ModLight2

Description

modLight2 is our modLight module for BMW E38/E39/E53 and Range Rover L322 It is a module that adds many nice features to your car. Many of these features are impossible to just be coded, so they can only be provided by an additional module.
Link to modLight2 in our online store: HERE

Features

• Welcome lights (lights on unlocking of the car)
• Goodbye lights (lights on locking of the car)
• Follow me home lights (lights on long press of the lock button of the remote controller of your OEM key)
• Double press lock lights (this function is available only on 98+ cars or cars 98+ GM3 general module)
• Triple blinker (comfort turn signals)
• Cornering lights when activate turn signals (fog lamp turn on when activate turn signal)
• Side mirrors folding by the key remote (on lock/on longpress lock/on second press of the lock button)
• Side mirrors unfolding by the key remote (on unlock)
• Welcome message on HIGH IKE screen (on POS1 of the key/on POS2 (ign). List of available welcome messages
• Webasto aux. heater activation by the key remote (on long press. of the lock button/on second press. of the lock button)
• Ventillation activation by the key remote (on long press. of the lock button/on second press. of the lock button)
• Automatic unlock when turn off the engine
• Lights show (modLight light cycles). Lights cycles available

How to install

Instructions manual PDF: modLight2 manual
How to install modLight2 into your car?
You have to properly connect modLight2 to your car's wiring harness.
ModLight2 has 3-pin connector with BROWN, RED and YELLOW wires.
It's highly recommended to use multimeter to pre-check and confirm the power sources of your car's wire harness where you plan to connect modLight2 to.

• The BROWN wire must be connected to GND (ground) of your car's wire harness, which is usually a brown, brown-white or brown-black wire.
• The RED wire must be connected to 12V (permanent) power source from your car's wire harness, which is usually red-green, red-blue or red-white wire.
• The YELLOW wire must be connected to IBUS source (IBUS wire) from your car's wire harness, which is always a white wire with gray stripe and yellow dots.

Please don't use fast wire or T-wire connectors, they will only turn you into issues if you are not sure how to use. The best connection method is splicing (cut 1cm isolation of your car's wire, then splice modLight2's wire there, then isolate). No need of soldering, no need of anything special. ModLight2 consums only 12-20mA of current.
Every E38/E39/E53 and Range Rover L322 has all 3 wires needed inside the trunk, near to the left tail lights.

• On cars, equipped with OEM navigation or CD changer or DSP amplifier, you can find the 3 wires that modLight2 needs inside the wire harness of descibed modules.
• On cars, not equipped with OEM navi, CD changer or DSP, there is always a connector on the internal side of the rear left fender, who has 12V and IBUS wires. In this case, you can use GROUND wire from the left tail light connector or any other ground source nearby.

How to setup different options from modLight2's menu

The right button is "up", the left button is "enter". You have to first choose the function number with the up button, then confirm it with one press of the left button, then, without any waiting, you have to choose the option by pressing the right button, then confirm with one press of the left button.
Please note, you don't have to wait between function and option function. Anytime you wait 3+ seconds, modLight2 exits from it's menu and you can start over.
Example video, where we show how to set function3 to option4:

Troubleshooting

I already installed my modLight2, but it doesn't work. What to do?

Do the LEDs blink when you are pressing the buttons of modLight2?

- If no, there is no power supply or there is an internal defect in the module. Please measure the voltage (on the white connector of modLight2) between the RED and the BROWN wire. If there is 12V voltage, then there is an internal problem inside the module. Short circuit or any wrong way of connection may break the module and it won't start until properly repair. We have no problem with that and we will not charge our customers if repair is needed, even if the issue is caused by a wrong installation. You only have to send the broken module back to us and we will repair it, then we will return it back to you without any troubles.

- If yes, then the module successfully turns on. The best way to check if "no functions is working" is to enable comfort turn signals, then press the turn signals stalk once and check if modLight2 adds turn signals blinks or not. If it doesn't add blinks to your turn signal, then there is no IBUS source connected to modLight2. There are 2 easy ways to check the IBUS source:

1. Read IBUS communication using IBUS Interface + Navcoder (Windows application). It will immediately show you the IBUS telegrams which the modules are sending to each other. If there are no telegrams, so there is no proper working IBUS on the wire you have your modLight connected to.
2. Measure the voltage between the YELLOW and the BROWN wire of modLight2. If there is proper working IBUS on the yellow wire, the voltage should be around 12V and will float (drops) for a part of the second when there is IBUS activity (you can force IBUS activity by clicking buttons of your key remote or open/close a door).

- If the voltage is 12V and drops when activity, then it seems OK. If the voltage doesn't drop from 12 to 9-10V, but stays stuck on 12V, then there is probably your IBUS source has short circuit to positive.
- If the voltage is not around 12V, but under 10V while there is no activity, then probably there is short circuit to ground or bad connection.

Comfort turn signals, welcome message, cornering lights are working, but Welcome/goodbye lights and follow me home do not?

