So uhh... had a JB4 and didn't know it...

[awns729]

Hey everyone - need some guidance...

Today I got in my 135i and must have hit some buttons by accident, and the tach + speedo were moving up and down exactly at the numbers (what I mean is that I accidentally entered what seems to be the JB3/4? steering wheel controlld menu). I bought this car 2 years ago CPO from a dealer, and apparently it came with a JB* installed, which I just discovered tonight. That is, unless cobb maps have the exact same steering wheel menu, which I highly doubt.

To make matters worse, I had no idea the car had a JB installed and installed a cobb stage 1 aggressive map last month after my warranty ran out. (I datalogged afterwards and the car seems to be running well). But I have no idea what map has been running on the car for the past 2 years (I'd like to hope it was map 0 - stock).

Advice on what to do? Do I uninstall the JB or just leave it? Kind of at a loss here. This is a pretty big surprise.

Thanks.

[awns729]

I think for now I'm going to uninstall the cobb and play around wiht the JB and try to figure out what version I have. If anyone has any advice or anything I should check for let me know. I hope having both systems installed didn't cause any issues.

[amsnow440]

Wow, this is kind of funny haha. The first thing I did when I looked at my car was try to enter the JB4 menu.... Unfortunately, I wasn't as lucky as you are!

As far as messing anything up, you are fine. You would not have been able to access the DME for flashing unless the JB4 was on Map 0, which disables the JB4 completely and allows the DME to be read/flashed.

If it were my car, I'd sell the AP and buy a BT cable with the money (you'd have left over cash)

Originally Posted by awns729

Hey everyone - need some guidance...

Today I got in my 135i and must have hit some buttons by accident, and the tach + speedo were moving up and down exactly at the numbers (what I mean is that I accidentally entered what seems to be the JB3/4? steering wheel controlld menu). I bought this car 2 years ago CPO from a dealer, and apparently it came with a JB* installed, which I just discovered tonight. That is, unless cobb maps have the exact same steering wheel menu, which I highly doubt.

To make matters worse, I had no idea the car had a JB installed and installed a cobb stage 1 aggressive map last month after my warranty ran out. (I datalogged afterwards and the car seems to be running well). But I have no idea what map has been running on the car for the past 2 years (I'd like to hope it was map 0 - stock).

Advice on what to do? Do I uninstall the JB or just leave it? Kind of at a loss here. This is a pretty big surprise.

Thanks.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Thats a nice surprise.
since you were able to install cobb then you are on map 0 but just enter the JB4 menu again and you can see which map you are on.
As for the Jb4 version you can open the ECU box and take a picture.

[awns729]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

Thats a nice surprise.
since you were able to install cobb then you are on map 0 but just enter the JB4 menu again and you can see which map you are on.
As for the Jb4 version you can open the ECU box and take a picture.

Yeah. This morning the AP hung on uninstall, and looks like the JB was on map 4 (which is similar to stock it seems). I may have accidentally put it into map 4 last night when I discovered this feature. I put it back into 0 and was able to uninstall the AP stage 1 aggressive. Then on the way to work I put it into map 5 (couldn't help myself ).

I'll open it up at some point. All I know is that the JB is at least 2 years old since that's when I got the car.

I may also call the dealership that sold it to me as a CPO. They sold it to me with a 7.5 inch 264 mounted on the BACK. And one of the other wheels had a weld on it to fix a crack. And now this. Not sure what I should say to them though if I call. (The replacement wheels they payed for with no issues, but it seems they literally didn't even look over the car before CPOing it).

[awns729]

Originally Posted by amsnow440

Wow, this is kind of funny haha. The first thing I did when I looked at my car was try to enter the JB4 menu.... Unfortunately, I wasn't as lucky as you are!

As far as messing anything up, you are fine. You would not have been able to access the DME for flashing unless the JB4 was on Map 0, which disables the JB4 completely and allows the DME to be read/flashed.

If it were my car, I'd sell the AP and buy a BT cable with the money (you'd have left over cash)

Yeah, its pretty funny lol. You know, a year ago I allllmost was about to check to see if i had a JB installed after watching their install video, but by the time I got to my car, I forgot how to use the steering controls and then just forgot about it entirely.

And yeah good point on the Map 0. Verified that this morning as I tried to uninstall the AP (see my post above).

[Rainier]

What is the sequence on the steering wheel that made you aware that it's installed? I'm sure there are a bunch of us who would like to give it a try and see if we secretly have it as well. Congrats on the upgrade.

[awns729]

Originally Posted by Rainier

What is the sequence on the steering wheel that made you aware that it's installed? I'm sure there are a bunch of us who would like to give it a try and see if we secretly have it as well. Congrats on the upgrade.

