middle brake light "half" broken

[Helmuth]

Originally Posted by TerminatorX5

Helmuth, long time no see... is your cruise control functioning?

Hi,

yes - no problem with that. Why do you ask? Is that something that typically breaks? Hope not !!

BR, Helmuth

[Helmuth]

Originally Posted by mrbmwx5

Headlights guru is here .. Lol
Check out this link my friend

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...idding-me.html

Hello,

If else fails I will dremel that thing apart and put a LED stripe in. Should not be a big deal I believe. Would be fun to use some Hiflux LED's ......

Thanks everybody!

Have fun,

Helmuth

PS: now 172.000km (~107.000miles) on the clock and "only" the 3rd brakelight has a problem - the rest of the X is all good.

[TerminatorX5]

Originally Posted by Helmuth

Hi,

yes - no problem with that. Why do you ask? Is that something that typically breaks? Hope not !!

BR, Helmuth

since the cruise control is functioning, that eliminates problems with brake switch, brake switch circuitry and the ABS module incorrectly reporting the brake pedal position - i would say the problem is within the light LEDs burned, the LED internal board corroded, the circuit board electrical lines lifted, some internal wiring having issues, such as cold solder points...

not to worry - the issue is within the strip itself...

[Helmuth]

Originally Posted by TerminatorX5

since the cruise control is functioning, that eliminates problems with brake switch, brake switch circuitry and the ABS module incorrectly reporting the brake pedal position - i would say the problem is within the light LEDs burned, the LED internal board corroded, the circuit board electrical lines lifted, some internal wiring having issues, such as cold solder points...

not to worry - the issue is within the strip itself...

Ahhhhhh... good logic!! Understand.

[Helmuth]

Originally Posted by BrianX54.4is

To remove the third brake light you first need to remove the spoiler cover (5 torx screws).
This video covers it.
BMW X5 third brake light removal Audio Rear Spoiler Antenna e53 bimmer merchant - YouTube

On the off-chance that the light is ok but there is damaged wiring at the tailgate hinge (as in my case recently) - see this post.

Thank you Brian. Very helpful!!

[Helmuth]

So guys, to bring that to an end - if there is an end........

I have dremeld apart this 250.- thing and found something that might be worth 25.- if manufactured in the West and even less if ...... you know what I mean.

Removing the 3rd brakelight is a 5 minutes thing if you look at the video in this thread posted by Brian - THANKS! 5 screws for the spoiler, 2 screws for the light itself.

If you have disassembled the brakelight you need to find the disconnection on the printed circuit. Solder a bridge over it (the white wire) and glue the whole thing together again with some silicone.

Done!

Costed 5 bucks and half an hour.

Have fun,

Helmuth

[Zulu95]

Man that is a ripoff! I have a LED strip that looks very like that strip I bought as a backup for the Explorer third brake light. Ford used a CCF with a small inverter that failed. I never needed it so I guess I'll hang on to it in case the X TBlLfails. It cost me $4 when I bought it.

[Helmuth]

The backside of this rocket sience part says:

63.25-8 362-039 13,5V 4.5W

If that breaks guys - please do not replace it - fix it. It's easy
I go now and put it in again :-) The glue is dry enough.

Take care,

Helmuth

[Anjolle]

Thank you Helmuth for your pictures.
Since I didn't have any dremel tool handy I din't remove the whole lens but cut out a smaller section from the back side of the lamp using a hacksaw and knife. I think it would be easier to seal the smaller section than the whole lens. The damage of the PCB was even worse in my case. I covered the the PCB with nail polish and I'm planning to fill the opening with some gasket silicone in order to protect the board from the moisture.

[Helmuth]

Your method of fixing that is anyway better - if you remove the lens the chance to break it is not too small.