E92 LCI tail light stinking up my trunk

924er · 10-08-2019, 11:43 AM

Hello guys

6 months ago I purchased a set of e92 LCI tail lights by depo. They have been awesome, did not require coding because they came with these oversized ballasts/resistors.

Today I was in 2 hours of stop and go 405 traffic, and when I popped my trunk I noticed a strong plastic like odor. I noticed that one of my ballast from my taillight cracked and that's where is smell is coming from. The taillights still work perfectly fine, for now.

My question is, if these go bad, what part do I need to replace it? I found OEM wires which do not contain a giant ballast, and apparently those are the ones needed if converting pre LCI to LCI tail lights but will require coding.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...SABEgLX7fD_BwE

I attacked a pic of what it looks like.

Thanks

IllSic_Design · 10-08-2019, 02:32 PM

Yes, those wire will work to fix your light, but you will need to code out the bulb check as they state in the description otherwise you'll get a error/warning light. You used to be able to find just the replacement china lci ballasts on ebay but I don't see any right now.

n54flamer · 11-10-2019, 09:08 PM

I had the same problem with the DEPO LCI harness on my M3. I believe the issue is that the resistor they used is potted in one of the black boxes using some urethane(?) based compound. When the resistor heats it up it expands but is significantly constrained by the potting compound, hence the cracks that we have observed. My guess is that the resistor is still good just the material around it is not compliant to the heat, and will continue to melt/stink up our cars.

This made my car absolutely stink. Driving with the windows down only helped circulate the toxic fumes around the cabin. Both of the harnesses were not only failing, but melting everything around them in my trunk. Glad to see I am not the only victim to poor wiring design.

On the bright side, I will likely order the OEM harness, code it and be done with this. Hopefully others with this problem will see this thead and follow suit.

924er · 11-12-2019, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by n54flamer

I had the same problem with the DEPO LCI harness on my M3. I believe the issue is that the resistor they used is potted in one of the black boxes using some urethane(?) based compound. When the resistor heats it up it expands but is significantly constrained by the potting compound, hence the cracks that we have observed. My guess is that the resistor is still good just the material around it is not compliant to the heat, and will continue to melt/stink up our cars.

This made my car absolutely stink. Driving with the windows down only helped circulate the toxic fumes around the cabin. Both of the harnesses were not only failing, but melting everything around them in my trunk. Glad to see I am not the only victim to poor wiring design.

On the bright side, I will likely order the OEM harness, code it and be done with this. Hopefully others with this problem will see this thead and follow suit.

Glad I'm not the only one! I will be eventually buying the OEM harness as well. For now the smell decreased, I wrapped the resister in electrical tape to trap the smell inside. Good observation on hour part. Hopefully it doesn't cause a fire

10-08-2019, 11:43 AM	#1
924er Colonel 352 Rep 2,050 Posts Drives: e92 335i '10 Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Socal iTrader: (0)	Hello guys 6 months ago I purchased a set of e92 LCI tail lights by depo. They have been awesome, did not require coding because they came with these oversized ballasts/resistors. Today I was in 2 hours of stop and go 405 traffic, and when I popped my trunk I noticed a strong plastic like odor. I noticed that one of my ballast from my taillight cracked and that's where is smell is coming from. The taillights still work perfectly fine, for now. My question is, if these go bad, what part do I need to replace it? I found OEM wires which do not contain a giant ballast, and apparently those are the ones needed if converting pre LCI to LCI tail lights but will require coding. https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...SABEgLX7fD_BwE I attacked a pic of what it looks like. Thanks __________________ '10 e92 N54 DCI intakes, ER chargepipe, TIAL BOV, VRSF 5in FMIC, BMS Downpipes COBB e30
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10-08-2019, 02:32 PM	#2
IllSic_Design Colonel 2124 Rep 2,758 Posts Drives: 09 E92 335i Join Date: Jun 2016 Location: Northern California iTrader: (1)	Yes, those wire will work to fix your light, but you will need to code out the bulb check as they state in the description otherwise you'll get a error/warning light. You used to be able to find just the replacement china lci ballasts on ebay but I don't see any right now.
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11-10-2019, 09:08 PM	#3
n54flamer Private First Class 26 Rep 121 Posts Drives: 2008 E92 M3/1990 3.4 4Runner Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Palo Alto, CA iTrader: (2)	I had the same problem with the DEPO LCI harness on my M3. I believe the issue is that the resistor they used is potted in one of the black boxes using some urethane(?) based compound. When the resistor heats it up it expands but is significantly constrained by the potting compound, hence the cracks that we have observed. My guess is that the resistor is still good just the material around it is not compliant to the heat, and will continue to melt/stink up our cars. This made my car absolutely stink. Driving with the windows down only helped circulate the toxic fumes around the cabin. Both of the harnesses were not only failing, but melting everything around them in my trunk. Glad to see I am not the only victim to poor wiring design. On the bright side, I will likely order the OEM harness, code it and be done with this. Hopefully others with this problem will see this thead and follow suit.
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