Down button on volume control and down button on the radio control both held down at the same time. Gauges will move if it works. To get out of the menu keep hitting down on the volume control (left side button I think). Just woke up so let me know if this makes zero sense

[CAVU]

Any observations or comparisons with the JB4 vs. Cobb vs. stock performance?

[nkmu]

Tried this on my CPO 135 right after reading this thread... no such luck.

[darkrom]

Sell the Cobb keep the jb4. Enjoy map 5.

[suspenceful]

If it's at least 2 years old, you need to download the software and update the firmware. Figure out if it's JB3 or JB4. BMS has come a long way with JB4.

[awns729]

Originally Posted by RickMsport

Any observations or comparisons with the JB4 vs. Cobb vs. stock performance?

It's pretty hard to say from just the butt dyno. I will say, the tunes are most noticeable at above 60mph. 60-100 is where they really shine the most. The car just wants to do crazy speeds all the time. I'm sure there's a difference at lower speeds too but probably less obvious.

Let me also just clarify, I'm not 100% sure if I have a JB4 or 3 or what (not familiar with them). I do know that the steering wheel controls posted on the boards for JB4 mostly work. Boost gauge on oil and water temp on fuel work and so does map switching and all that fun stuff. But a few small things like auto DTC off didn't work when I tried. So I'm not sure if I set it up wrong or I have an older version or what.

But anyway, JB versus cobb is pretty hard to say. Definitely not a huge difference, but maayyybee the JB has a slight edge. I took it to the mountain roads yesterday and it felt slightly better in 2nd gear. It honestly could all be in my head. And I also have new PSS tires on there that are 255s (my time with cobb was mostly on stock run flats), so maybe traction control was also kicking in less? So I'd say that they're close enough (and I don't drive it hard enough) that I can't say for sure that one is better.

With the tunes, I don't notice them too much on local roads (but there's definitely some difference). But I did a quick highway pull after I temporarily reverted to stock, and I was getting bored waiting for the car to hit 80. That's when I realized how nice the tunes are.

One thing that I found frustrating about the JB4 was lack of official documentation. For example, the only reference to the steering wheel controls I saw was a screenshot of an excel spreadsheet posted on the forums. I haven't yet found much info on the JB3, so I'm not even sure if that's what I have. Cobb has much better support in terms of good documentation showing you all the features and what not. Although I'm sure BMS will be very receptive to any questions that I ask from what I've seen on the forums. JB map switching and steering wheel controls are nice though. I feel more comfortable with the idea of the cobb installed in my car personally, but I don't really want to go through the uninstall effort for the JB myself since I didn't do the install in the first place (although the video makes it look easy). Basically, not sure which way I'm gonna go yet. Seems like the JB will integrate with meth easier, so that could be nice in the future.

[awns729]

Originally Posted by suspenceful

If it's at least 2 years old, you need to download the software and update the firmware. Figure out if it's JB3 or JB4. BMS has come a long way with JB4.

Do you happen to know what has changed? I found a 100 page thread that I want to avoid reading but not much more than that. The whole thing seems a bit confusing to me. I see a lot of talk about the G5 board upgrade, and then JB3 -> JB4 pinout changes, and the link to the pinout changes.

So it seems like I can have a JB3 or JB4 and can upgrade to a G5 ISO processor. And a JB3 to JB4 upgrade will require wiring harness changes possibly (but that thread has been taken down).

Yeah, I guess I have to open this up and take some photos (this is why i opted for the cobb in the first place lol) and then go from there. Just based on when the first JB4 post came out and my guess that the steering controls weren't available on the JB3, I'm thinking I have a JB4 but maybe not the G5. The G5s started shipping 12/1/12 and I bought my car in August of 2012, so its possible but I'm guessing less likely.

[dsh135]

Congrats on the tune "bonus", but I can't get over that the dealer would overlook a JB connected to the vehicle - especially when they claim it's a CPO! I be a little concerned about just how thorough the rest of their inspection was. At least there's the CPO warranty to cover anything that goes wrong in the first couple of years.

[whitebimmer09]

Originally Posted by dsh135

At least there's the CPO warranty to cover anything that goes wrong in the first couple of years.

Until something happens and they say that he put a JB on it after they sold it to him. I would be a bit concerned? Maybe? I don't know.

[awns729]

Yeah, I don't know either. CPO Warranty expired 2 months ago. I bought the car far away from my home so I used to take it to a different dealer for service but they never mentioned the JB4. I did have the passenger side air bag sensor replaced under warranty and VANOS solenoids. Who knows how this affects the turbo/HPFP warranty, since those will be more costly and arguably can be claimed to be a direct cause of the JB.

