How to remove under dash panel?

[bwilson4web]

Hi,

My 2017 BMW i3-REx came with a mystery OBD connector that appears to just tap it for DC power and then disappear behind the bottom dash trim below the brake pedal hinge mount and steering wheel. Looking at Ebay, it appears to be held by clips and be one piece. Given the age and tendency for plastics to become brittle, does anyone have instructions or guide on how to remove this piece?

I don't know what it is connected to and alway worry about parasitic loads. So I want to remove the panel and trace the mystery wire back to its load.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

[alohart]

It might be helpful to use a trim removal kit which is a set of plastic tools that can pry plastic panels to pop their clips loose without marring the plastic panel and maybe reducing clip breakage. However, removing almost anything that BMW attaches with clips tends to break some of the clips.

 

[Bishop93]

Hi,

My 2017 BMW i3-REx came with a mystery OBD connector that appears to just tap it for DC power and then disappear behind the bottom dash trim below the brake pedal hinge mount and steering wheel. Looking at Ebay, it appears to be held by clips and be one piece. Given the age and tendency for plastics to become brittle, does anyone have instructions or guide on how to remove this piece?

I don't know what it is connected to and alway worry about parasitic loads. So I want to remove the panel and trace the mystery wire back to its load.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

Hi Bob,

I seem to have the same mystery OBD connector on my 2017 REX, did you ever find out what is was?

Thanks!
Brian

 

[alohart]

I seem to have the same mystery OBD connector on my 2017 REX, did you ever find out what is was?

I wonder why your burglar alarm isnʻt triggered a few hours after shutting off your i3. Thatʻs what happened when I installed in our 2014 U.S. i3 an OBD dongle that transmitted distance driven per month via a cellular radio in a pilot program that was testing a way to base road tax on distance driven rather than a tax per gallon of gasoline consumed. The vendor tried to modify the dongle to prevent the alarm from sounding but wasn't successful. I found a parameter whose value could be changed using BimmerCode to prevent the alarm from sounding when an OBD dongle remained plugged in. Maybe that parameter's value in your i3 isn't the same as the U.S. default, or a previous owner changed the parameter's value to prevent the alarm from sounding.

 

[Dutchi3]

... base road tax on distance driven rather than a tax per gallon of gasoline consumed...

Lol as an EV driver I would prefer the latter taxation ;-)

 

[alohart]

Lol as an EV driver I would prefer the latter taxation ;-)

Of course. However, the government is noticing that its fuel tax income is decreasing while its road maintenance costs are increasing with EV owners not paying anything toward road maintenance. The easiest solution for them was to levy a flat $50 per year road tax payment for EV owners which is way more than I would pay were I driving an ICE vehicle because I drive less than 2k mi/3k km per year. It's not fair to many EV drivers, so I want a driving distance and vehicle weight based fee.

 

[Dutchi3]

Of course. However, the government is noticing that its fuel tax income is decreasing while its road maintenance costs are increasing with EV owners not paying anything toward road maintenance. The easiest solution for them was to levy a flat $50 per year road tax payment for EV owners which is way more than I would pay were I driving an ICE vehicle because I drive less than 2k mi/3k km per year. It's not fair to many EV drivers, so I want a driving distance and vehicle weight based fee.

Until the beginning of 2025, EV's are exempt from road tax in the Netherlands. The road tax is based on weight of the vehicle, so EV owners will pay more than ICE owners in the future. People drive on average 15.000km/y or about 10.000 miles/y and will pay around $1500/y or more for an EV that weighs a lot. No wonder EV sales are declining.

 

[JohnnyCakes]

Lol as an EV driver I would prefer the latter taxation ;-)

Yes and no. In my state, EV owners must pay a flat tax based on 85 percent of the amount of taxes paid on the fuel used by a vehicle with an EPA fuel economy rating of 23.7 mpg combined. However, if you can show that you drive less than the standard amount, then you can get a refund.

Mileage in most EV cars is sent to DMV via a OBD dongle. However, i3 owners can elect to permit the information to be transmitted automatically via BMW Connect.

If you drive over the standard tax amount, you don't get charged extra. It's just a mechanism for paying less.

 

[808Pants]

Mileage in most EV cars is sent to DMV via a OBD dongle. However, i3 owners can elect to permit the information to be transmitted automatically via BMW Connect.

...and here in Hawaii, I consider it a stunning advance in tech-adoption by gov that we can renew our registrations online.

 

[alohart]

...and here in Hawaii, I consider it a stunning advance in tech-adoption by gov that we can renew our registrations online.

… if one adds a credit card fee of 2.35% of the registration cost. Wherever JohnnyCakes lives seems to have a fair policy that I wish Hawaii would adopt.

 

[808Pants]

… if one adds a credit card fee of 2.35% of the registration cost. Wherever JohnnyCakes lives seems to have a fair policy that I wish Hawaii would adopt.

True - it was particularly galling that they added that fee during the pandemic, too.

Anytime I offer to virtually open my wallet to pay a recurring fee automatically, I'm stunned at the short-sightedness of the collectors who tack on a fee for that. I mean, what's the percentage of their LOSS corresponding to perennial non-payment by tacking on that small fee, which would be offset by just absorbing it?

 

[wjsi327]

Yes and no. In my state, EV owners must pay a flat tax based on 85 percent of the amount of taxes paid on the fuel used by a vehicle with an EPA fuel economy rating of 23.7 mpg combined. However, if you can show that you drive less than the standard amount, then you can get a refund.

Mileage in most EV cars is sent to DMV via a OBD dongle. However, i3 owners can elect to permit the information to be transmitted automatically via BMW Connect.

If you drive over the standard tax amount, you don't get charged extra. It's just a mechanism for paying less.

To what states do your comments apply?