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      05-13-2011, 08:56 PM   #1
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Help finding a fuse

Ayone know where the fuse for the front and rear power outlets is?
Checked the manual, It says fuse info is on a separate sheet
But I Never got that
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      05-13-2011, 11:14 PM   #2
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Fuse Locations

Quote:
Originally Posted by kmarei View Post
Ayone know where the fuse for the front and rear power outlets is?
Checked the manual, It says fuse info is on a separate sheet
But I Never got that

You may be surprised that you do have the "Separate sheet", but don't know where it is. The "separate sheet" is actually stored in one of the fuse blocks, but you'd never know it from the material supplied with the car.

The X3 has (2) fuse blocks:

Fuse Block #1 is behind the glove box and is accessed through the removable panel at the far right at the back of the open glove box. The fuses are (5) or (6) inches behind the back of the glove box and will probably take someone with a very thin wrist or better yet, a surgical forceps or very long nose pliers to change. This fuse block houses fuses Nos. 1 through No. 67.

Fuse Block No. 2 is housed in the right rear fender. To access it you must remove the small right rear storage cover (pull firmly on the black hand hold). Then you must remove the plastic "push rivet" at the rear of the insulation cover. Pry the center pin out with a screwdriver or small knife, and then completely remove the plastic "rivet". Then simply roll the insulation cover forward and you will find the fuse block.
Fuse block No. 2 houses fuses Nos. 100 to No. 204.

The sheet listing the fuse locations for BOTH fuse blocks is folded and stored in a slot at the bottom of the fuse block (No. 2).

I've looked at mine and it appears that the 12V. power outlets are actually fused by (7) different fuses!.

According to the diagram, fuses number 1, 54, 65, 143, 144, 171, and 176 can affect one or more of the power outlets.

I suspect the only way to find out which fuse is blown will be to remove the listed ones and check them with an ohmmeter. I'd certainly start with the ones in the Fuse Block No. 2, just because they're much easier to get at.

I’m attaching images of both sides of the fuse list so you can study it before digging in. Good Luck.

Hope this helps.
Attached Images
  

Last edited by Lotus7; 05-14-2011 at 08:11 AM..
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      05-13-2011, 11:32 PM   #3
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      05-13-2011, 11:37 PM   #4
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Originally Posted by Want the thrill View Post
OMG!
The X3 is not your grandfather's 48' Ford!
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      05-13-2011, 11:56 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
The X3 is not your grandfather's 48' Ford!
I'll say! Holy fuses batman!
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      05-14-2011, 10:56 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
You may be surprised that you do have the "Separate sheet", but don't know where it is. The "separate sheet" is actually stored in one of the fuse blocks, but you'd never know it from the material supplied with the car.

The X3 has (2) fuse blocks:

Fuse Block #1 is behind the glove box and is accessed through the removable panel at the far right at the back of the open glove box. The fuses are (5) or (6) inches behind the back of the glove box and will probably take someone with a very thin wrist or better yet, a surgical forceps or very long nose pliers to change. This fuse block houses fuses Nos. 1 through No. 67.

Fuse Block No. 2 is housed in the right rear fender. To access it you must remove the small right rear storage cover (pull firmly on the black hand hold). Then you must remove the plastic "push rivet" at the rear of the insulation cover. Pry the center pin out with a screwdriver or small knife, and then completely remove the plastic "rivet". Then simply roll the insulation cover forward and you will find the fuse block.
Fuse block No. 2 houses fuses Nos. 100 to No. 204.

The sheet listing the fuse locations for BOTH fuse blocks is folded and stored in a slot at the bottom of the fuse block (No. 2).

I've looked at mine and it appears that the 12V. power outlets are actually fused by (7) different fuses!.

According to the diagram, fuses number 1, 54, 65, 143, 144, 171, and 176 can affect one or more of the power outlets.

I suspect the only way to find out which fuse is blown will be to remove the listed ones and check them with an ohmmeter. I'd certainly start with the ones in the Fuse Block No. 2, just because they're much easier to get at.

