2013 M5 integrated supply module location

[gbrown8439]

I suspect there is a problem with the ISM on my car and need to test it except I can't find it. I've spent more time than I care to admit on google and a fair amount of time in this forum but none of the suggested locations have been correct.
Driver side shock tower, passenger side cowl, under the blower motor cover, passenger side foot well by the fuse box, none of these locations have been accurate.

Does anyone here know where it's located? I'm about to lose my mind tearing everything apart trying to find it.

I would appreciate any help you guys can offer.

Thanks
Greg

[M_Bimmer]

See figure below.

[gbrown8439]

[ATTACH]undefined[/ATTACH]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

See figure below.

Unless I'm not understanding the pictures you posted, my car does not look like that. The first picture I've posted shows what's under the cover in the area referenced in your picture. The second picture shows what's under the blower motor cover. I can't find anything in this area that looks like the ISM pictured.

Is there any chance my car doesn't have an ISM? Could they have installed the fuses and relays in my picture to replace the ISM?

[M_Bimmer]

I'm going to assume you have a manual gearbox, and if so, your relay box (also has fuses), is your version of the ISM.

My illustration and P/N in my previous post is an ISM for an automatic gearbox.

Below is the illustration for the ISM Relays for a manual gearbox followed by the illustration for the ISM Fuses for a manual gearbox.

[M_Bimmer]

gbrown8439, now that we've established that you have a manual gearbox, your ISM is much easier to "troubleshoot" as it consists mainly of relays, which should make an ISM fix much easier and cheaper.....assuming it's a relay, only 1, but it could still be a blown fuse.

If you share which "load" you are having an issue with, I can provide the relay/fuse that controls that load......

[gbrown8439]

Thank you so much!

That makes a lot of sense except my car is a DCT.

When I started researching the codes listed in the attachment the recommendations I found were to check the ISM. Hopefully you agree.

Let me know what you think.

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

gbrown8439, now that we've established that you have a manual gearbox, your ISM is much easier to "troubleshoot" as it consists mainly of relays, which should make an ISM fix much easier and cheaper.....assuming it's a relay, only 1, but it could still be a blown fuse.

If you share which "load" you are having an issue with, I can provide the relay/fuse that controls that load......

Let me know if you need more information from me. I'm new to BMW's and have a lot to learn about diagnosing issues like this. I appreciate your help.

[M_Bimmer]

Originally Posted by gbrown8439

Let me know if you need more information from me. I'm new to BMW's and have a lot to learn about diagnosing issues like this. I appreciate your help.

I am not a ProTool expert....with BMW, I only use ISTA, but there are two fault codes that I'd be looking at immediately....

1. IBS needs to be checked out...it's hanging off of your negative terminal of the 12VDC AGM Battery
   
2. Your Terminal 15 voltages should be measured at the fuses on your ISM and should return battery voltage (12VDC - 13VDC)

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

I am not a ProTool expert....with BMW, I only use ISTA, but there are two fault codes that I'd be looking at immediately....

1. IBS needs to be checked out...it's hanging off of your negative terminal of the 12VDC AGM Battery
   
2. Your Terminal 15 voltages should be measured at the fuses on your ISM and should return battery voltage (12VDC - 13VDC)

I found a couple of things. First was there was a small plug that needed connected to the IBS. That is now plugged in.

Fuse numbers F8682 and F8683 from the drawing you provided earlier are only showing 2.85V.

Any idea what I should check related to those fuses?

Thanks for your help.

[M_Bimmer]

gbrown8439, you might be getting closer to your issue.

Both F8682 and F8283 fuses in your IBS share a common wiring node (X106*1V) and a Fuse, 30A, F42 located in your JBE (Z1), which is then activated by the Terminal 15N voltage bus relay in your JBE. Terminal 15N voltage bus comes from your battery via 250A fuse mounted on top of your battery (big red panel on top of your battery), per the diagram below.

I would do the following:

1. Verify that F504 is connected correctly at your battery (see last image)
2. Verify the battery voltage is making it to your front JBE at Z1*11B
3. Verify the battery voltage is making it to your front JBE at Z1*2B (with ignition on)

If you are getting battery voltage at Item 1 above but NOT Item 2 above, then you have a corroded wire running from your battery the JBE. This wire exits the trunk, around the rear axle area, and runs outside, underneath the car, then passes back into the cabin in and around the front of the vehicle. Typically this wire corrodes in the rear axle area.

If you getting battery voltage at Item 2 above but NOT Item 3 above, then your JBE is the issue, and the relay is most like the culprit, but it could be a corroded pin too...I'm not sure if the relay is serviceable....but I could check if you need help (I'll pull my knee panel and take a photo)

If you are getting battery voltage at Item 3 above, then there is good chance that the massive wire node X106*1V is badly corroded, which is an easy fix.

I think the images below provide locations of all references I've made in this response, and if not, reach back out.

Post what you find. You are almost there.

