BMW 2021 change to instrument light colours?

[Rehm]

Hello!

I am looking at buying at i3 and noticed that in addition to adding the pedestrian sound, the button and instrument lighting in the i3 has been changed from white to red in some videos (including the climate control knob) I've seen on YouTube, can someone confirm?

The red looks horrible.

 

[eNate]

The color on the temp control knob changes based on the state of the headlights. That's true on all model years. It's white by day, orange by night.

The 2021 has a setting for "classic" or "modern" (don't quote me exactly, it's something like that) for ambient lighting.

In switching from my 2017 to a 2021, the only lighting difference I notice is the rear inside door hand grip areas are not internally lighted, but that may be only because I stepped down from a Tera interior. Everything else lighting-related remains unchanged.

 

[websterize]

… the button and instrument lighting in the i3 has been changed from white to red in some videos (including the climate control knob) I've seen on YouTube, can someone confirm? ...

In low light, all model years have changed from white to reddish-orange on the HVAC controls since the i3's debut in 2014. BMW has utilized this interior color scheme for decades, as it mitigates eye fatigue.

 

[Rehm]

The color on the temp control knob changes based on the state of the headlights. That's true on all model years. It's white by day, orange by night.

The 2021 has a setting for "classic" or "modern" (don't quote me exactly, it's something like that) for ambient lighting.

In switching from my 2017 to a 2021, the only lighting difference I notice is the rear inside door hand grip areas are not internally lighted, but that may be only because I stepped down from a Tera interior. Everything else lighting-related remains unchanged.

eNate, thank you for clarifying. Do you think the internal door grip lighting is available on the interior Lodge?

Also, with the 2021 model, can you turn off the pedestrian sound or not? Perhaps it varies by country?

 

[eNate]

I haven't explored the parts diagrams to see if that particular light is optional or N/A -- perhaps another 2021 owner with Tera could pipe in?

In the US the acoustic warning began being phased in in September 2019, and there is no option to turn it off. I've heard at various times it was optional on other cars (I don't recall specifically about the i3) in other markets. It can be turned off or modified through coding.

I am a fan of it. My 2017 was quiet, which was nice, but that car was deadly silent and on my quiet residential street where the sidewalks and roadway are narrow and there are many pedestrians, I would often go unnoticed. With the acoustic pedestrian warning noise, pedestrians react as I am approaching and I'm also less concerned about somebody stepping out between parked cars (it's a slow street, but because it's so narrow it's always a concern).

I never feel like I am disturbing the peace when I come home at 11:30 at night. My wife knows it's me out front when I'm parking, but only because it's a unique sound while I'm parallel parking (forward, reverse make different noises) vs. any random ICE car.

I will say this. The i3 makes the noise beyond the required 18 MPH, and it is noticeable in the cabin. I do wish the cabin had better soundproofing, and I would be curious to know how its volume compares to what is required. My VW ID.4 -- which other owners complain is "too loud" -- I barely notice while I am in the car.

 

[frictioncircle]

The red looks horrible.

Rehm, what you describe as "red" is BMW's traditional amber (Classic) instrument lighting color – this has been standard instrumentation color for more than 30 years.

There is a setting under iDrive's "Lighting" vehicle preferences to switch between Classic (amber) and Modern (white) interior lighting. Even with "Classic" selected, I believe the HVAC system's temperature display will switch from amber (at night) to white (during the day).

I respectfully disagree with eNate regarding the pedestrian warning sound that's been added to late-model i3s. I find it far too loud in the cabin and the overall design of the sound I find to be highly unpleasant. It can be defeated – a search for BMW + "Pedestrian Warning" should provide enough results to get started.

 

[eNate]

Just fair warning to proceed cautiously tampering with the pedestrian warning system. In the event of a pedestrian collision involving serious injury, death, or even just an insurance claim by the injured, if it's discovered that a mandated safety device has been defeated, it could result in lots of trouble, denied claims, civil lawsuits, etc. Personal injury claims are no joke, and there is a lot of money in the table to motivate these attorneys to chase down every lead.

