2008 BMW 335d E91
Discussion
The E9x platform came with several audio packages (in order of quality):
Base,
HiFi,
Top HiFi / Logic 7 / Harman Kardon,
Individual Audio.
My car has the "HiFi" package and it's alright - the underseat subs add depth I'm not used to with standard sound systems.
In the past I've fitted subs, amps etc, but I'm used to cars coming with a DIN headunit, and four crap speakers - obviously this is a lot more complicated.
I did see the entire Top HiFi system come up for sale, but decided that was a bit too much of a project.
I found some Logic 7 mid speakers on eBay cheap and picked them up.
I also bought the tweeters at the same time, but due to a mixup the seller sent only one so I didn't fit them.
Always hated taking door cards off, but to be honest these are probably the simplest I've done - trim pulls off, couple of torx screws and then a bunch of trim clips to pop off.
Even more surprisingly, I didn't even break any clips!
Speaker attached to the door card (boo) with some nuts
New vs old
Back together and I can't say I can tell much difference...
The car has front & rear parking sensors, and the iDrive shows a nice infographic of the distance each sensor reports.
However, a camera would be much handier - fitted several before and it's never fun.
This one however, was quite a bit harder than I expected.
I found a neat camera which integrates and replaces the existing boot handle.
You obviously need to run power & signal wires down the car.
On my Megane I ran it on the trim behind the window, but this is complicated by the split rear window - the window can be opened independently of the boot, which means that there is no "inside" of the boot lid to run wires in past the rear window.
Instead they just sit under some plastic trim, and there's not much space in there for more wiring.
Plus of course getting the wiring through the existing grommets is always very unpleasant.
The tailgate trim is ridiculously heavy - when removed it's actually hard work to shut the boot because of how stiff the gas struts are to compensate, due to all the sound deadening.
In the past, in the dash end it's a simple affair of connecting the trigger to the reversing lights and plugging in an RCA connector, but not so here.
Here, because iDrive, you need an emulator to allow a reversing camera to be connected (~£40).
This box of tricks powers the camera, with no connection to the reversing lights, and is required for the car to do the work.
The RCA plug gets cut off and connected to some pins on the back of the CIC unit
After some coding - hey presto?
I followed this guide - https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10...
Unfortunately, the first emulator I bought was bad - it was a plug&play unit and I think it was wired up wrong, plus it was missing the power wire for the camera.
After doing the coding (nb - I hate that phrase - but you know what I mean), when going into reverse nothing - not even the parking sensors - came up on screen.
I bought another emulator, this time not a plug&play one, but had the same problem!
This was months ago but finally got around to having another look, and having found a poor connection, and different pinout of the connector (swapping CAN+/-), I had another go.
This time, I get the display - but still no camera...
When fitting the camera, I grounded off the boot interior light - but I didn't actually test it first.
Somehow there wasn't a ground there at all so I swapped to the tail light ground (testing it this time...) and...
It integrates really well with the iDrive system (obviously).
A really neat feature is that because there's front parking sensors, even after you shift out of reverse, the parking sensors stay on until you pull away properly - and as the camera is wired into the emulator, it stays on too.
It also makes lining it up for the trailer really easy.
Base,
HiFi,
Top HiFi / Logic 7 / Harman Kardon,
Individual Audio.
My car has the "HiFi" package and it's alright - the underseat subs add depth I'm not used to with standard sound systems.
In the past I've fitted subs, amps etc, but I'm used to cars coming with a DIN headunit, and four crap speakers - obviously this is a lot more complicated.
I did see the entire Top HiFi system come up for sale, but decided that was a bit too much of a project.
I found some Logic 7 mid speakers on eBay cheap and picked them up.
I also bought the tweeters at the same time, but due to a mixup the seller sent only one so I didn't fit them.
Always hated taking door cards off, but to be honest these are probably the simplest I've done - trim pulls off, couple of torx screws and then a bunch of trim clips to pop off.
Even more surprisingly, I didn't even break any clips!