Cheers

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

gbrown8439, you might be getting closer to your issue.

Both F8682 and F8283 fuses in your IBS share a common wiring node (X106*1V) and a Fuse, 30A, F42 located in your JBE (Z1), which is then activated by the Terminal 15N voltage bus relay in your JBE. Terminal 15N voltage bus comes from your battery via 250A fuse mounted on top of your battery (big red panel on top of your battery), per the diagram below.

I would do the following:

1. Verify that F504 is connected correctly at your battery (see last image)
2. Verify the battery voltage is making it to your front JBE at Z1*11B
3. Verify the battery voltage is making it to your front JBE at Z1*2B (with ignition on)

If you are getting battery voltage at Item 1 above but NOT Item 2 above, then you have a corroded wire running from your battery the JBE. This wire exits the trunk, around the rear axle area, and runs outside, underneath the car, then passes back into the cabin in and around the front of the vehicle. Typically this wire corrodes in the rear axle area.

If you getting battery voltage at Item 2 above but NOT Item 3 above, then your JBE is the issue, and the relay is most like the culprit, but it could be a corroded pin too...I'm not sure if the relay is serviceable....but I could check if you need help (I'll pull my knee panel and take a photo)

If you are getting battery voltage at Item 3 above, then there is good chance that the massive wire node X106*1V is badly corroded, which is an easy fix.

I think the images below provide locations of all references I've made in this response, and if not, reach back out.

Post what you find. You are almost there.

Cheers

Everything checks good at the battery but I'm confused on what I'm checking for #2 and #3 on your list. I'm attaching a picture of what I'm seeing under the dash. I've removed the plugs from what I think is the JBE and every looks clean but I'm unclear on where I need to take voltage readings.

Do I need to remove the fuse panel? It appears to only have one screw holding it at the bottom but I can't get the top to release.

Thanks

[M_Bimmer]

Let me grab a picture.....but in the mean time, I'd take a look at the wire node X106*1V...which is a lot easier to access, circled in yellow in the photo snippet below (it's from your original photo)

Find the red wire from the fuse that is only providing 2.85 VDC and trace it back to the wire node X106*1V....which may require you to move the protective sheath.....if your wire node has no corrosion, and not battery voltage (ignition must be on), then you has an issue most likely in and around the JBE.

The connector on the Fuse Panel, that contains the JBE, Z1*11B is actually located to the back side of the unit you have pictured in your last post......

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

Let me grab a picture.....but in the mean time, I'd take a look at the wire node X106*1V...which is a lot easier to access, circled in yellow in the photo snippet below (it's from your original photo)

Find the red wire from the fuse that is only providing 2.85 VDC and trace it back to the wire node X106*1V....which may require you to move the protective sheath.....if your wire node has no corrosion, and not battery voltage (ignition must be on), then you has an issue most likely in and around the JBE.

The connector on the Fuse Panel, that contains the JBE, Z1*11B is actually located to the back side of the unit you have pictured in your last post......

If I understand your diagrams Z1*11B is the big red cable in the second picture with the yellow back probe sticking out of it. It's reading battery voltage.

In your diagram Z1*2B appears to be the forth spot down on the connector in the third picture but there is no wire there. The other wires there that showed voltage were reading battery voltage.

F504 is connected and showing battery voltage.

X106*1V looks good and leads to the connector in the first picture with the yellow back probe in it. That green wire that disappears into the wiring harness is reading 2.8V.

Any suggestions on where to look next?

Thanks

[M_Bimmer]

A quick response is that I think there is a slight mix-up on wire colors, and location, BUT...

The wire between the output of the relay on the JBE to the fuse is GREEN per the schematic I provided AND the same color of the wire you are receiving less than 3VDC you are measuring on the ISM.

So....I'm going to say you need to check the other end of the GREEN wire output from the relay at the JBE, as it exits the JBE fuse box at Connector Z1*2B, PIN 7 (I see the GREEN wire in your last posted picture with the white connector, red locking tab, and should be the green wire at the last spot on the connector)....if you measure <3VDC with ignition on, at the output from the JBE Z1*2B Pin 7, then I'm calling the relay bad.

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

A quick response is that I think there is a slight mix-up on wire colors, and location, BUT...

The wire between the output of the relay on the JBE to the fuse is GREEN per the schematic I provided AND the same color of the wire you are receiving less than 3VDC you are measuring on the ISM.

So....I'm going to say you need to check the other end of the GREEN wire output from the relay at the JBE, as it exits the JBE fuse box at Connector Z1*2B, PIN 7 (I see the GREEN wire in your last posted picture with the white connector, red locking tab, and should be the green wire at the last spot on the connector)....if you measure <3VDC with ignition on, at the output from the JBE Z1*2B Pin 7, then I'm calling the relay bad.

Well, I now have battery voltage everywhere that had 3V previously and I don't really know how or why. Here's what I did:

1: Remove the 3 connectors on the right front of the JBE and the connector that plugs into the center front of the fuse box so I can lay it down to access the back side.

