My First DIY Project - Adding AUX Input in 2005 X5

[SoxMan]

Just performed this mod. Everything works, but I'm having the following issues:

-Sound is "hollow" and faint, with some static. This can be fixed if I put my finger on either end that's being connected... my iPhone or the Aux jack. WTF. Makes me feel like I'm not getting a great connection... or is there is a "grounding" issue. It's like my finger give it the extra "help" transferring the signal. Not sure. Just ordered a couple new cables to try, including one that hooks onto the bottom of the iPhone (The cable I'm using now is "male-to-male" jacks). Anyone else have this issue?

-Also, sometimes when I turn my car on, my radio takes a minute to light up... Sometimes I hear the radio, but don't see any light. I've removed the radio and tried re-installing it. It seems to happen more when I leave it in Aux mode when I turn everything off... Radio and CD player seem properly re-installed.

Any thoughts appreciated.

[SoxMan]

Update (if anyone's paying attention... lol)... I'm 99% sure it's a grounding issue. I believe one of the 3 wires is a "ground" wire... I'm going to take out the radio again and check to make sure it's getting a good connection and is in fact in the correct terminal.

As for the other issue, it seems to be fixed after I further tightened the screw that holds in the main radio... Still need to see if it happens again over time.

If none of the above work -- and no one hear has any solutions -- I guess I'll bight the bullet and take it to the Dealership.

[epdarks]

LOVE THAT!

[absentmathis]

Maybe someone here can advise. I added Grom Audio BT to my '03 e39, and I removed the Aux cable to do it. Can I replace the changer with BT in my 01 e53, or does that still require the '03 or newer head unit? The e53 has the DSP nav system - don't know how that factors in.

[rdham]

Thanks guys...here is more info.

- Referenced all the posts on this site for removing the nav screen, aux cable install, & ashtray replacement

Additional parts:

- Retractable Aux cable - Fonus Black Retractable 3.5mm Input Car Stereo Auxiliary AUX Jack Audio Cable Wire Adapter Connector for Apple - amazon

- aux/iphone charger - XtremeMac IPU-IA3-11 InCharge Auto Aux for iPhone/iPod/iPad - amazon

- The black screws that come with the aux kit were not flush enough with that aux input plate, thus tray would not sit properly on top...so bought a more flatter head screw from the local hardware store.

- rubber cement,white out,file


1-rubber cemented the plate close to the current position in the pic above..wanted to use a temp adhesive

2-brushed a nice coat of white out over the plate

3-immediately place the tray back sitting on top of plate, pressed down and kept it there for a bit.....white out dries fast....this would mark where to drill the hole on the back of the tray

4-drill the hole in the tray. drill hole for the screw. install aux cable to the plate.

5-put the tray in....having only the one screw gave me some play to line it up into the hole in case i f-ed it up...and as you can see in my pic, my plate is not very straight

One issue regarding the L-shaped aux plug I used(straight aux plugs were fine):

-if you notice in the pic above, the plastic cover around the aux plug that goes into the aux input is a bit discolored/thinner as compared to the other one. I needed to file that down as it was restricting the plug to go through the hole and properly connect to the aux input.

-I also filed down the hole making it more of an oval shape to match the shape of the plastic around the plug

clean look and cost efficient for my needs