Hey all,

As the thread title indicates, I have a 2004 MCS and have been suffering with tail light problems since owning the car (2+ years).

I frequently have outages of my turn signals, brake and running lights. If I reach in and jiggle the light bulb housing on the offending side, this usually solves the problem...temporarily. I have checked the wiring, the plugs as well as the bulbs many times, all are always fine. In fact I have yet to replace a bulb, none have ever burned out. All electrical connections are clean and coated with dielectric grease. I even went so far as to snug up the metal in the bulb sockets with a small screwdriver to make sure there is always good contact. This seemed to help a bit, but the problem remains. I have been pulled over by the cops once for this already and often have friends/family inform me that I've got a light out in the back end...it's getting a bit old and I'd rather not get pulled again by the cops. The problems have been compounded lately as I now live in an area with extremely bad and bumpy roads. Having to check the lights every time I drive the car is getting to be ridiculous...

Anyone else experiencing this problem? Anyone with any ideas for a solution? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Regards,
Dave

 

The BC-1 module has been a known problem with brake lights not working but, not as an intermittent problem. Guess there could be a connection problem at the BC-1 module.

 

If I reach in and jiggle the light bulb housing on the offending side, this usually solves the problem...temporarily.....

Not sure if this an issue with the BCM.

Sounds like plating on the metal connectors which make contact with the bulb is the issue.

Could try two things.

Find a used set of tail lights in NAM Marketplace ( normally around 60 dollars shipped for a pair. Or,

try using some dielectric contact grease on the contact points of each bulb, then re-install them into housings. The conact grease is purchased as a small packet on most counters of autoparts stores.

 

You wouldn't need to replace the entire taillight if electrical contact is the problem. An option is to buy a brand new bulbholder panel from a dealer or vendor.
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...32&hg=63&fg=20 (item #7)

 

the previous owner might have used a jumper (sometimes a paperclip) to light up the rear fogs and brakes at the same time....then undid the mod....so the bulb holder/contacts might be loose....
Some folks have the BCM fail too...
I would remove the old bulb, use some contact cleaner, some di-electric grease, then put in a new bulb.

 

My tail lamp did this same thing, brake lights and turn were ok.

Replacing just the bulb fixed it.

 

Sometimes you can't see the elements failing inside the bulbs. A small jiggle may separate the filament enough to make it stop working and the same will make it work again. The cheapest and easiest place to start is to replace the bulbs.

 

Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions, much appreciated. Given that I've checked and rechecked the wiring, cleaned, tweaked and greased (dielectric) the contacts and I know the previous owner didn't do the brake light mod...aside from purchasing new bulb housings, I guess the only option is to replace all of the bulbs and go from there. Worth a shot, I suppose, and beats getting nailed by the fuzz again or driving around without lights...

 

Hi Working On An 04 Mini With The Same Problem, Pass. Side Brake Lights Are Inop, Drivers Side Comes And Goes, Measured Voltage At Tail Lamp Connector And Only Have 5 Volts, Checked Signal At Bcm And Still Showing Low Voltage, The Wire For The Left Side Is Black With A Green Stripe And The Right Side Is Black With Blue, Check Voltage At These Wires When The Light Is Inop (brake Pedal Pressed), Should Have Batt. Voltage.

 

I'm pretty sure its the BC1 module for me. On the right side I have no turn signal and no brake light, (although the parking light is on) unless its a fuse elsewhere that I'm not aware of. The really shitty part is that this has to be programmed at a dealership. ****! Anybody have any pics of where the BC1 module is or how to get to it?