Point me in the right direction please 528i wagon

Hey guys and girls.
I washed the lower part of the engine bay on my E39 528i wagon 98 model 2 days ago and now the radio wont turn on. Also drivers window goes down when you first get in but if you put it up after that it wont come back down till the next day!
Radio doesnt turn on but (get this) the clock comes on it when you press the time adjust button! Im baffled!

How did you wash it? Was it at the car wash with the high-pressure wand? If so, there's no telling what you trashed. Modern cars cannot be washed in this manner.

You need to examine all the ground points and any connectors under the hood for tighteness and water intrusion.

Hey Edjack. I sprayed 4 cans of degreaser around the suspension and sump then turned a hose on it but was careful not to wet the upper engine bay.
The trip computer i noticed today also wont change from KM perlitre as well. @%$#&^%$

I have almost the same problem, but I didn't wash the car yesterday. I was pulling out of my driveway when a stupid Audi came racing around the corner and I had to stop short. All of a sudden, the radio display went blank and the radio played for a couple of minutes more, then it stopped, I don't hear any sound from the blinkers but they are working, the PDC turns on but won't go off automatically and I have no back up lights. Happened just as it was getting dark yesterday and I haven't had a chance to look at it yet. The clock would come on intermittently and each time I started the car the radio would play for a couple seconds. Anyone else experience this strange behavior?

Try this just to rule it out:

https://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=358204

Originally Posted by Touring Dude

I have almost the same problem, but I didn't wash the car yesterday. I was pulling out of my driveway when a stupid Audi came racing around the corner and I had to stop short. All of a sudden, the radio display went blank and the radio played for a couple of minutes more, then it stopped, I don't hear any sound from the blinkers but they are working, the PDC turns on but won't go off automatically and I have no back up lights. Happened just as it was getting dark yesterday and I haven't had a chance to look at it yet. The clock would come on intermittently and each time I started the car the radio would play for a couple seconds. Anyone else experience this strange behavior?

It sounds like the sudden deceleration (mechanical) triggered your electrical issue. I would check to make sure your battery connections and the battery tie-down is snug. If they were loose, a sudden shift in battery position could cause some itermittent electrical issues.

Originally Posted by Fudman

It sounds like the sudden deceleration (mechanical) triggered your electrical issue. I would check to make sure your battery connections and the battery tie-down is snug. If they were loose, a sudden shift in battery position could cause some itermittent electrical issues.

I had a chance to look into the issue this morning. All fuses are good, and all the connections were tight and clean, hold down was tight. I replaced the battery a year or so ago. First of all, I had low battery voltage (11.2v) due to low battery water (my bad) Kind of a pain in a wagon, but topped all the cells off with fresh distilled water (ran out half way through and had to go get a new 1/2 gallon, I've been nursing the old one for 5 or 6 years) Threw the charger on just to give the battery a chance to come up some before I hit the road. Radio worked for about 2 minutes and died again, all the other symptoms are still there. Drove for about 45 min and was wondering if I managed to take out the alternator with the low battery, but I got to my shop and checked, battery up to 12.4 volts and alternator was charging fine. Came home tonight and again the radio played for a couple of minutes before dying, oh and while it is playing the volume control does nothing, and I can't turn the radio off either. I disconnected the battery when I got home and threw the charger on again, I'll charge it all night and let the electrical system reset itself and see if I'm good in the morning.........

Thanks guys. Started my car this morning and everything started working again. I guess what ever I wet came dry enough to stop shorting to ground! Wont do that again.
How the heck do you clean your engine bay then so it looks all clean without using degreaser? When you go to a second hand car yard they clean those under bonnet areas beautifully!

Here's my tip for cleaning engine bay. Get a set of (1)toothbrush (2) 1" wide brush used for dishwashing, a 2" wide brush, a spray bottle w/ concentrated degreaser (believe or not, I use Shout for clothes), and spray down a section at a time w/ solvent, brush solvent into dirt/grease , and spray off the grime using another spray bottle w/ water.

After that, I spray everything down w/ WD-40. Especially at all elec contact areas. That's my secret sauce to having the engine bay look like it was done professionally.

WD-40 does wonders to anything plastic. I used to use it, now I just use window cleaner and a clean rag, but I clean my engine bay everytime I change my oil so it never gets very dirty. Engine degreaser, scrub, rinse and coat it with WD-40 (i would rinse again to remove the extra WD-40) and let the engine run and dry itself off.

Thats the way Ill do it then in the future. Just by the way guys same faults came backagain this morning but I have hope now that they all came back. Makes me think theres no permanent damage to electronics. Gotta find that earth problem though over a pit tomorrow night at work. Thanks all.

Originally Posted by Touring Dude

I had a chance to look into the issue this morning. All fuses are good, and all the connections were tight and clean, hold down was tight. I replaced the battery a year or so ago. First of all, I had low battery voltage (11.2v) due to low battery water (my bad) Kind of a pain in a wagon, but topped all the cells off with fresh distilled water (ran out half way through and had to go get a new 1/2 gallon, I've been nursing the old one for 5 or 6 years) Threw the charger on just to give the battery a chance to come up some before I hit the road. Radio worked for about 2 minutes and died again, all the other symptoms are still there. Drove for about 45 min and was wondering if I managed to take out the alternator with the low battery, but I got to my shop and checked, battery up to 12.4 volts and alternator was charging fine. Came home tonight and again the radio played for a couple of minutes before dying, oh and while it is playing the volume control does nothing, and I can't turn the radio off either. I disconnected the battery when I got home and threw the charger on again, I'll charge it all night and let the electrical system reset itself and see if I'm good in the morning.........

Update:
I found this thread - http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...57#post7350057

I unplugged my Dension iceLink that has been in there for 5 or 6 years and that solved the problem.
WooHoo a radio, blinker noises and back up lights again!