Eric O. Makes A Pretty Embarrassing Mistake

Who would have thought a simple tail light video on a Mini Cooper Could have turned into this? I didn't really want to post this because it was kinda of a silly repair but I thought you could at least has a chuckle at my expense 😅 This is what I get for dabbling in the Euro car side of things.
-Enjoy!
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[@DIYDaveOK]

I actually take Eric O making a mistake as an encouragement...for when I make my own DIY mistakes...puts a whole new spin on "If I can do it, you can do it..." 😁. Thanks as always, Eric!

[@briancleaver3192]

My 2009 Scion XB has one reverse light from the factory.

[@aussiebloke609]

Many of the Aussie cars I grew up with would confuse just about anyone. They didn't have 4-way hazard lights at all. And no clear/white reverse lights either - instead, both rear turn signals (always amber lenses in Oz) would turn on solid, not flashing. But not the front turn signals (which were sometimes amber, sometimes, white), so they must have been wired completely separately. There's weird stuff everywhere if you look hard enough.

[@bobwellman9717]

@@briancleaver3192 Yeah, I've had cars with only one reverse light before, but I'm 70 and can't remember which ones, maybe the Datsun, or an old Subaru, I suspect maybe my Pintos, Escort wagon?🤔😏🙄 Who knows 😕🥺

[@maffimukshukran9369]

Word. Eric does stuff I could never do, and I'm a mechanic for 24 years

[@methanial73]

"If you can't do it no one can do it" - Eric O probably. 😂😂😂

[@IanDarley]

As a former VAG tech of 18 years, I was smiling all of the way through this one knowing what was coming 😂😂 Edit BTW, if anybody wanted to do the double reverse lamp mod, order a replacement light from the UK. Because we drive on the opposite side, the reverse and fog lights are also reversed.

[@richardc6038]

why thay make a car like that and why was it imported like that

[@larrybe2900]

That makes sense now that you brought up the right hand side driving. I did notice the lens but wondered why they illuminated the side away from the driver. Guess the driver side is merely a reflector.

[@alexlail7481]

@@richardc6038 Standard Answer #56 :because there german and they can. While this not a satisfying answer I find it adequately covers the majority of the oddities presented by a German engineered product 🤔.

[@denizenofclownworld4853]

What business does a gynecologist have working on cars, though?

[@digi3218]

​@@denizenofclownworld4853 thats a VAJ tech

[@justinballard7242]

Not a mistake. A learning experience

[@jeremyhanna3852]

As Bob would say happy accident

[@robertgray6512]

Agreed

[@billmartin4602]

Exactly.

[@nickayivor8432]

What did you say 💯 ✅️

[@cavemansnow4346]

Agreed, never stop learning. Even the best of us will come across a learning experience from time to time.

[@JimmyMakingitwork]

The punishment for being thorough is an hour you'll never get back! Remember kids, if Eric O can make a mistake, any of us can...and will. Still nice work and we all learned something, well, not the Euro guys, but the rest of us.

[@ohboy2118]

O, Eric O, that is one lesson you won't be forgetting anytime soon. UK viewer here and knew what was coming as soon as you said 1 reverse light and I saw the red lense. 😂 no embarrassment, just a lesson learned.

[@MrSpartanicus]

I’m from the states and I was thinking what you already knew, lol. Much respect to Eric, as always, for chasing down the cause.

[@davebolowski7925]

Yup. I was literally shouting at the screen 😂😮😂

[@clivewilliams3661]

Of course it never occurred to check the handbook especially as one side is a clear reversing light and the other is a red lens, it must be there for a purpose? I'm in UK and this type of lamp configuration is common but I have changed all my cars with this configuration to have two red fog lights and two white reversing lights, possible by mixing RHD and LHD components. It means one or other of the systems has to have auxiliary lamps below the rear bumper, but that is no hardship especially as the positives outweigh the negatives. This means that I can use a LHD or RHD car in other countries safely and besides two lights are better than one, whatever the use.

[@G_de_Coligny]

@@clivewilliams3661 to add to this : Avoid rear led fog lights if possible, for snow conditions you want a warm incandescent bulb to try to keep the lense clear with the warmth melting the snow deposits.