Speaker attached to the door card (boo) with some nuts
New vs old
Back together and I can't say I can tell much difference...
The car has front & rear parking sensors, and the iDrive shows a nice infographic of the distance each sensor reports.
However, a camera would be much handier - fitted several before and it's never fun.
This one however, was quite a bit harder than I expected.
I found a neat camera which integrates and replaces the existing boot handle.
You obviously need to run power & signal wires down the car.
On my Megane I ran it on the trim behind the window, but this is complicated by the split rear window - the window can be opened independently of the boot, which means that there is no "inside" of the boot lid to run wires in past the rear window.
Instead they just sit under some plastic trim, and there's not much space in there for more wiring.
Plus of course getting the wiring through the existing grommets is always very unpleasant.
The tailgate trim is ridiculously heavy - when removed it's actually hard work to shut the boot because of how stiff the gas struts are to compensate, due to all the sound deadening.
In the past, in the dash end it's a simple affair of connecting the trigger to the reversing lights and plugging in an RCA connector, but not so here.
Here, because iDrive, you need an emulator to allow a reversing camera to be connected (~£40).
This box of tricks powers the camera, with no connection to the reversing lights, and is required for the car to do the work.
The RCA plug gets cut off and connected to some pins on the back of the CIC unit
After some coding - hey presto?
I followed this guide - https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10...
Unfortunately, the first emulator I bought was bad - it was a plug&play unit and I think it was wired up wrong, plus it was missing the power wire for the camera.
After doing the coding (nb - I hate that phrase - but you know what I mean), when going into reverse nothing - not even the parking sensors - came up on screen.
I bought another emulator, this time not a plug&play one, but had the same problem!
This was months ago but finally got around to having another look, and having found a poor connection, and different pinout of the connector (swapping CAN+/-), I had another go.
This time, I get the display - but still no camera...
When fitting the camera, I grounded off the boot interior light - but I didn't actually test it first.
Somehow there wasn't a ground there at all so I swapped to the tail light ground (testing it this time...) and...
It integrates really well with the iDrive system (obviously).
A really neat feature is that because there's front parking sensors, even after you shift out of reverse, the parking sensors stay on until you pull away properly - and as the camera is wired into the emulator, it stays on too.
It also makes lining it up for the trailer really easy.
The autobox has "adaptation" values that show how the gearbox is correcting for wear in the transmission, which allows you to get an idea for it's overall health.
In my case, those values are not great - especially on "Clutch E", which is a common failure point on this gearbox (ZF 6HP26).
With that in mind, I didn't want to push the car any harder - i.e. an engine or gearbox remap - unless I could get those numbers down.
I've mentioned before I've not had any real problems with the gearbox, my only issue was when trying to park it seemed to take more throttle than you'd expect to get it moving and it wasn't very smooth doing so.
It's ironic, as my Megane was on it's original clutch, and at 100k I put on a bigger turbo, decat, DPF delete and a remap. After some abuse on an autosolo it started slipping, and I wrote it off as one of those things that happens when you tune cars and was happy to get it replaced.
But somehow being able to monitor the health of the box in advance makes me super cautious.
One suggestion was to service the gearbox.
It's a classic case of BMW saying the gearbox is sealed for life, but the gearbox manufacturer recommends a service every 60k.
A "service" in this case means a replacement oil & filter (integrated into the sump) and a mechatronic sleeve - this seal around the electrical connector between the car and the gearbox's mechatronic unit that actually does the hydraulic actuation of the mechanism.
I bought the genuine ZF kit that includes the above, plus new sump bolts and a new filler plug.
Pricing for this was all over the place - I paid £150 from AutoDoc, but ECP sell it for about £300.
I took it a step further and also bought the tube and bridge seals (I doubt thats the technical name) which wear over time and not seal as well, causing the gearbox to work harder than it needs to and leading to higher adaptation values.
Mechatronic sleeve top right, bridge seal top left, tube seals on the bottom.
A guide on the job can be found here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCvmdo1bLLw
The job itself (shouldn't) be too hard, but the filling is a pain.
