Every used pin of the two E36 body modules: the ZKE IV (central locking, power windows and alarm) and the simpler ZVM II central locking module, plus the key remote receiver and the crash and alarm sensor. Hover or tap a row to see where the wire goes.
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X13252 carries the heavy current: the ZKE switches the central locking drives (lock, unlock, double lock) and runs the front window motors directly, from fuses F35 and F14.
Every locking drive has the same three wires (1 unlock, 2 double lock, 3 lock), joined at splices X453, X462 and X455.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0, 5126.0 and 5133.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pin 5 is not used.
X13253 is mostly inputs. Each locking drive reports its position (locked or unlocked) on two thin wires, so the ZKE knows the real state of every lock. The key switches in the doors, the remote and the airbag crash signal also arrive here.
The front window motors have a position sensor: the ZKE feeds it on pins 23 and 24 and counts its pulses on pins 8 and 9, which is how auto-up and anti-trap work.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0, 5126.0 and 5133.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 6, 10, 12, 18, 21 and 22 are not used.
X13254 brings in the switches: both front window switches (one wire for open, one for close), the door contacts and the driver's door handle switch. It also sends the open and close commands for the rear windows to the relay module.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0 and 5133.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 11, 12, 13, 20 and 21 are not used; pin 4 on convertibles (soft-top lid).
On four-door cars the rear windows have two switches each: one in the centre console and one in the door. All of them report to the ZKE on X13255; the ZKE then drives the rear motors through the relay module.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0 and 5133.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 6 and 12 are not used; convertible functions of pins 4, 5, 10 and 11.
X10182 is the ZKE's supply and system connector: battery, ignition and radio-position feeds, ground, the diagnosis lines, and the links to the immobiliser and the alarm.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 6, 13 and 16 are not used.
The relay module A5 (four-door cars) switches the rear window motors. It takes its own 30A feed from F19 and reverses the motor polarity on the ZKE's open and close commands.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6100.0e and 5133.0-02 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 6, 7 and 14 are not used.
X13013 is the ZVM's power connector: the same lock, unlock and double-lock lines to the drives as on the ZKE, fed from fuse F35.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 5126.2 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out.
The ZVM II is the simpler central locking module used on cars without the ZKE. X13012 carries its supply, the door and handle contacts, the position contacts of each locking drive, the key switches, the remote control and the immobiliser link.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 5126.2 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out. Not covered: pins 11, 22, 23 and 26 are not used.
X13014 handles the interior lights: the ZVM switches them from the door contacts.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 5126.2 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out.
The key remote receiver does not drive the locks itself. It sends lock and unlock pulses to the ZKE or ZVM, and the unlock line also tells the EWS to release the engine.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6610.2 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out.
The crash and alarm sensor sits between the hazard switch and the hazard flasher relay. On an alarm from the ZKE it flashes the hazards and the headlights; after a crash signal from the airbag module it switches on the hazards.
Redrawn from BMW ETM 6350.0 (05/99), standard petrol E36 (316i–328i); diesel and M3 parts are left out.
BMW labels every wire with its size and colour, for example 2.5 SW/GE: 2.5 mm², black (schwarz) with a yellow (gelb) stripe. Connectors are numbered X…, followed by the pin. The wires in these diagrams are drawn at relative thickness, so the 25 mm² battery cable stands out from a 0.35 mm² signal wire.
Codes used here: SW = black, RT = red, GN = green, BL = blue, GE = yellow, BR = brown, WS = white.