I’m attaching images of both sides of the fuse list so you can study it before digging in. Good Luck.

Hope this helps.

Thank you very, very much for the DIY
I tried the trunk first, found the sheet with the diagram you posted
Of course it wasn't one of the easy ones

It was fuse 54, for future reference
Of course I could not get my hands in the tiny slot in the back of the glove compartment,
So I had to take out the entire glovebox
But got it in the end

Thanks again
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      05-14-2011, 11:23 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kmarei View Post
Thank you very, very much for the DIY
I tried the trunk first, found the sheet with the diagram you posted
Of course it wasn't one of the easy ones

It was fuse 54, for future reference
Of course I could not get my hands in the tiny slot in the back of the glove compartment,
So I had to take out the entire glovebox
But got it in the end

Thanks again
Good!, glad you got it. Will note to check fuse 54 first if (probably when) I need to. You would think that BMW could have been a little more generous when sizing the opening in the glove box, but if they made it easy for owners to change the fuses, they couldn't justify charging $110/hour for their service dept.
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      05-14-2011, 06:25 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lotus7 View Post
Good!, glad you got it. Will note to check fuse 54 first if (probably when) I need to. You would think that BMW could have been a little more generous when sizing the opening in the glove box, but if they made it easy for owners to change the fuses, they couldn't justify charging $110/hour for their service dept.
AMEN brother! Most modern cars are purposely engineered NOT to be easy to work on.
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      05-05-2012, 04:20 PM   #9
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And was it the front "cigarette" plug that was not working? I have the same problem, but really not in the mood to remove the box in order to get in to the fusebox. Why they put the fusebox in such a place?!!
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      05-06-2012, 05:24 AM   #10
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Yeah , it's usually nr 54.

I had a shortcut, well my wife had one :-) she usually puts the keys in the cupholder, and there was no plug in the 12v outlet, probably a key that shortcutted the circuit..... ???

I think it blows when keys on the keychain together with the carkey are put in the storage compartment in the middle front shortcuts the front outlet ..

Here's my thread on the matter earlier..:

http://x3.xbimmers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=633500
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      05-06-2012, 07:24 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ajo View Post
And was it the front "cigarette" plug that was not working? I have the same problem, but really not in the mood to remove the box in order to get in to the fusebox. Why they put the fusebox in such a place?!!

Not in the mood? That's what a warranty and a dealer are for.
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      07-03-2013, 11:02 PM   #12
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These guys have got to be kidding!

I just got my X3 back from the dealer and I just realized that I forgot to tell them about the cigarette lighter not working for my GPS...

No way im going back there just for this fuse... if my long nose pliers don't work then off comes the glove compartment. Not too brilliant in their placement... at least they could have provided a access hole
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      07-05-2013, 05:54 AM   #13
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I just had fuse 54 replaced after accidentally shorting out the 12v outlet up front. I dropped the glove box dismantling project after several attempts followed by some language not suitable for forums like this. Saw my dealer instead and they replaced the fuse in 15 mins at no charge. Didn't see how they did it but considering the short time used I suspect that they actually did it through the ridiculously small access opening in the glove box.

But I didn't feel particularly well with having to see the dealer just to replace a fuse.
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      05-24-2015, 07:47 AM   #14
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Thanks for the info on locating the fuse. FYI, I managed to change #54 with only moderate difficulty using a hemostat (forceps).
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      05-24-2015, 09:42 PM   #15
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My fuse blew yet again
What do you guys think of this one?
I'm sick and tired of replacing this hard to get to fise all the time
This will be my 4th time
I've told my wife repeatedly not to throw coins in that area
But ofcourse, she still does
And any coin falling in there blows the fuse

This one resets after 1 minute
http://www.ebay.com/itm/15A-ATM-MINI...162965&vxp=mtr
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      05-24-2015, 10:13 PM   #16
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I would put the blanking plug back in the socket. Do you really gain anything if you replace the fuse with a circuit breaker? When the inevitable coin is dropped in there it's just going to keep tripping and resetting every minute until the circuit breaker fails, which could be days or weeks if you don't notice the coin.

