Fog lamp wiring loose...HELP

[CrimsonBrian]

Hey guys,
My front passenger fog lamp is busted again. I have spliced in a new wire like three times and for whatever reason it keeps getting undone. I think the biggest problem is because I have to put electrical tape around the connection. Ideally, I would like to replace the wire entirely, from stem to stern. However, I only know where the wire plugs into the lamp. I have no idea where the other end plugs into. Does anyone have a similar problem? Has anyone effected a similar repair? I hate having myopic fog lights and having to look at that little message on the dash. Thanks!

Brian

[winfred]

on that year the fog light wires are part of the main underhood harness, if you can't solder them use butt splice crimp connectors, the best ones, you can get at radio shack and have no plastic on them, to insulate them get some heat shrink tubing (looks like a drinking straw but when you heat it it shrinks over whatever wireing connection sealing and renforcing them, you shrink it with a lighter) $5-10 should fix it up good


Hey guys,
My front passenger fog lamp is busted again. I have spliced in a new wire like three times and for whatever reason it keeps getting undone. I think the biggest problem is because I have to put electrical tape around the connection. Ideally, I would like to replace the wire entirely, from stem to stern. However, I only know where the wire plugs into the lamp. I have no idea where the other end plugs into. Does anyone have a similar problem? Has anyone effected a similar repair? I hate having myopic fog lights and having to look at that little message on the dash. Thanks!

Brian

[CrimsonBrian]

Awesome, I will try that out. Thanks for the reply!

[632 Regal]

yep, solder the wires after you put some shrink tube on the wire and that should seal it up for good, thats what I did.

[CrimsonBrian]

Ive never been that good with a soldering iron (I could introduce any one of the high school science fair projects as evidence). If my car goes up in a huge ball of flames or I end up with a grapefruit sized ball of solder under my fog lamp, I'll know where to come... :)

[winfred]

just get those crimp connectors without the plastic on them and put heat shrink over that, it's the next best thing. once you learn the fact that you don't heat the solder you heat the thing being soldered it becomes easy, and when you discover flux that's just gravy


Ive never been that good with a soldering iron (I could introduce any one of the high school science fair projects as evidence). If my car goes up in a huge ball of flames or I end up with a grapefruit sized ball of solder under my fog lamp, I'll know where to come... :)

[632 Regal]

I never did grasp the concept of flux core solder and soldering irons, give me a butane torch, some flux and im good to go.

Is there any chance you can put your science fair exhibits on display for us here?

[CrimsonBrian]

Thankfully, high school was a little ways back for me, but I can certainly relate a story. It was my senior year and I was in a physics class that required that everyone make something for their final grade. I picked up a RadioShack kit that was supposed to build a microphone that would transmit on like a really low FM frequency. It included a breadboard the size of a postage stamp. I didnt realize that none of my solder points needed to not touch each other, so I just made one huge solder mess on the back, and needless to say, it didnt work. I tried it again and used an enormous breadboard and it did work but only transmitted like five feet away and was like the size of sheet of plywood.

Unfortunately, one other person in my class picked the same project and her dad was an engineer. Her project was perfect, I swear she could have started a pirate radio station. It goes without saying, I got like a C for that mess. Which is why I became a lawyer. So I can sue that girl for emotional distress. :)

Brian

[winfred]

i soldered a diode the size of a gnat on a video card to replace one that got knocked off when a component fell into the computer while i was working on it, and it's still working a couple years later, the most diffacult thing i ever did for a school project was building a electric motor from scratch, it sucked mostly due to the crappy components the book said to use, aluiminum foil is not a good materal to use for the comm, but when you are 10 you don't know better, the book must be right

[Javier]

electronics, after having seen pictures of your tool set.

Javier

[winfred]

i've worn out two of the older weller gas irons (the last one serves back up at the house) the new one rules with the piezo ignition and better tips


electronics, after having seen pictures of your tool set.

Javier

[Renman]

I'm driving home last night from work when a chunk of ice breaks loose from a truck in front of me. It bounced up under the car and I said "!@#$"! When I pulled into the garage I heard a clanking noise, got out and my fog light is only dragging by the wire. Oddly enough, the light still works. I think the fog lights and wiring are not protected very well on the E34. That might be why the wires break so often
, especially with the plug being at the bottom of the fixture where road debri can hit em.

[CrimsonBrian]

Yeah, not really bright on the engineers part, as far as I can tell, but I'm not an engineer. My fog lamp got hit by something and it busted the mount but was able to fix it. Get some expoxy and it should patch right up.