Warning chime

[Vanguard]

It's that time of year where I leave for work while it's dark and get to work after the sun is up. Leaving work last night I found I'd left my lights on and the battery was dead. This is the second time this has happened to me in about a month. I'm used to having a chime (my old VW), but the 530i only gives me the warning message. Is their a fuse I should be checking, something else or does the e34 not have a chime?

[filip00]

AFAIK e34 doesn't have a lights-on chime. i also get only the written warning.

[LunatiC]

I get a chime when I leave my lights on and open the door with the car off. Maybe it doesn't do this in US spec E34s?

[Ross]

My '95 has US car has the chime.

[Morgenster]

I get an annoying buzzer when I leave lights on and remove the key from ignition.

[632 Regal]

Yep, I chime too.

I get a chime when I leave my lights on and open the door with the car off. Maybe it doesn't do this in US spec E34s?

[pgrindstaff]

My '94 chimes at me when I leave the lights on, after I turn off the car and open the door.

[JesterE34]

my 90 chimes with the lights on but my mom's doesnt. i'm thinking maybe PO disconnected it??

[ILoveMPower]

I believe it chimes once, not continually

[DaveVoorhis]

The speaker inside the chime unit under the dash can burn out. Does it chime at other times, like if you pull the parking brake while you're moving or turn on the hourly chime on the OBC?

[Qsilver7]

ditto...check to see if your chime has been disconnected. If your gong is on the fritz...you shouldn't be getting any sound when Priority 1,2,or 3 warnings appear in the Check Control Display on the instrument cluster.

The gong/chime is #8 in the diagram below...and is located underneath the dash/steering wheel column...

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/c/t/12.png

[brick8]

I get a single chime and the warning on my 1992 (US spec but picked up in Germany and driven there until 1995).

[filip00]

today i realized i don't get ANY chime! it's not working!

so Qsilver, please help me, where is that chime located precisely?

[DaveVoorhis]

The chime unit is clipped to the under-dash panel between the steering column and pedals. Take the panel down and you can't miss it. Here's a picture; switch right to left if your steering wheel's on the wrong side:

http://shark.armchair.mb.ca/~dave/525i/27Aug05/i8270432.jpg

[filip00]

okay, thanks a lot Dave, will check tomorrow (it's 1am here)

[2fast]

I get no chime or message :(

[Vanguard]

Hmm. Schatze has no chime at all. Time to look under the dash I guess, my Uncle was the previous owner. I'm having lunch with him, so I'll ask.

[JesterE34]

yeah once i take over my mom's e34 the first thing i'm doing is checking for the gong. as annoying as it can be, i've come to rely on it for warnings. i guess i got used to it in my e32 when i was 16 and it still hasnt worn off. ...in fact....i believe the e32 my mom is getting (thats how i'm getting her e34) is a silent one as well...hmmm.....

[mattyb]

bottom line = something wrong with your gong! a search will provide the easiest fix.

[DaveVoorhis]

For the enlightenment and edification of the masses, I have provided a picture of the interior of the gong unit. Note the 80 ohm, half watt speaker in the bottom of the unit. That is usually the offending organ. By the way, 80 ohm is not an error. Using a garden-variety 8 ohm impedance mini speaker will cause the electronics to fail. Some folks have apparently tried putting a resistor in line with an 8 ohm speaker, with a drastic reduction in volume. 80 ohm speakers in that size (approx. 55mm diameter) are hard to find.

http://shark.armchair.mb.ca/~dave/525i/misc/Gong.JPG

[skr]

so the lights are supposed to stay on with the key out of the ignition??? mine only work on position 2. only the city lights and rear red lights stay on. is this an euro-feature or something? oh, and i don't have a gong. not sure if i want in anyway.

oh, i just remembered. this is realy strange. on my oil pan where the oil level sensor is supposed to be there is an aluminium cap oper the hole , with a bmw marking on it. i check my oil frequently , a habbit i picked up when i was burnin' it before my bottom-end rebuild, but this no oil level sensor **** is realy strange. only oil sensor is where the hoses go in the block (right side) but i knew that one was pressure.

opinions?