[@clivewilliams3661]

@@G_de_Coligny Good point, thank you. The other issue with LEDs is that they tend to be directional so that unless specifically catered for, they are not as bright from the side.

[@GregoryFarmer-gu9ho]

Eric, thanks for having the humor and humility to post this video. I was yelling at you for 30 min to look it up LOL. I had read about this long ago. You are awesome Mr. Euro Car Guy!

[@dwk5234]

No reason to be embarrassed at all, Eric, learning something new (even with everyone watching) is still a positive and productive experience…and we all learned with you! Consider yourself the leader of the class, and thanks for taking us along with you!

[@tylerlloydboone]

Those who do nothing do nothing wrong. I learned long ago that admitting your mistake is the first step to learning from it. Right on Eric. Keep up the great work

[@CLIFTYPOPS]

Mistake is a bold claim 😁

[@nickg9021]

Admitting your mistake is the SECOND step ... Making the mistake is the first step . LOL 😄😄😄😄

[@tylerlloydboone]

@@nickg9021 …

[@jmaxim80]

Well said Sir

[@andrecampbell691]

Experience is learning from a mistake and not repeating it.

[@johnbender1596]

Thanks for the ride. My late father always said “ if you can learn from other peoples mistakes it doesn’t cost you anything”. You enlightened many of us today!

[@ianpalin8318]

Great video, reminded me of the Frasier episode where Frasier’s dad Martin talks about European cars electrical systems, live and learn! Keep the workshop stories coming, love watching here in the UK 🎉

[@curtgomes]

My wife has a Mini. We've had it for 9 years. I had no idea it has only one reverse light. I would have gone crazy trying to figure out the light issue if this happened to our Countryman. Thank you....

[@CarsExposed]

Hello mate, even being unfamiliar with the Euro vehicle your thought process was spot on !!! Have only one reverse light it’s quite a common thing here and quite annoying reversing in the dark . 👍

[@chubbysumo2230]

I am pretty sure on import into the United States, that left it's supposed to be swapped out for one with a clear lens in the bottom, and the wiring harness is supposed to have that pin moved to number 47 to accommodate us lighting requirements. Rear fog lamps are not legal in the United States. Some importer somewhere did not do their job.

[@CalmeRyowl]

Most of our cars here in europe have 1 reverse light and 1 fog light. Left hand drive vehicles have the fog on the left and right hand drive vehicles have the fog on the right. Its so the fog light is near the centre of the road. So the option is there for them to swap wiring depending if the car is sold on main land europe (left hand drive) or Ireland/UK (right hand drive)

[@MiracleMitch]

I think you'll find that you've mixed them up. LHD fog on left, RHD fog on right.

[@CalmeRyowl]

@@MiracleMitch Youre right, I absolutely did. now edited

[@curtisj2165]

Only smaller cars have one reversing light and one rear fog light, my Mondeo has two of each

[@CalmeRyowl]

@@curtisj2165 I wouldnt say that. In a previous job I spent most days replacing bulbs and id say about 80% of cars only had the one. That has changed over the last few years with the LED lamps that just use a circuit board.

[@FishFind3000]

We don’t have or use reverse fog lights in the USA.

[@donspringer8222]

In 45 years working on cars I have never seen a vehicle with ONE reverse light. I would have made the same assumption. Different cultures have different philosophies. That's why I don't ever work on Euro stuff....just doesn't make sense to me. Kudos for your diag and compliments for being humble enough to admit your mistake.....absolutely forgiven for the above reason. Awesome that you figured it out!

[@gefffowlow7506]

No one is perfect but your professionalism and honesty to your customers is above and beyond!! Keep up the outstanding service you provide!

[@desmcdowell2469]

Mini has several variations of reverse light and fog light depending on the year and model. Some have two reverse lights in the rear clusters and the fog light in the middle of the bumper. Others have a cluster in the middle of the bumper which has the fog light in the centre and a small reverse light on each side of the fog light. One reverse light and one fog light is very common in Europe. I live in Ireland, Irish and UK cars are RHD so fog light is usually on the right, reverse light on the left

[@marvinschleicher5542]

I never knew a vehicle could only have one backup light. Thanks for all that info!

