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Thread: Left tail light blowing fuses

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    North Carolina
    Posts
    1,249
    My Cars
    03 525it/5, 1967 GTO

    Left tail light blowing fuses

    I kept getting the mysterious tail light failure error on the OBC. The brake light switch was recently replaced and trunk wiring is in good condition. When removing the light to inspect it, I noticed one of the contacts in the lamp circuit board near the brake bulb looked like it got hot and developed a small hole in the metal. I filled it with solder, filed it clean and added another ground wire from it to the chassis. It seemed to work fine at first but it’s now blowing fuse #46. Any ideas on how to get a better ground so the fuse stays happy?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2007
    Location
    Wisconsin
    Posts
    11,751
    My Cars
    98 328IS 03 325xi
    Sounds more like you have a short.

    Gave away my BMWs, driving a VW and an Audi now.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Location
    North Carolina
    Posts
    1,249
    My Cars
    03 525it/5, 1967 GTO
    Yes there’s a short to ground. I think my question was more directed at the presence of the burnt contact on the brake light circuit. If this is common or a somewhat common issue I was hoping someone knows of a helpful fix. I’ve seen it now on another used drivers side lamp so I’m assuming there’s a related cause like an undersized ground wire or water getting in and increasing resistance on the circuit.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Location
    Seatle
    Posts
    61
    My Cars
    328iS
    I had this happen to the driver's side taillight. I kept getting the bulb failure message, but the light was fine. The contact point on the brake light metal "circuit board" had a hole in it like you are describing. I bought some copper foil tap and wrapped it around the area that had the hole. I haven't had a problem since.

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