Hi-Beam Switch Repair

[Reaper]

Hi, after reading about lot's people having their hi-beam fail and having
their switch block replaced, sometimes twice. I thought I was lucky, wrong.
So rather than go though the pain of warranty claim here in Australia,
(8 weeks to replace a throttle body)I thought how hard can it be, it's only a switch.

Anyhow, you need to remove the lower half of the s/w block, 2 v-small torx,
hinges from rear, small clips in the front.
The bolt in end of the handlebar.
Then the bolt that holds grip, sleeve s/w block on, it's all one piece and a clamp
that holds the cables which clips onto the upper half
after that the 2 cables pull out.

The switch tested OK, fairly easy to disassemble, looks quite durable, the
same type of switch is used throughout the s/w block, so you would think that the
indicators would fail first if they were problematic.
So it must be in the wiring. The wiring is printed on flexible plastic and glued
to the assembly. Using a multimeter with sharp probes to press through the insulating varnish,
the trace running from the negative side of the switch had failed, even though it looked OK.

So I scraped away the varnish at the switch and the back of the socket
and soldered a jump wire in, tested OK in the bike, stuck it down with glue
and all's well. Seems that trace does a sharp 90 bend, so maybe that's cause??

Disclaimer
Many moons ago I repaired notebooks. So if small fiddly stuff and reasonable soldering skills
are not your strong points, go to the dealer or someone who can

[viperclaw]

Good job on the repair. The problem with the switches has been bad batches of the flexible wiring. They crack or something and go bad (lose continuity).

This may be a viable option for those that don't want to pay for a new switch or whose bikes are out of warranty.

If you intend to have it replaced under warranty at any time do not remove the backing of the switches and expose the wiring underneath. I believe there is a tamper proof tape or something. If removed BMW won't warranty it. Just FYI.

[dattaway]

I thought design defects of safety equipment (such as lighting) would prompt a recall.

[Reaper]

Viper, you're correct about the tamper sticker / warranty, I should have put it in.
Sorry , thanks.
I destroyed mine when I fitted some heli bars, I didn't realize bmw's mounting system
was so unique for the s/w block.

[viperclaw]

Originally Posted by dattaway

I thought design defects of safety equipment (such as lighting) would prompt a recall.

Not sure if it considered a "design" defect. I think they consider it a manufacturing defect or sub-standard to their quality standards. Most of the electrical components are manufactured by sub-contractors. They do have "campaigns" where components are replaced if a bike comes into the shop--the VIN is checked in the database and customer is told what can be fixed under warranty. These are different from recalls which are mandatory and government regulated. You will get a notice if it is a "recall".

The switch for the high beam I would say (this is only my opinion) isn't a necessary component. If it caused the low beam to go out for some odd reason that could be safety related--don't think it controls the low beam, it comes on with the engine running and is in line with the instrument cluster and a load shed relay and fuse or fuses.

It is debatable, I guess, that everything on the bike is safety related.

[MikePeavler]

Well maybe not....My high beam and low beam both quick working today on my 2012 sadly. I noticed my "high" beam light indicator was always on so when I called the dealer today they said they would look at it when I get my frist service done on Thursday. This sucks...cause I can't even ride at night due to no lights other then the parking lights...

M

[kuroshio]

Has anyone tried simply reflowing the solder with a heat gun?

Worked for my 1st Gen 60 gig PS3.

[MikePeavler]

Mine ended up being a high/low voltage shed relay that had failed. It's back to working now =0)