Also, #54 is a 20A fuse, and that's a 15A circuit breaker. Downgrading the protection device won't hurt anything, but it may now trip for other reasons. Would this 20A one from Amazon work? http://www.amazon.com/Bussmann-BP-CB.../dp/B009WQPBZC
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      05-25-2015, 08:27 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 02420X3 View Post
I would put the blanking plug back in the socket. Do you really gain anything if you replace the fuse with a circuit breaker? When the inevitable coin is dropped in there it's just going to keep tripping and resetting every minute until the circuit breaker fails, which could be days or weeks if you don't notice the coin.

Also, #54 is a 20A fuse, and that's a 15A circuit breaker. Downgrading the protection device won't hurt anything, but it may now trip for other reasons. Would this 20A one from Amazon work? http://www.amazon.com/Bussmann-BP-CB.../dp/B009WQPBZC
Agree with amperes statement use 20A.

If Bussman Type 2, it will not reset automatically if short is still active.
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      05-26-2015, 07:46 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 02420X3 View Post
I would put the blanking plug back in the socket. Do you really gain anything if you replace the fuse with a circuit breaker? When the inevitable coin is dropped in there it's just going to keep tripping and resetting every minute until the circuit breaker fails, which could be days or weeks if you don't notice the coin.

Also, #54 is a 20A fuse, and that's a 15A circuit breaker. Downgrading the protection device won't hurt anything, but it may now trip for other reasons. Would this 20A one from Amazon work? http://www.amazon.com/Bussmann-BP-CB.../dp/B009WQPBZC
I know they have some circuit breakers for car stereos, that trip after their amo rating is exceeded
I wonder if you could plug something into this fuse socket that just a circuit breaker
So when you drop the coin, the swich blows, and you just swich it back on

I know about the amp rating but the only thing I have in there is an iPhone charger.i doubt that takes 15A let alone 20A
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      05-26-2015, 09:23 PM   #19
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My first preference is always to prevent the overload rather than to make it easier to recover from, but I understand why you want to do that. There are 20A Cooper Bussman Type II ATM circuit breakers available on Amazon. There are probably Type III (manual reset) ATM circuit breakers available on Amazon or eBay too, but I haven't looked.

I use the USB port in the armrest for iPhone charging. I often use a cigarette lighter-style adapter, one which has two USB charging ports, in the armrest 12V receptacle. It comes in handy when I have two phones to charge. The cords coil up in the armrest when not in use.
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      05-28-2015, 10:25 AM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 02420X3 View Post
My first preference is always to prevent the overload rather than to make it easier to recover from, but I understand why you want to do that. There are 20A Cooper Bussman Type II ATM circuit breakers available on Amazon. There are probably Type III (manual reset) ATM circuit breakers available on Amazon or eBay too, but I haven't looked.

I use the USB port in the armrest for iPhone charging. I often use a cigarette lighter-style adapter, one which has two USB charging ports, in the armrest 12V receptacle. It comes in handy when I have two phones to charge. The cords coil up in the armrest when not in use.
would you like to speak to my wife about not throwing coins in there?

I've told her many times, to no avail.

this is the same woman
that when we traded in our old Volvo XC-90 for the X3
when I looked under the seats before we handed it over to the dealer
to make sure my son hadn't dropped something down there
I found a chicken bone
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      09-19-2016, 07:18 PM   #21
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Thanks to the information in this thread, I successfully replaced the 20A fuse in slot 54. A normal needle nose pliers worked in pulling out the fuse, but since I had to go purchase a 20A fuse, I treated myself to new very long needle nose pliers.
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      12-10-2016, 03:00 PM   #22
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Thanks for the write up. I tripped the fuse when my key touched the outlet. Got it working again. While all three outlets where not working, it was only slot/fuse 54 that required changing.
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