BMW e39 5 Series Computer Readout Fails

The BMW e39 5-series was released in the U.S. in 1997 and dominated the luxury car market until 2003. It included the Sport, Sedan and Touring models, and they were some of the most technologically advanced Bimmers yet to hit the road. They were built with Flexible Electronics Design, so the in-car entertainment and navigation systems could be upgraded to keep pace with technological changes. But as with any advancements in technology, there are also inherent bugs. One such problem in the e39 five-series is that the computer readout fails, and it is known to be hard to read and drop pixels.

The LCD display in the 5-series e39 is part of the on-board computer. It displays the mileage to a driver, as well as other important information. And without knowing the mileage, a Bimmer owner can’t take their vehicle it in for regular oil changes or BMW Inspection 1 or BMW Inspection 2 services that are scheduled based on time and mileage. This could lead to neglecting important maintenance and might jeopardize other systems in the vehicle.

If the LCD display on your BMW dashboard instrument panel is jumbled, or looks like a mess of nonsense letters and numbers, the vehicle likely has a faulty ribbon cable. This cable transmits data from the circuit board to the LCD display. It could also be a defective instrument cluster. To repair this it takes someone with experience, and knows how to recode the instrument panel. Contact a trained BMW service specialist to perform the repairs. They will have the necessary parts and know-how to fix the LCD display, and possibly prevent other problems in the future.

Search for a local, independent BMW repair shop with BMW mechanics that have dealer-level expertise at a fraction of the expense.