My E39 Pixel Repair

[rjheard]

Don't know about the ribbon, but the sound could be that OAT<37 deg. Not knowing where your located, its just a guess.

Get another ribbon, clean everything up, and try again. You have already done all the hard work.

L

Probably correct about the sound being the exterior temp. I'll give it another shot. Was your ribbon pre-cut? I didn't notice I needed to cutout for the LCD cover until I had taped the ribbon to the circuit board. On the brighter side I could remove the rear connectors in the dark now

[dcroghan]

Ok, just got my ribbon today (after waiting 3.5 weeks) and I am going to attempt this tonight. I'll post results later, hopefully.

[Black540Msport]

Good Luck! I just got another one yesterday from a different supplier so I wanna see if that one is any good. This one came From China, a very slow boat... from China.

[dcroghan]

ALL DONE! Took me about 3 hours taking my sweet time. The absolute hardest and scariest part is trying to separate the lcd housing from the cicuit board. You really need to use alot of force to do it and it is VERY nerve racking as those pins are really in there good.

I found taking the back off of the cluster fairly easy with the zip tie method. Cleaning was easy. Next hardest part was getting all of the contact points lined up on the circuit board and then again lining them up on the lcd screen. They are transparent on the screen and VERY hard to see.

All in all though, it is fixed and every pixel works after the first try! Thank god. One bulb did fail while it was out but those are easy to replace.

i also noticed that the outside screw holes on the white lcd housing were all cracked and broken. Not good. I took my time and superglued them all back together to ensure that I could still get a snug fit again when tightening. Dont know how those could have broke. Seems to work, for now. (Fingers crossed)

For $30, you can't beat it, especially on something that you stare directly at everyday!

A very satisfying DIY. If you are considering doing it, go for it, you can do it.




This is who I got mine from and the video he sends with it is VERY helpful along with a 10 page instruction manual. Quality part and I felt better paying a tad more than the regular ebay ones to get his product.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/230711348653...84.m1439.l2649

[rjheard]

I gave it another shot last night. Before I put the housing back on it was pretty good. After it's clearly darker in some spots. Would this be caused by the ribbon or maybe a bulb problem?

[eric540i]

I have tried to fix mine and i have nothing working on the screen now. I cleaned the lcd glass off with Emory paper before i read not to do that. Is that more than likely why it is not working?
Thanks

[Luftpost]

If you look carefully at the LCD, it does have traces on it for the ribbon cable to line up with. If it was cleaned with emory paper, the traces were likely removed. Chances are there is now no path for the signal to transfer from the ribbon cable to the LCD.

Are you sure that the ribbon cable is not flipped over. Are the contacts of the cable exposed to the LCD? Only one side of the ribbon cable has the contacts exposed. If it were reversed, then there would be no contact.

Worst case scenario, you can probably find a LCD on Ebay, or junk yard. You might even try calling some of the pixel repair shops and see if they have one. "VDO Repair" out in California comes to mind. They would probably fix it for you too.

L

[Black540Msport]

rjheard, one or more of the bulbs is burned out. Mine was the same way. They're cheap, like a few bucks. Sorry I don't have a part number.

eric, you may have sanded the traces off the LCD. You can get them on eBay.

[eric540i]

Awesome thanks. I ended up going to the wrecker and picked up a used cluster. Works perfect now.

[Qsilver7]

...My car is a '97 540i, therefor slightly different. My blue and white plug remove entirely from the back of the unit, only leaving the black plug to be disconnected when splitting the cluster.

...So now my question is this:

1. is the information like ODO stored in the cluster, or in the main computer of the car?
2. Can i replace a cluster with a used one and still retain my ODO, or will i need to find another cluster and part it out?

Thanks for all the help and look forward to any added discussion

I ran across your post looking up something else...but your question was never answered (I don't think...or at least I didn't see it) in the "essence" of what it was asked.

A lot of BMW owners seem to answer your question incorrectly probably because they are not familiar with your type of instrument cluster. You have the OLD style instrument cluster that has the SEPARATE IKE module. So, in your case...you can actually remove the IKE module from your cluster...and connect it on a different cluster (but it HAS to be the same type) and you will NOT have to have any coding etc. because all of the info from your cluster is in the IKE module...and it would be carried over to a replacement cluster (of the same type)...and would match the data in your existing LCM.

The newer clusters are an all-in-one type and the IKE is incorporated into the overall design of the cluster. These clusters can't be swapped (plug-n-play style) without causing the tamper (manipulation) dot from occurring unless you can find an aftermarket way of correcting the IKE's data to match your LCM's.

