[Hydrogen]

Originally Posted by 2020g20

As annoying as this is, I certainly wouldn't consider it a deal breaker. Outside of this and the no-remote-start-seat-heating issue, this is the sweetest car I've owned/leased to date (have made the all the rounds under $60k...Lexus, MB, Infiniti, BMW).

Maybe you should consider dealer-installed tint if you want to avoid the problem completely. That's probably the route I'd have gone had I known about this beforehand.

Originally Posted by 2020g20

Maybe you should consider dealer-installed tint if you want to avoid the problem completely. That's probably the route I'd have gone had I known about this beforehand.

How would dealer installed tint be any different other than them having to possibly be liable to take it back off if the problem arises?

[premier3is]

Originally Posted by Hydrogen

I am literally reconsidering leasing a G20 this week because of this thread.

Just like the post above said, to go around this issue you can have your dealer tint it. If it dims have them remove it. Or you can talk to them and say you're only willing to get the car if it doesn't dim after tinting it.

Great car, you'll really enjoy it. give it a drive and you'll see.

[2020g20]

Originally Posted by Hydrogen

How would dealer installed tint be any different other than them having to possibly be liable to take it back off if the problem arises?

My assumption is that since this is a well documented issue, they will only use tint of a certain type and darkness that will not cause issues. But yes, either way they would be responsible for the results and either have to fix or remove at their own cost.

[Pacman123]

Went to my ppf and ceramic installer yesterday to pick my tint. I went with the basic non ceramic because of this thread. I was looking at the IR rejection for ceramic vs dyed , ceramic was 88%, the dyed tint was only 27% so I went with that. This thread made me worried I would regret the ceramic so I'm hoping the dyed doesn't effect my car.

[premier3is]

Originally Posted by Pacman123

Went to my ppf and ceramic installer yesterday to pick my tint. I went with the basic non ceramic because of this thread. I was looking at the IR rejection for ceramic vs dyed , ceramic was 88%, the dyed tint was only 27% so I went with that. This thread made me worried I would regret the ceramic so I'm hoping the dyed doesn't effect my car.

When are you tinting the car?

[Pacman123]

Im hoping to take delivery tomorrow as it is in transit to dealer now. So I am going to do PPF and Tint starting cyber monday. I want to show my friends who are coming home for the holidays the car. The PPF takes 2-3 days to do properly so I dont want it to be worked on the only week my friends are in town all year.

Getting full front, mirrors, door cups, roof strip, rockers and wheel wells.

[SunsetSleeper]

well 15% is like Limo Tint.

I did 45% Ceramic Tint all around and 70% ceramic tint on the windshield...I don't have any problems

[Glassy]

Originally Posted by 2020g20

Did some experimenting over the weekend. For those of you who guessed the auto-dim sensor was IR activated, you were correct. In separate trials I applied predominantly white light, UV light, and IR light...IR had the strongest effect by far. As stated previously, this would explain why some tints of the same visible light transmission rating can exacerbate the problem more than others, as IR transmission rates surely vary widely among different films. Comparing the two photos you can see just how bright the backlighting can get in the day time when the sensor is saturated with IR.

Driving the IR circuit with stepped PWM, I was able to achieve 12 distinct levels of instrument cluster brightness. The brightest setting being significantly brighter than I've ever seen in this car during the day time, even on a bright sunny day before my windows were tinted.

The next step is miniaturizing everything and designing an unobtrusive case for it, then optimizing it to run off a small LiPo pack.

(And yes, I am fully aware how utterly ridiculous it is that I am resorting to this on a brand-new $50k car. But based on the feedback from my dealer so far, I have little hope this is going to be fixed via coding any time soon.)

Thanks for the detailed write-up. This explains a lot...

[Trapster]

I have a g20 330d Msport which has the rear window and the rear side windows tinted or privacy glass but this is just part of the m sport plus pack I think they call it in the uk and my display still goes dim now and then so I guess this has nothing to do with after market tints ?

I am going to take it to the dealer and see if it is a software update ?

[2020g20]

Originally Posted by Trapster

so I guess this has nothing to do with after market tints ?

