ChrisMelnyk
06-06-2024, 05:24 PM
I did a bunch of searching beforehand, and never saw this mentioned explicitly in the e39 forums.
So I'm putting this out there for anyone that has a similar issue, because apparently some people replace the shifter unit (which is a lot of work) when it's only a wire broken.
Also a used unit may be close to breaking too.
These were my symptoms:
- No DS showing on cluster, and not able to go through the gears manually
- The indicator lights on the bezel near the shifter did not light up
Theoretically, you may even lose drive, reverse etc.... depending on what wires are damaged.
Problem:
Over time, a wire moves back and forth too much and breaks:
(the green one right near the harness tape)
725797
Solution:
Repair the wire and reroute all the wires, so that they can't break again.
Also, inspect all other wires. I had 4 others with broken insulation, but no broken wires.
I de-pinned each wire from that connector so that I could slip over heat shrink tubing to protect them.
Apparently this is really common on the e90, e91, and e92 platforms, so here is a video that explains it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M10vT4gwy_4
It's effectively the same for the e39.
Chris
So I'm putting this out there for anyone that has a similar issue, because apparently some people replace the shifter unit (which is a lot of work) when it's only a wire broken.
Also a used unit may be close to breaking too.
These were my symptoms:
- No DS showing on cluster, and not able to go through the gears manually
- The indicator lights on the bezel near the shifter did not light up
Theoretically, you may even lose drive, reverse etc.... depending on what wires are damaged.
Problem:
Over time, a wire moves back and forth too much and breaks:
(the green one right near the harness tape)
725797
Solution:
Repair the wire and reroute all the wires, so that they can't break again.
Also, inspect all other wires. I had 4 others with broken insulation, but no broken wires.
I de-pinned each wire from that connector so that I could slip over heat shrink tubing to protect them.
Apparently this is really common on the e90, e91, and e92 platforms, so here is a video that explains it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M10vT4gwy_4
It's effectively the same for the e39.
Chris