[@nominisexpers259]

My tractor at work only had one reverse lamp. Pretty common on the big rigs, we also don’t have reverse lamps on the trailers.

[@sjfk1306]

Chevy volt, Saturn sky…

[@randytravis3998]

@@nominisexpers259 what's funny my pickup truck trailer plug has a spot for backup lights on the trailer.. about 10 years ago was helping a friend hauled his enclosed trailer but we put backup lights on it.. the trailer was so long and tall that you could not see to back it up in the dark .. the lights helped

[@richardjones3112]

Standard practice in Europe-anything to save pennies-cheapskates.

[@martinhow121]

Very common in Europe on base models. MINI is now a BMW brand and they charge for each nut and bolt as an option.

[@ghook8]

I was almost shouting at my tv. Fog lights are not an option over here, they are the law. Quite a few cars over here have the same set up as that Mini, except the fog light works obviously. And the rear fog light/lights usually have their own separate switch/button. Good video Mr O.

[@brentowen9480]

What's the rear fog light for? To see the paint line in the door mirror?

[@Icedmanx]

@@brentowen9480 the rear fog light is for others to see, so when there's fog - or flurrying snow/heavy snowfall, other road users behind you (you know, you generally don't own the road alone) can see you easier further along, instead of just before ramming you.

[@petermaciak8030]

​@@Icedmanx which countries have them as mandatory?

[@2DogsVlogs]

@@petermaciak8030 I don't know of any country where it is mandatory, than again I don't think there is a car being made in the last 5 years that doesn't have a rear fog light. Kia\Hyundai all do, as do all Fords, Mitsubishi, Honda, Nissan, GM, even Suzuki & MG though GWM doesn't which is a little surprising considering how popular they are.

[@Kenny_P_abz]

@@2DogsVlogs Rear fog lights are mandatory in the UK. And it’s an MOT (inspection) failure if it doesn’t work

Hey Eric, cut sugar out and you'll get your eyesight back! At 43 I started needing glasses to read. Then at 47 after I also started getting fat, I switched to keto and was happily surprised to no longer need the glasses. Quitting sugar put an end to the blood sugar spikes that had been damaging the capillaries in my eyes, and in a few months they recovered. I'm now 57 and still have good eyesight, on top of having more energy than when I was eating all that poison. Dr Sten Ekberg's videos, and those of Dr Robert Lustig and Dr Jason Fung, have all the info. Thanks for your videos, you've helped me learn a lot!

[@Jaguarist]

No worries Eric O. I'm from Sweden and I'm used to all kind of light combos (North America, EU and Asian) cars. And it was funny to wait Your reaction when You realize it only has one reverse light and one rear Fog light. Keep up these good videos coming.

[@vickenkaragozian2041]

I would never know that this car has one reverse lamp. I would've done the same mistake like you did. I would never feel bad about anything. We learn as we test and take our time to diagnose it properly.

[@marksmallman4572]

no white light on the left side.

[@iomtom5954]

If I can do it, you can do it. Your tagline is correct. Thank you for sharing the good, bad, and ugly, Eric!

[@rider547]

Great video! In my troubleshooting courses (industrial controls) we always talk about making sure the symptoms are actual problems and not normal operation that the operator might not be aware of. I’ve gone down that rabbit hole a few times. 😅

[@SqueakyHinge]

Repaired a commercial office building control system which was very complicated. Building manager gave me great thanks and a pat on the back as I left as the champion! On the way home he calls again, states it's all failed now! The entire building is down! Turn truck around & drive back calculating all the worst possible failures including main board & stuff. Went back to the central power board as a start to only notice in my great effort to congratulate myself on how smart I was I forgot to turn the power back on before I left.

[@Intabih]

People kept telling me that my running light on this side or that was out when the turn signal was on. Working as intended!

[@malcolmduncan3047]

Not the first...and won't be the last. The hard lessons are the best remembered. You're doing good work Eric.

[@trackerrrr]

Hi Eric. The rear fog light switch would be to the right of the main fog light switch if that were a Euro spec car. They have separate switches.

