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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Cosmetic and Lighting Modifications (exterior/interior) > LCI Rear Turn signal help



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      06-16-2012, 02:48 PM   #1
BRGmatthew
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LCI Rear Turn signal help

Hi, i tried searching and found a few unhelpful threads about this issue. But my rear turn signals. My driver side works perfectly fine, nice bright all LEDs work, but my passenger side about 3 or 4 LEDs are out and the signal is bright sometimes and dim sometimes and when its dim it throws an error code and blinks really fast like theres not enough power going into it. Please dont say take it to the dealer, because thats how unhelpful the threads were. Thanks


SORRY MODS, I POSTED IN THE WRONG SECTION. CAN YOU MOVE THE THREAD PLEASE?

Last edited by BRGmatthew; 06-16-2012 at 05:23 PM..
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      06-16-2012, 03:30 PM   #2
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did you install these lights recently? I heard you have to code your car to prevent this
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      06-16-2012, 05:24 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GHOSTDOG View Post
did you install these lights recently? I heard you have to code your car to prevent this
no, my car is an e90 lci so they came like that
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      06-17-2012, 12:32 AM   #4
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Umm...take it to the dealer. LED module needs to be replaced. Unless your warranty is out, in which case replace the LED module.
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      06-17-2012, 10:59 AM   #5
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the dealer wont replace just the LEDs theyll replace the whole taillight. theres a campaign about this
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      06-19-2012, 09:59 PM   #6
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I have the same problem. out of warranty.
i bought another light assembly and the problem is still there so it's not the led lights.
What might be causing this problem?
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      06-19-2012, 11:24 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Boneout View Post
Hi, i tried searching and found a few unhelpful threads about this issue. But my rear turn signals. My driver side works perfectly fine, nice bright all LEDs work, but my passenger side about 3 or 4 LEDs are out and the signal is bright sometimes and dim sometimes and when its dim it throws an error code and blinks really fast like theres not enough power going into it. Please dont say take it to the dealer, because thats how unhelpful the threads were. Thanks


SORRY MODS, I POSTED IN THE WRONG SECTION. CAN YOU MOVE THE THREAD PLEASE?
Thanks for posting this. It just happened to me today while driving. Turned on the signals to change lanes, and I got a warning and the driver's side started blinking fast. Checked when I got home and found some of the LEDs out and some dim. Looks like time to go to dealer...
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      06-22-2012, 05:00 AM   #8
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Dropped my car off at the dealer today, and it was fixed in about an hour. On the service write-up, I found a comment about SIB630610. Turns out that is a somewhat common issue and there is service bulletin for it. Below is the info I found online. Lucky or unlucky, my car was built on the last day of the covered range.

"SUBJECT
LEDs in Rear Lamp Inoperative
MODEL
E90 (3 Series) from August 31, 2008 to February 2, 2010
SITUATION
The LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) in the outer left or outer right rear lamp are inoperative. Affected are the
LEDs for the parking lamp/tail lamp or the turn signals. No Check Control message is displayed.
CAUSE
Corrosion of an internal connection within the tail lamp
CORRECTION
Replace both outer rear lamps (left and right), even if only one side is inoperative. Refer to Repair Instruction
REP 63 21 180.
All lamps are to be retained intact by the dealer, awaiting either:
A parts 1. return request to send parts to BMW
An indication to scrap the parts based on information provided in the dealer's scrap report, at which time the parts are to be destroyed to prevent reuse."
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      06-25-2012, 11:17 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by javaperson View Post
Dropped my car off at the dealer today, and it was fixed in about an hour. On the service write-up, I found a comment about SIB630610. Turns out that is a somewhat common issue and there is service bulletin for it. Below is the info I found online. Lucky or unlucky, my car was built on the last day of the covered range.