I think it has to do with the auto-dim ambient light sensor on this car being set way too aggressively. Tinting definitely makes it worse, but I saw the problem too before tinting, albeit far less often. Again, depends on where you live. Seems like folks in very sunny locales aren't experiencing the issue, even after tinting.

Let us know what your dealer tells you. So far I've heard no mention of an update or programming that will affect this on a G20.

[2020g20]

Originally Posted by 2020g20

The next step is miniaturizing everything and designing an unobtrusive case for it, then optimizing it to run off a small LiPo pack.

Finally got around to making a little device to do this. Started a new thread in DIY and posted a quick video...

https://g20.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=25526821

[Preciseyyc]

I Have 5% all the way Around with brow, no issues for me.

[Who's on first]

Originally Posted by 2020g20

Finally got around to making a little device to do this. Started a new thread in DIY and posted a quick video...

https://g20.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=25526821

Amazing work.

[Burrcold]

Any update on a fix for this? Just took delivery today and the same dimming issues during the day (I have 25% tint - Suntek CXP 25). Very annoying since it's so hard to see anything! I can live with the gauges since I have the HUD but the iDrive screen is super annoying.

[EXE46]

I have the same Suntek25CXP tint but no issues but then I live in the Sunshine State.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by EXE46

I have the same Suntek25CXP tint but no issues but then I live in the Sunshine State.

So strange. It was very sunny here yesterday and it was still doing it. I can't imagine how sunny it would always have to be for it not to dim? And even though you get a lot of sun, you would think it would still happen at dawn/dusk when it's not full on sun.

[2020g20]

Originally Posted by Burrcold

Any update on a fix for this?

No update that I'm aware of. My car was just at the dealer for two days for an unrelated issue this week, and I brought up the dimming issue again. They reconfirmed that BMW is aware of the issue, but blames it solely on aftermarket tint, and has provided no solution. I then took a few minutes to demonstrate for them on my loaner 330i (which obviously had no tint) how aggressive the dimming was in shade conditions, and how much brighter and usable the displays can be when the brightness is boosted (using the IR blaster I made for my car). It's easy to convince someone there is a problem when they see the daytime brightness being manually adjusted with their own eyes...but of course they can't do anything about it until BMW provides a coding solution.

[NYC_340i]

Have the same issue with Suntek 30% tints. The instrument cluster pretty much dims all the way down. Lowering the window both in the sun and in the shade immediately brightens up the cluster. It's not that bad since I use the head up display for the most part but it's still annoying.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by NYC_340i

Have the same issue with Suntek 30% tints. The instrument cluster pretty much dims all the way down. Lowering the window both in the sun and in the shade immediately brightens up the cluster. It's not that bad since I use the head up display for the most part but it's still annoying.

Do you know what line/brand of Suntek you went with? Mine happens with the Suntek CXP line (25%). I may end up having my tints redone so I want to make sure it's something that won't still give me issues.

[Weiner0123]

Found a tiny temporary solution.. bought a flexible $7 book light off amazon clipped it to my heat vent shined it at the interior light sensor... works like a charm and don't even notice it. I also turned the dial down for no airflow from that vent cause I'm sure that wouldn't be good idea to heat the battery up..

[premier3is]

Originally Posted by Weiner0123

Found a tiny temporary solution.. bought a flexible $7 book light off amazon clipped it to my heat vent shined it at the interior light sensor... works like a charm and don't even notice it. I also turned the dial down for no airflow from that vent cause I'm sure that wouldn't be good idea to heat the battery up..

Do you have to turn it off at nighttime to get the dimmed lights on?

Man, this is a horrible software flaw by BMW, luckily I don't have this issue but ridiculous they can't update the software to fix this. I wonder if not enough people have reported it.

[Weiner0123]

Originally Posted by premier3is

Do you have to turn it off at nighttime to get the dimmed lights on?

Man, this is a horrible software flaw by BMW, luckily I don't have this issue but ridiculous they can't update the software to fix this. I wonder if not enough people have reported it.

Yeah I do I'm not 100% tho because recently I haven't driven at night but I was in a poorly lit underground parking and all the lights were still white and bright once I turned it off it went orange and dim.

I agree, it blows my mind they sell cars and they know BMW has a big enthusiast market and people love modifying there cars.. how did this slip there minds..??