[@porcello2007]

The logic tree that you went through was the value in this instance. There is no one that I would rather go down the back-up light, Mini rabbit hole with. At one point I had that thought: "could there only be one back up light?". It's almost inconceivable. Hahaha.

[@eskieguy9355]

Considering all the contradictory things there, I'm not surprised that it was hard to diagnose. Having a bulb and socket there seemed odd. Having it wired for an option it doesn't have, seems odd. I'm glad you posted this, it may help one or more of us dig our way back out on a confusing problem.

[@josephchamberlain9129]

A favorite of mine. Your honesty is your strongest quality.

[@petersomma4407]

Really appreciate you showing this. It's not often that people share their mistakes. I wish more people did as we could all learn from them!

[@FreeKanal]

Yep, i respect people who are honest and admits to their mistakes. Not hiding it.

[@rossG1221]

Yup, we all make em, and the scan tool wasn't helping, showing left and right reversing lights. As a Brit, I was trying to send a telepathic message to Eric "look at the red lens.. look at the red lens.." As always Eric got there. As he said a pain in the hoo hoo as he has car backing up in the lot. Bravo Mr O.

[@earnestbunbury2103]

Donald Trump never makes mistakes and never owns up to them and thus never learns.

[@Retro_Rework]

No need to be embarrassed at all! It's easy to get tunnel vision, especially with something as unusual as this one. At least you learned something, you'll never make that mistake again, and another positive is you made all of your viewers smile :). Great video as always, Eric!

[@alexanderkupke920]

I wonder how dumbfounded some European mechanic (although they don´t do only car mechanics any more, apprenticeships these days are all car mechatronics for a reason.) would look at an american vehicle with the brake lights being abused as blinkers. Which by the way to my knowledge only is legal around here for an actual car you imported yourself. If it would be a car regularly sold here they would have to do a "normal" rear light with separate red brake and amber blinker lights.

[@99andrianmonk]

Truly "enlightening"...... Who'd thunk that a vehicle with a well engineered connector would only have one backup light. Learning experience for most of us along with you.

[@fmerkl]

Great Job Eric!! with 25 years on the bench ,I have stories , some nights I still wake up in a cold sweat!

[@jeremyah78]

Sure did have a chuckle at your expense on this one Eric!! But it was only your thoroughness, and maybe a sprinkle of curiosity, that got you off track on this one! But you’re still on the right track cuz we all admire that thoroughness and smile at that curiosity! Keeps us watchin! ✌️

[@brianvarner]

Having been a tech and shop owner for many years (retired) cars and trucks always kept us humble.

[@LatersOnTheMenjay.]

Love this! How many channels would still show you the journey here? Even though it's quite funny (and probably the only time I could have been useful to you), watching you go through the diagnostic process is a masterclass.

[@davethornewell7417]

Great vlog as always, I spent 47 years in the motor trade in the UK, so as soon as I saw the rear lamp in the video, I worked out immediately. Europe, which the UK was a member of , required vehicles after a certain age, to have a rear fog (high intensity rear) lamp on the centre or drivers side as a minimum, some cars had them on both sides, but, some manufacturers (for the sake of aesthetics) fit a white lens on both sides, with a red bulb in the drivers side for the rear fog lamp. I worked at a Austin/Morris/Rover dealership for a number of years and found one of the cost cutting tricks that the manufacturers used was to sell a lamp complete with bulb holders, which when fitted did not work, because it was devoid of bulbs!, caught many people out including dealership fitters. Keep up the brilliant content.

[@Teribus13]

I work on buses in the UK, and it's not uncommon for bus & coach manufacturers to borrow lights from cars or vans. For example, there's a Berkhof coach which uses FIAT Tipo rear lights (as in the 1990s Tipo). A coach from Irisbus used BMW E46 headlights. An example I worked with was the Wright Solar body on the Scania L94 chassis, when they first came out in 2000 they had Peugeot Boxer tail lights. You needed to be careful when swapping a tail light unit on those, because they came supplied with 12 volt bulbs that would be used on the Peugeot Boxer, but the bus systems run at 24 volts, so you needed to swap the bulbs.

[@Marineio]

Another quirk to watch out for is on some VAG group cars, if you unplug the rear lights with the key on, the car will disable all of those lights on that side until you cycle the key. Got burned by that one too diagnosing something!

