Charger for ISTA-P programming

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
So BMW recommends the Deutronic DBL 1600 for programming. Not exactly a cheap device, or easily available.

Anyone have advise on alternatives. I believe ISTA-P likes to see real voltage lol ... looking for coding E and F series.

Thanks,

Filippo
 

NoQuarter

Major
Nov 24, 2017
1,662
1,066
0
Indiana, USA
Ride
Z4 35is, 535xi, X5 35i
For really long coding sessions, like flashing the idrive, etc, I just hook up the jumper cables.

Last time I had a $60,000 petro BMW engine driven power supply for about 2 hours :grinning:
 

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
Thanks, Jim. I'm hoping for a more durable solution.

I am surprised at the lack of posts this thread has. @doublespaces could this be because folks are not watching the main page for new posts?

I cannot believe, given the kinds of folks here, that pretty much no one here is thinking about this, researched, solved, etc. I found a few threads on other forums, but they are spotty with DIY solutions. People have done it but exactly how is unclear. Maybe my next step here is to start providing some links for fodder?

Filippo
 

Mr Rage

Lurker
Feb 12, 2020
40
21
0
27
Crewe
Ride
2009 E92 335i M-DCT IKM0S 2.81
I use a 20a smart battery charger and conditioner I bought off eBay and it’s worked flawlessly however I can’t tell you what it keep the battery voltage at. I haven’t used ISTA-P, does this draw more power from the battery that WinKFP or NCS Expert?
 

doublespaces

Administrator
Oct 18, 2016
9,303
4,331
0
AZ
Ride
2009 E93 335i
It's a chicken/egg ordeal trying to build forums. Requires lots if effort and time, neither of which are available.
 

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
ISTA-P wants to see 70A. No worries @doublespaces - just didn't know if you had opinion.

There are tidbit posts where people have built stuff. Off-the-shelf solutions vary in cost. But expect to pay $1k++. I believe this can be a relatively straightforward DIY build. Am chasing down a few common parts and discussing with a few people behind the scenes. Maybe can get a couple built and get a proper DIY thread knocked out here so that folks can solve this with $200 instead of jumper cables or a $1,000 Deutronic or Schumacher setup.

Filippo
 
Last edited:

Seb335i

Corporal
Jun 14, 2019
113
83
0
Ride
BMW 335i E93 DKG
Deutronic DBL 1600 what else ?
 

Attachments

  • 58CA5059-41B0-488A-A11A-57DDF2B84ADE.jpeg
    58CA5059-41B0-488A-A11A-57DDF2B84ADE.jpeg
    337 KB · Views: 163
  • 15D433CB-03B2-4D4C-8CEE-60F53333A1F1.jpeg
    15D433CB-03B2-4D4C-8CEE-60F53333A1F1.jpeg
    229.4 KB · Views: 210

derekgates

Lieutenant
Feb 23, 2018
740
375
0
NW FL
derekgates.us
Ride
2011 335is
Thanks, Jim. I'm hoping for a more durable solution.

I am surprised at the lack of posts this thread has. @doublespaces could this be because folks are not watching the main page for new posts?

I cannot believe, given the kinds of folks here, that pretty much no one here is thinking about this, researched, solved, etc. I found a few threads on other forums, but they are spotty with DIY solutions. People have done it but exactly how is unclear. Maybe my next step here is to start providing some links for fodder?

Filippo

I am always in the "New Posts" button to see activity on the forum but not sure how prominent it is for new folks.

(This is why I keep popping up in the Z4 forum, my bad)


ISTA-P wants to see 70A. No worries @doublespaces - just didn't know if you had opinion.

There are tidbit posts where people have built stuff. Off-the-shelf solutions vary in cost. But expect to pay $1k++. I believe this can be a relatively straightforward DIY build. Am chasing down a few common parts and discussing with a few people behind the scenes. Maybe can get a couple built and get a proper DIY thread knocked out here so that folks can solve this with $200 instead of jumper cables or a $1,000 Deutronic or Schumacher setup.

