# Pics from my Sirius install (56K warning!)



## Ozona (Jan 3, 2005)

I installed my Sirius kit from Pacific BMW tonight in about an hour in my M3 Cabrio. I just received it after about a month wait on the back order for the tuner box.

Some slight differences:

1. The new BMW OEM part is the small antenna, it's no longer the mouse sized one, and it only has (1) plug. The box still ships with adapter to adapt the new single wire antenna to the old dual wire Sirius box. (yea, old Sirius box)

2. The current shipping BMW Sirius tuner has a single antenna input, not the dual one. It no longer carries the Alpine product logo.

3. I had to mount it in it's bracket upside down so the single feed antenna would clear.

4. The trunk panel p/n I mentioned above does in fact cover and hide the Sirius tuner so it is not hanging out in the trunk. It is hidden behind a formed section in the front trunk "cover"/carpet.

Super easy install. 2 minutes to activate and :banana:










And the trunk


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## PHXEd (Aug 27, 2004)

*How did you make this look so clean?*



Ozona said:


> I installed my Sirius kit from Pacific BMW tonight in about an hour in my M3 Cabrio. I just received it after about a month wait on the back order for the tuner box.
> 
> Some slight differences:
> 
> ...


Ozona,
1. How much was the trunk panel P/N: 51-47-8-236-561 ?
2. How did you hide and feed the antenna wire? Is your antenna mounted on the trunk lid or is it mounted on your 'package shelf'?

I've installed the same in my 2005 330CiC but will admit that that my wiring is a tad messy and am wondering how I can improve my installation...

Thx,
PHXEd


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

*Gonna give it a shot this weekend---*

This thread is a lifesaver-- thanks to all. Armed with the parts list I contacted my sales guy and they matched the Circle BMW prices.

My car has Assist, so it has the larger trim panel to hide the Assist box. But, there appears to be enough fudge room there to attach the Sirius tuner right onto the Assist box with some zip ties or something, with perhaps a couple of those stick on felt pads to provide a small space in between. My Sirius box is the newer one and looks thinner than the one pictured here.

Any hints on how to route the antenna wire, I didn't really see much mention of that here. I'm gonna go camp out in the trunk this weekend, thanks again for this great info and taking the time to post the pix. :thumbup:


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

*Here is the solution with Assist on convertible--*

My car has Assist but no NAV or CD Changer. Due to having the Assist, I have the larger trim panel shown above already installed. I was able to attach the tuner right on top of the Assist using Velcro tape. Works great, the hardest part was routing the antenna wire but my salesman printed BMW's installation instuctions which was a great help. Total time was less than 2 hours.

The first pic shows the Assist box in the spot where the Sirius would normally go, with trim panel pulled back, note the Velcro tape attached.

The second one shows the Sirius box mounted to the Assist, note the connections are turned up to allow clearance.

And finally, with the trim panel reinstalled. No evidence the Sirius has been added. :thumbup:

If anyone wants the details of how to route the antenna wire, let me know and I will see if I can scan it in or get it to you somehow.

Thanks again for all the help and great pix in this thread. One of these days I will figure out how to imbed the pix without having to add links. :dunno:


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## Technic (Jun 24, 2002)

mccorma said:


> My car has Assist but no NAV or CD Changer. Due to having the Assist, I have the larger trim panel shown above already installed. I was able to attach the tuner right on top of the Assist using Velcro tape. Works great, the hardest part was routing the antenna wire but my salesman printed BMW's installation instuctions which was a great help. Total time was less than 2 hours.
> 
> The first pic shows the Assist box in the spot where the Sirius would normally go, with trim panel pulled back, note the Velcro tape attached.
> 
> ...


 :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:


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## Ci2Eye (Feb 27, 2003)

Mccorma,

You mentioned the receiver seems thinner than the one's pictured so which part number did you get for the receiver? Circle BMW's website now shows a part number different from the one cited in this thread. Instead of 84 11 0 153 365, they now list 65 12 0 398 140. I am wondering if the receiver has changed. I have tried e-mailing them but haven't heard back. 

Thanks for your help.


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

Ci2Eye said:


> Mccorma,
> 
> You mentioned the receiver seems thinner than the one's pictured so which part number did you get for the receiver? Circle BMW's website now shows a part number different from the one cited in this thread. Instead of 84 11 0 153 365, they now list 65 12 0 398 140. I am wondering if the receiver has changed. I have tried e-mailing them but haven't heard back.
> 
> Thanks for your help.


