peachykonan

Hi guys,

I recently started getting license plate light error messages on my 2004 525i.

I replaced the light bulb (push housing to right, it pops out), which only fixed the issue temporarily. I noticed that opening/closing the trunk would cause the new bulb to flicker. I pulled out the trunk lid liner and boot lining and have traced the problem to the wiring coming out of the right trunk hinge; any slight tap to the cluster of wrapped cables (right where they enter into the hinge tube) would cause the license plate bulb to turn off/turn on.

I've never done wiring work, so I'm hoping someone can help tell me how difficult this would be to fix on my own.





Thanks,
Mark

sahiljain22

This is pretty easy. I wired a rear view camera a while back and replaced the trunk lid handle/latch. Google for modmynav kit install for e60 and you can use the directions to fix this cable of yours.

peachykonan

Thanks for the reply, I found the information you were recommending (Several E60 pdfs located here):

http://modmynav.com/install/diy/

Since I've only just started working on this car, I'm hoping someone can comment on how to start the resolution process before I break something . The problem wire is in a cluster of cables wrapped in black tape that feeds through the right trunk hinge. If the problem is here, should I pull all the wires from the trunk, through the hinge before I start working? There's very little play at the moment, and I'll need to cut something somewhere, and that's something I'm dreading...

Thanks again in advance!

Sublime

If it were me I would order and purchase number 5 on this page and call it a day.

Real OEM

DavidF

Happened to me but in my case the trunk latch is what stopped working. The wiring breaks just as it enters the hinge tube on the bottom side. There is a rubber "L" shaped plug that holds the wiring in the bottom of the hinge. The wiring breaks at this rubber plug due to the sharp bend and constant flexing back and forth as the trunk is opened and closed (also common issue on the E46).

Anyway, repairing the wiring is easy (use solder). Just unwrap the wire bundle find the guilty wire(s) and splice back together. Retape and reinsert in rubber plug and done. I imagine repairing the wiring is much easier than replacin the entire trunk harness and certainly much cheaper.

peachykonan

Thank you for the replies!!! I'm going in, will report soon .

peachykonan

I pulled out the plug and unwrapped the cables, and I've attached a picture of what I found below. It turns out the exposed wires were touching each other, causing a short.

I bought electrical tape to fix the wires with minor issues, and for those with large lengths of exposed wire, cut and re-attached using butt-connectors and crimping. Finally, I rewrapped and shifted the wires before re-inserting it into the L-shaped plug so that the worn section is no longer stressed. Hopefully this resolves the issue.

Sublime

Great job! Seems as if it resolved the symptom - hopefully the issue with the obvious design flaw does not strike again.