I am convinced that the car wasn't looked over well enough or at all before I purchased it, because in addition to the 1 wheel with the weld repair and the other 7.5 inch wheel mounted on the rear (both of which the dealership reimbursed me for), I also recently discovered that the other wheels had been repaired and "cut" (where I guess they remove some metal to make the area where the bead forms perfectly round when they can't fully even out the bend? or something like that. )

I may email the dealership and let them know that after 2 years of ownership I found that the stock wheels on my car had been through repairs (cut) and I accidentally discovered a JB installed. Not sure what is fair in this case for them to do, if anything?

[suspenceful]

Originally Posted by awns729

Do you happen to know what has changed? I found a 100 page thread that I want to avoid reading but not much more than that. The whole thing seems a bit confusing to me. I see a lot of talk about the G5 board upgrade, and then JB3 -> JB4 pinout changes, and the link to the pinout changes.

So it seems like I can have a JB3 or JB4 and can upgrade to a G5 ISO processor. And a JB3 to JB4 upgrade will require wiring harness changes possibly (but that thread has been taken down).

Yeah, I guess I have to open this up and take some photos (this is why i opted for the cobb in the first place lol) and then go from there. Just based on when the first JB4 post came out and my guess that the steering controls weren't available on the JB3, I'm thinking I have a JB4 but maybe not the G5. The G5s started shipping 12/1/12 and I bought my car in August of 2012, so its possible but I'm guessing less likely.

BMS had added a lot of options, features, and fail-safes. They have also improved the maps quite a bit. I hear that JB3 to JB4 is night and day, and that JB4 to JB4 G5 ISO is another huge leap forward. N54Tech is the forum you want to be on for JB4... tons of information over there.

If I were you, I'd follow the installation instructions to find which tuner you have. Then upgrade it (if need be), and run a USB cable to the cabin. That way you can hook up a computer and see what's going on, as well as update the software and firmware.

JB4 G5 ISO + backend flash =

It's honestly nuts. I've never had a car that responds so well to tuning alone. Follow this link, read it, read it again, browse around, and ask some questions.

[awns729]

Originally Posted by suspenceful

BMS had added a lot of options, features, and fail-safes. They have also improved the maps quite a bit. I hear that JB3 to JB4 is night and day, and that JB4 to JB4 G5 ISO is another huge leap forward. N54Tech is the forum you want to be on for JB4... tons of information over there.

If I were you, I'd follow the installation instructions to find which tuner you have. Then upgrade it (if need be), and run a USB cable to the cabin. That way you can hook up a computer and see what's going on, as well as update the software and firmware.

JB4 G5 ISO + backend flash =

It's honestly nuts. I've never had a car that responds so well to tuning alone. Follow this link, read it, read it again, browse around, and ask some questions.

Thanks. I found that link a while back, but I'll keep checking out N54Tech and browse. I'm still undecided between the JB and Cobb, and currently have no E85 or Meth plans for the car, so if anyone can tell me why I should prefer the JB (besides it already being installed), I'd be happy to hear opinions (without this thread turning into a huge debate ). Overall, it's seeming for my purposes right now, the cobb is the easier solution requiring much less research, so I'm just curious if there's something I'm not thinking of.

[darkrom]

JB4 auto tunes. Cobb is a set tune without the extra safety measures added by the JB4. My last car had a cobb AP and I had to have a separate winter/summer tune and every time I got a new mod I was paying for a protune. No thanks. The JB4 does that all automatically while adding safety features to the car. It also makes meth a walk in the park.

I've had both (but no cobb on this car just my evo) and I love the JB4 infinitely more. It does more, its cheaper, its safer IMO. Oh and our cars do have a flash counter. The JB4 doesn't increase that at all, cobb does every time you flash a new tune. You CAN make a JB4 undetectable by clearing certain parameters and then uninstalling it. You can't do that with cobb, they can look and see how many times its been flashed.

The cobbs big advantage is that a 5 year old could plug it in and flash a tune. Thats it IMO. The install of the JB4 is easy if you follow the youtube guides. I had my JB4 waiting before I took possession of my car...

[7smurfs]

The built in safety features have been the biggest plus for me with jb4, then comes the support available via n54tech forums.

Everyone knows how common issues are with our cars with regards to AFR, misfires, timings etc.

If you are having any issues, simply log via the usb cable and then post it up for terry and co to diagnose and fix.

[awns729]

Its a G4 board. trying to figure out if the latest firmware will work or if i need firmware specific to the G4