My pictures get progressively worse, the more gearbox oil I've spilled on my phone...
First attempt at this job did not go well - my jack broke!
Second attempt started off badly - my Z4 has died and is immobile so to get enough space I had to jack it up in a different part of the drive, which wasn't really suited to it.
Got the car high (or at least, as high as I can on the drive!) and level.
Oil drained out - quite black.
Sump off - original dated part. Magnets were clean.
Mechatronic unit removed
Tube seals were a little worn, but not too bad
I stabbed myself in the hand quite badly removing them with a pick - nevermind, ATF oil is good on open wounds, right...?
Bridge seal was a bit flat
Went to put the new sump on, can you spot the problem?
One snapped oil pickup.
If you look at the first picture it turned up like that, but wasn't obvious
Already drained all the oil out by this point so didn't really have a choice but to continue.
Cleaned up the old sump, drained it as best I could, took all the seals and sump plug from the new sump to the old one.
The mechatronic sleeve was a real pain.
I could just about get a screwdriver in there to unlatch the connector, and pull the old sleeve free to drop the mechatronics unit.
But the seal is rigid and there wasn't enough space to actually get it out, or a new one in.
I had to use the jack to support the gearbox, with a lump of wood going up through the gearbox mount, onto the gearbox mounting frame.
Then I could remove the gearbox mount.
And then finally I could remove the bolts holding the exhaust hanger bracket so that I could remove it to give me enough space to get the sleeve out and the new one in.
Absolute nightmare.
Finally, with it all reassembled, I could refill.
The process is - fill until overflow, put the plug in, cycle through the gears, get the gearbox up to "operating temperature" (30-50° C), remove the plug and fill again until overflow.
I put in about 4L of oil - I've got a little bottle pump which is really handy, but it's hard work pumping that much through
You can monitor the gearbox temperature through INPA, or you can just use an IR thermometer on the sump.
I did this in the middle of December - it took nearly an hour to warm up, which I wasn't expecting.
Once warm, I struggled to add more - I needed to add it quickly to avoid the gearbox getting too hot, as then I'd need to let it cool down before I could continue refilling, so I had to pump another 1.5L quickly.
You have to do this process with the engine running - if you turn it off, the "extra" fluid comes out and you need to add some more (don't ask me how I know)
Despite being the official method, dropping the sump only changes the oil in the gearbox - the oil in the torque converter is left alone.
You can pump it out using a fancy machine, but I was happy with how much I replaced - especially after spilling a load - what was coming out wasn't clear like new oil, but it looked nothing like the oil I'd originally removed.
The least pleasant part was putting the fill plug in.
It's at a slightly awkward angle, and very close to the transmission tunnel.
You need a good grip, while 40° C transmission oil is coming out and soaking your gloves (with an open wound courtesy of earlier)
At the same time, the back of your hand is gently brushing the exhaust of a car that's been running for an hour.
This was not fun!
All in, it took me about 5 hours (but I'm very slow).
And re-affirmed that I really hate working on the drive, when its wet and cold getting covered in crap. I need a garage!
It seems smoother when driving, not a night-and-day difference, but its definitely smoother to change, and seems less hesitant pulling away.
I drove it for a hundred miles or so and read the adaptations.
The quickcharge pressure on clutch E should be below 400mbar, and the quickcharge time under 40ms.
Before:
After:
Yep.... after all that work, it's basically the same!
So no remap for now... I'll keep an eye on it.
On a slightly cheerier note, I replaced the windscreen wipers.
Aero units were fitted, but had been fitted upside down so the aerofoils just made noise instead of doing anything useful.
In my case, those values are not great - especially on "Clutch E", which is a common failure point on this gearbox (ZF 6HP26).
With that in mind, I didn't want to push the car any harder - i.e. an engine or gearbox remap - unless I could get those numbers down.
I've mentioned before I've not had any real problems with the gearbox, my only issue was when trying to park it seemed to take more throttle than you'd expect to get it moving and it wasn't very smooth doing so.
