Front dome only works with key out

chmsalman · 04-08-2014, 04:24 AM

Alright guys, I have a slight issue I'm hoping someone could help me with.

I love the orange light that BMW uses, so much that I decided to add more of it. After some research, I've found that the wavelength of orange that BMW uses is about 605nm. I found a US ebay seller that sells LED's that are 605nm. It was perfect. I ordered some LED tubes, and after hours and hours of work and retrofitting, I was able to get the exact results I wanted.

I put two of these tubes in each of the front foot wells, one in each rear foot well, and one in the front dome light. They were all working fine until today, the dome light stopped working. Everything else was working, map lights turned on if I pressed the button, etc. I thought I might have loosened the connection while installing, that wasn't the case.

I know that because the moment I turned my car off and took the key out, the front dome worked! I put the key back in, turned the car on, and as expected, the light again stopped working. Turned the car off, took the key out, and it turned on again!

Whats going on?!?!? Should I add a certain resistance to the circuit so the car feels like its more of a halogen lamp? Ideas?

See pictures below. They were taken with my phone so excuse the crappy quality.

cisf0rcalvin · 04-08-2014, 07:17 PM

What circuit did you tap into for the footwell lights? They look really nice.

As for the dome light, you need a error free CANBUS LED. Resistors may work because LEDs draw less power. Not sure on what value to add though. Maybe somebody else can chime in.

chmsalman · 04-09-2014, 11:04 AM

Thanks for your reply. I used power from the factory foot well lights. Just took the plastic bulb housing out, tapped into the wires connected to it. Had a harness that had 3 circuits in parallel, two for the two LED tubes, and one more for wires running to the back which connected to another LED tube for rear foot well lighting.

I'm pretty sure resistors would work, might make the car think the halogens are still in there. Still trying to find a value though...

chmsalman · 04-12-2014, 12:26 AM

Any ideas anyone?

04-08-2014, 04:24 AM	#1
chmsalman First Lieutenant 48 Rep 357 Posts Drives: 2014 F10 535i x-drive Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Regina, CA iTrader: (0)	Front dome only works with key out - Retrofit LED's Alright guys, I have a slight issue I'm hoping someone could help me with. I love the orange light that BMW uses, so much that I decided to add more of it. After some research, I've found that the wavelength of orange that BMW uses is about 605nm. I found a US ebay seller that sells LED's that are 605nm. It was perfect. I ordered some LED tubes, and after hours and hours of work and retrofitting, I was able to get the exact results I wanted. I put two of these tubes in each of the front foot wells, one in each rear foot well, and one in the front dome light. They were all working fine until today, the dome light stopped working. Everything else was working, map lights turned on if I pressed the button, etc. I thought I might have loosened the connection while installing, that wasn't the case. I know that because the moment I turned my car off and took the key out, the front dome worked! I put the key back in, turned the car on, and as expected, the light again stopped working. Turned the car off, took the key out, and it turned on again! Whats going on?!?!? Should I add a certain resistance to the circuit so the car feels like its more of a halogen lamp? Ideas? See pictures below. They were taken with my phone so excuse the crappy quality. Attached Images
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04-08-2014, 07:17 PM	#2
cisf0rcalvin First Lieutenant 33 Rep 322 Posts Drives: E90 LCI Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Nevada iTrader: (2) Garage List 2010 BMW 328i [8.50]	What circuit did you tap into for the footwell lights? They look really nice. As for the dome light, you need a error free CANBUS LED. Resistors may work because LEDs draw less power. Not sure on what value to add though. Maybe somebody else can chime in. __________________ Add Ons: Charcoal Filter Delete, K&N Drop-in, Air Scoops, HID Angel Eyes, Splitters, M3 Lip Spoiler, Gloss Black Kidney Grills, Blackvue DR500-GW, M-Tech rear, BMW Performance Exhaust, M3 control arms, Bilstein HD
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04-09-2014, 11:04 AM	#3
chmsalman First Lieutenant 48 Rep 357 Posts Drives: 2014 F10 535i x-drive Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Regina, CA iTrader: (0)	Thanks for your reply. I used power from the factory foot well lights. Just took the plastic bulb housing out, tapped into the wires connected to it. Had a harness that had 3 circuits in parallel, two for the two LED tubes, and one more for wires running to the back which connected to another LED tube for rear foot well lighting. I'm pretty sure resistors would work, might make the car think the halogens are still in there. Still trying to find a value though...
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04-12-2014, 12:26 AM	#4
chmsalman First Lieutenant 48 Rep 357 Posts Drives: 2014 F10 535i x-drive Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Regina, CA iTrader: (0)	Any ideas anyone?
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