[@simonilett998]

Don't feel bad, Eric. As soon as I saw the red lense while you were doing the initial lights check I thought, 'here we go, down the invisible rabbit hole'🤣🤣 I've seen the same thing on some older Hyundai Excels, and a few other makes and models, but luckily before going down a useless path, I noticed one side had red lense and other side was clear🤣

[@jameswells8091]

Great video Mr O. You are a true good guy. To own mistakes and learn from them is all we can hope for and you did it well!

[@neilrrjoseph5054]

Good day Sir finally after all the years of looking at your channel I finally known something you didn't it almost put a smile on my face because I have had a few meaning a lot of days like that

[@dans_Learning_Curve]

I can *CLEARLY* see the issue here!😂 Thank you for posting this! Title isn't click bait if it's true!

[@shawnmacdonald1739]

Thank you Eric for producing such great videos. I enjoy your thought processing as you search for the answer. The fact that you can remain true to your craft and document a misstep or two lol Thanks again. Shawn.

[@RobertKohut]

Learning something is never a "loss of time"... 🙂

[@johncooper4637]

No, but it is a loss of money. I would guess he lost at least one billable hour.

[@nigglenoo]

Yes for left hand drive cars in Europe the rear fog light is on the left and the reverse light is on the right, but for right hand drive cars (for the uk and Ireland) the fog light is on the right and the reverse light is on the left. If you want two reverse lights on a US Clubman then you could look for a left hand rear lamp unit from a UK spec car as that has a clear lens, and now we know wiring it up is easy. BTW the rear fog light switch on my UK spec 2008 Cooper hatchback is a separate switch in the same row of switches as the front fog light switch.

[@petaljuice]

Yes! As the owner of a car with a single reverse light on the passenger side and a single rear fog light on the driver side I correctly deduced the outcome of this video after looking at the title and while viewing. Good to know I'm able to solve at least one perceived car problem.

[@JoseSilveira-newhandleforYT]

Good diagnostic Eric! You followed the circuit as you should, but, in Europe, most cars have only one reverse light. At 9:30 I shouted "It has only one reverse light!!", but I'm too far away 🙂

[@brentowen9480]

I had no idea about that. Even more confusing though when the Scan tool and diagrams don't give any info about that.

[@kevincrawford6734]

Me too! But I’m in Australia 🇦🇺.if he couldn’t hear you then there’s no way he could’ve heard me!😂

[@MIGBMWLOVER]

Me too brother. Me too

[@JoseSilveira-newhandleforYT]

@@MIGBMWLOVER 🙂

[@JoseSilveira-newhandleforYT]

@@kevincrawford6734 LOL 🙂

[@Asto508]

I think the rear fog light is actually the 4th switch, 2 switches right next to the front fog light which is missing on your particular model there. No wonder you got confused but that's how it often is with options that are unused. It's even weirder that there was a bulb in the rear fog light socket.

[@Guillotines_For_Globalists]

They saved $1 by omitting the switch. Great job! I see a lot of American-spec Euro cars with the rear fog light circuit fully functional.

[@aussiebloke609]

@@Guillotines_For_Globalists It could be worse - well, stupider. I remember my Dad's car when I was a kid ('60 FB Holden Special wagon) didn't come with reverse lights (they were an option), but the lens and bulb were still there - only the switch on the gearbox was missing, blanked off with a screw-in plug. Or my wife's '89 Ford Probe, which didn't have a light in the trunk - the light fixture and switch were installed, but the wires were taped behind the plastic trim. And the bulb was left out. Plugged in the wires (and installed a bulb) and I got a free light. They literally saved themselves the cost of a bulb - everything else was present.

[@GaryWhittingham]

@@aussiebloke609 but they sold the one WITH the light (and other little options) as the deluxe package for $1500 more, see... most cars get full spec harnesses - better for manufacturer (parts, spares, fitting etc.)

[@baldmaggots]

Have to agree with you here, the tail light assembly must be manufactured with all bulbs present, but the switch to turn it on is an expensive option. Cars. Sheesh.

