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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Specific discussion about the E89 2009 Z4 (sDrive35is, sDrive35i, sDrive30i, sDrive23i)
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pupeno
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by pupeno » Sat May 27, 2017 9:43 am

I want to mount this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Magnetic-Wirel ... %2Bqi&th=1

on the center air vent of my E89 Z4 and route the cables through the vents so there are no exposed cables. How should I go about it? Are there any service manuals I could read to understand how to assemble and disassemble the dashboard?

Thank you. :D

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cj10jeeper
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by cj10jeeper » Sat May 27, 2017 10:11 am

You need a copy if the BMW TIS which will give full details of the components in the dash.

Plenty of guides in here about pulling the side or centre vents out
In any event I'm not sure how you will make this work as the air ducting is a sealed system so you'd have to drill through the wall of it at some point and seal the USB in with a large grommet.
I'd be looking for an alternative mount point and cable access below the heater controls
Jaguar F-Type 3.0 Supercharged V6 S, Stratus Grey, LSD, Active Exhaust, CF wheels, Performance brakes, Sports seats and mods ongoing
Gone but not forgotten Z4 3.0i SE Roadster ///M front, Red ///M leather seats, Aero sills

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Nictrix
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by Nictrix » Sat May 27, 2017 2:51 pm

What are you going to use it for?
There are phone mounts that fit into the CD slot that would mean there is no need to strip anything apart.
You would still have a wire to connect it but it would be a lot shorter and could be hidden easier.
It would be further down but depending on what you need it for it might be better.
E89 2014 35i M Sport Black with Black leather :)

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sunnydays
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by sunnydays » Fri Jun 02, 2017 8:27 pm

pupeno wrote: Sat May 27, 2017 9:43 am I want to mount this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Magnetic-Wirel ... %2Bqi&th=1

on the center air vent of my E89 Z4 and route the cables through the vents so there are no exposed cables. How should I go about it? Are there any service manuals I could read to understand how to assemble and disassemble the dashboard?

Thank you. :D
Hi mate, before you embark on this please check the quality of the mount. I had something very similar, they came unstuck very fast! Why not use a CD Slot mount? Looks far cleaner too,

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pupeno
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by pupeno » Tue Oct 03, 2017 12:28 am

The reason why I don't want a CD mount is that the CD is very low and I'm using my phone for navigation, so, I want it as high as possible.

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Wrs
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Routing a USB cable from the center air vents

Post by Wrs » Tue Oct 03, 2017 1:22 pm

Route from USB port in armrest to the back, tucked in along (left) side trim, up above your left leg / steering wheel column. That's what I did, it took about 20 minutes and is not visible.

I use a mount similar to your posted link :thumbsup:
Gone - Black Sapphire Z4 E89 35is
Gone - Midnight Blue Z4 E85 3.0si

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