Filippo

70A!!!! HOLY CRAP
 

Snertz

Specialist
Nov 7, 2016
64
51
0
NY
Ride
2011 1M
There's a bunch of DIYs floating around using server PSUs, output is nice and clean since they're designed for computers.

The one I'm building uses a DPS-700EB, they can be found for less than $20 shipped on eBay, total build runs less than $40. They're rated for 58A but have been tested up to 65A before over current protection kicks in, you could always stack two in parallel too.

Basic details to get it to output 14v here: https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=18908291&postcount=844

Instead of an external pot you could use a 1k resistor instead then fine tune voltage using the internal pot shown below, clockwise decreases voltage. I believe either way works.
20180203_151224.jpg

More reading here for converting other PSUs : https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?1292514-How-to-convert-Server-Power-Supplies
 
Last edited:

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
As @Seb335i told me, Deutronic DBL 1600 is what is BMW approved. I think hitting those voltage/amperage specs would be good. And that should cover the BMW chassis line-up for ISTA+

Filippo
 

carabuser

Lieutenant
Oct 2, 2019
870
1
766
0
UK
Ride
Z4 35i & 335i
ANy update gents ?

The DIY power supply is great. I did the same as posted above by butchering a Dell server PSU. £30 all in and it works perfectly. There's a good thread on bummerboost about it.

The benefit of a mass market component like a server PSU is that it's a very high spec and reliable, I'd expect it to exceed the capabilities of the units inside those Schuacher PSUs when it comes to voltage stability and lifespan. Because of the lack of demand for second hand PSUs in the tech industry they can be had for pennies.
 

aus335iguy

Colonel
Nov 18, 2017
2,248
803
0
Down under
Ride
335i DCT 2009
Ive read the bummmerboost thread and I actually started by buying the one power supply in Australia that they mentioned.
By the time it arrived it was round thanks to the shithouse packaging. Im still looking but the reason I needed was to flash my CIC and I don't need to anynmore

Im still interested in the thread though because I like seeing people do good, neat work
 

NoQuarter

Major
Nov 24, 2017
1,662
1,066
0
Indiana, USA
Ride
Z4 35is, 535xi, X5 35i
Great progress by @fmorelli so far. Ill let him post some notes and pics on current status.

The intent here has been to do a quality build and not just a cheap/hacky good enough build. Something that looks good, durable, etc.

Waiting on parts and trying different things , hand fabricating electrical connections, etc consumed a lot of time. Getting reliable components that work at 13Amps AC and 80Amps DC was harder than expected - can't just grab whatever pops.up on ebay.
 

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
Yeah sorry for not posting much here lately. We're pretty far along and @NoQuarter and I have spent a lot of time tag teaming this over Whatsapp.

I'm momentarily on hold as we are just wrapping up all the custom parts for the Öhlins TTX, F30 hubs, big brakes. It's been a six month development slog. Car comes apart this Thursday and we hope to have the suspension and brakes built and aligned by end of the following week.

We've kept a bunch of stuff up-to-date. The parts list is still floating; we'll nail that down. The technical drawings are pretty up-to-date:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1F0y1OLSA1M9yEcg7tNg9Xhr5tnbkePGK_rAXeco4Pgw/edit?usp=sharing

Here are a few photos. I have a ton between Jim and I but it will need a sift through once we have it working.

Filippo
1.jpg 2.jpg 3.jpg 4.jpg 5.jpg 6.jpg 7a.jpg 7b.jpg 8.jpg 9.jpg 10.jpg 11.jpg 12.jpg 13.jpg 14.jpg 15.jpg
 
Last edited:
  • Love
Reactions: derekgates

nsjames

Private
Jun 3, 2017
34
14
0
Ride
328 XI Touring
I was using a little stanley battery charger and it's worked well, but you have to mind your loads.

I just ordered a delta 700w power supply.
 

fmorelli

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Aug 11, 2017
3,748
3,592
0
57
Virginia
Ride
E89 Z4 35i, F10 535d
Regular battery charger doesn't seem to hang from anything I've experienced. I'm wrapping up the connectors for @NoQuarter and I's reprogramming chargers. Hope to wrap this thread up in a few weeks with the rest of the details.

Filippo