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Thread: Tail light/ brake light failure

  1. #101
    Join Date
    May 2016
    Location
    Los Angeles
    Posts
    5
    My Cars
    1995 BMW E36
    I have this problem too. Dang! I'm going to start by cleaning the connections for the bulbs. Maybe it's the problem is oxidation of the connection - as other posters have hinted at.

  2. #102
    Join Date
    May 2016
    Location
    Los Angeles
    Posts
    5
    My Cars
    1995 BMW E36

    Update

    Quote Originally Posted by CBMorcom View Post
    I have this problem too. Dang! I'm going to start by cleaning the connections for the bulbs. Maybe it's the problem is oxidation of the connection - as other posters have hinted at.
    UPDATE - cleaning the connections may have helped, but was not the problem. The problem was frayed wires on the trunk lid. Re-connected those and it took care of the tail light problem. Still - one brake light failing. Not sure where to go now... maybe I'll replace the bulb even though it doesn't appear to be burned out.

  3. #103
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Murrieta, CA
    Posts
    9,530
    My Cars
    '94 325iC, '08 328i, E93
    Quote Originally Posted by CBMorcom View Post
    UPDATE - cleaning the connections may have helped, but was not the problem. The problem was frayed wires on the trunk lid. Re-connected those and it took care of the tail light problem. Still - one brake light failing. Not sure where to go now... maybe I'll replace the bulb even though it doesn't appear to be burned out.
    Appear?

    Just swap the bulb with the other side. If the bad bulb works and the good bulb stops working, then you have trouble with the tail lamp housing. The tail lamp housings are more complicated than they need to be, and the added complications leads to issues like this later in life.

    The bulb fits into a holder that has contacts that can give you fits. The holder in turn fits into the housing that has contacts that can give you fits. You MUST use the correct bulbs in all sockets, and some bulbs come in a variety of choices that are not all interchangeable. I forget all of the numbers, but a 3157 and a 9157 might look the same, but they have different wattage ratings and while they physically fit the same place, they are electrically different. The electrical difference can be seen by the car, and will be reported to you even though you see the lights come on.

    You would do well to remove the tail lamp housing(s) and check the condition of the contacts between the holders and the holes that they fit into. It is all but impossible to check the contacts without taking at least one of the tail lamp housings out. When you see how the contacts work, then you may be able to see how they don't work in a tail lamp that is still in the car. But, without taking one of them out, it is very difficult to see what the fault conditions are.

  4. #104
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Los Angeles California
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    1994 BMW 325i Convertibl
    Hey guys I just replaced the brake light switch down by the pedal. Now I get brake light failure. Not the switch one that says go to the owners manual. Does that mean I'm good on the switch and I just have a light out??

  5. #105
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Murrieta, CA
    Posts
    9,530
    My Cars
    '94 325iC, '08 328i, E93
    Quote Originally Posted by Richard Cranium View Post
    Hey guys I just replaced the brake light switch down by the pedal. Now I get brake light failure. Not the switch one that says go to the owners manual. Does that mean I'm good on the switch and I just have a light out??

    TAIL LAMP OUT and BRAKE LIGHT CIRCUIT are different. Tail Lamp errors mean bulbs are out, Brake Light Circuit means the pedal switch is not working right. I might have those messages wrong, but there are two distinct messages where one has the word, LAMP and the other has the word CIRCUIT. Lamp is a blown bulb, Circuit is a bad switch.

  6. #106
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Los Angeles California
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    1994 BMW 325i Convertibl
    Thanks a lot JD so if that's the case then the circuit one has gone away from replacing the switch and now I have a bulb problem. All the bulbs are new. I'm a little OCD and just bought enough to replace all of them. So I think my problem is the connection between the bulbs/holders/tail lights. Time for the good old fingernail file. Thanks again JD!

  7. #107
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Sacramento CA
    Posts
    403
    My Cars
    2001 Z3 Roadster
    Mine started doing it also. I noticed that my headlamp switch isn't clicking from position to position like it should. Sometimes the parking lights are hard to turn off.

    I can turn the switch past off and the marker lights will turn on. I immediately get the tail lights out message.

    Maybe your headlamp switch is acting up?

  8. #108
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Murrieta, CA
    Posts
    9,530
    My Cars
    '94 325iC, '08 328i, E93
    Quote Originally Posted by Migou View Post
    Mine started doing it also. I noticed that my headlamp switch isn't clicking from position to position like it should. Sometimes the parking lights are hard to turn off.

    I can turn the switch past off and the marker lights will turn on. I immediately get the tail lights out message.

    Maybe your headlamp switch is acting up?

    You have a "special problem". If your light switch is giving you fits and you are having "lamp out" warnings, then your issue could be the light switch. If the switch is not working right, then the lights that the switch controls may not be working right. Fix the light switch and then work on the lights.

    - - - Updated - - -

    Quote Originally Posted by Richard Cranium View Post
    Thanks a lot JD so if that's the case then the circuit one has gone away from replacing the switch and now I have a bulb problem. All the bulbs are new. I'm a little OCD and just bought enough to replace all of them. So I think my problem is the connection between the bulbs/holders/tail lights. Time for the good old fingernail file. Thanks again JD!

