OBC lights

[BMWM5LOVER]

Well yesterday eve i noticed that on my OBC the buttons are no longer lighted, but the screen works. Any help, advice, w/e on what has happened, and how i can fix it?


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[LikeCDoos]

Go to your dealer and pick up a new bulb for the buttons, you'll only need one.
Part Number: 62 11 1 368 299

[BMWM5LOVER]

sounds great, how can i change it thouhg?
does it just screw int he back? how do i take the OBC out of the dash?

[LikeCDoos]

sounds great, how can i change it thouhg?
does it just screw int he back? how do i take the OBC out of the dash?

I'm pretty sure it's one of those bulbs that you push in and turn half way and it will pop out.

To take the OBC out, unscrew 2 screw above your hazard light button and 2 more screws at the bottom. Then pop off the 5 knobs on the climate control and the panal to uncover 4 more screws. Unscrew those then you can pop out the whole dash part exposing the back of the OBC. There might be an easier way but that is how i do it.

[Fraser]

sounds great, how can i change it thouhg?
does it just screw int he back? how do i take the OBC out of the dash?

I'm pretty sure it's one of those bulbs that you push in and turn half way and it will pop out.

To take the OBC out, unscrew 2 screw above your hazard light button and 2 more screws at the bottom. Then pop off the 5 knobs on the climate control and the panal to uncover 4 more screws. Unscrew those then you can pop out the whole dash part exposing the back of the OBC. There might be an easier way but that is how i do it.

Yup, that's the easiest way to do it, unless you feel like taking apart most of the pass. side under-dash and fumbling around with a screwdriver behind there while the HVAC panel is still secure.
The bulb for the buttons is the one in the middle, on the back of the OBC. The bulb for the display is in a sliding cartridge-type thing accesible on the side of the OBC, near the top. You may want to replace both if you're bothering with removing it.

[LikeCDoos]

yes i would recomend replacing both the bulbs while you have it out. The OBC Backlight runs $30 or so while the keypad light is only a few bucks.

[Tangent]

Instead of paying $30 for the backlight, if you have a soldering iron you can just go down to your local electronics supply store and pick up a pair of 5V bulbs for about 70 cents.

[Nihilator]

I like these directions better than the ones on pelican parts.

For the benefit of those looking for expanded instructions...

The two top screws are behind and above the second and fourth switch plates...in my case, it was the power top switch and the hazard switch. Those switches have to be popped out in order to reach the screws. The two bottom screws are not covered by anything, but are well-recessed above the ashtray / storage space. You'll need a stubby screwdriver.

Removing the thin plastic plate behind the three airflow sliders wasn't that tough, but it could easily break; it seemed really brittle and thin. Pull on one of the two thicker pieces in the center (between the top and middle slider or between the middle and lower slider)...try not to pry from the outside, where it's thinnest.

I may be mistaken, but I don't remember actually having to remove the dials. YMMV.

After the eight screws have been removed, gently pull the right side of the dash section forward a couple of inches. Push the OBC back slightly to expose the two screws that hold the white OBC housing to the OBC's front panel. The light panel is at the top of the white housing on the right side. In order to slide it out, you have to unscrew those two screws, and the easiest way to do that is with a pair of needlenose pliers.

"Installation is the reverse of removal."

I'm so glad to have the OBC back, but now I've got a different problem; the LCD panel itself is "leaky" on the bottom, and looks like this:



And for those keeping score, this is what the light bar looks like:



And if you choose to remove and resolder your own bulbs in there, you'll have to desolder the four connections in the dead center of the board on the back of the light panel, shown here:



That was fun, wasn't it!?

--Chris

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[Cone]

Good info, I should replace the bulb behind the buttons on my car.

[hotghias]

this topic is really old, but it helped me out so i'll share my experience, as well as get it on the record for future searchers.

it was easy as hell to replace the bulbs in the backlight with ones from radio shack. i got 6V bulbs (i think the package said 25 mA, too, if that helps anyone) that were about the same size as the old ones. i had to strip the wires on the leads and peel back/cut off some plastic that ran down the leads. the toughest part was desoldering the old bulbs. i've never done soldering before, and the total "extra" time versus just replacing the light bar was probably 30-45 lazy minutes. works great.

total cost for 2 bulbs and 5 ft. of desoldering mesh (of which about 5" was used): $6.
plus it was educational.

total cost for OBC conversion into a '87 325: $10 for obc and wiring from junkyard (okay, i stole the harness), $6 for backlight. i'm a happy kid.

[chrisd]

I decided while I had the thing out that i NEVER wanted to do it again- so I replaced the bulbs with LEDs and a pair of resistors to get down from 12v to 3. It works perfectly, dimming properly and everything. It cost about $3 total, plus half an hour of soldering and cramming stuff back into the bulb bar.