Whats this????

Sun Feb 03, 2008 5:49 pm

When I removed the grill and headlights from the passenger side of my scrap 325i Auto, I saw this, but dont know what it is?

Sun Feb 03, 2008 5:56 pm

Resistor pack for the headlights, bin it...

Sun Feb 03, 2008 6:07 pm

This is the infamous resistor pack that causes the disco effect with HIDs when the parking lights are on.
It was part of the dim dip driving light system fitted to early post facelift cars, in anticipation of some Europe wide legislation that never happened.
If you don't have HIDs and both headlamps work at half brightness when the lighting switch is in the first position and the ignition on, then all is well and good. Otherwise, trace its wires back to two round rubber plugs and sockets on the loom along the inner wing, disconnect them, unscrew the resistor pack, and bin it as Mark says.

Sun Feb 03, 2008 6:07 pm

Thanks, it was going to the scrappy with the car anyway but I just wondered what it was.

Wed Apr 16, 2008 2:07 pm

I have had to replace the loom on my 87 318i, with dim dip. the new loom comes from a 92 316 touring, which does not have the dim dip plugs on so the dim dip is not connected. however when i switch on the sidelights the dipped beam come on at full brightness. how can i stop this from happening? at the moment i cannot have the sidelights on on their own

Wed Apr 16, 2008 9:33 pm

What looms have you replaced? If the complete loom has been replaced I can't see how this can happen.
Do you still have two yellow relays in the front left corner of the glovebox area?
Does the car have post facelift (bulls eye or smiley) headlamps?

Thu Apr 17, 2008 2:32 pm

i've replaced the main loom for the whole car, ie everything apart from the engine. there are not any relays in the glovebox region and the car has one smiley and one bullseye, the car i sourced the loom from did not have the relays and had smiley lamps.

Thu Apr 17, 2008 10:05 pm

If neither car had the relays, then neither car had dim dip. Were there any resistors fitted, as shown in Steviec's pic at the top of this thread?
Do the headlamps come on without the ignition switch being on?

Fri Apr 18, 2008 1:05 am

the car originally had the relays in, but the new loom doesn't, and the resitors are still there but with noting plugged in. the dip beam only comes on when the engine is running, the same way as the original dimp dip used to do. by the way the sidelights are on at the same time

Fri Apr 18, 2008 10:37 am

Do the main beams work normally?
Pull out relay K4. Does this stop the headlamps coming on?
Is it possible that your replacement loom could have come from a car that was made for a market where running with dipped beams is compulsory?

Fri Apr 18, 2008 1:24 pm

main beams work properly. I've already fiddled with the relays and one (k4 i think as you suggest) stopped the dip beam working, but then obviously when the headlights are switched to dipped they remained off.

i think it would be very unlikely that the loom donor car had compulsory dipped beam, it was RHD british registered, think originally from manchester way according to the dealer sticker on rear window.

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:14 pm

adam_b wrote:main beams work properly.

What I mean is: Does the lighting switch have to be fully out for the main beams to be able to work, with the ignition on?
Can you confirm this is correct:
1) The sidelights work normally. i.e. They are off with the light switch in, on with it half out, and on with it fully out. With or without the ignition being on.
2) The dipped beams are off when the light switch is fully in, regardless of whether the ignition is on or off.
3) The dipped beams are on when the light switch is half out, but only with the ignition on.
4) The dipped beams are on when the light switch is fully out, but only with the ignition on.
5) The main beams won't come on, with the column switch in the appropriate position (ignore the flash position), with the lighting switch half out, and the ignition on.
6) The main beams will come on, with the column switch in the appropriate position, with the lighting switch fully out, and the ignition on.

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:24 pm

Brianmoooore wrote: Can you confirm this is correct:
1) The sidelights work normally. i.e. They are off with the light switch in, on with it half out, and on with it fully out. With or without the ignition being on.
2) The dipped beams are off when the light switch is fully in, regardless of whether the ignition is on or off.
3) The dipped beams are on when the light switch is half out, but only with the ignition on.
4) The dipped beams are on when the light switch is fully out, but only with the ignition on.
5) The main beams won't come on, with the column switch in the appropriate position (ignore the flash position), with the lighting switch half out, and the ignition on.
6) The main beams will come on, with the column switch in the appropriate position, with the lighting switch fully out, and the ignition on.

1) yes
2)yes
3)yes
4)yes
5)yes (they don't come on)
6) yes

does that make sense?

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:25 pm

3) The dipped beams are on when the light switch is half out, but only with the ignition on.

surely not...half out is sidelights (or dim-dip) only...dip is fully out ignition on unless wired for daylight running

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:41 pm

Makes sense in that it conforms the symptoms of the problem, but otherwise, makes no sense at all -YET! (There's no way I'll be beaten by E30 wiring!!)
Out of time now - next episode to follow later!

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:43 pm

cheers, i hope you can help!!

Fri Apr 18, 2008 2:44 pm

lol...yeah, should have ralised there was method in your madness...

Brian Moore= E30 electrical guru

aside: cured an intermittant c/l issue on the touring last night with the red/black wire mod....

Sat Apr 19, 2008 12:09 am

This is all very strange!
The dipped beam relay is K4. One side of the switch contact of this relay is connected directly to the battery+, and the other side of the switch connects to the two fuses and then on to the bulbs in the outer headlamps.
One side of the coil of this relay is connected to the 12 volts + switched ignition live directly from the ignition switch.
Therefore, for the dipped beams to come on, the other side of K4's coil must be earthed. This wire is yellow/green, and goes to pin 11 of the main lighting switch, where it connects to the brown earth wire on pin 2 when the switch is fully out.
This yellow/green wire also connects to the yellow wire on the main beam selector switch on the column. When main beam is selected, this yellow wire connects to the white wire that goes one side of the coil of relay K3 (main beams). K3 operates in exactly the same way as K4, so, any time the dipped beams are on (yellow/green wire is earthed), the main beams should be able to come on as well.
Or, to abbreviate, points 3 and 5 in my previous post should be mutually exclusive.
The sidelight portions of the lighting switch switch 12 volts +, while the headlamp portion switches 12 volts negative (earth), so it's difficult to see how any rogue internal connection in the switch could cause the problem.
Is relay K4 a normal 4 pin orange one?

Wed Jun 25, 2008 1:01 pm

Brianmoooore wrote:This is all very strange!
The dipped beam relay is K4. One side of the switch contact of this relay is connected directly to the battery+, and the other side of the switch connects to the two fuses and then on to the bulbs in the outer headlamps.
One side of the coil of this relay is connected to the 12 volts + switched ignition live directly from the ignition switch.
Therefore, for the dipped beams to come on, the other side of K4's coil must be earthed. This wire is yellow/green, and goes to pin 11 of the main lighting switch, where it connects to the brown earth wire on pin 2 when the switch is fully out.
This yellow/green wire also connects to the yellow wire on the main beam selector switch on the column. When main beam is selected, this yellow wire connects to the white wire that goes one side of the coil of relay K3 (main beams). K3 operates in exactly the same way as K4, so, any time the dipped beams are on (yellow/green wire is earthed), the main beams should be able to come on as well.
Or, to abbreviate, points 3 and 5 in my previous post should be mutually exclusive.
The sidelight portions of the lighting switch switch 12 volts +, while the headlamp portion switches 12 volts negative (earth), so it's difficult to see how any rogue internal connection in the switch could cause the problem.
Is relay K4 a normal 4 pin orange one?

Sorry, the main beam DOES come on when the switch is half way out. any more thoughts?