Rare BMW Business CD Radio system from Germany...

[karab95]

Hello, I wanted to know if I could use the OEM BMW Business CD Radio head unit in my 1990 BMW 535i? It's from Germany and is in great condition. Made in 1996. But the seller says it works in all BMW, E12, E28, E34, E36, E30, E34 incl. M3 and M5 and Z3. etc. It has a CD player, RDS, AM/FM Radio and the part number is 6512 - 8 352 865. Could anyone with some knowlege or reference verify if it works on the BMW E34 (1990 BMW 535iA)? I attached a photo of the unit itself showing all the part number, name, etc, so please let me know what you think about it's compatibility with the E34.

PS- I reposted this here because it is related to the BMW 5-series, E34 chassis.

[karab95]

Here's a pic of the front of the unit...

[karab95]

And lastly here's the pic of thr back of the unit... so let me know what you think? Will it work on the 1990/1991 BMW 535i (E34)?

[roguesniper1]

looking from the face, the cd player should work and fit in properly. But don't expect radio stations to work in USA.

[jllphan]

It should work fine. I cant speak for all of those advertised applications, but that deck should work fine in many BMW cars. It will deffinately plug right into an e36, and I'm relatively certain that the same oem wiring harness terminates in the same manor on most BMW cars starting in 1990. Below is a pretty standard wiring diagram for many early to mid 1990's (even though it is labled specifically for e36 cars).

[karab95]

Hmm, thanks for the reply. Yeah judging from the looks of the connectors, it looks like the wiring harness should just plug right in. I can't see any electrical wiring harness differences between the late 1990 models up to 1996 E34. Now I guess my question now is down to these two...

1. Does it automatically switch AM/FM frequency to work in North America, or does it have a switch on it so change radio requency (EURO/NA)?

2. Since the wiring harness looks identical (E34/E36, etc..) what about the CD-Changer connector? Isn't there a 14-pin-something that connects to the back? If so it looks like some sort of fiber-optic connector on th Business CD system?

[karab95]

Hey guess what? I was browsing a german site and found out this info...

(In German...)

Weltradio (EU, US, CAN, OCE, JP)
2 IC Konzept
6x FM1, FM2, FMA
2x AM Traffic
RDS, TP, TA, EON
PTY (US)
PI/REG
Autom. Suchlauf
Scan
Mix
Suchlauf
Trackwechsel
Einzug/Eject
12cm / 8 cm CD
Random Play
4x 15 W
Fader/Balance
Klangregler (getrennt)
Loudness
Der Einbau ist möglich in E32 (7er), E34 (5er), E36 (3er) und Z3.



(In English...)

World radio (European Union, US, CAN, OCE, JP) 2 IC concept 6x FM1, FM2, FMA 2x AT the Traffic RDS, TP, TA, EON PTY (US) PI/MOVE Autom. Browsing Scan mix browsing TRACK change draw-in/EJECT 12cm/8 cm CD random Play 4x 15 W Fader/Balance sound automatic controller (separately) Loudness the installation is possible in E32 (7er), E34 (5er), E36 (3er) and Z3.


So far looking good, I think this is the perfect stock head unit for me. My only wonder is if 'world radio' is refering to World Band (WB) or for the actual AM/FM Radio functions...

[karab95]

Hey guess what? I was browsing a german site and found out this info...

(In German...)

Weltradio (EU, US, CAN, OCE, JP)
2 IC Konzept
6x FM1, FM2, FMA
2x AM Traffic
RDS, TP, TA, EON
PTY (US)
PI/REG
Autom. Suchlauf
Scan
Mix
Suchlauf
Trackwechsel
Einzug/Eject
12cm / 8 cm CD
Random Play
4x 15 W
Fader/Balance
Klangregler (getrennt)
Loudness
Der Einbau ist möglich in E32 (7er), E34 (5er), E36 (3er) und Z3.



(In English...)

World radio (European Union, US, CAN, OCE, JP) 2 IC concept 6x FM1, FM2, FMA 2x AT the Traffic RDS, TP, TA, EON PTY (US) PI/MOVE Autom. Browsing Scan mix browsing TRACK change draw-in/EJECT 12cm/8 cm CD random Play 4x 15 W Fader/Balance sound automatic controller (separately) Loudness the installation is possible in E32 (7er), E34 (5er), E36 (3er) and Z3.


So far looking good, I think this is the perfect stock head unit for me. My only wonder is if 'world radio' is refering to World Band (WB) or for the actual AM/FM Radio functions...

[karab95]

Sorry for the 'double-post'.. my browser freaked out..

[karab95]

Here's some extra info I gathered...

(In Russian... original info excerpt)

1. Динамик LF +
2. Динамик RF +
3. Динамик LR +
4. TEL. MUTE
5. ACC
6. Динамик RR +
7. BUS
8. Динамик LF -
9. BAT +
10. Упр. громкостью
11. Динамик RF -
12. Динамик LR -
13. Подсветка
14. Динамик RR -
15. GND
16. Упр. антенной


(In English by Babelfish... )

1. dynamic loudspeaker LF +
2. dynamic loudspeaker RF +
3. dynamic loudspeaker LR +
4. TEL. MUTE
5. ACC
6. dynamic loudspeaker RR +
7. BUS
8. dynamic loudspeaker LF -
9. BAT +
10. cont. by the loudness
11. dynamic loudspeaker RF -
12. dynamic loudspeaker LR -
13. illumination
14. dynamic loudspeaker RR -
15. gnd
16. cont. of the antenna

[jllphan]

From the looks of that radio, I dont think it has changer controls. I could be wrong, but upon removing the oem deck from my '93 5er, it had a seperate din plug for the cargo area mounted cd changer. i dont see any such jack on the back of that business deck. And where in the world do you think you see a toslink connection?

[karab95]

Hey jllphan, what's a 'toshlink connection'? Also the head unit actually does have a CD-changer control and plug-in, I just realized there's a protective cover on the bottom right section of the unit. I also called Blaupunkt concerning this particular unit and they told me that FM will work here in North America, but not AM radio, but I never use AM anyway. The RDS feature does work here too. Also they confirmed it has the protective cover for the CD-changer plug-in. Cheers!

[karab95]

Oh, doh... you mean SPDIF connector, 'toshlink' is rarely used (by me anyway lol). Yeah I just gave a wild guess about that plug on the right-most edge of the steel frame. I'm not sure what's that for either.. I'm guessing antenna??

[jllphan]

Yes SPDIF, Toslink, Opitcal, Lightpipe...there are a bunch of different names. Looking at the pic, the two nipple connections are for the antenna, your car should have these leads. As far as AM working and FM not, that seems strange. It is a pretty simple concept. As long as the Business radio receives the standard frequencies we enjoy here in the states, i dont see why both bands wouldnt work.

[karab95]

Yeah, beats me too. I was persistant to the Blaupunkt Tech about the AM/FM issue. He was POSITIVE that AM doesn't work, and that FM works in North America. I even gave him the model/serial number, and same reply. He seemed knowlegeable enough though. I could've sworn that aftermarket headunits had a switch for the FM feature to select between NA/EURO FM bands... or was that only for the UK? I'm not sure.. I thought it was odd too but the Tech was firm about it. I guess I'll go for it and give it a try, I'll let you guys know what happens...