E21 Hazard switch repair
Subject: Hazard switch repair
Sent: 1/8/97 09:51
Received: 1/8/97 14:05
From: Arthur Flagg, PVNET/PVPOST1/AFlagg%PVISION@mcimail.com
To: Philip E. Clark, E21Autos@ix.netcom.com
Posted on the bmwe21.net forum by Rob in Sydney: 11/22/03
03:35
After reading a few comments in the last newsletter about pennies and Bic pen
caps jammed in the hazard switch to keep the switch engaged I thought I'd let
you all know that it's an easy repair. It probably takes 30 minutes to do -
less time than a trip to the salvage yard. Once the switch is out of the car,
notice the center line where the plastic switch body snaps together. Pry the
locking tabs with a small screwdriver all around the body until the two pieces
separate. The plastic is resilient and takes a lot of abuse. Slowly remove the
pieces, there is a coil spring in there, but it's not highly compressed. When
it is apart you can see the lever (soft aluminum?) with a short stub at the
end. You will see how this works as you actuate the switch. The lever and stub
engage a track moulded in the plastic and for each push of the switch it either
engages to hold the switch in (flashers off) or disengages to let the switch
out (flashers on). The lever seems to bend over time and the stub rides out of
the edges of the track. Herein lies the easy fix - bend the lever towards the
track (small needle nose pliers) to make the stub ride securely in the track. Work
the switch and all should be well. Snap the body back together and you're done.
I saw another switch that operated in and out OK but
was blowing fuses. After taking this one apart, I could see one of the copper
spring fingers in the bottom of the switch had been bent and crushed and was
shorting to other contacts. After straightening the finger the problem was
solved.
-Art
'83 320i 110K