Hey all,
I'm the proud new owner of a low mileage '05 530i. When I purchased the car the display read "Headunit not coded correctly". The dealer assured me that the unit had just been replaced and could be coded by any repair shop with autologic. The local mechanic said that when he attempted to program he found that it was not compatible with my vehicle. He was unable to tell me what unit I needed and the BMW dealership could also not answer my question. I know that the car originally had a cd changer and premium audio package and that the unit in the car now is a single disk. I've found multiple replacement CCC on ebay and the like but how do I determine which unit is compatible with my vehicle? Any help is appreciated because driving without music sucks.

 

step 1: BMW Model Archive · BMW VIN Decoder · bmwarchive.org

check what originally came with your car

(but actually all units can work with all cars if coded correctly)

 

Thanks, I've already done that.
So, the single disk unit in the car right now could be programmed to work with all the features my car came with? I just got a bad technician who didnt know what he was doing?

 

CCC drives have two slots. If your car had CCC (dual slot) originally and now only has single slot, someone put a MASK unit in by mistake. Yes, your dealer does not know what he/she is talking about. No, the MASK unit will not be able to do everything that a CCC unit can do, even if you have it coded to your car.

Look up your VIN, see what the car came with originally. If it shipped with a CCC drive, you need to put a CCC drive back in it. You will need to have it coded.

 

Ah, you guys are awesome, thanks. I think I see what you mean.
My car had the HIFI Professional according to the VIN check. What is in the car now is pictured below.

I guess what I thought was a shelf is where the rest of my stereo went. So, something like this will work once coded?
http://m.ebay.com/itm/251690337407?nav=SEARCH

 

HiFi Professional is not the whole story. Do you also have S609A: Navigation system Professional ?

 

I do not

 

whats the last 7 digits of your vin?

 

Ok, here is my understanding...

Globally, there are several kinds of radio and speakers...
The US market only has the "HiFi Speaker System".
The US market has as optional the "HiFi Professional DSP" (aka Logic 7).

Globally, there are two kinds of Navigation...
The US market only has the "Navigation Professional" and not the "Navigation Business".

So, in the US, if you don't have Nav, you don't have the DVD drive and you don't have CCC, you have M-ASK.

 

B816178
So I need something like this?
http://m.ebay.com/itm/291128928510?nav=SEARCH