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Failed my safety inspection for headlights. Replaced and it's still not working, so was told by two different (BMW and independent small shop) that it was due to a wire harness issue. Need to do this myself since I was quoted 2k for labor alone! Need help please. Is it possible for me to fix myself? Where would I Buy that part? Is the wire harness expensive, too? First time poster, so apologies if this is common knowledge. It sounds like a complicated issue because of the wires. TIA.
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Something doesn't sound right....Originally Posted by needhelpplease
Unless something really weird happened, I doubt that your vehicle wiring harness is the problem. You could replace the entire harness if necessary, but it will take several full days. A complete vehicle wiring harness off a used car will run $450 or so. I'm thinking your problem is something else. Is it one headlight or both? What have you replaced so far? Is there visible damge to your headlight harness?
You could repair your wiring, or replace a portion of the wiring harness.
If your car detects that a bulb is out or wires are shorted, it will shut off power on that circuit until you reset the FRM with special software. The wires inside the headlight are also known for shedding their insulation. You might want to investigate that possibilitiy.
Wiring isn't too bad. Replacing the harness is mostly a matter of disassembling the entire car to run the wiring. I would much rather check things out with a digital multimeter and repair any damage that I find. Wiring and connectors can be repaired on a much smaller scale without replacing the entire harness.
Last edited by RocketSurgeon; 09-18-2017 at 04:59 PM.
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At first, I thought it was just the bulb, so I did replace it. However, it's still not working--it's only one headlight. It seemed strange to me, too, that only one headlight would be affected. What do you think it could be if it's not a harness issue? I'm really not car-savvy at all and trying my best to keep this car that's served me so well. I also don't want to shell out 2k for it to NOT be the issue. Please advise!!
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One of your low-beams isn't working? Do you have Xenon headlights?
I recently had a similar problem with one of my bi-xenon solenoids. First you want to determine whether the problem is with the car or the headlight. Perhaps the most definitive way to do this is to remove the headlights and plug them in on the opposite side. You kind of have to prop the light in the engine bay, but it will plug in on the opposite side. If the problem follows the headlight, check the ballast and internal wiring. Also watch for loose connections inside the headlight. If the problem does not follow the headlight, check for anything sketchy at the headlight harness, or check for FRM codes. Removing the headlights is a pain since the bumper needs to come off, but it will allow you to check the headlights and ballasts at the same time.
Alternately you could check wiring with a digital multimeter, and use a k+dcan cable to check for codes. I can look up wiring diagrams if you want to check for power at the headlight connector.
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Yes and yes to both questions. That is very nice if you can send me those. I am really confused about what you're saying though. Is there a way for you to dumb this down even further to me...I don't know if I can take off a bumper? That sounds really complicated. I have never in my life worked on a car. Ack.
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Yes and yes to both questions. That is very nice if you can send me those. I am really confused about what you're saying though. Is there a way for you to dumb this down even further to me...I don't know if I can take off a bumper? That sounds really complicated. I have never in my life worked on a car. Ack.
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UPDATED: Disregard my other post. Okay, so I took a look and the lowlights (I assume this means the ones that are on during the daytime) both work fine. It's when it switches to the whitelights that come on when it's dark out that the right one doesn't work. So...what do you make of that info?
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