From digest.v7.n943 Wed Jan 14 12:22:40 1998
From: celler_at_gunster.com
Date: Wed, 14 Jan 1998 9:54:02 -0500
Subject: <E36> Factory Alarm Update - Glass Breakage Sensor

Date: 01/14/1998 09:48 am (Wednesday) From: C. Craig Eller
To: BMW Digest Submission
Subject: <E36> Factory Alarm Update - Glass Breakage Sensor

After hearing the tale of woe from one digester whose ///M3 was broken into via the window without a peep from the dealer-installed BMW alarm, I did a little investigation having just installed the system myself in a 97 ///M3 / 4 in December. Seems that the factory setting on the glass breakage sensor is MEDIUM, although the recommended setting in the manual for sedans and coupes is HIGH. Not wanting to create a public nuisance, I left mine at MEDIUM and inquired of the digest as to how to test the sensitivity. Many good suggestions were offered, from using a large washer to tap the windows to banging bottles of Rolling Rock (empty, of course) over a bucket on the front seat.

Interestingly, on the MEDIUM setting I could not get the alarm to go off no matter how hard I tried. This weekend, I reset the DIP switches to high (both in the off position) and tried again. The alarm activated with light tapping on any window with a washer. Happily, after three days in a busy parking garage, the alarm has not falsed.

I offer this information because those of you with the later version of the E36 alarm (glass breakage sensor integrated into the control unit) installed by the dealer may have your sensor set at MEDIUM as resetting the sensitivity does involve opening up the control unit which I doubt a hurried technician would take the time to do.

If tapping on the front passenger window with a good sized (1 inch diameter) washer does not set the alarm off, you may want to investigate further.

Craig Eller
BMW CCA Everglades Chapter
E36 ///M3
RM3DR1, UUC