e-sys will be cheaper). Do this step before step 10b.

10b. coding (NBT_Evo head unit - used BimmerCode or BimmerUtility - using e-sys will be cheaper)

I set the following parameters:

RVC = aktiv
HU_NBT_EVO > EXBOX 3001 > CAM_ECU = wert_1
HU_NBT_EVO > EXBOX 3001 > CAMERA_SYSTEM = icam_rvc
HU_NBT_EVO > EXBOX 3001 > MACRO_RV_C = aktiv

To keep everything neat and OEM looking, wrap all cables with Tesa tape: https://amzn.eu/d/2G7zyLl

I could've done the coding with e-sys, however I still need to find the software, install it and learn how to use it!

[Pepppie]

Originally Posted by user-2539

I just did a reverse camera retrofit on my 2021 model i3, I wanted it to be OEM, just like BMW would have done it at the factory, here's an overview:

Great DIY! Thanks!!

Question; do you have a picture of the camera-module placed in the bracket? In which direction is the connector pointing?

[the radman]

excellent write up,that will help no end,thanks for taking the time, is the coding idiot proof as i have no experience with bmw stuff

[H1GhPwR]

Awesome guide. Thank you!

[user-2539]

i would say yes, the mobile apps are easier to use, albeit at a cost, you'll need to go into "expert mode" to find the parameters that need to be set, but all pretty straight forward

Originally Posted by the radman

excellent write up,that will help no end,thanks for taking the time, is the coding idiot proof as i have no experience with bmw stuff

[user-2539]

unfortunately i don't have a photo of the camera that i used. the connector comes straight out the rear of the camera, see example image below. there is an "air vent", looks like round black disc, see other image below, the correct orientation was for that to face down at the road.

Originally Posted by Pepppie

Great DIY! Thanks!!

Question; do you have a picture of the camera-module placed in the bracket? In which direction is the connector pointing?

[the radman]

im going to need some help on this one, ive just collected my loom from the dealership and it only has 5 wires,3 of them are in the black shielded sheathing which will go to the h/unit and the other 2 have different sized terminals crimped on the ends,these 2 look like the live and earth,one is green/blue (live) the other black/brown (earth?) these are both long enough to reach the fusebox area,if this is the case then what happens about the canbus wires?? or lack of
from what i can gather it only needs the canbus to know when reverse is selected so can it sense this a different way and do away with the can wires?

[the radman]

Originally Posted by Pepppie

Bought the cable which was 78 euro at the dealer

did you buy 61119349361? does yours have 5 wires too?

[the radman]

any ideas anybody? as i want to crack on with this to get the car back on the road
is this the connector for the can ?

[the radman]

[user-2539]

your photo is of the BDC module (A258 module), you need to target connector 8B (in your photo, it is in the top row, 2nd from left, the black connector): can3-high = A258/8B/pin44 and can3-low=A258/8B/pin43

you should be fine connecting your 2x can3 cables to the BDC.

in my vehicle, i have the termination resistor module R3, i connected in there (as per step5 in my OP). here's is the location of the R3 connector: https://postimg.cc/VdSGZrmB

the 2x can3 cables on R3 and A258 should already be connected in parallel, so connecting-in to R3 or A258 should be the same.

Originally Posted by the radman

any ideas anybody? as i want to crack on with this to get the car back on the road
is this the connector for the can ?

[the radman]

thanks, im hoping not to need them though,as my bmw supplied cable doesnt have any can ones then im hoping they arent needed otherwise they would have been in the loom supplied,ill update when i find out

[H1GhPwR]

What's the deal with the camera part numbers? They seem to constantly change and somehow the little rear view cam always looks the same.
What is the correct one?

[the radman]

yes there seems to be loads of them, this is the one from mine which is a new genuine bmw item 66536997903

[the radman]

Originally Posted by user-2539

your photo is of the BDC module (A258 module), you need to target connector 8B (in your photo, it is in the top row, 2nd from left, the black connector): can3-high = A258/8B/pin44 and can3-low=A258/8B/pin43

you should be fine connecting your 2x can3 cables to the BDC.

in my vehicle, i have the termination resistor module R3, i connected in there (as per step5 in my OP).

ive found the can connector now and the pins/colours correspond with what you say, why are these things always so difficult to access even with it unplugged theres only about 3" of wire accessible so thats going to be fun,ive found it a lot easier with the glovebox removed as you can access it from the top then also,this is the camera i used

[the radman]

just an update on this,its all fitted and working now,i didnt do the programming as i left that to someone who knows about those things,thanks for everyones help