Front blinker bulbs

Crowz · #1 09-12-2017, 06:32 AM

Does anyone actually know how the front turn signals work in an E53?

It uses a bulb socket that is supposed to put power to one wire for parking lights and another wire for the blinkers. Thus dim on parking and bright on blinking. In a typical 3157 or 3457 socket this is done with a minimum of 3 wires from the car using the 4 wires on the bulb (2 are common for ground).

My E53 only has 2 contacts for the bulb holder. So at the most it can only power one wire and ground the other.

How does it work with just two contacts?

I tried putting led bulbs in and they work fine but they do not work in the bmw. The parking light part doesn't come on at all but the blinking part works.

The wiring diagrams I show for the E53 only sends power to one wire which would explain why the led is behaving the way it is.

The part I cant wrap my head around is the 3157 has two filaments in it. One dim and one bright. So does the E53 just use the bright filament only and send 1/2 power to it for the parking light part?

Crowz · #2 09-12-2017, 06:35 AM

Oh and for the record resistors are not needed to stop the fast blinking. All you do is program it to not "hot check" the bulbs coding wise and they blink normal even if you take the bulb out completely.

Qsilver7 · #3 09-12-2017, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crowz

...

The part I cant wrap my head around is the 3157 has two filaments in it. One dim and one bright. So does the E53 just use the bright filament only and send 1/2 power to it for the parking light part?

Since all exterior lighting is controlled by the LCM...starting with the LCM III...BMW designed it to have the capability to limit the output voltage to the lamps...as well as "substitute" a bulb for another if it is blown. So if a filament burns out in a bulb that has 2 filaments...it can adjust the output to use the other filament...or use a totally different bulb and adjust its output to perform in place of the burnt out bulb.

I don't know how the magic is done...I just know that it (the LCM) can perform magic

Crowz · #4 09-12-2017, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

Since all exterior lighting is controlled by the LCM...starting with the LCM III...BMW designed it to have the capability to limit the output voltage to the lamps...as well as "substitute" a bulb for another if it is blown. So if a filament burns out in a bulb that has 2 filaments...it can adjust the output to use the other filament...or use a totally different bulb and adjust its output to perform in place of the burnt out bulb.

I don't know how the magic is done...I just know that it (the LCM) can perform magic

Well that's a nice theory but it cant use the other filament if there isn't contacts going to the wires so it may do that in the other sockets but its not doing it with the front blinkers.

wpoll · #5 09-12-2017, 03:03 PM

On some markets (that don't use orange front marker lights) the front signal lamps are just that - signal lamps only. In my car, there are only two wires to the front signals and they are fitted with single filament lamps. Park lights are AEs only.

Qsilver7 · #6 09-12-2017, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crowz

My E53 only has 2 contacts for the bulb holder. So at the most it can only power one wire and ground the other.

How does it work with just two contacts?

Well...a very similar question was asked over on BimFest's e53 forum last weekend...and Zulu95 gave a pretty interesting reply:

Quote:

Originally Posted by docsanders

Trying to put new head lights into my son's car for his birthday. His headlights looked terrible due to fogging. bought these on Amazon. https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....1BGsiwbnoL.jpg

https://www.amazon.com/Chrome-Projec...ning+headlight

I neglected to purchase a Relay wiring harness which I have since remedied. Waiting on that so that we can hook up the Angel Eyes to be on both when the car is locked/unlocked as well as when the car is running.

Originally, I was going to tap into the turn signal/parking light. I noticed that It only had 2 wires in the X5 e53 2001. Drivers side is Blue/Green stripe and Brown, and Passenger is Blue/Brown stripe and Brown. I am assuming that the Blue with the stripe is hot and the Brown wire is the ground, but here is my confusion: Why would the bulb have two filaments when only one is used. I turned on the parking lights with the turn signal and only one filament (the smaller one) is being used for both functions. Is this correct?

If both filaments were being used wouldn't we need another wire? Do we have the wrong bulb in this thing?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zulu95

To save weight and money BMW eliminated one of the wires and instead instituted a fancy electronically generated high frequency AC voltage that has lower amplitude for the parking light function and uses a higher amplitude, interrupted signal, for the turn signal function. So there is nothing wrong with what you have found but you will need to find a different feed for your AE's.

Crowz · #7 09-12-2017, 09:04 PM

Well I guess I have a extra pair of nice switchback led bulbs because there is no way those are going to work in there no matter what.

X53Jay4.8is · #8 09-13-2017, 06:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crowz

Well I guess I have a extra pair of nice switchback led bulbs because there is no way those are going to work in there no matter what.

The LED switchbacks that I acquired from Sirius LED works just fine on my X5 E53. I have the two wire setup like you mentioned.

crystalworks · #9 09-14-2017, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crowz

Well I guess I have a extra pair of nice switchback led bulbs because there is no way those are going to work in there no matter what.

I am in the same boat Crowz, and asked the same 2 wire question you did not that long ago. I just live without the flashback white parking light function... they look great as signal bulbs and since I retrofitted my ridiculously bright LED rings into the headlights, I don't miss having the sides be parking lights as well.

lezmtaylor · #10 09-14-2017, 10:56 AM

Would this throw some light onto the results of fitting led angel eyes to my wife's 2003 325 convertible E46.
The angel eyes work fine, but the front indicators glow as well when the lights are switched on.
The ind bulbs are single filament chrome bulbs and work ok as indicators.

I have a 2002 E53 4.4 have done the same conversion : led AE's and single filament chrome Indicators, but do not get the glowing inds when the AE's are switched on.

Real mystery to me.

Lez