    You're welcome. Might I suggest you remove the tail lights from the back of the car. There are 4 nuts inside of the trunk that hold the lenses in. You can then install each of the lamp holders into its socket and observe the integrity of the contacts. It's not required to remove the lamp housing (lenses), but it's far easier to see what the condition of the contacts is. Also, the plastic turns very soft and crumbly over the years, and the lamp holders simply do not stay in place anymore because the sockets fall apart.

  9. #109
    Join Date
    Apr 2017
    Location
    Los Angeles California
    Posts
    28
    My Cars
    1994 BMW 325i Convertibl
    So JD the taillights come real easy for that. Cuz I'd love to be able to actually see in there. The 4 bolts that's it? Kool... Can I ask you a favor You strike me as a Bentley man and not a Haynes. ☺ can you list which model bulb goes into each slot from the pics in the bentley? The 1-5 list where they say 4 is not used. Which is also weird cuz i have a bulb in 4. Thanks ahead of time.

  10. #110
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Murrieta, CA
    Posts
    9,530
    My Cars
    '94 325iC, '08 328i, E93
    1. Turn Indicator, 21W. Yellow, top row outside
    2. Reverse Light, 21W, White, top row inside
    3. Brake light, 21W, Red, bottom row inside
    4. Tail/Brake lamp,21/4W, Red. bottom row center/outside

    On the bottom row, I have three bulbs on my '94 'vert. The descriptions I give are from the Owner's Manual for my car, but it is a bit confusing because I have 5 bulbs, but the manual lists 4.

    The Bentley manual shows the top row sockets as 1 & 2 (outer/inner), 1 is the turn lamp (top row outer) and 2 is the reverse lamp (top row inner). 3 is the tail lamp (bottom row outer), 4 is Not Used (bottom row center) and 5 is the brake lamp (bottom row inner).

    4 is for the rear facing fog lamps that the USA market does not allow/use.

    When you take the 4 nuts off to remove the housing, be aware that the housing can be stuck on and you have to carefully separate the weather stripping from the painted surfaces.

    - - - Updated - - -

    My car had issues with the sockets where they are held onto the housing. The sockets were soft and crumbling. I beat them into submission with a drop of super glue. You need to use a tiny drop of glue because you might need to take the lamp holder off again some day, and craploads of super glue will prove problematic if this becomes true. 1 drop to hold stuff that does not move stationary. You can over power 1 drop in a few years and get the lamp out again.

  11. #111
    Join Date
    Sep 2022
    Location
    Vancouver, Bc, Canada
    Posts
    1
    My Cars
    1994 e36 m3 convertible
    here's what I did,

    I have been having this issue of a broken brake light for like a couple months now, and I even got a fkin ticket for it.

    Luckily for me, only one of my brake lights was malfunctioning (passenger side) so what I decided to do, insert of ripping apart the whole wiring to find out that the owner before me did a bad job, is just to run a wire from a functioning brake light, to the one that is broken. You can do this yourself but u can also go to a mechanic and he will do it for 100 bucks.

    This method is basically unbeatable (unless all taillights are broken, or its a problem with your assembly, if you don't know, grab a voltmeter, and check for voltage going to brake light vs other lights) and will save u like 600$

    hope this helps yo

  12. #112
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Murrieta, CA
    Posts
    9,530
    My Cars
    '94 325iC, '08 328i, E93
    Quote Originally Posted by pishnauts View Post
    here's what I did,

    I have been having this issue of a broken brake light for like a couple months now, and I even got a fkin ticket for it.

    Luckily for me, only one of my brake lights was malfunctioning (passenger side) so what I decided to do, insert of ripping apart the whole wiring to find out that the owner before me did a bad job, is just to run a wire from a functioning brake light, to the one that is broken. You can do this yourself but u can also go to a mechanic and he will do it for 100 bucks.

    This method is basically unbeatable (unless all taillights are broken, or its a problem with your assembly, if you don't know, grab a voltmeter, and check for voltage going to brake light vs other lights) and will save u like 600$

    hope this helps yo



    Five years late to the party.

  13. #113
    Join Date
    Jan 2023
    Location
    chicago
    Posts
    2
    My Cars
    BMW x6
    Problem SOLVED..
    Had this problem for months. Went thougth all sorts of diagnostics (dertermined NOT to go to the BMW Dealer).

    This is a "Zero dollar" repair. But it will require a "SKILLFULL" hand and a small precision scew driver.
    The wiring Harness that connects to the back of tail light assembly is were the problem is.
    Looking at the connector with your naked eyes will not reveal the problem.
    As the connection contacts may be "MILLIMETERS" off.
    Remove the wiring Harness from the back of the tail light assembly.
    Using a small (I mean the "SMALLEST") precision scewdriver "POLK OUT" the wire connector from the wiring harness.
    (Please only one wire at a time so not to re-insert in the wrong location).
    Now from the Back of the connector (using the precision scew driver) insert the tool at the back of connector and bend the connection "contact tabs" upwards.

    This is "WHY" your getting the "Brake light Malfunction".The Connector is not making contact.
    I was very happy to solve this issue (and NOT pay the BMW Dealer a crazy repair invoice).
    Now I wish to share my "EUPHORIA" with the BMW universe.

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