It's ironic, as my Megane was on it's original clutch, and at 100k I put on a bigger turbo, decat, DPF delete and a remap. After some abuse on an autosolo it started slipping, and I wrote it off as one of those things that happens when you tune cars and was happy to get it replaced.
But somehow being able to monitor the health of the box in advance makes me super cautious.
One suggestion was to service the gearbox.
It's a classic case of BMW saying the gearbox is sealed for life, but the gearbox manufacturer recommends a service every 60k.
A "service" in this case means a replacement oil & filter (integrated into the sump) and a mechatronic sleeve - this seal around the electrical connector between the car and the gearbox's mechatronic unit that actually does the hydraulic actuation of the mechanism.
I bought the genuine ZF kit that includes the above, plus new sump bolts and a new filler plug.
Pricing for this was all over the place - I paid £150 from AutoDoc, but ECP sell it for about £300.
I took it a step further and also bought the tube and bridge seals (I doubt thats the technical name) which wear over time and not seal as well, causing the gearbox to work harder than it needs to and leading to higher adaptation values.
Mechatronic sleeve top right, bridge seal top left, tube seals on the bottom.
A guide on the job can be found here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCvmdo1bLLw
The job itself (shouldn't) be too hard, but the filling is a pain.
My pictures get progressively worse, the more gearbox oil I've spilled on my phone...
First attempt at this job did not go well - my jack broke!
Second attempt started off badly - my Z4 has died and is immobile so to get enough space I had to jack it up in a different part of the drive, which wasn't really suited to it.
Got the car high (or at least, as high as I can on the drive!) and level.
Oil drained out - quite black.
Sump off - original dated part. Magnets were clean.
Mechatronic unit removed
Tube seals were a little worn, but not too bad
I stabbed myself in the hand quite badly removing them with a pick - nevermind, ATF oil is good on open wounds, right...?
Bridge seal was a bit flat
Went to put the new sump on, can you spot the problem?
One snapped oil pickup.
If you look at the first picture it turned up like that, but wasn't obvious
Already drained all the oil out by this point so didn't really have a choice but to continue.
Cleaned up the old sump, drained it as best I could, took all the seals and sump plug from the new sump to the old one.
The mechatronic sleeve was a real pain.
I could just about get a screwdriver in there to unlatch the connector, and pull the old sleeve free to drop the mechatronics unit.
But the seal is rigid and there wasn't enough space to actually get it out, or a new one in.
I had to use the jack to support the gearbox, with a lump of wood going up through the gearbox mount, onto the gearbox mounting frame.
Then I could remove the gearbox mount.
And then finally I could remove the bolts holding the exhaust hanger bracket so that I could remove it to give me enough space to get the sleeve out and the new one in.
Absolute nightmare.
Finally, with it all reassembled, I could refill.
The process is - fill until overflow, put the plug in, cycle through the gears, get the gearbox up to "operating temperature" (30-50° C), remove the plug and fill again until overflow.
I put in about 4L of oil - I've got a little bottle pump which is really handy, but it's hard work pumping that much through
You can monitor the gearbox temperature through INPA, or you can just use an IR thermometer on the sump.
I did this in the middle of December - it took nearly an hour to warm up, which I wasn't expecting.
Once warm, I struggled to add more - I needed to add it quickly to avoid the gearbox getting too hot, as then I'd need to let it cool down before I could continue refilling, so I had to pump another 1.5L quickly.
You have to do this process with the engine running - if you turn it off, the "extra" fluid comes out and you need to add some more (don't ask me how I know)
Despite being the official method, dropping the sump only changes the oil in the gearbox - the oil in the torque converter is left alone.
You can pump it out using a fancy machine, but I was happy with how much I replaced - especially after spilling a load - what was coming out wasn't clear like new oil, but it looked nothing like the oil I'd originally removed.
The least pleasant part was putting the fill plug in.
It's at a slightly awkward angle, and very close to the transmission tunnel.
