Member
So when I turn my lights on (position 1 or 2) after a while there's this clicking sound, almost like a wire shorting out. I've traced the root to the driver side indicator light. In the complete dark, the indicator light on the dash will start to glow (subtlety) and when it gets brighter you start to hear the "shorting" sound. To correct this, you have to through the driver side blinker on briefly. This resets the light back to black and the sound stops. Then a few minutes later and the driver side indicator will start to glow again.
I have an idea of why all of a sudden this problem started (the windsheild cowl is older and cracking and recently a ~1 inch piece came off). This is on the driver side and I suspect water might have gotten into the dash wiring.
What do you suggest I do to stop the shorting out after I replace my cowl?
Member
It's definitely not related to your cowl falling apart, lol, that was a good one. It's bmw's shitty wiring (usually on the older e36's) so it's a bit surprising on your car. Well your just going to have to find the shorting wire. I wonder if the problem is in the selector stalk. You can pull away the lining in the trunk, on the left side along the trunk opening area to expose the wiring harnesses over there, closely examine all of it in the trunk. Sometimes the problem goes through the wire loom that is on the trunk lid itself, on the left side.
Attn. NEWBIES: Use the search feature, 98% has already been discussed.
Click the search button, select "search single content type", select the "e36 sub forum" specifically, try the "search titles" then try the "search entire posts".
Member
I think because of vibrations your blinker is being activated/deactivated so short and fast after each other that it looks like this. Check the stalk connection, if that looks fine then it's vibrations creating a short inside the dash
Member
That's not likely ultimatetester.
Maybe there's a bad capacitor somewhere, gotta look at the diagrams.
Attn. NEWBIES: Use the search feature, 98% has already been discussed.
Click the search button, select "search single content type", select the "e36 sub forum" specifically, try the "search titles" then try the "search entire posts".
Member
Actually, it may be a bad wire in the harness in the trunk. Take the carpet lining off the left side, examine all the wire bundles on the left side next and at the tail light. Then also examine the wires going into the trunk lid itself.
Attn. NEWBIES: Use the search feature, 98% has already been discussed.
Click the search button, select "search single content type", select the "e36 sub forum" specifically, try the "search titles" then try the "search entire posts".
Member
Apologies: but I've finally gotten a chance to get back to this thread. So I went into my trunk to check the wiring harness that goes into the trunk lid and what I noticed is that my amplifier, which is mounted on the back wall of the trunk had come off the wood support and was laying upside down (a position that the manufacture recommends NOT to be in). I re attached it correctly then got to work on the harness. The wires were all in good shape except the white one which did have a split in the plastic but was the only one exposed. I black taped it up and now no more short in the dash.
My conclusion: I don't believe it was the exposed white wire and suspect that it might be the upside down amp. The split in the insulating plastic wasn't eroded because of age, and like I said the other rubber coatings were in very good shape. But again, those were the 2 things I addressed and now all is good.
My Drip Loops Are Better
An amp won't know that it's upside down unless for some unbeknownst reason BMW had the amps built with tilt/level sensors. I'm sure they didn't as that would be a waste of money. What would the reasoning for that be? "We want you to hear your imminent death when you're mid-roll"Originally Posted by ryanmkincaid
Member
It was an after market amp connected to a sub in the trunk. It's the only conclusion I can make. The dash was fine all this time and all of a sudden the short in the dash started. The only thing that changed was the amp coming off the mount and landing upside down. And the instructions for the amp said clearly not to mount it upside down. I mount the amp back into it's original position and the short in the dash has stopped.An amp won't know that it's upside down unless for some unbeknownst reason BMW had the amps built with tilt/level sensors. I'm sure they didn't as that would be a waste of money. What would the reasoning for that be? "We want you to hear your imminent death when you're mid-roll"
I also checked the wiring harness and there was no frayed wires. I could be wrong. Maybe pulling the insulation may have adjusted the issue. I did both of these.
Last edited by ryanmkincaid; 08-16-2017 at 11:42 AM.
My Drip Loops Are Better
I'm more inclined to believe it had something to do with the wires. The reason they say not to mount an amp upside down is because of heat dissipation.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks