E34 Parking Light Problem. HELPPP!!!!!!!!!! - BMW Forum

ProphetE34 · 05-14-2009, 05:00 PM

Okay, i have a 91 525i that i just bought 2 weeks ago. well, i have an issue with fuse #5, and I have searched just about every wire there and STILL cannot find where this short is coming from.

i had looked under the trunk, taped up 6 bare wires, but i still have no solution to this problem.

just to give you guys a general idea of what happened, i bought the car, and after work, changed the Rear Passenger signal light, then reinspected ALL Lights. only light that didnt work was the Passenger Foglight. all others worked fine. then as i was driving, the instrument cluster lights shut off, and i saw smoke comin from the vents. i quickly pulled over to realize fuse#5 melted, and fuse 4 blew as well. the next day, i changed ALL the parking light bulbs, since they all ended up blowing. fuse 4 no longer blows, but #5 blows as soon as i turn the parking lights on.

im running out of options, the only thing i can think of to do is change the cluster bulbs, if that doesnt work, what left is there to check????

witeshark · 05-14-2009, 05:39 PM

I think you're looking for a cut wire or a section with missing insulation.

ProphetE34 · 05-14-2009, 06:05 PM

well the radio fuse does the same, and i do not have the passenger side seat controls hooked up. im going to throw those back together and see the results if any.

sounds like a plan? or should i look elsewhere?

witeshark · 05-14-2009, 06:36 PM

You may need to look elsewhere as well; although those current issues may include a bad ground which could be involved.

ProphetE34 · 05-16-2009, 10:20 AM

i noticed my frnt passenger seat controls dont work anymore, along with the rear view mirror adjustments, and the little gps thing nxt to the radio. i havent had a chance to tear out my radio yet, but i will today, hopefully.

ProphetE34 · 05-19-2009, 04:31 PM

update-.................. nothing yet. im going to pull the fuse panel out and look for bare wire underneath, since fuses have melted and i have just about nowhere else to look before i have someone else check it out.

Cam_uno · 05-25-2009, 03:17 PM

You might want to look at the sockets themselves. Where the wires go into the sockets. Thats where I would start! Then work your way all the way back. OH! Don't just tape the bad spots either. Your asking for it! Cut em out and splice in fresh wire of the same gauge, solder and shrink tube!

Have FUN!

ProphetE34 · 05-26-2009, 08:08 PM

since the fuse was hot enough to melt, would the wires leading to the block also get hot enough to melt as well and cause multiple shorts???

witeshark · 05-26-2009, 08:15 PM

Yeah I'd say there are some shorts to find and fix.

ProphetE34 · 05-26-2009, 08:21 PM

sounds logical to me. im going to try that and see what i end up with.

another questions. interior bulbs, the 2 ciggarette lighter bulbs blew as well, would blown bulbs even be a cause of a short?

it seemed so with fuse #4, but if thats the case, i would have to change the cluster bulbs as well, am i right or wrong???

witeshark · 05-26-2009, 08:31 PM

The bulb burning out would not by itself cause a short; they are more likely among the results of the problem. A circuit issue may have sent a surge through the bulbs that then burned them out.

ProphetE34 · 05-26-2009, 08:52 PM

im looking at the bentley now, and i see that the power mirrors are on that same fuse. im going to check that out as well.

the bulbs only seemed so cause it solved my fuse 4 issue. at first when i tried swapping fuse 5, it was blowing on contact. now it only blows when i turn on the lights.

LOL a friend of mine that i went to lincoln tech with in PA suggested i throw a larger sized fuse in there, HAHAHAHA Yeah RIGHT.....

johnnyBgood · 05-26-2009, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by witeshark

The bulb burning out would not by itself cause a short; they are more likely among the results of the problem. A circuit issue may have sent a surge through the bulbs that then burned them out.

He should check the bulb socket itself on the # 5 fuse.......a friend of mine had just bought a 96' 328i.....he went to change the third brake light and he pushed the new bulb back into the socket the #46 fuse blew.....not only did he loose his brake lights when he called me, he lost his cluster fuctions & his car would not start, because the drive away protection was on fuse # 46 also...........bottom line when I checked it......the bulb socket contacts were bent on top of each other.....what happen was, when he pushed the bulb into the socket, the ground contact pushed down on top of the hot contact causing an instant short.....I just bent it back in place & it is all fine now.....

johnny,

ProphetE34 · 05-26-2009, 09:10 PM

well, i did change the rear passenger signal light before they blew. but thats not even on the same circuit. im checking that anyway. everything thats done on one side is done on the other.

fuse 5 has multiple functions by the way, such as head, fog, parking, tail, trunk, underhood, license lights, lkm, mirrors, and zke.

of those, the parking lights, "taillights", license plate lights, and mirror controls do not work.

ProphetE34 · 05-26-2009, 09:18 PM

WAIT!!!!! the seat controls are on #18, and the driver side no longer works as well. why i say 18? the interior lights and seat controls are linked to fuse 18.

hmmmm, if i cut the wires from the module, could that be a solution???