You need a good grip, while 40° C transmission oil is coming out and soaking your gloves (with an open wound courtesy of earlier)
At the same time, the back of your hand is gently brushing the exhaust of a car that's been running for an hour.
This was not fun!
All in, it took me about 5 hours (but I'm very slow).
And re-affirmed that I really hate working on the drive, when its wet and cold getting covered in crap. I need a garage!
It seems smoother when driving, not a night-and-day difference, but its definitely smoother to change, and seems less hesitant pulling away.
I drove it for a hundred miles or so and read the adaptations.
The quickcharge pressure on clutch E should be below 400mbar, and the quickcharge time under 40ms.
Before:
After:
Yep.... after all that work, it's basically the same!
So no remap for now... I'll keep an eye on it.
On a slightly cheerier note, I replaced the windscreen wipers.
Aero units were fitted, but had been fitted upside down so the aerofoils just made noise instead of doing anything useful.
I've been getting this message recently
But I've been ignoring it, assuming that it's just lack of use.
The other day I drove for about half an hour, stopped for 10 mins and when I got back in the car it came up, so I figured I had an actual problem.
It's meant to indicate a parasitic battery draw - but looking online a bad battery can cause similar problems as it discharges quicker than expected.
I've not had any real problems starting the car in regular use (but have when it's been left while working on it).
The battery had no visible dates so I took a chance and replaced it.
Although the car doesn't have stop start, it has "Brake Energy Regeneration" (i.e. selective charging), which means it needs an AGM battery.
Normally I'd get a Bosch S5 / Varta one, but it was £180.
I found a Yuasa for £140, but it turns out that the Halfords battery has identical specs, is also made by Yuasa, has a longer warranty and was £148 so I went for that.
No pictures, but it's big!
Removing the old battery isn't too hard, but it's quite awkward, so I had a spare pair of hands for a change.
Couldn't see a date at all on the battery, and it's not an AGM battery either.
Because of the IBS (Intelligent Battery System), the car needs to know what battery is fitted (i.e. it's type), and the car needs to know a new battery has been installed.
The type of battery was still listed as an AGM so I wonder if maybe my problems were just that the battery hadn't been properly registered to the car when installed.
All registered and not only have I not had the problem come up since, but it seems to start quicker too.
I can also now make use of the "Rest" functionality, where the interior fans stay on with the ignition off, without worrying about the car having a fit!
But I've been ignoring it, assuming that it's just lack of use.
The other day I drove for about half an hour, stopped for 10 mins and when I got back in the car it came up, so I figured I had an actual problem.
It's meant to indicate a parasitic battery draw - but looking online a bad battery can cause similar problems as it discharges quicker than expected.
I've not had any real problems starting the car in regular use (but have when it's been left while working on it).
The battery had no visible dates so I took a chance and replaced it.
Although the car doesn't have stop start, it has "Brake Energy Regeneration" (i.e. selective charging), which means it needs an AGM battery.
Normally I'd get a Bosch S5 / Varta one, but it was £180.
I found a Yuasa for £140, but it turns out that the Halfords battery has identical specs, is also made by Yuasa, has a longer warranty and was £148 so I went for that.
No pictures, but it's big!
Removing the old battery isn't too hard, but it's quite awkward, so I had a spare pair of hands for a change.
Couldn't see a date at all on the battery, and it's not an AGM battery either.
Because of the IBS (Intelligent Battery System), the car needs to know what battery is fitted (i.e. it's type), and the car needs to know a new battery has been installed.
The type of battery was still listed as an AGM so I wonder if maybe my problems were just that the battery hadn't been properly registered to the car when installed.
All registered and not only have I not had the problem come up since, but it seems to start quicker too.
I can also now make use of the "Rest" functionality, where the interior fans stay on with the ignition off, without worrying about the car having a fit!
Lovely read that mate. I run a E90 330d with a remap as a daily and that is pretty quick, I've always wondered just how much quicker the 335d is, maybe I'll find out one day - not sure I'd buy one though!
