Turn Signal stalk flops around.....

[Mach2]

2001 325i. I was wiping the dash and bumped the turn signal stalk. Obviously something broke because now the stalk moves up, down, towards the floor and towards the steering wheel but is not connected to anything. If I leave the stalk alone with the engine running I get a left turn signal light and indicator light because gravity pulls the stalk down. If I move the stalk up to the right turn signal position, the right turn signal light works but when I let go of the stalk it drops down and energizes the left turn signal light. The low and high beam on the headlights work too by moving the stalk towards the floor and upwards toward the steering wheel, but there is no connection with anything inside the steering column to hold the stalk in the centered position.

Has this happened to anyone? Must have broken something, I guess.....well duhh. I have an appointment with the Dealer for this issue. Bet this is gonna leave a mark.

 

[tazza0712]

Just sounds like the stalk might have come free of the internals, I'm sure it wouldn't be a big problem for them to fix, especially if it's just a matter of replacing the stalk. Let us know what happens.

 

[Mach2]

Don't know what's going on now. I took the car for a drive and the turn signal stalk is working fine now. All indicator functions are working.

When I bumped the stalk initially, the engine was not running and the ignition was not even on. Is there a saftey feature that disconnects the turn signal stalk when the ignition is off? We haven't had the car very long, since late June 2006. We bought it from our Son, who is doing his intern work at Beth Isreal Hospital, New York. He doesn't need a car so we bought if from him to help with his paying back his College debt. I've read the Owners Manual but I can't find anything relating to this situation. At least I don't have to go to the Dealer now.

 

[tazza0712]

That's good news that it's all working. I'm pretty sure there is no safety feature that would cause that as it seems more dangerous than anything else. Maybe you can fire off an email to a dealership and see if they can explain what happened, or a phone call might seem more pressing as dealerships here never reply to an email unless it states you want to buy something. Good luck with finding out!

 

[Mach2]

I called the Dealer this AM to cancel the appointment and got a few minutes with the Service Rep. He doesn't know of any safety feature that disconnects the stalk from the internals of the steering column either. I am going to file this situation under "FM". Freaking Magic.