[markus]

i get no chime at all. looks like a need a new door gong. any ideas how much? i thought this car was too quiet since my last 2 bmws have had chimes with the key on and door open

[Qsilver7]

i get no chime at all. looks like a need a new door gong. any ideas how much? i thought this car was too quiet since my last 2 bmws have had chimes with the key on and door open
since I don't know the particulars for your car, I can't direct you to the exact diagram on www.realoem.com ...but here's the link to the gong for my car (95 525iT) which is probably the same for your car: http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HJ63&mospid=47414&btnr=62_0180&hg=62&fg=40&hl=20

The rarity of an 80 ohm speaker is gonna run the cost up! ;)

[Qsilver7]

so the lights are supposed to stay on with the key out of the ignition??? mine only work on position 2.
No...the headlights do not illuminate when the ignition is off. Don't know if its a Euro thing or not...but every BMW I've owned has had this same feature.

I suppose it functions as a means to reduce draining the battery in the event the driver leaves the lights on after failing to heed to the LIGHTS ON warning from the Check Control System. :p

And neither do the brake lights illuminate when the ignition is off.

[LunatiC]

so the lights are supposed to stay on with the key out of the ignition??? mine only work on position 2. only the city lights and rear red lights stay on. is this an euro-feature or something?

When I have my headlights on and/or fog lights, these lights will turn off when you have the ignition at any other position than 2. So your lights are working properly -- parkers will stay on even with the key out of the ignition.

[skr]

i see. i got confused by vanguard's first post, thought he was refering to headlights. BTW i once forgot them lights on for about 8 hours, got in and it started right up. 100 amps come in handy...

[JesterE34]

And neither do the brake lights illuminate when the ignition is off.


which is handy if you happen to keep hitting them constantly while perhaps laid down in the seat ;)

[filip00]

i opened the cover of the chime today and found it was properly connected. but it's not chiming. so probably it's broken or sth, i'll have it inspected tomorrow.

[ajt3nc]

Since it is only two wires , try a positive/negative test.
Do you have a cheapo charger?

[Ferret]

Mine doesnt gong or warn you on the dash, and I know the unit is working because it's constantly having a go at me on startup about a failed brake light.

(The light works)

[attack eagle]

saw one on ebay just now if you need one.

[filip00]

Since it is only two wires , try a positive/negative test.
Do you have a cheapo charger?

i don't know **** about it, my dad is an engineer so i'll let him have fun with it.

[VentoGT]

I have a US 1991 and if you leave the lights on and take the key out, when you open the door, it gongs once and says "LIGHT ON?" on the OBC main screen.

As mentioned earlier, parking lights and city lights stay on with the ignition off but the head and foglights turn off.

I'm not sure if the "LIGHT ON?" warning gets overridden if you have another issue, as a previous poster mentioned a brake light warning. I will research this later this week since my car still has the LOW BEAM warning from my HID upgrade [until I wire a resistor in].

[Qsilver7]

the display in the instrument cluster is actually the CCD (check control display) and its primary function is to display the warning from the Check Control System.

I beleive the e34 has 3 different Priority warnings (later BMWs were pared down to 2 types of Priority warnings.

The owners manual explains these Priority warnings and how they function. The Priority 1 warnings will completey take over the CCD and will not extinguish until the matter is taken care of. (any OBC functions remotely programmed into the CCD will not appear util the CHeck Control System is satisfied) Priority 2 warnings will give a warning when the engine is turned off and remain in the CCD for a few seconds even after the car is turned off. These Priority 2 warning can be cleared by pressing the CCD button (right button) on the instr cluster. This will allow the OBC functions to appear...but you will see the CCD's alert arrows on the far left & right that indicate that there is an issue with the car that needs your attention.