So actually...if you could have found a pre 9/1997 cluster (with removable IKE module) that had working pixels...you could have swapped your IKE onto that used cluster (plug-n-play) without any issues. Again, all of you cluster's data would have been carried over to the replacement (old style) cluster in the IKE module.

[Adventman]

Thank you Qsilver7 for taking the time to provide us a detailed answer to my question! I did read somewhere else that you may be able to swap the IKE unit with another cluster, but nothing was confirmed until your post. Awesome !

[Livermoron]

OK - I tried this today but with mediocre success. The first time I plugged it in for a test there were still a number of pixels out (better than before I started though). I went back and took it apart again and decided to trim one end of the ribbon - it seemed too long when putting it on the LCD - the end that goes on the PCB. This wasn't a very smart thing to do, I know. Anyway, it is a little better but there are still pixels out. I think the ribbon I got wasn't that great and will order the one mentioned above. I also think I will shim the pink rubber strip too.

I also wanted to mention a couple of observations - getting the LCD module off the PCB on the side with the MPG gauge is really hard. And getting it back on is even harder. I ended up trimming the pins a little and using a dremel to enlarge the cutout for the gauge post. I honestly don't see how it could go back on without doing this. Second, I couldn't see the traces on the LCD at all to line them up with the ribbon. I didn't sand them or anything and since I have most of my pixels I know they are there - but I had no idea how well they were lined up. I am at that age were your ability to see things close up is getting worse and that could be contributing to it. But I was able to line the ribbon and the PCB traces no problem.

The bright side is that I have those holes drilled, the dremel trimming done, and lots of experience for when I do this all over again.

Thanks for giving me the courage to try this.

[KHC]

I ponied up and bought that T-tip silicone soldering iron. The ribbons have a heat activated glue. This thing made a HUGE difference. You can just glue the ribbon right to the board and LCD.

Clean the goop off of the LCD tracings with a Q-Tip and acetone. You can get ALL of it off this way. If you hold the LCD up to the light, you can see the tracings.

I found a straight edge exacto blade worked best for scraping the glue off of the tracings on the board.

[Beakmoney]

Adventman, the cellophane tape is realistically used only to align the cable to the circuit traces. After reassembly the flexible cable is sandwiched, under pressure, in place and the tape is doing nothing at that point. Its the middleman.

And to whomever said I should provide this service to all of you guys, I'm not opposed to that. If anyone wants me to do this, PM me and we'll work out the details. For right now, I'm dead tired and need to get some zzz's.

Thanks everyone!

i actually sent you an email a week or so ago about fixing the pixels in my cluster, it looks like i might still be too new for PMs.

[Black540Msport]

Beak, I will go look through my email. I don't remember seeing one but I get a ton of emails a day.

As for doing this for you guys, like I stated to someone rececntly in a PM, I don't know that I want to do this. I had Dareck drive all the way up from Chicago and the repair took longer than expected on his vehicle. In the end he left happy with a 100% working display.

[Beakmoney]

Beak, I will go look through my email. I don't remember seeing one but I get a ton of emails a day.

As for doing this for you guys, like I stated to someone recently in a PM, I don't know that I want to do this. I had Dareck drive all the way up from Chicago and the repair took longer than expected on his vehicle. In the end he left happy with a 100% working display.

its up to you, i will GLADLY compensate you for your time, and i'm not in a huge rush to have the cluster back as i have another vehicle, just within a week or so...not looking for a 2 hour turn around or anything like that since i'd be shipping you the cluster.

my email is rucker.pat@gmail.com, let me know.

[revxman]

Hi all, I too finally got up the nerves to go into my cluster after reading the great posts here. Good work to all!! After finally getting to my LCD i noticed i wasn't the first to be in there! Funny thing though it looks as if they just shoved some paper in between the LCD housing and PCB as there was no evidence of drilling for the torx screws. Now i'm worried the LCD housing may crack more than it already is by the small pins. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance. BTW i just bought this car and noticed that a few pixels were out, not bad but wanted to fix it. Going to bring it into work tomorrow for some advice as there are a coupe guys with better electronics background. Plus an extra set of hands would be helpful as well!!!

[Luftpost]

Funny thing though it looks as if they just shoved some paper in between the LCD housing and PCB as there was no evidence of drilling for the torx screws. Now i'm worried the LCD housing may crack more than it already is by the small pins. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance. BTW i just bought this car and noticed that a few pixels were out, not bad but wanted to fix it. Going to bring it into work tomorrow for some advice as there are a coupe guys with better electronics background. Plus an extra set of hands would be helpful as well!!!

I cannot speak for the technique that your P.O used, however, the tried and true method is to place a thin spacer (two business card thicknesses for me) underneath the long orange rubber spacer in the LCD assembly. This will exert additional pressure between the ribbon cable and PC board. This can only be done by providing access to the screws by drilling them out.

