ABS Relay

Need technical Q/A then you're in the right place

Moderator: martauto

User avatar
PattheCat
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 11:00 pm

Post Thu Feb 14, 2019 8:48 pm

Hi everyone,

I'm having ABS Relay issues after using my e30 to jump another car (I now know this is a no, no! 8O ). My car is a 1988 so I removed the ABS relay and checked the internal fuse which was blown. I've tried the bodge fix of adding an 8 amp fuse in place of where the original fuse element was, but the fuse blows instantly when the ignition is turned on. BMW don't sell replacements anymore and i can only seem to find a replacement from Germany for ~£35.

Before I hit purchase, has anyone else had their relay blow and the 'add a fuse' fix didn't work? My only worry is that I wait for this to turn up only for the relay to pop again!

Any help would be appreciated!

Bonus Image
Image
User avatar
Brianmoooore
E30 Zone Team Member
E30 Zone Team Member
Posts: 49359
Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2005 11:00 pm

Post Fri Feb 15, 2019 1:42 pm

There is a zener diode inside the relay which conducts on voltage spikes, shorts the supply and blows the fuse. The zener diode should normally survive this, but it looks like yours might have paid the ultimate price to protect its ABS ECU.
User avatar
martauto
E30 Zone Team Member
E30 Zone Team Member
Posts: 6208
Joined: Wed Aug 31, 2005 11:00 pm
Location: leeds

Post Fri Feb 15, 2019 4:00 pm

There you go and welcome to the zone as well mate !!

Mart.
Only the E46 cab left now.
Just got too old.
User avatar
PattheCat
E30 Zone Newbie
E30 Zone Newbie
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 11:00 pm

Post Sat Feb 16, 2019 11:57 am

Thanks Brian, I just tested the relay using a spare car battery and you are right, it's dead as Dodo. Will grab another one and hope that the ECU survived!

Cheers Mart!