[F87source]

Credit: Torque https://www.torque.com.sg/reviews/bm...timao-circuit/

In this thread I will be teaching you how to code the DSC (MDM, stability control, traction control) on an F series BMW as this process should be almost the same on any F series BMW. But the instructions will be specific to my m2 so I cannot guarantee that they will work on other cars, so you can search on the forum of what modules you may need to code to get the desired results if my instructions are not the same for your car. Again I will be talking about coding in context of my 2017 BMW M2, on ISTEP level F020-19-07-539, so what I may be able to do might be different to what you will be able to do as there is a difference in vehicle and software version. Note, protool works on E, F and G series BMWs, and the process to code the dsc (on an F and G series bmw) is similar so this will acts as a basis on how to do it and show that it's possible to do. Essentially anything you can code via esys you can code via protool.

So before we begin you may ask why would I want to code my DSC? The reason why is because BMW programs these DSC’s differently from car to car, and this different programming has significantly different behaviors. Some programming/codings make the car extremely understeery and cuts power way too early - for safety. While some other codings (on M cars but even more so on European M cars) allow massive slip angles before cutting power. So having the ability to select different “codings” will allow you to better tailor the car to your desired stability control intervention, instead of being forced to deal with what BMW gave you from the factory. This will be good for those that have more experienced car control and can handle more slip - so be careful if you don’t have fantastic car control because coding for more slip angle can really bite you in the butt.


Now you may ask how is this possible? Well the answer to that question is because most BMW’s share the same ECU’s that operate DSC. The only difference is the programming or coding that is currently toggled on in the computer, otherwise they are all the same. The good thing about this is BMW does not have bespoke software for each car. Instead they have a bunch of “codings/programmings” in the EPS’s ecu that are toggled to a specific car. So essentially you will already have all the different codings available, all you have to do is set which one you want. The only exception to this is if your car’s current software level otherwise known as ISTEP has those codings available, aka if your car’s software is too old chances are you won’t have the GTS or CS settings. Of course the model of your car will affect this too.


The last question you may have is what do you use to code these things? Well my answer to that is either BMW’s special software called ESYS (which I will not be explaining in this thread), or Protool which is an android app that allows you to code everything ESYS can.

Here is a link to my review on protool explaining everything a bit more in depth, and why you really should buy this app over the alternatives: https://g42.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...2#post29968582


Disclaimer:

Damage/Injury Disclaimer: Any technical advice, coding advice, installation instruction, or product installation demonstrated in my reviews is to be done at your own risk. I will not be responsible for personal injuries, injuries to others or any living being, or any damage to your car, or any property damage.

Coding these advanced features like the GHAS (differential), power steering (EPS), and DSC (traction control) can be very dangerous as it causes your car to behave much differently than before (particularly the DSC codings as you can can get alot more slip angles vs. before). So proceed with caution. Again I will not be responsible for any outcome that occurs due to you (the reader) using my instructions to code a car.


Monetary disclaimer: I do not make commission, or profits or any kind of monetary gain from the sale of this App (Protool).

Image Credits:

Images and videos used in this review are all property of their rightful owners as credited below each image, I am just using them for the purpose of this review but if you (the owner of the image) would like them removed please let me know via pm. Otherwise thanks to the respective image owners (I made sure to credit your online name and link where I found the photo) of the photos, without you this review would be so much more bland.


Before we start talking more about coding, I would like to give some tips on how to code your car safely:

Make back ups before you code, this way if something goes wrong you are able to revert your car back to factory settings.
Make sure you know exactly what you are doing before you code. This means doing plenty of research on what coding you will be doing, what the changes itself does, what ecus need to be coded and how to make the changes, and of course if the coding you want to do is available for your car.
Make sure you have an appropriate (and good quality) battery charger to keep your car powered while you code, because if your battery drops below a certain voltage while coding your car will shut off and this can leave the car bricked. For some coding you can leave the engine running while coding, but do not drive while coding.
Use quality cables/wireless adapters - cheapo adapters/cables are slow and can fail part way through the flashing process. In the past I have purchased cheap enet cables from aliexpress, and while on the outside they look clean and good quality. When I opened the obd2 shell I saw how terribly put together they were, the wires were stripped extremely poorly and the cables had patches of exposed copper all over the place. This could lead to a short if the adjacent exposed wires touched, and that would be bad news for the car.
Read the protool’s user guide completely and thoroughly before you begin, failure to do so can result in damage to your car.



