Upgrade the whole car drivers to the latest versions and security levels
What does it mean? During the production of a car, the manufacturer uploads to it the most up-to-date software for all drivers.
In today’s vehicles, there are from 20 to even 50 controllers that manage the whole car. Modules/controllers are simply microcomputers with their flash memory, i.e. data that control components of the whole vehicle, such as engine, gearbox, air conditioning, electrical voltage, suspension, traction control (abs, esp, VDM), airbags (passive safety), navigation and entertainment, etc.
Most BMW cars in Europe, even 90%, have an outdated software version in the controllers.
When our car has outdated software, its operation is not optimal and significantly accelerates the wear and tear of components of the whole vehicle and directly affects the comfort of travelling.
Very often the update solves problems such as:
- Lack of flexibility in the work of the bruise while driving
- High combustion
- Sticking EGR valve
- Cogged particulate filter
- Turbine with low-efficiency
- The gearbox does not run smoothly enough
These problems, apart from user errors and physical failures, are very easy to solve just by updating the drivers in the vehicle. To eliminate to a minimum the frequently occurring faults, it is necessary to update the drivers. After such a procedure we have a guarantee that the car has no errors generated by its errors in older versions, which in the long run contribute to failures.
After the update, the power of the drive unit increases very often, because the map of the engine controller (ECU) itself is optimized by the manufacturer, and thanks to that the car simply drives better.
In our experience, the difference between the factory engine software and the updated one is several hp/Nm.
Apart from the purely mechanical issue, there is also the issue of security. BMW cars are very eagerly stolen and the manufacturers in their amendments are still adding new hurdles for potential thieves.
Security updates are strongly recommended. The manufacturer does not without a reason release such amendments, BMW collects data from all users from all over the world, analyzes the statistics and on their basis knows what needs to be improved.
In a nutshell, updating causes:
- Improving the car’s factory anti-theft protection, in particular with a keyless system
- New engine maps (usually more power, quieter and softer operation, more engine dynamics) better gearbox operation – no jerks, faster work,
- More intelligent gear management
- No notorious errors in the controllers
- No minor problems with car electronics, e.g. disconnecting phones, etc.
- Faster work of navigation and multimedia
- And many, many more…