2:Insert back probe into the connector at the green wire. Reassemble everything from step one then turn ignition on and check voltage. Now showing battery voltage at green wire and at both fuses that previously showed 3V.

3:After I said WTF, I removed everything from step one again then removed the connector that contains the green wire from the back of the fuse panel. I then unplugged the other connector with the green wire and checked ohms between the two connectors. The wire shows .5 of an ohm and pushing, pulling, and wiggling that wire around does not change the reading. This leads me to believe there isn't a problem with the wire itself.

4: Reassemble everything and check voltage, still showing battery voltage. Push and pull on the fuse panel and voltage starts jumping around between 3 and 12 volts.

5: Remove connectors again to access rear of fuse panel and start removing and inspecting connectors. I didn't remove every single connector, I only checked connectors with larger wires but didn't find anything.

6: Put everything back together again and checked voltage. Still showing 12v and now moving the fuse box around only causes the voltage to fluctuate a couple of tenths of a volt which I think could be just from my back probe moving around.

7: Cleared the short circuit code and it did not return.

At this point I decided to stop and ask for your opinion of what I should check or do next. I feel there has to be a bad wire/connection on the back side of the fuse panel but I don't know which one. I assume it's one of the connections I took apart since my inspections seems to make the problem go away.
One connector that I couldn't get apart because I can't figure out how to release it was Z1*11B. How do you remove that connector?

Hopefully I didn't make this too confusing. Thanks for your help.

[M_Bimmer]

Originally Posted by gbrown8439

...One connector that I couldn't get apart because I can't figure out how to release it was Z1*11B. How do you remove that connector?

The one in the photo below? Hopefully I have your JBE orientation correct...if yes, then it's pull up on the red tab and the connector should pull out. The red tab may come out all the way, no problem, it should go back in and lock without issue...as far as the connector is concerned, once you pull up on the red locking tab, it may take a bit of effort to pull out the connector.

[KurtsM5]

Originally Posted by gbrown8439

Well, I now have battery voltage everywhere that had 3V previously and I don't really know how or why. Here's what I did:

1: Remove the 3 connectors on the right front of the JBE and the connector that plugs into the center front of the fuse box so I can lay it down to access the back side.

2:Insert back probe into the connector at the green wire. Reassemble everything from step one then turn ignition on and check voltage. Now showing battery voltage at green wire and at both fuses that previously showed 3V.

3:After I said WTF, I removed everything from step one again then removed the connector that contains the green wire from the back of the fuse panel. I then unplugged the other connector with the green wire and checked ohms between the two connectors. The wire shows .5 of an ohm and pushing, pulling, and wiggling that wire around does not change the reading. This leads me to believe there isn't a problem with the wire itself.

4: Reassemble everything and check voltage, still showing battery voltage. Push and pull on the fuse panel and voltage starts jumping around between 3 and 12 volts.

5: Remove connectors again to access rear of fuse panel and start removing and inspecting connectors. I didn't remove every single connector, I only checked connectors with larger wires but didn't find anything.

6: Put everything back together again and checked voltage. Still showing 12v and now moving the fuse box around only causes the voltage to fluctuate a couple of tenths of a volt which I think could be just from my back probe moving around.

7: Cleared the short circuit code and it did not return.

At this point I decided to stop and ask for your opinion of what I should check or do next. I feel there has to be a bad wire/connection on the back side of the fuse panel but I don't know which one. I assume it's one of the connections I took apart since my inspections seems to make the problem go away.
One connector that I couldn't get apart because I can't figure out how to release it was Z1*11B. How do you remove that connector?

Hopefully I didn't make this too confusing. Thanks for your help.

I've been an electronics tech/engineer for over 40 years. If I were you I'd get a can of CRC electronics cleaner and take all the connectors loose and spray the hell out of em. Put it back together and jiggle the crap out of the fuse block again.

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by M_Bimmer

The one in the photo below? Hopefully I have your JBE orientation correct...if yes, then it's pull up on the red tab and the connector should pull out. The red tab may come out all the way, no problem, it should go back in and lock without issue...as far as the connector is concerned, once you pull up on the red locking tab, it may take a bit of effort to pull out the connector.

I figured those out, I'm having trouble with what I'm assuming is the main power inlet. It's the big red wire that has the yellow probe sticking out of it in this picture.

[gbrown8439]

Originally Posted by KurtsM5

I've been an electronics tech/engineer for over 40 years. If I were you I'd get a can of CRC electronics cleaner and take all the connectors loose and spray the hell out of em. Put it back together and jiggle the crap out of the fuse block again.

Excellent suggestion. I have some on the shelf so that will be this evenings project.

Thanks

[gbrown8439]

I removed the entire module, cleaned all connections along with replacing some crusty looking fuses and the problem appears to be fixed.

Thank you for all of the help and suggestions.

[KurtsM5]

Yay!