I used the tuner that ends in the 140. Check back in the thread again, there is a post on 2-19-05 from PhxEd (?) with updated part numbers. And also, you won't need the antenna splitter as the new tuner has one input. Here is the text of that post:

_One difference: Instead of BMW Sirius receiver (84 11 0 141 981), I used BMW Sirius receiver (65 12 0 398 140) which supercedes the previous receiver. One nice thing about this receiver is that you DO NOT need the Terk splitter. The mini Terk antenna plugs directly into the receiver._

Also, don't bother with the Adapter Kit ($45) if you have Assist, this is just a metal bracket that you can't use if you have to attach the Sirius to the Assist like I did. Finally, you won't need the Antenna Adapter ($1.20) as PhxEd mentions. The lead from the BMW Sirius antenna plugs directly into the tuner with no adapter needed.

Let me know how things work out!! :thumbup:


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## Ci2Eye (Feb 27, 2003)

mccorma said:


> I used the tuner that ends in the 140. Check back in the thread again, there is a post on 2-19-05 from PhxEd (?) with updated part numbers. And also, you won't need the antenna splitter as the new tuner has one input. Here is the text of that post:
> 
> _One difference: Instead of BMW Sirius receiver (84 11 0 141 981), I used BMW Sirius receiver (65 12 0 398 140) which supercedes the previous receiver. One nice thing about this receiver is that you DO NOT need the Terk splitter. The mini Terk antenna plugs directly into the receiver._
> 
> ...


Alright, thanks for the advice. I somehow missed that post and since some of the other dealers that sell parts online still have the old part number listed, I thought the new part might be for E90s.

As far as the bracket goes, my car is not a convertible so I think, based on the pictures, that the mounting location is different but still I think you are right that I don't need the bracket.

Is your reception okay in Atlanta? I've heard people here say that all the trees can block the signal at times.


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

I haven't been in the car that much since I installed the Sirius, but I have had only a couple of "mutes" (dropouts). So I am thinking the reception will be OK around the trees.

You will have to make the call on whether to spend $$ on the bracket, it is pricey for what you get, just a cheap metal bracket. I am not sure of the mounting location on a car other than the cabrio, but'd I'd think you could "McGyver" something with Velcro or zip ties that would work out fine. The tuner is also not very heavy so it does not require that much to secure it.

The hardest part will be routing the antenna wire. The instructions I got from my dealer had all the models shown, not just the cabrio. My salesman printed it from an internal BMW website; if you can't get the instructions let me know and I will try to put them out here somewhere as a link or whatever.

Good luck!


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## Ci2Eye (Feb 27, 2003)

I'm planning on putting the antenna on the back package shelf. I have "studied" it and I think I have a plan to route it that looks pretty simple and would keep the wire completely concealed. I'm planning on removing the center child seat hook as some people have done. I figure I can always put it back if I ever need it.

I do have one more question though, is the BMW antenna still like the first generation antennas or have they adopted the smaller design like the Terk antennas?



mccorma said:


> I haven't been in the car that much since I installed the Sirius, but I have had only a couple of "mutes" (dropouts). So I am thinking the reception will be OK around the trees.
> 
> You will have to make the call on whether to spend $$ on the bracket, it is pricey for what you get, just a cheap metal bracket. I am not sure of the mounting location on a car other than the cabrio, but'd I'd think you could "McGyver" something with Velcro or zip ties that would work out fine. The tuner is also not very heavy so it does not require that much to secure it.
> 
> ...


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

It is the smaller one, I don't know what the first generation looked like, but mine looks like the one pictured earlier in the thread, shown next to the computer mouse on the red car.

Yep since your car is a hardtop, the rear shelf might be a good bet. And like you say you can always move it outside on the roof if you get dropouts.

The literature that my dealer printed that had the antenna wire routing instructions might be of some use to you if you mount it on the exterior. Also, it mentions that you can trim off the "tail" of the antenna depending on your install. It comes with about a 6" tail and a round piece of rubber at the end about the size of a quarter. I think that is used to anchor it under the weather strip or something, again depending on your body style. My salesman (who had done a few of these himself) had me trim the tail down to about 3" so that the antenna wasn't sitting way out in the middle of the trunk--- just looks better. It is easy to pull the magnetic strip back and trim it with a scissors, but be careful not to cut or kink the wire inside. You will see what I mean when you get it.

The instructions are also explicit that you should avoid kinks, sharp bends, or tight loops in the antenna wire, so keep that in mind when you plan the routing.


