BMW Repair: 1998 BMW Electrical Oddity, vanity mirror, minneapolis area

Question
1998 528i when you open vanity mirror radio shuts down, steering wheel goes to position after you turn off engine %26 horn does not work. all fuses check ok When you press non working horn flashing clock on radio dash goes off. any suggestions would be appreciated Walter

Answer
Sell it quick.  If you're in the Minneapolis area, give me a call.

Seriously, there is obviously a wiring problem somewhere.  

-The steering wheel moving with turning the engine off is a feature starting in '98, so don't worry about that one.

-The other two are likely linked in some way (the radio shutting down when the (non-working) horn is switched, and the vanity mirror shutting off the radio.

I would start with the horn....it's the one piece you KNOW has a problem.  
- There are two fuses, F38 (5A) and F3 (15A).  Make sure they are good.
- There is a Horn Relay under the left side of the dash. It hangs separately from others.  5 wires go to it:
  =VI/WS, goes to F38.  
  =RT/GE/WS, goes to F3
  =BR/RT, goes to horn switch
  =VI/GR and VI/BL, go to two separate horns.

(VI=Violet, WS=White, RT=Red, GE=Yellow, BR=Brown, BL=Blue)

Check that there is power coming in from the fuses, and that the relay is good.


Once your horn is fixed, see what problem remains.  Update me, and we'll look further.