Firstfives.org

Hey everyone,

I just picked up an '81 528i over the weekend. Supposedly ran great until PO put in a reman AFM, which appears to have shorted and melted the AFM, ECU and some of the engine wiring harness.

In my search for a new harness, it looks like the 1980 and '81 528i have the same harness part number (13651272143) while the '79 528 has a different one. Does anyone know if these are in any way compatible between years?

Thanks!

Yes, 79 would be a bit different, it had an water aux air valve instead of the electric one that came on 80-81 cars, and a couple of sensors were in different locations. Usable without major problems, but 80-81 would be ideal. I think I may have one, PM me if you're interested.

Just to be clear, there's nothing in an AFM that would short a circuit and do the damage that you describe. The PO did a lot worse than change the AFM. Look at the harness again and trace where the damage is, then don't do whatever the PO did. Yes, it's that easy.