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The dashboard and interior illumination lights SHORTED OUT

1K views 6 replies 4 participants last post by  Pate 
#1 ·
I own a 2000 528i. I was driving home one night and the dashboard lights shorted out. It included the dashboard, the center panel lights and the passenger window lights on both the drivers and passenger side - EVERYTHING EXCEPT THE STEERING WHEEL ILLUMINATION LIGHTS A week later the lights came back on when I hit a bump in the road. The lights stayed on for about two days then went out again. There are times when all the lights flicker on an off and then stay on for a while or go off. I have changed the fused but do not know where to start to find the short. I took it to my mechanic and he was stumped by it. HAS ANYONE SEEN THIS PROBLEM BEFORE OR KNOW WHERE TO START TO FIX THE PROBLEM. PLEASE HELP. It is all the red/pink lighting in the front of the car. They all flicker on and off at the same time.
 
#2 ·
I haven't seen this but a good search of the boards might provide something.
Check the obvious culprits: your "illumination wheel", LCM, and main power distribution panel. The latter is under the passenger floor and can give weird results if it is wet/corroded. After that it is checking wiring...
 
#3 ·
has the interior of your car ever gotten damp or wet carpet?? if so id be looking at the ground busses...that hitting a bump caused them to come back on leads one to believe a poor ground connection. had a similar problem once on mine,pulled cleaned and reconnected all the ground points on my car, hasnt happened again. +1 on TAB's recommendation of checking the power panel under the passenger seat, an interior leak can accumulate water there, drinks spilled from the rear passenger seat etc.
 
#5 ·
Thanks.... that is a possibility because of the under carriage cover has been partly taken off because of deterioration..... I took your notes to my mechanic this morning.. Hopefully, this will help and it will be fixed this afternoon.
 
#6 ·
Had a slightly similar thing happened to my car about 2 months ago. I was driving home just fine when the dashboard lights started flickering and then the engine died. I was able to restart the car and it turned out that my battery ground cable was loose. Check all the ground connections.
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the suggestion. Just had a new battery put in last month. Also had all the grounds checked. The lights still flicker on and off. They just start working - out of the blue. They will work for a while and then hit a small bump on the interstate and they are off again. There is no rhyme or reason that I can find. It is so frustrating
 
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