Brake Light -- False Warnings

[joegoodrich]

We have been plagued by the false warnings of 'Check Brake Lights'.

I found the problem today... See attached pictures.

The foam seal can let water through and can cause corrosion. Also over time it looks like the contact between the bulb holder and light housing can cause a BURN spot.

It looks like the plastic behind the contact in the housing melts away and causes it to flex and move as the vehicle moves down the road. The flexing must cause and arc which causes the burn out spot.

I solved the issue for now by supporting the contact in the housing with a piece of metal wedged in behind it... to support it since the plastic had melted back.

I added solder to the burn point. So far so good. We'll see. If it fails again... time to replace the housing. I hope this helps someone.

[Estroil 4.8is]

Very common issue with the E53. Nice work on fixing it. I don't have to worry about that anymore since switching to the aftermarket tail lights. They have a plug type connection instead of the oem garbage connection.

[joegoodrich]

Which aftermarket lights do you have? I might consider them if the fix goes bad.

I'm suprised that BMW uses such a stupid design. It seems like most other manufacturers use a plug in type connection. I guess that is why I always see BMW's, Mercedes and Volvos going down the road with burned out tail lights.

[Estroil 4.8is]

These are the ones I bought. They are on eBay all the time. Very nice fit and finish. Here they are on my X.

[Tomaz]

Glad to see you soldered over the burn spot. I repaired a burn spot just like yours and its been working for years. Good luck

[Quicksilver]

Recently i'm having the same warning. Off to the dealer we shall go.