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e34 advice please

Hi

Just a simple question :)

My 1996 e34 520i SE Touring is my second e34 and I seem to recall the

1st one had the cold/hot thumbwheel on the upper centre dash fresh air vent lit at night time.

This item is not lit on my current e34, before I go searching for a blown bulb etc can some else confirm that this is lit at night time?

Thanks

Reply to
Steve Parry
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Depends on the model year. The earlier cars did illuminate, but the later E34s changed this control (even though the wiring and the bulb holder are still there) to a different design which does not light up.

I spent a lot of time trying to figure this out on my 1995 E34 M5 before I discovered that BMW stopped illuminating this control.

Reply to
Philip K

Philip K fumbled, fiddled and fingered:

thanks Phil, my current 5 is a Feb 1996 so I guess I was correct in recalling the 1989 530 did illuminate :)

Do I assume from what you're saying that as the wiring and bulb holder is still there I merely have to pop a bulb in to get it to work?

Reply to
Steve Parry

Sadly not. The rotary control has changed and no longer has a place in it for the bulb to go. Hence the bulb holder just lies under the large ventilation grill (the one at the top centre of the dash).

There's a really good write-up of how the bulb fits in the OLDER design at

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(although this is for an E327-series it's the same as the earlier E34s).

Reply to
Philip K

Thanks for that ..

Reply to
Steve Parry

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