Again, the owners manual gives the list of Priority 1 and Prioirty 2 warnings (and priority 3 warnings if your car has them).

http://luuk.xs4all.nl/bmwboeken/bmwe34manual/small50/pg24.jpg

http://luuk.xs4all.nl/bmwboeken/bmwe34manual/small50/pg25.jpg

[Paul in NZ]

on my euro car i get no written or gong warning.the only warning is that the interior lights come on as soon as i turn the key off,rather than when you open the door.Only apparent in dimmer light of course

[bmwrp8]

mine dosen't have a chime nor a warning message when i leave my lights on! =c

[filip00]

i happened to have a chance to take some parts off one 525i, so i took the chime and replaced mine, now it's working fine :) chiming when lights left on, any warning etc. :)

[JohnE10E34]

The chime is located under the instrument panel. Surprisingly, it's not a big ticket item. I'd had the same problem (which helped me to deplete two batteries in four years). The chime had probably been pulled by some __ cell phone installer due to interference with the speaker installed on the access panel over the driver's feet.

[Vanguard]

I left the lights on again. Sheesh. Anyway I took out the chime, it was located just as described (thanks Dave). The speaker looked good no tears in the cone etc, so rather than fool around I called Patrick at BMAparts.com. The new chime should be here shortly ($58 plus shipping). PN on the old chime was 65.81-8 350 349

[Ferret]

Oooh Matron!

Just got my 525tds which is a '95 model - no CCM or OBC on board.
When you switch off the engine with the lights on - it sets off a mini klaxon buzzer type thing under the dash that would be worthy of a '60's russian missile silo...

Scared the crap outta me the first time it did it...

[shogun]

It all depends which pins are connected on the chime/gong. I recently had my one out to test it and I found the following info on the net. My gong has no PDC, so no wire connected.
The gong module attached to the driver's kick panel makes the sounds for the car’s optional equipment, including park distance control and the various Multi-Information Displays (outside temperature display, check control and the OBC). The module also makes the American, key-in-ignition warning and the Japanese, in-reverse warning. It does not make the turn signal clicks or the lights-on warning. An annunciator inside the instrument cluster make those since some cars produce none of the other warnings and, hence, have no gong.

INPUTS
The gong module has two power inputs, and five 12V inputs requesting five different sound programs. The inputs can trigger different sounds by changing from ground to 12V, remaining at 12V, changing from 12V to ground, or remaining at ground.
Input...Active..................Function
..... Ground (Klemme/Terminal 31)
+ Constant 12V battery power (Klemme/Terminal 30 via F31)
T1..... low MEMO Signal – the falling edge triggers three, short beeps at a rate of 1.6 Hz. More follow if T1 is held low (remains grounded).
T2......low LIMIT and TEMP Warnings – the falling edge triggers the first chime. More follow repeating at 0.6 Hz if T2 is held low.
T3......low American Key-in-Ignition Warning – the falling edge starts the chime. The tone continues if T3 is held low. The tone fades away over 1.6 s when T3 is taken high. T3 ignores pulses shorter than roughly 20 ms (40 ms always works).
T4.....low Park Distance Control – grounding T4 makes an immediate, quieter, continuous, high pitched tone.
T5.....high Japanese Reverse Warning – a lower pitched, sublime ping similar to T2. Holding T5 high (at 12V) makes repeated pings after a brief delay.

An "active low" input makes noise if you ground it; an "active high" input, if you apply 12V.

INPUT PRIORITY

As some warnings are more important than others, the inputs sound with the following priority, from highest to lowest.
T3 • Obnoxiously and immediately interrupts all the others.
T1, T2, T4: The three inputs have equal, interlocked priority: an input must go off before the next one sounds.• T1 and T2 interrupt T5 after its current ping.• T4 immediately interrupts T5.
T5 • Interrupted by all the others (as just described).