 

[stumbledotcom]

I believe the base Atelier/Deka only has the Modern ambient lighting. Loft/Mega, Lodge/Giga, and Suite/Tera add the option to toggle between Modern and Classic along with the blue welcome effect and exterior door handle lights. The dark Suite/Tera adds additional lights at the door handles and pockets, which aren’t needed in the two optional light interiors.

 

[frictioncircle]

I believe the base Atelier/Deka only has the Modern ambient lighting. Loft/Mega, Lodge/Giga, and Suite/Tera add the option to toggle between Modern and Classic along with the blue welcome effect and exterior door handle lights. The dark Suite/Tera adds additional lights at the door handles and pockets, which aren’t needed in the two optional light interiors.

A friend here in the US bought their 2018 i3 in the lowest trim level (Deka, I think?).

It has no Ambience lighting.

 

[websterize]

Yes, can confirm Deka/Atelier has no interior lighting choices — "Classic" (reddish-orange) or "Modern" (white) — compared to the upgraded interior packages. In fact, there is significantly less interior lighting with this base "World". The lack of LEDs from door storage bins, the footwells, under the navigation display, and the missing blue LED overhead when unlocking were noticeable after first moving from Tera to Deka.

 

[alohart]

Yes, can confirm Deka/Atelier has no interior lighting choices — "Classic" (reddish orange) or "Modern" (white) — compared to the upgraded interior packages. In fact, there is significantly fewer interior lighting in the basic package. The lack of LEDs from door storage bins, the footwells, under the navigation display, and the missing blue-light overhead when unlocking were noticeable after first moving from Tera to Deka "Worlds".

This is one of the reasons that I won't consider buying a Deka World BEV to replace our 2014 Giga World BEV. Another is that I prefer the lighter Mega and Giga World interiors. I know that early Mega World i3's are missing some Giga World features, but I don't know whether that's true with later models.

A big problem finding a 2019-2021 replacement is that a high percentage of them are Deka World models and thus not acceptable to me.

 

[eNate]

What gets me with the blue light (sorry, a bit off topic) is... well, what is it?

I'll tell you what it is, it's a sales tool!

The first i3 I looked at was outside in broad daylight, but the next one I sought out was to test drive, and it just so happened the dealership had it stored indoors in a somewhat dark warehouse/garage space. And the sales guy -- well, he knew what's what, because as we walked up to the car he hit the magic unlock button on the FOB and that fantastical blue glow filled the cabin and I was instantly awed: I want to own this car!

I ended up not buying that car but one at a different dealer, but it didn't matter, the impression stuck.

But now, when do I actually get to enjoy that cool blue light? Not often. I usually leave the FOB alone in my pocket and unlock touching the door handles, so no blue light show for me. And in the event I do click the remote, the blue glow times out after maybe 5 seconds.'

So when do I "use" the blue glow? Gotta be at night, gotta be walking with somebody or somebody nearby who I want to nonchalantly show it off to, but they'd better look quick or they'll miss it. (Really, it only gets noticed by my kids, I think.) No, if I'm chatting with a coworker in the parking lot IMHO that blue aura should be present the whole time. What's the point otherwise?

Oh, and why strip this off the Deka cars? Inexpensive to install, and maybe it'll result in another sale or two, maybe just because somebody on the street noticed it and it made them look at an i3 in a "different light" (pun intended).

 

[frictioncircle]

Just fair warning to proceed cautiously tampering with the pedestrian warning system. In the event of a pedestrian collision involving serious injury, death, or even just an insurance claim by the injured, if it's discovered that a mandated safety device has been defeated, it could result in lots of trouble, denied claims, civil lawsuits, etc. Personal injury claims are no joke, and there is a lot of money in the table to motivate these attorneys to chase down every lead.

A good point to consider.

 

[agzand]

The Deka also lacks lights on visor mirrors. Upper trims have lighted visors.

 

[Farnerwarren]

Custom lighting is much better for a car than the standard ones because they are much more colorful and brighter. I changed the standard ones with LED strip lights, and now my car’s interior looks much better. I know that not everyone likes multicolored car lights, but I do, and I turn them on every time I ride my car at night. It gives me a special feeling of being in a movie or something like that. My kids also like it and always ask me to turn on the “party mode” when the lights are synchronized with the music we are listening to. I will not return to the old ones because I like these so much.