How to Get Red Ambient Lighting in Your BMW Using Bimmercode

Ambient lighting in modern BMWs adds a touch of luxury and personalization to the driving experience. While BMW offers a range of ambient colors, many owners crave a more custom look. If you’re aiming for a bolder, sportier feel, switching your BMW’s ambient lighting to red can be a striking modification. This guide will show you how to change your BMW’s ambient lighting to red using Bimmercode, a popular and user-friendly coding application for BMW vehicles.

Customizing your BMW’s features through coding opens up a world of personalization, allowing you to tailor your car to your exact preferences. Changing the ambient lighting is a popular modification, and with Bimmercode, it’s something you can do yourself. Specifically, this tutorial focuses on achieving Red Ambient Lighting, replacing the factory bronze or other colors with a vibrant red hue. We will guide you through the process step-by-step, making it accessible even if you’re new to car coding.

Disclaimer: Please be aware that modifying your car’s coding carries risks. Proceed at your own risk and ensure you understand the steps before making changes. While Bimmercode is designed to be user-friendly, incorrect coding can potentially lead to issues.

Step-by-Step Guide to Achieve Red Ambient Lighting

This guide is broken down into clear steps to help you easily navigate the Bimmercode app and modify your ambient lighting settings. We’ll be focusing on changing the “bronze” color option to red, but the principles can be applied to customize other colors as well.

Part 1: Accessing the Color Library in Bimmercode

First, you’ll need to connect to your BMW using the Bimmercode app and a compatible OBD adapter. Once connected, follow these steps to access the ambient lighting color settings:

1. Start Bimmercode and Enter BDC Controller: Launch the Bimmercode app on your smartphone or tablet and select your vehicle. Enter the BDC (Body Domain Controller) module. This is a large module, so it may take a moment to load completely.

2. Enter Expert Mode: At the bottom of the app screen, tap “Expert Mode”. This will grant you access to the advanced coding parameters needed to change the ambient lighting colors.

3. Navigate to 360A LicLciColorLibrary: In Expert Mode, locate and enter the “360A LicLciColorLibrary” folder. This section contains the color definitions for your BMW’s ambient lighting system.

4. Select LIC_LCI_COLOR_LIBRARY_DATA: Inside the “360A LicLciColorLibrary” folder, click on the “LIC_LCI_COLOR_LIBRARY_DATA” folder to proceed to the next level of settings.

5. Choose GO5G06_Lichtpaket_code1: Find and select the “GO5G06_Lichtpaket_code1” packet. Ensure it has a checkmark next to it, indicating it’s the active setting. Highlight it and tap “custom values” at the bottom to access the byte section for modification. This packet contains the color codes specific to your BMW model (G05, G06, etc.).

Part 2: Modifying the Color Codes to Red

Now that you’ve accessed the color library, you can modify the color codes. We will replace the “bronze” color with “red”.

1. Understand RGB HEX Codes: The original article lists the RGB HEX codes for the stock ambient lighting colors in BMWs. These codes determine the color output. For reference, here are the stock codes and the red code we’ll be using:

   • White – 90, E0, 90
   • Bronze – D7, 6E, 14
   • Orange – 93, 1A, 01
   • Blue – 00, 20, FE
   • Green – 10, FE, 32
   • Lilac – 78, 3C, FE
   • Red – FE, 00, 00

2. Replace Bronze with Red: To change the bronze ambient lighting to red, you need to replace the bronze HEX values with the red HEX values. In the “GO5G06_Lichtpaket_code1” byte section, locate the bronze color values. According to the original article, these are found at bytes 33, 34, 35, then 38, 39, 40, and finally 43, 44, 45. Replace the bronze values (D7, 6E, 14) with the red values (FE, 00, 00) in these byte locations.

3. Byte Value Editing Tip: To edit a byte value, tap on the value you wish to change. Then, use the backspace key on the on-screen keyboard to clear the existing value and enter the new value. In this case, you’ll change ‘D7’ to ‘FE’, ‘6E’ to ’00’, and ’14’ to ’00’ for each of the bronze byte locations. This effectively replaces the bronze color definition with red. You can use this method to replace any stock color with a color of your choice, provided you know the correct RGB HEX code.

Part 3: Adjusting iDrive Menu Assignments for Red Ambient Lighting

After modifying the color definitions, you need to ensure that the iDrive menu correctly activates your new red ambient lighting.

1. Navigate to 360DLicLciColorProfiles: Return to the Expert Coding menu (BDC Module -> Expert Coding). This time, enter the “360DLicLciColorProfiles” file.

2. Select LIC_LCI_COLOR_PROFILES_DATA: Inside the “360DLicLciColorProfiles” file, select the “LIC_LCI_COLOR_PROFILES_DATA” folder.

3. Choose GO5G06_Lichtpaket_code1 for Menu Assignment: Select the “G05G06_Lichtpaket_code1” file again (it should already be selected from the previous steps). Click “custom value” to access the byte section for menu assignments. This section determines which color combination is activated when you select a specific option in the iDrive ambient lighting menu.

4. Understand Color Assignments: The color assignments in the G05/G06 models are as follows:

   • 00 – White
   • 01 – Blue
   • 02 – Bronze (now red, as you’ve changed it)
   • 03 – Orange
   • 04 – Green
   • 05 – Lilac

   Bytes in this section define the color combinations for each iDrive menu option. For example, byte 0 might control the color for the bottom of the dashboard, and byte 1 for the top of the dashboard for a specific menu option. Since you’ve changed “bronze” (02) to red, any menu option that used to display bronze will now display red ambient lighting.

5. Optional Custom Combinations (Red/Blue Example): The original article provides examples of creating custom ///M-style red/blue combinations. For instance, to create a blue over red combination, you can modify byte 3 from “00” to “01”. This might assign blue to one area of the ambient lighting and red to another for a specific menu selection. Similarly, to create a red over blue effect for the “Green/White” iDrive menu item, you might change byte 16 from “04” to “01” and byte 17 from “00” to “02”. Experiment with these values to create your desired custom color combinations, keeping in mind the color assignment codes.

Seeing Your New Red Ambient Lighting

1. Code the Changes: Once you have made all the desired modifications, go back in the Bimmercode app and select “Code” to write the changes to your car’s BDC module.

2. Enjoy Red Ambient Lighting: After coding is complete, your BMW’s ambient lighting will reflect the changes. The “bronze” menu options will now activate red ambient lighting. If you implemented custom combinations, those will also be available in the iDrive menu options you modified.

Important Notes:

• HTML HEX Code Update: The original article includes an important edit: when creating custom colors, avoid using HTML HEX codes with “FF”. Substitute “FE” for “FF” to prevent potential issues with overhead splash LEDs. For red, use FE, 00, 00 instead of FF, 00, 00.
• Experimentation: Feel free to experiment with different RGB HEX codes to achieve various custom ambient lighting colors beyond just red.
• Risk Acknowledgment: Remember to proceed with caution and at your own risk when coding your vehicle. Always double-check your settings before coding.

By following these steps, you can successfully change your BMW’s ambient lighting to red, or any other color you desire, using Bimmercode, adding a personalized and sporty touch to your car’s interior.