2001 Bmw

[puddle jumper]

HELP My bosses wife's car has a battery draw. The draw is when you turn on the turn signal light switch on with the key off and out of the ignition. Then the brake light on the same side as what the switch is turned to stays on as well as the front turn light on that side. To me it sounds like there is a bad ground back feeding the brake light bulb. Any one has any ideas where the problem could be. Looking in the trunk of this car looks like a wiring nightmare.
The car is a 2001 BMW 277 it the station wagon model.

 

[DJ]

Re: 2001 Bmw

Sounds like a bad turn signal switch, to me.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: 2001 Bmw

It is NORMAL. Do not let it drive you nuts!

That is a parking light option that is standard on most cars in europe and it is used to leave a taillight on while parked at night.

When I was stationed in Germany there were streets that required to leave a parking light on. Some cars had an added brake light just for that purpose.

 

[gonefishie]

Re: 2001 Bmw

Depends on what she looks like you could tell her to bring the car by your house and you would have "a look under the hood".

 

[tommays]

Re: 2001 Bmw

Parking Lights

Required in Europe but a mystery to most Americans, parking lights are also dim exterior lights left on when parked on a small dark street at night. They keep other idiots from running into your parked car in the dark.

These European parking lights are the two positions on the left of the headlight switch marked "P" with a left or right arrow. Either position leaves just the left or right rear tail and front parking light on. Since it's just these two bulbs and not the interior and other lights these lights can be left on all night.


i cant believe it BUT that comes up on a google search

You learn more things on Iboats



Tommays

 

[DJ]

Re: 2001 Bmw

You learn something new everyday. Now I know why I want to stay in the good ole USA.

 

[HyperFox]

Re: 2001 Bmw

You got that right. Ill stay up north too. Some things they do in EU kinda make sense, but other things... Well.. So much for the KISS theory.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: 2001 Bmw

Thats what BMW said also that some of the models have that option. It just seems odd that thay had the car for 6 years and did not know that.
The lights are not dim but bright as if thay were turned on. It will be intresting to see what BMW comes up with on whats killing the battery.

 

[Bigprairie1]

Re: 2001 Bmw

Well, German car wiring is/was unfortunately behind the times for the better part and certainly of that era.
I think they were experimenting with 'twisted pair' wiring a bit at that time and this car might have had some of that technology in it.
That said, I had a horrendous light problem once in my car (Chrysler product) years ago and I found it to be nothing more than an 1157 bulb that had shorted across itself inside thus providing a power path to entirely different set of lights 'backwards' through the other shared circuit typical of the 1157 bulbs. I can't remember exactly but it was something like the single light blinked all the brake/marker lights or something like that.
Anyways, I worked on this thing for hours before finding this 'problem'. I changed the bulb and was done. Problem gone no more wrong lights at the wrong time going off.
Regardless, get a couple of good bulbs and simply try them around for the heck of it....it takes a few minutes and only costs a few bucks.
Either way, good luck.
BP