Who is the OE manufacturer for E38 tail lights?

[Manny G.]

So I know it's not Hella, and it's not AL/Bosch... the logo looks like an 'S', but I haven't been able to figure it out. I thought it might have been "Spyder Auto" but the logo is different and the design of the lights Spyder makes is also different. Anyone recognize this logo?

e38taillight.JPG

[SilverIris]

I see my clever trick has been picked up by others now... Manufacturers always leave their mark on what they make. Get a fuse box from any Japanese car and you'll almost always see Yazaki's corporate logo

Same logic applies with things like the 750IL's battery disconnect switch. Leopold Kostal GMBH. I'm usually pretty good at this kind of puzzle. in May 1998, Stanley Electric of Japan established a branch in Germany, Stanley Electric GMBH.

Another possibility is that this is an old logo for Osram Sylvania, established in 1993. Seems more likely since Osram is traditionally a German company.

[Manny G.]

Yeah I typically try to find out who the manufacturer of parts such as sensors and lights because the non-BMW stamped part is cheaper even though its the same exact part. Do you really care if the trunk shocks have a BMW stamp on them if the OE manufacturer is Stabilus and has their name on both parts? For a $30-40 difference, I sure dont need the Roundel stamp.

I've been all up and down the internet, auction sites, etc. looking at old or new old stock items by Osram Sylvania,.. the logo is different. Same for the Stanley of Japan.. the old logo isn't the same 'S'.

[SilverIris]

Yes I agree, it is rather silly to pay $6 for a crush washer from BMW when the manufacturer has it for $0.25.

Been doing some digging this morning and I came across this:
https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=680460

On the e39 Touring, the tail light lenses were made by SWF, part of the Valeo Group (based in France). Not sure about the logo, but that's about the best I can do right now. Might be worth checking out their catalogs here:
https://www.valeoservice.com/en-com/catalogs

For comparison, Volkswagen tail lights are made by Hella.

Edit:
So I had a brainstorm. Since Hella AND Valeo made headlights for quite a few different European auto manufacturers, I hopped on Ebay and started looking for tail lights for French-made such as Renault. That led me to Seima Group, acquired by Automotive Lighting in 2001. The specific branch that popped out to me was Seima Italiana. They supplied tail lights to Audi, Fiat, Renault, Citroen from the 80s up to at least 2007. Logo in 2001 looks a bit different than what's on your tail light label, but that was after they were acquired by AL.