Took my OVP relay apart. I dont trust a single electronic thing on these cars. They may have been built well, but the electronics sure suck. So I have been on a mission to re-solder everything I can get my hands on!

After reading some threads I learned about the OVP relay. It basically is there to regulate power to some critical systems and insure that voltage does not run high. If a part, such as the brain box, gets to much voltage it may mis-read a sensor. This can make the car perform poorly or inconstantly.

The OVP is a very, very simple little relay. Its near the brake booster between the two firewalls. Typically there is what I call a "U.S." style 10 amp fuse under a clear cap that you squeeze to pop open.

To take it apart I removed the fuse that bend back the soft aluminum tabs on the bottom. With a pliers I gave a quick tug on one of the pins and it slide out. Note that there is a white plastic shield that needs to be placed between the board and cover when putting it back together.

I did take one quick pic. Based on outside appearance all seemed well. But clearly when opened, there was much corrosion. I think I will replace this with a new one when I have time. For now re-soldered the board. And to help with the corrosion, I soldered the pins to the plates where I could. You can see this on the left front. Takes a lot of heat and a while to heat up that metal! There is one in the center of the relay that was in very, very rough shape. I had to heat it from the pin side at over 600 degrees to get solder to melt on the plate side.

I am not sure if I had/have any issues related to this replay. But I feel a little better cleaning it up. Like I said, I place to replace it though.

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
1991 560 SEL / 185k miles
1992 750il / 17k miles - project car