smidley

I just noticed this morning that the lights on my shifter were not illuminating when the car is on. None of them light up no matter what position the shifter is in. I'm sure they didn't all burn out at the same time. Has anyone else experienced this before? Everything else seems fine with the car.

Could this possibly be a fuse that went out? Where should I look?

smidley

After going home from work, the lights in the shifter were working again. Maybe it was just a strange fluke...

Mikey B-mer

Are you still under warranty? If so, you need to take it into the dealer. I had the same issue, & it was the ribbon cable that was torn under the shifter plate. They replaced the complete shifter assembly. There are some threads on how to remove the plate & check the cable for damage.

smidley

I only have the extended warranty through BMW, but I don't know if this would be covered.

I noticed that this started happening again. I got in the car this morning and turned it on. The lights all came on fine. Then I shifted into reverse and the lights went out and would not come back on no matter what. This also includes the sport button light.

Euronuts

Your extended warranty should cover this...
It is most likely your wires rubbing or getting pinched and its shorting out right under your gear selector.
This has been a common problem. Also an easy fix if you dont want to go to the stealer!
Al

smidley

Any instructions on the DIY fix? I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty, but I can't seem to find any instructions on what to look for to fix myself. Thanks!

smidley

I just called BMW and they said the extended warranty does not cover this, it only covers powertrain. Does anyone have any instructions on how I might be able to fix it myself?

smidley

I was able to figure this out. I pulled up the leather shroud and then popped out the silver bezel. I can see that the ribbon cable inside is getting pinched and is almost severed. For now, I used some electrical tape on both sides of the ribbon so it will be a little better shielded and hopefully last a while longer.

Mikey B-mer

If you have the power train warranty you are correct. The gold, & platinum pkgs cover the shifter. Maybe you can purchase just the cable.

lodestar

The lights on my shifter went out a couple of weeks ago and when I took the trim off I saw that the ribbon cable had cracked and a few wires had broken on the left hand side (there's a photograph posted by another member of this problem elsewhere on the forum, but I can't find it at the moment). Most of the wires were still connected but it looked like it was only a matter of time before they all broke. Apart from the lights not working, there were no other issues or warning lights. I decided to repair the wires rather than go for an expensive replacement (I am Scottish after all). I started by cutting the cable at the damaged section. I first tried to use a 15 pin plug and socket that I got from an electronics shop but couldn't get the wires to stay in place, and in any event, I couldn't refit the trim because the connectors were too bulky. I ended up separating the ribbon into 12 individual wires (about an inch on either side of the cut), stripping the ends, sliding some heat shrink over one end, soldering the individual wires together and shrinking the heat shrink over the join. Stripping the wires isn't as difficult as it sounds because the wires actually have quite a few strands and they're not as delicate as the ribbon cables in electronic devices. All up, about two hours. Not pretty, but it works.