[@aussiebloke609]

@@GaryWhittingham All the more reason to buy the base model and just take the time to plug in all the things you didn't actually buy. LOL It's certainly not logical for manufacturers to make separate harnesses for different trim levels, but considering there's virtually no savings for them, you'd think they would just make it standard equipment. Sadly, I don't think we can get away with that sort of thing these days. With everything controlled by computer, it's too easy for them to remove features via code instead of physical hardware.

[@TM-jl7sd]

Thank you Eric! I have been watching you for years. Your videos, your efforts making all of them, have always been much appreciated and always cheer me up…especially when I have some tough days! Thank you buddy 👏

[@claudecousineau5811]

Love your comment about ”if you slow down it will go faster”, will play it to my friends they say I’m the only one that says that I’m really impressed by your attitude and relentless efforts to find the problem, I see it like a challenge cheers

[@bluecold246]

I watch all the SMA videos and I've gotta say, this is one the most interesting ones yet. Second only to the clutch replacement videos!

[@beaverc2884]

That's not a mistake, it's a learning lesson for the majority of us that watch this channel. I have never heard of one reverse light, outside of my truck because I'm too lazy to change the bulb.

[@johnhpalmer6098]

Not too uncommon for European makes to do this. I've known of this of this for a while myself. It comes from seeing videos from across the pond from time to time.

[@sfliet]

Definitely not a mistake... Just a great learning experience!

[@TheCarCrazyGuy]

Nothing better than a humble gent. Excellent video Eric. Enjoyed every minute.

[@benwingo6675]

Great humility shows that your are truly trustworthy, really like your work.

[@gomd3rd]

As a mini owner I smiled the whole time. Lots of people do mods with the fog light. I’ve wired mine to light up with the brakes.

[@DaveImagery]

Your honesty gives you credibility

[@dalejernberg3550]

^that!!..absolutely

[@endall6783]

I would have done the same thing. I'd thought there were two thanks I learned something and that's a big deal THANKS for posting !

[@steveo6631]

Awesome video, my guy.... That must make inspections a real treat thinking a reverse light is not working... Crazy euros....

[@billsmobile829]

Well I definitely didn't want to talk out of turn...... And you're obviously better at diagnosis than I am..... But that's the first thing I thought of! Lol definitely a learning experience! Rock on Eric!

[@Dustin_the_wind]

Integrity, humility, leading by example, being helpful, sense of humor, exc. Nice job Mr. O.

[@littleshopintheshed]

Nice to see your human, and not afraid to share your new information about minis.

[@NoName-zn1sb]

you're human

[@woodlandwonders6887]

There's always that aha moment when the light bulb goes on. Unless it's not wired that way.

[@justinlanglais9825]

Hey Eric no big deal.... didn't take you that long to figure it out !!! 👍🏼 As an old aircraft tech who used to troubleshoot a lot, I enjoy your videos ! Now I'm working on my cars and using your tips all the time!

[@bills6946]

I learned something watching this. There are some people that actually pay to get Mini Coopers fixed instead of just throwing them away.

[@drewmann1966]

Lol.. Enjoyed this a lot as all the others. I once heard that good judgment come from experience but experience comes from bad judgment. This is the finest of evolution in the making. Take care Eric...

[@ralphmorris3508]

I think I'd switch the wire back to position 47 and get the tail light lens with the clear back up light option. you can never have to much light. I enjoyed your video as always Eric. Keep up the good work.

[@eddiepatterson5025]

Probably have to order that left lens from the UK 🇬🇧?

[@computerroger]

I work on a lot of bmw/minis at my shop and everytime you unplugged that FRM I was biting my nails... Those ones have a tendency to loose the flash memory when power is cut. Unplugged, replacing battery or letting battery die. Gives me the chills just thinking about it!

[@lewispommells234]

Gotta love FRM3!

[@computerroger]

@@lewispommells234 ha! I was actually thinking the short detection logic was going to turn off the circuit and Eric was going to be stuck calling it a bad FRM when it just needed a reset of the counter... I love watching other mechanics struggle with the same things I have to deal with at work...

[@donaldpeterson9521]

Takes a big man to show a mistake and take ownership. Good job, experience and mistakes are the best teachers. We always remember when we mess up, just the part of life that teaches very good lessons. Keep up the great work!!! Very good video!!!!