"SUBJECT
LEDs in Rear Lamp Inoperative
MODEL
E90 (3 Series) from August 31, 2008 to February 2, 2010
SITUATION
The LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) in the outer left or outer right rear lamp are inoperative. Affected are the
LEDs for the parking lamp/tail lamp or the turn signals. No Check Control message is displayed.
CAUSE
Corrosion of an internal connection within the tail lamp
CORRECTION
Replace both outer rear lamps (left and right), even if only one side is inoperative. Refer to Repair Instruction
REP 63 21 180.
All lamps are to be retained intact by the dealer, awaiting either:
A parts 1. return request to send parts to BMW
An indication to scrap the parts based on information provided in the dealer's scrap report, at which time the parts are to be destroyed to prevent reuse."
Got the same write up today. They replaced both my rears as well.
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      06-29-2012, 12:52 PM   #10
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I'm confused on this one. I tried another rear turn light assembly and it did the same which tells me it's not the assembly.
I then disconnected the wire from the footwell module for few minutes, plugged it in and the turn signal worked for a week or so until this morning. It's only the right rear and blinks fast. Do I have messed up footwell module? I was also reading if you get a new one it will have to be programmed by bmw, is this true?
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      06-30-2012, 01:01 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kavadarci View Post
I'm confused on this one. I tried another rear turn light assembly and it did the same which tells me it's not the assembly.
I then disconnected the wire from the footwell module for few minutes, plugged it in and the turn signal worked for a week or so until this morning. It's only the right rear and blinks fast. Do I have messed up footwell module? I was also reading if you get a new one it will have to be programmed by bmw, is this true?
well, the service bulletin calls for replacement of the bulb carrier. Im not sure what is wrong with what youre doing.
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      06-30-2012, 08:19 AM   #12
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you mean the assembly (bulb carrier)? there is nothing wrong to be done, you unplug the old one plug the new one, is there something else?
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      06-30-2012, 02:17 PM   #13
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Any idea on how to fix it without replacing it as my car is out of warranty. Same issue, only one side faulty, few dead leds & the others go dim from time to time
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      07-04-2012, 03:52 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NavZ View Post
Any idea on how to fix it without replacing it as my car is out of warranty. Same issue, only one side faulty, few dead leds & the others go dim from time to time
Based on the description of "contact corrosion" in the bulletin, it seems that the issue is not any dead LEDs, just a poor electrical connection somewhere. I imagine that one could carefully disassemble the whole thing, examine the LEDs, any boards, and wires, and try to look for any areas of poor electrical contact... Could be tedious, but that's what I would do if I was out of warranty. GL
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      08-03-2012, 06:10 PM   #15
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My car had the same problem with the rear turn signals. Both replaced under warranty with reference to the aforementioned campaign. All is well now!
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      11-12-2012, 11:37 PM   #16
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Back from the dead.

I picked up some of these 'warrantied lights' recently It's certainly NOT the connection. However, if it were the connection, a bit of dielectric grease on the contacts will prevent the corrosion.

I'll play with them a bit more at work, I suspect they have a bad solder joint. I'll re-touch the joints at the connectors between boards and see if it helps. I can get them to all light up and flicker a bit if I put pressure on the solder joints.

The light came apart reasonably easy with a small screw driver. Sealing them back up will be a bit more of a chore, but not impossible. I'll get the big camera out to reassemble them after I repair the board.

Anyhow, took a light apart and this is the bench test:

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      11-13-2012, 01:46 AM   #17
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Please keep me updated
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      11-13-2012, 09:16 AM   #18
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Touching up the solder joints here fixed it:





I need to hook it up to a 12v power source to verify. I'm just using a 9v battery.
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      11-13-2012, 02:11 PM   #19
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Nice find. I ended up warrantying my lights since I'm still under warranty. I rather have them replace it then me fix it.
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      11-13-2012, 04:56 PM   #20
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I was having the same problem too, I'm under CPO warranty so I made a service appointment, I'll let y'all know how it turns out. But, I did some research so I had the information before I went and found the specific service bulletin as it relates to a 3-series is SIB-63-05-10.

You can search service bulletins here:

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/tsbs/

or here:

http://www.edmunds.com/car-maintenance/guide-page.html

The Edmunds page is easier to navigate, the .gov page is easier to print.

Hope that helps,
Joe
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      11-18-2012, 04:37 PM   #21
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I have an issue with my leds in the right rear signal. I did a conversion so no warranty. I will try the soldering trick to see if it works. Thanks for the tip.
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      12-22-2012, 01:05 PM   #22
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Brad,
My 2009 328i now has the rear LED light failure and the dealer will not cover this under warranty. I see that you were able to get the LED boards out of the sealed plastic light housing. Before I start prying open the housing, do you have any details on how you did this? I believe you need to part the red lens plastic from the grey body to get at the LED boards - it looks like this is bonded together with an adhesive.

Any pointers you can provide would be helpful...better than buying a new light from BMW.

My outer lights are out and the main LEDS flash when 12V is applied. Oddly enough the main LEDS work fine if I drop the DC voltage down to about 9V.

Last edited by WellingtonMark; 12-22-2012 at 01:40 PM.. Reason: typo
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