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## SOURCE1064 (Apr 12, 2004)

I know this is an older post but your post helped me a lot. I just purchased a 2005 M3 CIC and was told with assist and nav I could do sirius but not with My CD Changer because that was the Sirius mounting spot. I showed my dealership your pics and they ran it the same way not I have Sirius, BT, Assist and my 6 disc changer. :thumbup:



mccorma said:


> My car has Assist but no NAV or CD Changer. Due to having the Assist, I have the larger trim panel shown above already installed. I was able to attach the tuner right on top of the Assist using Velcro tape. Works great, the hardest part was routing the antenna wire but my salesman printed BMW's installation instuctions which was a great help. Total time was less than 2 hours.
> 
> The first pic shows the Assist box in the spot where the Sirius would normally go, with trim panel pulled back, note the Velcro tape attached.
> 
> ...


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## mccorma (Jul 8, 2005)

*Glad to help!*

Always good to hear when we all help one another---- great news and enjoy! :thumbup:


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## spwriter (Oct 18, 2005)

Can we see a photo of the antenna install? I've got an 06 325ci convertible and want to see how bad it looks. Only one place to put it that I can think of - the right rear deck.


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## mhh14 (Nov 20, 2005)

*More info on extension cable?*

This thread may solve a problem I've been struggling with for a while. I've been looking for the 6-pin male audio connector for a while now. The prewired cables look like this:










I'd like to plug something I'm building into those. Ideally, I could find something like this:










I've actually got the connector on the right now, so I only need the connector on the left. However, if the 84 11 0 150 531 is the right kind of extension cable, I'd just buy one, cut it, and modify it as necessary. So, does it look like the above pics on either end, or is it an extension or adapter for some other connectors?

Thanks all!


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## SRFast (Sep 3, 2003)

JRahn said:


> Thats a beautiful thing!! This is EXACTLY the solution I have been after! :thumbup:
> My question is will the same Sirius receiver (from Circle BMW) work out with my system? I have the factory Harmon Kardon system with the 6-Disc CD changer in the trunk (Tape player in the deck). if it comes down to a choice between the CD changer or Sirius, the CD player gets the axe! But it would be nice to keep them both. so you are saying that the BMW headunit will recognize the new Sirius receiver just like that?
> 
> Part 2: Can I paint the Sirius antenna to match (topaz blue) without fouling up the reception?
> ...


You'll need to check with BMW to see if the Sirius receiver is compatible with the in-dash tape player. The "Business CD" in-dash CD player is a requirement for the E39 Sirius install. I know of one 2003 E39 owner who had to replace the in-dash cassette player with the CD player before he could install the OEM Sirius receiver.

Hope this helps...JL


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## elbruce (Dec 6, 2005)

*Help with TERK sir-mini antenna*

Hey!!

Don't know if this thread is still active - but hopefully someone can help.

Just bought a 2006 330ci (e90) - and had the delaer install the SAT radio. Was having some problems with reception, and some folks over at the BMWNAV yaho group had suggested I try the TERK sir-mini.

But the plug for the sir-mini does not seem to fit my sat radio. With the sir-mini I get NO reception at all. Several people have said you don't need the splitter with the newer sat radios - but is the plug diffferent on the sir-mini than on the OEM sat antenna???

Thanks!!

//eddie


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## Ci2Eye (Feb 27, 2003)

elbruce said:


> Hey!!
> 
> Don't know if this thread is still active - but hopefully someone can help.
> 
> ...


I can't answer your question but I can tell you that you don't have an 2006 330Ci (E90) since that car isn't yet available and probably never will be. The 2006 330i sedan is available in E90 form but all 2006 330Ci coupe models are E46 cars. The E90 330Ci should be available in less than a year but it'll most likely be a 2007 model.

Good luck with finding an answer to your question. I'm sure someone here knows exactly what you need.


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## elbruce (Dec 6, 2005)

Ci2eye,

Thanks for the info. I am not real clear on the E designations - but someone on another forum had told me I had an E90, based on my model and year.

If you say I have an E46 - I'll have to take your word for it. That sure would answer why I not been able to find anything on E90 convertables.

Thanks for the info.

//eddie


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## fastdrivngrl (Feb 8, 2006)

Thanks sooo much for this post, once again the vehicle owners know more than the dealerships! I just bought my 330ci a few weeks ago and I'm really missing the Sirius I had in my STi. Can't wait to get started!


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