[OnlyGerman]

Was cleaning up the front area of the engine bay from leaves and noticed some wiring harness running though pretty exposed, near the hood hinges.



Is your 535 like this as well?

[AussieBob]

Yep! And exposed wiring junction connectors as well if you look closer in those areas. If you only just noticed it now, then BMW are getting away with it from the under the hood location and also "behind the curtain" under the dashboard. But I also noticed Mercedes Benz started doing the same thing in the exposed interior footwell, before BMW started it under the hood.

The wires are still single insulated, so electrically they will work with their low frequency voltage operation and design related EMC environment. It's a different story if the single insulation wiring gets vibrated through by the trunk lid metal, for example, and the trunk switch and Comfort Access system drains your car's battery FLAT! But introducing your own second layer of insulation tape FIXES that BMW design $hort-coming, and introducing flexible black conduit can address the aesthetics of the single insulated wires, as they have already done under the hood in other areas, if you so desire. But yes it is normal in this location as your image has pictured.

[OnlyGerman]

Originally Posted by AussieBob

Yep! And exposed wiring junction connectors as well if you look closer in those areas. If you only just noticed it now, then BMW are getting away with it from the under the hood location and also "behind the curtain" under the dashboard. But I also noticed Mercedes Benz started doing the same thing in the exposed interior footwell, before BMW started it under the hood.

The wires are still single insulated, so electrically they will work with their low frequency voltage operation and design related EMC environment. It's a different story if the single insulation wiring gets vibrated through by the trunk lid metal, for example, and the trunk switch and Comfort Access system drains your car's battery FLAT! But introducing your own second layer of insulation tape FIXES that BMW design $hort-coming, and introducing flexible black conduit can address the aesthetics of the single insulated wires, as they have already done under the hood in other areas, if you so desire. But yes it is normal in this location as your image has pictured.

Bad idea to liquid electrical tape over it? Unnecessary?

Worked well on repairing the headlight wiring on my e60.

[AussieBob]

Completely unnecessary, the design as it is is fit for purpose.
Keep the hood closed and enjoy the driving, that's what BMWs are (should be) all about.

Only repair/fix if broken and a better design is available, which often includes aftermarket, but not all the time.

[Unspec]

Typically the main areas where BMW uses cable sheathing is for areas where there can be high abrasion or heat. Areas like that really don't need any kind of protection.