No wonder the headlights acted funny

[hornhospital]

After having the headlights, parks and fogs randomly switch on with the headlight switch in the off position (sometimes after parking and locking the car), I decided it was time to replace the switch. After the new switch arrived and was put in, I took the old one apart to see what the problem was. Check out the picture........I almost waited too long to replace the switch. The detent sleeve had broken into a hundred pieces or more, and the pieces were wedging themselves into the contact leaves, preventing some from working at all, while forcing others to make contact even though the switch was off.

Don't wait as long as I did. If your headlight switch feels 'mushy' rather than having firm steps in it's travel, it's probably time to change it. The job is really simple, requires two tools (Phillips screwdriver and needlenose pliers) and takes 10 minutes tops if you've never done it before.

If I had waited a little longer I'm sure the incidental contact would have left a light or two on, resulting in a dead battery.

[bboyvek]

so it wasn't a ghost after all, was it?

[foamerdave]

Dam thats a mess

[E36 Phantom]

Wow. I <3 BMW plastics and rubber. :tsk:

[hornhospital]

Nope, bb, no ghost (but it's heidifleiss that has the ghost :rofl:).

Dave, the switch went from 'normal' feeling to real vague in just a couple of days. Last week the passenger's side low beam headlight (just that one) and the passenger side tail light came on by themselves after the car had been parked for over an hour. The switch had 'kicked' over to the left, beyond the straight-up off position. Between then and last night when I replaced the switch we had to be super-careful to park the switch exactly on OFF, or it would do it again.

[hornhospital]

Wow. I <3 BMW plastics and rubber. :tsk:

You and me both, Chad! :thumbup:

[E36 Phantom]

Haha. I need to get close up pictures of my dad's E38's windshield trim. It's absurd. E39s had the same problem, they just crumble away after just 4 or 5 years. Same reason our valve cover gaskets leak, door seals squeak, window lifter connectors snap, sunroof lifter blocks fail, and pretty much everything else rubber or plastic deteriorates. They had to have used something absurdly sh!tty suppliers for them or something.

[hornhospital]

That could be why BMW tells us to replace every O ring in the oil filter system each time we change oil. Left any long they may just fall apart.

I still love my Bimmer, quirky problems and all.

[hornhospital]

More high quality BMW rubber parts.......

My daughter came home and said the car had a 'roar' at speed. I drove it, and at almost exactly 70 there was an odd and LOUD hum that seemed to come from the whole underside of the car. It got louder up to about 75, then diminished! By 80 it was gone. VERY strange. I was thinking the worst...wheel bearings, differential, even the transmission. Nope. It was the center support for the tail pipe that had these two little rubber cushion things separate, and the whole pipe was humming like a tuning fork. Replaced the cushions and the hum was gone. Pictured: The mounting cushion/studs that hold the exhaust pipe bracket from the rear of the transmission. In defense of BMW, these were 14 years and 206,000+ miles old. Not too shabby life expectancy!

[avusMMM]

I wish I had looked for this a week ago. My headlight switch has been getting looser all of a sudden it is almost broken. I ordered the headlight switch, and it should be here in a couple days. I got the vent/switch unit out of the dash, but I can't figure out how to remove and replace the headlight switch -- what's the secret release ?

[hornhospital]

Pull/pry the knob off, and use some needle-nose pliers to remove the plastic nut that is then exposed. Be careful that you don't lose the translucent light pipe insert in the knob (I did, and had to use one from the replacement switch). The switch then comes out the back easily. If your headlight switch illumination bulb is burned out, now's the time to replace it, too. The bulb fits in a cavity on the side of the headlight switch.

If you hit a snag, I'm here to help any way I can. PM me or post. Good luck.:thumbup: