Early e36 light rewiring

[Dr. Flyview]

Cool write up. Some concerns/questions:

1) The DRL removal in this manner does not take care of not being able to turn off interior/dash lights/tail lights with headlight switch on position 0 (should be like this no?)

2) The fogs with high fix - Will the foglight switch button still do anything, or does doing the mod you suggested turn the foglights on anytime the headlight switch is in position 1 or 2?

[Nick_ll]

While this manner of removing the DRL's is fine I believe, I have found looking at the wiring diagrams that there's something much, much more simple.
I don't know if this would work for the 92's with the orange relays near the strut towers, but it sure does on 93-94-95 e36's.

So, when you compare headlight wiring diagrams between 94 and say 97, the only possible thing you can spot in there that would cause the low beams to stay on all the time is a green/red wire that bypasses the headlight switch.

And here comes the nice part: it connects under the dashboard left side, in the splice panel above the kick panel.
And then better yet! There's only one splice with this wire color, and there are only 4 wires on it:
- hot
- left headlight
- right headlight
- park lights

If you disconnect all of them, everything stops going on with the key and works as it should with the switch.

And then let's pretend you have bought angel eyes and want to use them as DRL's. You only have to get a wire through the fuse box using the procedure described earlier in this topic, and connect it on the splice panel in place of the green/red wire, and they will light up like your low beams used to.

[Dr. Flyview]

Originally Posted by Nick_ll

While this manner of removing the DRL's is fine I believe, I have found looking at the wiring diagrams that there's something much, much more simple.
I don't know if this would work for the 92's with the orange relays near the strut towers, but it sure does on 93-94-95 e36's.

So, when you compare headlight wiring diagrams between 94 and say 97, the only possible thing you can spot in there that would cause the low beams to stay on all the time is a green/red wire that bypasses the headlight switch.

And here comes the nice part: it connects under the dashboard left side, in the splice panel above the kick panel.
And then better yet! There's only one splice with this wire color, and there are only 4 wires on it:
- hot
- left headlight
- right headlight
- park lights

If you disconnect all of them, everything stops going on with the key and works as it should with the switch.

And then let's pretend you have bought angel eyes and want to use them as DRL's. You only have to get a wire through the fuse box using the procedure described earlier in this topic, and connect it on the splice panel in place of the green/red wire, and they will light up like your low beams used to.

Have you tried it?? Pics/writeup please!!! I have my lowbeam HIDs connected to my high beam power/switch right now so I can turn them off...

What about the interior lights? These should also be off on position 0 afaik.

[Nick_ll]

Yes the interior lights are hard wired to the parking lights.

I'll try to post a writeup soon about that. When I'll have time to take pics I'll do it.

[carjoe]

Awesome. I just ordered new headlights with HID's and was just thinking I needed to do something about the DRL's.

Let me know how it goes. I won't get to try this until the weekend and even then I may not since doing the brakes take precedence over lights...

[Dr. Flyview]

Hey Nick, any updates?? Have you tried it yet?

[sthomas]

Originally Posted by Flav_cool

Cool write up. Some concerns/questions:
2) The fogs with high fix - Will the foglight switch button still do anything, or does doing the mod you suggested turn the foglights on anytime the headlight switch is in position 1 or 2?

Fogs and highbeams continue to operate from their respective switches. They are just no longer linked - so you can run highbeam and fogs at the same time.

[minh12]

is there a shop that can do this for you?