[@MsFireboy2]

Eric I remember back when Volkswagen doing this back in the early 60's on their Bugs. Thanks for posting.

[@pjpyenta]

Watching you Eric stumble thru a system you're not familiar with reminds me of myself fumbling through repairs on my cars. You've "seen it all" on the cars you work on, but for me, it's always a "first time". Still... I get through it, as you did this repair. Keep posting! I love watching and learn so much!

[@squangan]

The first time I was in central Europe I took note of some of the different taillight configurations over there, also occasionally you’d see someone driving a Dodge truck for example and the rear taillights were different to meet Europe turn signal requirements. If you’d never been there you wouldn’t know things were different.

[@hillppari]

red turnsignals are so stupid.

[@krama2940]

Eric great job. Nice troubleshooting. You found that there was no reverse in the light.

[@philhocknull2087]

Great video i watched with a smile on my face. I live in the UK and for many years Euro car maker on some models they have put the one fog light on the side that is near the center of the road and the reverse light is on the opposite, this has been done in the light clusters. some car makers have fitted a full cluster on both sides but one side the reverse light is a blank and the opposite is a fog light blank.

[@dougbledsoe259]

EVERYBODY makes mistakes...some admit it and others won't. THANKS for making us feel "normal" my brutha...😁

[@JeffreyStrader]

I’ve said this countless times Eric. You’d be the ONLY Mechanic/Electrician I’d EVER let touch any of my vehicles, if I lived up there.

[@tonydonders6777]

LOL, i laughed so hard. 20 seconds in the video i started screaming: “Eric, ERIC, its not a reverse light, its the foglight! So obvious for an European mechanic but i quickly understood it is not that obvious for you out there. I still watched the whole video, wanted to see the moment you would realize the ‘problem’. And then switching pin 51 with 47…. Me giggling and waiting for you to see the foglight coming on. But as always, with your skills you figured it out anyway….

[@CrashValleyCustoms]

Irish viewer here, i was cringing watching you unpin the module! 😂 but I was 100% impressed with the process you went through, methodical, still my favourite mechanic! 😉👌

[@stusims1702]

I'm humbled by your skill, Eric O. Thanks for sharing because we're learning no matter. I had a similar experience with a little anti-siphon valve attached to a water hydrant. After getting soaked turning off the water hydrant repeatedly, I decided to tighten all hose connections to "fix" it. When done, I still got soaked, turning off the hydrant. Researching, I found that little extra anti-siphon valve was doing exactly what it was designed to do, keep the water in the hose from backflowing into the well. 😅 Oops! Humbled again! Not a waste of time, though. I won't soon forget that one.

[@Westpage555]

Every day is a school day! This is common in Europe. Love the channel!

[@conradparker6355]

I'm betting pin 47 is for a right hand drive so the lights can swap sides depending on which side the steering wheel is. Don't worry and have a hug from the UK.

[@jancilliers4525]

Thanks for sharing this with us Eric. Absolutely nothing to be ashamed about! I was involved in fault finding as Telecom technician for many years and have had my share of oops moments as well! I also drive a European car and was also smiling knowingly all the way!! Keep it up!!

[@AdamIsUrqed]

It's a Mini "Well there's your problem, lady!"

[@MarkNewbound-gu3oe]

I personally hate this type of light layout but it’s common in the UK now on smaller cars. So pleased that you still showed this video, very humble Mr O.

[@johninwny]

Happens to the best of us. Don't sweat it . I still think you have one of the best car mechanic channels on KZbin. And I'd let you fix my car or truck any day of the week. You are honest, thorough and very knowledgeable. I have learned a lot and I thank you.

[@FourSeasonsNorth4x4]

Ditto!

[@davechevgmc]

It's listed in the owners manual. I had an inspection station fail a customer for this. I opened the owners manual and showed the customer and told them to show that to the inspector 😊

[@upallnight888]

That's the problem, no one reads the owner manual.

[@BigMouth380cal]

First thing I thought of once the culprit was known. How many inspection stations would know about this, personally I have failed an inspection for one of my Reverse Lights being out.