How to code the DSC:

Step 0: Connect a battery charger to your car, if it dies during coding you may brick it. Connect only to the under hood terminals not directly to the battery to avoid damaging the IBS. Make sure you read the protools manual before starting to code, failure to do so can result in damage to your car.

Step 1: Connect to your car with protool, after this step you should see a menu screen like so:


Credit: F87Source


Credit: F87source


Credit: F87source


Step 2: From the menu screen you will tap on the stability control (DSC) box under the chassis heading, and the following screen will pop up.


Credit: F87source


Step 3: From there you will click on coding and this screen will pop up:


Credit: F87source


Step 4: Next you will click on edit coding and this disclaimer will pop up:


Credit: F87source


Step 5: Click on confirm to back up your current coding data. This is critical to do incase something goes wrong. Afterwards this menu will pop up.


Credit: F87source



Step 6: Select Euro DSC, this will allow to set your car’s DSC region to Europe or not. Now note, the Euro DSC will make every other DSC mode that I show you after this much much more aggressive (likely due to the fact that BMW considers Europeans much better drivers than North Americans, I believe this is also enabled for Australians as well). Anyways it is your choice if you want this on or off. This setting is for non M cars only.


Step 7: Euro MDM, this is for the F8X ///M cars only (I believe this is only for full fledged M cars only, so M performance and M sport models do not count i.e. M235i, M240i, I believe this falls down to the lack of an active differential), so enable euro MDM if you want it or not. Again like the above, Euro mode allows alot more slip.


Disclaimer do not select both Euro DSC and Euro MDM only pick one, if you have an M car then select from EURO MDM, if you do not have an M car then select from EURO DSC.


Step 8: Next go to the expert mode tab and you will see the following menus


Credit: F87source


Step 9: Click on 3000CODIERDATEN_ALLGEMEIN Then this menu system will pop up:


Credit: F87source


Step 10: Then click on C_Variante_Fahrzeug_e and then this box will pop up


Credit: F87source


Credit: F87source


Credit: F87source


Step 11: select a valid chassis code that you would like, this will code in the particular dsc traits, so m4 dsc, m2 dsc etc. Here I currently have f82_gts selected which is the m4 gts dsc mode, I will be switching it to f87cs settings because I feel it matches my chassis better than the GTS settings (which was designed for a longer wheel base car). You are free to choose whatever you like just avoid the not supported or custom options or spare options or VEH or any coding option that doesn’t make sense or hasn’t been tested. What does this mean? If you have an F8X car don’t code F10 because the DSC settings may not be the same, and if you have an F2x or F3x car don’t code F8x settings as there are significant differences in the drive train hardware (diff) that these codings likely will not work, so it doesn’t make sense to code these features, as this may cause damage/issues. So make sure you code something that has been done before, you can check the forums to see what others have done and generally you should stay in those confines. But typically you should only choose a chassis that shares the same parts as your car. Finally I will click confirm.

Step 12: Click finalize and the car will finish coding. You may be prompted to follow additional steps on your screen by Protool so follow them.

Step 13: You may also be told to toggle the ignition so again follow these steps.

Step 14: Disconnect from your car, congratulations you have coded the DSC! Please drive carefully and take time to learn the cars new behavior - because it will be drastically different. Enjoy!

[F87source]

Reserved for future posts.

[Rdurty2]

Wrong forum. None of this would apply to the G series.

[Invisiblename]

Originally Posted by F87source

Reserved for future posts.

This is the G42 forum - what relevance does your “advert” have?

[F87source]

Originally Posted by Rdurty2

Wrong forum. None of this would apply to the G series.

No, I 100% intentionally posted it here.

The reason why is because protool works on the G series.

So essentially if you want to code something on your g42 you can utilize protool, as it's a simpler to use alternative to Esys. It's also cheaper - given you are comparing with a paid launcher version, and you typically should since the G42 is so new most of the CAFD won't be mapped on some of the cracked launchers floating around like launcher pro 2.8.1.


Also you can absolutely code the dsc on a g42 so yes it will apply to the g series, my guide was just how to do it on am f series and it'll be very similar to a g series.