2011 335is iPod will not connect, non-iDrive

I just picked up a new 335is with the iPod/USB option. BMW no longer provides a cable so I am using the white Apple cable, as instructed by my sales person. The car does not seem to recognize the iPod.

The car just has usb as an option; if I click on it I get a message "connect usb". If I connect the iPod and try again no change.

The iPod says "do not disconnect" any time it is connected to the car. I have left it for over 30 minutes as I drove around and didn't have any change.

Any suggestions or experiences?

Thanks,
Mark

Are you using the USB in the arm rest or the glovebox?

My car only seems to have the USB connection in the arm rest. The sales person went to show me the connection in the glove box and could not find it.

It should be there. It's well hidden. Thing is, the glovebox USB is the only port you can install music from. The armrest USB should however be able to read your music. I have connected both my iPod AND iPhone to the center port and it recognizes them album art and all. Is your iPod old like 1st gen? Can you copy the music to a thumb drive? That may work if all else fails.

I just tore into the glove box and there is no USB connection there. If I remove the back of the glove box to access the fuses I still see no USB connection.

There is a square hole in the sheet metal to the left of the glove box compartment, above the holder for the flashlight that the no longer provide. Is that hole where the USB connector is supposed to be? They may have forgotten to install it in my car?

My iPod is old (the black and red U2 commerative edition) but I would hope that it would still work.

Thanks for your help. Clearly I need to go back to the dealer next week to get to the bottom of this.

Yeah that's where it's supposed to be. Not sure why you don't have it OR why the one you do have isn't working right. Sorry I couldn't pinpoint the problem, but let me know what you find out from the dealer.

I would say the answer as to why there isn't any connector in the glove box is that it's non-iDrive.

Good point. I just assumed.

The situation has been resolved. Although new iPhones, and perhaps new iPods connect using the white Apple USB cable my old iPod requires the BMW "Y" cable to be recognized by the car.

Note, my car is a non-iDrive, non-nav vehicle with the business CD radio. The situation may well be different for other vehicles.

Botttom line is, if you get a new non-iDrive BMW with the iPod option and do not receive a "Y" cable you should probably insist on getting one.

Mark

What is the production date on your car?

I am not sure of the exact date. The car says "4/11". It was ordered on March 14, 2011 and I took delivery on June 9, 2011. It shipped from Germany on May 7 aboard the Don Juan.

Good to know. At least there is light at the end of the tunnel. I've always found the dealer to be somewhat lacking when it comes to automotive av knowledge and thus less up front about these sort of nuances.