You mention something about cracks in your LCD housing.....need more info to help out there.

Welcome to the E39 world! BTW, is the M in your profile for Manual (6 spd) or ????

L

[revxman]

Hi Luftpost, sorry, M for sport. Yeah not sure how the P.O. put the paper in there as there were no holes for the torx screws, I put them in. I'm at the point of trying to pull the LCD housing off and it is on there really good! I plan on using photo copy paper, the thick stuff. I bought the ribbon from the guy in Hungary, he supplied a 10 page instruction manual and that is what he said to use. Maybe have to put 2x down? The cracks are right where the 3 pins connect the housing to the PCB, on both ends. I wish I knew how to post a picture. Looking at it now the hairline crack goes through all 3 holes where the metal pin is at. I think I will maybe put it back together and live with the missing pixels. Save up for a replacement cluster and pay the dealer to recode, ($300). Thanks for the welcome! First BMW and I like it!

[Luftpost]

Hi Luftpost, sorry, M for sport. Yeah not sure how the P.O. put the paper in there as there were no holes for the torx screws, I put them in. I'm at the point of trying to pull the LCD housing off and it is on there really good! I plan on using photo copy paper, the thick stuff. I bought the ribbon from the guy in Hungary, he supplied a 10 page instruction manual and that is what he said to use. Maybe have to put 2x down? Thanks for the welcome! First BMW and I like it!

Yep, it is attached very well, and is a bear to get off. If you have all the screws out (I forget how may now, but it is in this post at the beginning), then carefully wiggle and pry it out. I recommend using something made of plastic, I would not use a flat bladed screw driver as it may scratch some traces on the PC board. Have patience and it will come, just do it carefully. As far as the spacer, you can experiment. I installed a shim, and then replaced the LCD assembly and screws, nothing more, and then plugged it back in. It was better, but not 100%. I then went through the whole process again, and installed a 2nd shim, reassembled, and test. It worked great except now there was a bulb out which I fortunately had 6 of so I replaced them all. Each time you remove the LCD assembly, it comes off with less and less resistance. So much so that I was concerned that I was making things too loose. All in all, I probably took it apart and reassembled 4 times before I got it right. It is not difficult, only time consuming and detailed work. I can assure you that it is very satisfying once complete and working 100% again!! Every time I look at it, it puts a smile on my face.

Now, that M thingy.....you can get flamed around here calling it an M, otherwise know as an Msport (only released in 2003 here in the states). If it is a true sport, than just call it that...."Sport"

L

[revxman]

Thanks for the info, will fix the M for sure!! Need to some more research I see!! Not sure what to do at this point. I got a bad feeling it will break right around the hole areas on both ends.

[KHC]

I have the T-tip soldering iron for the ribbon cables if anybody wants it. I tried fixing the cluster without it, but not all the pixels worked. I used the iron and now it's 100% working. For as much of a PITA it is to get the cluster apart, I'd rather only do it once. The ribbon cables have a heat activated glue on them and the iron melts it to the board and LCD (which is the hardest piece to get lined up and stuck in place).

$20 shipped and it's yours.

[Black540Msport]

To everyone interested in having the pixel fix done, I think that I am going to hold off on this for now. As I think I stated, I had Dareck come up from Chicago and while we eventually got his cluster working, it took more time and effort than I had expected and I don't want to have someone ship their cluster half way across the country only have it where I can't get it working 100%. I will be doing my cluster again (long story) once I get my car back from the body shop hopefully next week. And I hope that the cable I have sitting on my desk is going to work.

I will let all of you know if anything changes with my thoughts on doing this repair for you guys.

[mifesto]

I have the T-tip soldering iron for the ribbon cables if anybody wants it. I tried fixing the cluster without it, but not all the pixels worked. I used the iron and now it's 100% working. For as much of a PITA it is to get the cluster apart, I'd rather only do it once. The ribbon cables have a heat activated glue on them and the iron melts it to the board and LCD (which is the hardest piece to get lined up and stuck in place).

$20 shipped and it's yours.

my question pertains to the MID ribbons but i was assuming the ribbons pretty much same method of contact. all DIY's i've read stated t-iron is not needed long as you tape it and align the contacts accurately and get alittle pressure applied with metal clips/silicone padding.

so my question is, do you feel heating activating the ribbons is 100% necessary??

[Luftpost]

No it is not necessary, however it helps with assembly and perhaps will provide a better contact between the cable and traces. I am not certain though that every ribbon cable has the heat activated glue. That would probably be something worth looking into when buying the ribbon.

L