- Make sure that modLight2 is supplied with constant (permanent) 12V (terminal 30), not ACC (terminal R), not IGN (terminal 15).

- Check if your car is equpped with older GM (general module). GM modules from old E39/E38 (produced before 1999) do not provide IBUS telegram when you press buttons of the key remote. Without IBUS telegrams for lock/unlock press, modLight2 is unable to understand that you are pressing anything of your key remote. There is indirect way to still realize when you lock/unlock your BMW - via IBUS telegram for the central interior light. It's not as good as direct message for key remote buttons pressing, but that's how even BMW equipped with older GM module can have welcome/goodbye lights working.
So, change the setting for Function8 and make sure you set it to OLD GM
or
replace your GM3 module with another one with newer HW (hardware) and SW (software) version. GM3 from car produced after 1999 is perfect one.
It usually requires coding.
Additional information about GM3 modules in E38/E39/E53/Range Rover. All these BMW models (and Range Rover L322) are always equipped with GM3 (general module 3). There is no GM2, no GM4, so it's not the same as with the LCM modules, which are 1/2/3/3-B/4 etc. When we are talking about GM module in these models, it is always GM3 and the different versions just have different HW and SW versions, that's how you can realize which one is newer.
- GM3 HIGH or GM3 LOW do I need?
GM3 LOW doesn't support DWA (factory alarm system) or servotronic. So if your car is not equipped with DWA or servotronic, then its GM3 module is definitely GM3 LOW. If your car is equipped with factory alarm system and/or servotronic, then your GM3 module is the HIGH version. There are 2 additional triacs on the PCB board of the general module when the car is equipped with DWA or servotronic. GM3 HIGH can be mounted on cars without DWA or servotronic without any trouble, the opposite situation is the problem, so if your car has DWA/servotronic, you can't use GM3 LOW, you can only use GM3 HIGH.

My folding mirrors stopped folding in by the key remote, but they are still successfully fold-in by the button on the driver's door. What to do?

Do you have IBUS-APP installed into your car?

- If yes, please not that there was an mirrors folding issue with IBUS-APP from 2.0 and 2.1.4.1, so please make sure you are using the latest version (minimum 2.1.4.2), where the bug is fixed.
There is a safety function created and added by BMW in try to avoid mirror's motors damaging. This function activates itself when it detects a problem inside the motors of the side mirrors or when it detects too many "fold-in the side mirrors" diagnostic commands. Everytime you make your modLight2 to fold-in your side mirrors, it sends 4 diagnostic commands to the GM module of your car. Two commands are "GM, tell the door module to fold the left mirror in" and the other two IBUS commands are "GM, tell the door module to fold the right mirror in".
So if you have asked modLight2 to fold-in the mirrors too many times in short time interval, the door module stores an internal error and stops listening for diagnostic commands, because it decides that something is not OK and it's not safe to listen anymore.

- If no, then maybe you pressed the lock (or long press of the lock or wherever you have your mirrors folding funtion) too many times for short interval of time. Now you have to unplug the positive terminal of your car's battery to get the IBUS, KBUS and PBUS communication restarted.
If you unplug it just for 1 second, it will be perfect, because the communication will restart, but you won't lose any settings (clock, radio stations stored etc.).

The windows of my X5 (E53) are opening/closing on locking/unlocking

When you install modLight2 on an X5 (E53) you must note that there are some differences between the IBUS telegrams that are used for E39 and for E53.
One of the strangest coincidences is that the "fold side mirrors" and "unfold side mirrors" IBUS telegrams for E39 are actually the same telegrams that in E53 mean "open the windows" and "close the windows".
By default, modLight2 is set for E39, so if you just install the module in E53, without setting up the model-related functions properly, you will notice the issue with your E53's windows.
Everytime when modLight2 is trying to fold/unfold the side mirrors, your E53 will open/close the windows.
What you have to do to solve the problem?
You just have to set modLight2 function21 to option3. That will tell modLight2 to send the right IBUS telegrams for mirrors folding to your E53's IBUS communication bus.

My modLight2 stopped working

If modLight2 has stopped working, please:
- Do the LEDs light-on when you press the buttons? If yes, then:
1. Unplug modLight2's 3-pin connector, then plug it back in.
If this doesn't help, please reset it to its factory default state - function1 option5:

2. If this also doesn't help, please check the IBUS supply and even if it looks good or if it sounds to impossible that to be the reason, please measure the voltage between the yellow and the brown wires of modLight2's connector with a multimeter. It must be from 9 to 13V when there is no IBUS activity and it must drop under 9V for part of the second when there is IBUS activity. If you press remote control buttons or central interior button, or open/close doors, this will be enough to see the IBUS activity and to confirm if there is a voltage drop when IBUS activity.

- If the LEDs do not light-no when you press buttons: 1. Check the power supply on the 3 pin connector. Measure with a multimeter and confirm that there is 12V between the RED and the BROWN wires of modLight2.

How to use NCS Expert

https://modbm.com/ncs/