[@stanleyhanna3782]

As homer Simpson would say DOH😅😅😅

[@1979royalknight]

Nice to know you are human and honest. Love your videos.

[@Sloposse]

You can also buy a right hand drive left side rear cluster (which will have the reverse light instead of fog) and wire the reverse light to the other one with a seperate fuse

[@JRWallace07]

I had a 1995 Saab 9000CS that only had one white reverse light and the other side had the rear fog light…had people tell me all the time that I had a reverse light out 😁 but I did love having the rear fog light feature.

[@hrmfa]

Love you publish the video even if you are fooling around, but hey you're just a human being. Love your channel. Greetings from Denmark.

[@markmosher1856]

I'm actually kind of proud of Eric. He managed to fix a back-up light that wasn't broken. All kidding aside, being good enough to find that wire and move it to another cavity and actually get that b/u light working took determination and a certain amount of savvy. If you haven't worked on this stuff, how would you know? I found this out about the same way Eric did years ago. No shame in that. It's the way most of us get schooled from time to time. While it costs us something, so does any education. If we're lucky it only makes us a little late for dinner! This is one place where working alone in the shop with no one to run things by when they don't make sense is kind of hard. I think in my case, the tech in the next stall noticed me trying a light bulb in the left side with the back-up lights on and asked me what the hell I thought I was doing. Anyway, this video will still accomplish what these videos always accomplish. Someone who has not seen this before will be fore-warned. Keep em coming, Eric. I'll watch every one.

[@mikemaccracken3112]

I would have lost my shit on that one😂. Excellent video Eric.

[@porcello2007]

I would have been fishing around in the glove compartment for the manual or getting on the horn to the Mini people at the not so local dealership after about an hour and a half.😅

[@justme76437]

Can't tell you how many times in my 60 years on this earth I have felt the same way fixing things, great job Eric loved watching every minute.

[@piezoman79]

Knowing this video included an oversight, I was waiting since about 1:30 into it when you would notice the two rear lights weren’t even the same! Bravo to having to work through this euro crap!

[@bobbybenn8275]

I had a 1990 Volvo 740 GL. It had reverse fog lights. I was out of town and my brake light went out, so my reverse fog lights saved the night. Each time I used my brakes, I would turn on my reverse fog lights. It did have a manual switch. Good job Mr. O. I love your videos.

[@DmitryChestnykh]

As a programmer, this is very familiar. You go chasing a bug deep into the code, but it turns out you missed something trivial. Thanks for sharing!

[@debtminer4976]

So you're the reason my computer crashed yesterday.. 😂 just kidding..

[@Martin_from_SC]

Great video Mr. O. nothing to be ashamed of, and it proves your troubleshooting skills are excellent tracing the wires and reading the schematics. Plus the scantool also wasnt reporting correctly and it was showing right and left reverse lights. Strange that a north america spec car would have the fog light lens.

[@kennethorton3661]

We all make mistakes nobody is perfect you're still put out nice videos

[@shermanmcgrew8190]

Hi Eric, I am an American living in Holland and knew exactly what was happening from the get go. We have a PT Cruiser that was imported here years ago. The driver's side back up light was replaced with a red fog light. Good luck figuring out the wiring if you are using an American version schematic. Europeans cars sold in Europe will have only the passenger's side white back up light. American cars get converted to European Specs as European cars go to American Specs. Either this car was imported by the owner OR some dealer messed up on the conversion to American specs before selling it in America. Either way, kudos to you for finding it out in a pretty short period of time. Nicely done, Sir!

[@gwbuilder5779]

No need for embarrassment Eric. I got to the same place as you working on a Mercedes a few years back and had a similar experience. One reverse light not working, so I looked at the light, looked at the other light, and back at the light, looked at the other light probably 10 times before I noticed the red bottom lens.😂 I was just so focused on the problem that it never occurred to me there would only be one reverse light. As soon as I realized the color difference I remembered seeing a BMW with only one reverse light, but I just thought one was out. Learned something new.🤙

[@chrisnorwood8613]

I one time was replacing a turn signal switch, after removing it I got the new and old part mixed up. Ended up putting the old one back on then spending an hour trying to figure out how I miss diagnosed it.

[@djmartin4776]

Yea... I've done that too