The cutout is filled, it used to work before - before it was driven with no windows in the rain.
I searched for the other version by the knee or steering wheel, no wheel exists there and no cutout down there at all.
I think on the 99 they went "high tech" and put it all on one pull switch and twist knob. Lol.
Would rather not go to a dealership, they will charge me $240/h shop time. I tried to bribe a BMW tech with some offsite work but he said he hates electrical. Bumped into him by happenchance with a dead battery by the liquor store. No dice on him although he would be the best bet; if I had his number. I just gave him my card and told him to contact me.
It seems kind of stupid the whole instrumentation panel including gear goes all through one silly dimmer; it's kind of an important thing. The car rocks. Hence I wouldn't mind to just hardwire the damned dimmer in and make the lights manual on more reliable switches. I can blow over $100 on a dimmer switch and shipping, but it doesn't seem easy to remove. I fear I may have to actually pull the dashboard right off, there is no simple screw at the bottom like on other models. Would rather never have to do that again, like ever.
Unless someone here knows an easier way to replace the headlight/dimmer switch on a '99 1.9L 318ti, to which I would be all ears. I'm loathe to pull the dash because chances are, just doing that will cause more problems - it's pretty tight back there. Just trying to pull peices of the broken glass out caused the speaker on the drivers side to pop out of it's plug. Might have again been a **** DIY job.
Just want to restore this puppy to it's former stock glory as best I can, nothing fancy and money IS an object. I know bimmers are expensive toys but sinking a few thousand into a car I bought for 2 grand that I haven't even driven yet borders on insanity. I'd rather at least get to have some fun with it and nip away at the restoration. Poor car, it was left with a passenger side window half open because the window came off the regulator for over a year, pine needles got stuck into the paint on the hood. It's basically a rescue job due to neglect. Not a bad find though, it runs fantastic and almost all the electrical other than this silly dimmer thing works (plus I need some better headlights). |