Waking a car up after 2 years !

[Brettfcars]

Hi all,
I am new to this forum and the i3.
I have inherited a 2015 i3 that has sat unused for 2 years.
It had an initial issue of the front radiator fan running all the time, and this was traced to a faulty water pump.
Pump was left off car, hoses plugged. HV Disconnect was pulled as was the small plug to the batteries and the HV battery connector. 12v battery was left to die.
I have replaced the pump and 12v battery, and currently awaiting the HV battery to fully charge.
Pump completed the 20min purge cycle ok requiring about 2 Litres of coolant. Front fan is now of when charging (13amp plug type BMW charger)
The car has drive train faults and lots of errors on BimmerLink that can’t be currently cleared.

Looking at advice given to others, waiting for the car to fully charge is the first option. And perhaps a further HV & 12v power cycle.
I am also awaiting ISTA to download to see what faults remain.

So a few questions.
Is there any other advice ?
Was car correctly stored ?
Should I be prepared for lots of issues from sitting without power ?
A/C pressure check is one item I am thinking of.

Also Is there a walk through on how to use ISTA on the i3 ?

Thanks all

 

[alohart]

I am also awaiting ISTA to download to see what faults remain.

Which ISTA version are you downloading?

Was car correctly stored ?

The 12V battery should have been disconnected. It would have still self-discharged significantly over 2 years, but the 12V system would not have experienced very low voltages that result in many spurious DTC's being stored which can be difficult to clear. I have stored our i3's 8 times for periods as long as 9 months. I have always disconnected the 12V battery and have never returned to an i3 with lots of spurious DTC's stored.

Should I be prepared for lots of issues from sitting without power ?

Clearing the stored DTC's is probably the main issue.

A/C pressure check is one item I am thinking of.

Wouldn't hurt but might not be necessary.

Also Is there a walk through on how to use ISTA on the i3 ?

Search the Internet for "ISTA User Guide". I found version 4.39 from October, 2022, which matches the ISTA version that I downloaded. Unfortunately, I don't know where I found it.

There are also some tutorials written by ISTA users. They seem to be for older ISTA versions, but these tutorials would likely still be valid, especially if they're for ISTA version 4.

 

[Brettfcars]

Hi,
What would be the best ISTA to download for the i3, and what cable ?
The version I am downloading is, ISTA+ 4.39.20 (+SDP 4.42.40) and have purchased a ENET cable.
I believe different psdz or newer parts (packs of data ?) of ista can be downloaded and inserted in the file system to update ?
I am new to ista and the i3 so it’s a learning curve !

 

[mojo]

As a slight aside, to re-iterate what's been said in other threads here: If you don't know already, be aware that any version of ISTA that you can download from the Internet is going to be a "hacked" copy, and it can have any code added to it, for any reason that the person distributing it wants (and their interests probably don't align with yours). Do NOT rely on malware scanning, because it simply won't find any malicious code that may have been custom-built for it (malware scanners rely on the fact that most malware is built on common, shared code with a recognisable "signature").

The important thing about this is the rule that you should never install untrusted code like that on a computer that also contains any data that you care about - because you should assume that untrusted code can also see everything on that computer, and do what it wants with it. Probably the best approach is to get a cheap old laptop which you can use for that and nothing else. A better approach is to put it within a virtual machine on a cheap old laptop - though that can mean that it runs a bit slow!

 

[Brettfcars]

Thanks mojo for a very good warning !
I will be using a dedicated machine now I have it downloaded.

What version of ista is the one others use on the i3 and what are capabilities of the software?

What is possible with different versions?

Thanks

 

[alohart]

What version of ista is the one others use on the i3 and what are capabilities of the software?

What is possible with different versions?

I've been told that version 4.39.20 is the most recent ISTA version available without a license. Fortunately, it is recent enough to work well with any i3.

The huge psdz data file isn't needed if ISTA is to be used only for diagnosis. Apparently, this data file includes all integration level updates for all BMW models through the data file's release date which is way overkill for those who aren't professional BMW mechanics. This same data file might be used by E-Sys as well, the BMW software than can change coding parameter values (i.e., BimmerCode's more capable but much more difficult to use relative). Not having to install the data file would drastically reduce the free space needed. Your OBD to Ethernet cable should be sufficient for diagnosis.

ISTA is able to scan for stored diagnostic trouble codes (DTC's), to display information about each stored DTC, to prepare a repair plan, to display repair procedures, and to erase stored DTC's (i.e., BimmerLink's more capable but more difficult to use relative).

ISTA is also able to program BMW vehicles (e.g., to register new components, to increase the integration level). However, this requires the huge psdz data file, an expensive ICOM cable, and a 12V power supply to prevent the 12V battery from discharging during lengthy programming procedures. That's way more than most casual i3 owners would want to risk doing and an expense that most casual i3 owners would not want to invest.

I don't find ISTA's user interface to be very intuitive. It still uses the old Windows 95 windows-within-a-window UI with rows of buttons along the tops and bottoms of these windows. I suppose if one were a BMW mechanic, the UI would be learned eventually. However, for occasional use, I'm not confident that I know how to use ISTA to its full capabilities. I have the official "ISTA User Guide" version 4.39, but at 146 pages, it includes so many things that I would not be doing that it is a bit much. Some ISTA users have posted tutorials that probably help. The tutorials that I have found cover earlier ISTA versions which might not matter.

The installation of my first downloaded version of ISTA 4.39.20 failed for reasons that I don't understand (I'm a Mac guy who doesn't understand or want to learn Windows). The installation of a download from a different source succeeded. I installed ISTA under a free version of 64-bit Windows 10 downloaded from Microsoft onto a Bootcamp partition on a 2016 Intel MacBook with a 256 GB SSD which has insufficient free space to install the psdz data file. For security reasons, I don't plan to connect this Windows partition to the Internet instead transferring downloaded files from my MacBook Air via a USB flash drive.

After you've installed ISTA, connect your laptop to your i3 in drive ready state with your OBD to Ethernet cable. Fortunately, I didn't have to futz with any Windows settings because apparently macOS's Bootcamp configured Windows to work well with my Ethernet to USB C adapter (my MacBook has no Ethernet port). Click ISTA's "Read Out Vehicle Data" tab below 4 rows of buttons (!) and then either the "Identification without vehicle test" or "Complete identification" button. If ISTA is able to read the VIN of your i3 and display the correct details about your i3, your installation is probably good.