This is a bit random but I used to race with you on Live For Speed way back when! We were both big posters on the forum too - My licence name was The General Lee, not sure if you would remember me. Nice to "see" you again and you're doing well for yourself mate!
This is a bit random but I used to race with you on Live For Speed way back when! We were both big posters on the forum too - My licence name was The General Lee, not sure if you would remember me. Nice to "see" you again and you're doing well for yourself mate!
The old electric boot lid release....I discovered that the hard way when changing the seats in my other half’s old 116. Luckily it was easy enough to get back in and reconnect the battery.
I’ve just had to replace the battery on her 125i. A genuine BMW one wasn’t actually too expensive (£164 delivered from Cotswold but I cheaped out and bought one from Tayna).
I’ve just had to replace the battery on her 125i. A genuine BMW one wasn’t actually too expensive (£164 delivered from Cotswold but I cheaped out and bought one from Tayna).
Edited by Court_S on Tuesday 7th September 09:51
Rear tyres been losing pressure, couldn't see anything but when put in the bath...
I was about to try one of those string repair tools until I realised it was right on the edge
All of the tyres are bad, and the wheels aren't great either, so I had a choice.
I priced up some new rear tyres - not a great selection in this size (255/40/17) and so they are quite expensive.
But I'm waiting to move, and was terrified I'd end up with a car stuck on the drive.
£280 later - slightly rushed purchase as I'm waiting to move and the car was stuck.
Condition is ok, not great but presentable and better than what I have.
Tyres are quite new, but budgets (Debica) - but at least they are a full set.
Quick clean
And looking pretty decent
With the car up in the air I also changed the oil, early based on the schedule.
Filters meant to be done up to 25nm but needed a breaker bar to loosen, always a good sign.
The o-ring on the filter housing was completely flat - I wonder when that was last replaced...
Thought I'd save some money buying the oil 20L at a time.
Bought it last year but despite being sold as low-SAPS, it doesn't appear to be - ooops. Luckily I can use it in the other cars.
Plus, it's easy to pour the oil from a 5L container - less trying to get it out of this one without spilling it everywhere. Should make a nice container for used engine oil when empty though.
Sump plug swapped for a magnetic one.
I was about to try one of those string repair tools until I realised it was right on the edge
All of the tyres are bad, and the wheels aren't great either, so I had a choice.
I priced up some new rear tyres - not a great selection in this size (255/40/17) and so they are quite expensive.
But I'm waiting to move, and was terrified I'd end up with a car stuck on the drive.
£280 later - slightly rushed purchase as I'm waiting to move and the car was stuck.
Condition is ok, not great but presentable and better than what I have.
Tyres are quite new, but budgets (Debica) - but at least they are a full set.
Quick clean
And looking pretty decent
With the car up in the air I also changed the oil, early based on the schedule.
Filters meant to be done up to 25nm but needed a breaker bar to loosen, always a good sign.
The o-ring on the filter housing was completely flat - I wonder when that was last replaced...
Thought I'd save some money buying the oil 20L at a time.
Bought it last year but despite being sold as low-SAPS, it doesn't appear to be - ooops. Luckily I can use it in the other cars.
Plus, it's easy to pour the oil from a 5L container - less trying to get it out of this one without spilling it everywhere. Should make a nice container for used engine oil when empty though.
Sump plug swapped for a magnetic one.
d_a_n1979 said:
Are they one of the MV alloys (always get them confused)?
MV3'sd_a_n1979 said:
What the feck are the tyres? 
Never heard of them... More ditchfinders, or are they part of one of the larger tyre makers, just with a non-brand name?
Never heard of them... More ditchfinders, or are they part of one of the larger tyre makers, just with a non-brand name?Their website said:
Tire Company Dębica S.A. is a leading Polish manufacturer of tires for passenger cars, vans and trucks.
{...}
The company produces tires both of its own brand Dębica and of other brands of the Goodyear concern, including Goodyear, Dunlop, Fulda, Sava. In addition, Debica tires are manufactured by other production facilities owned by Goodyear. Tire Company Dębica S.A. is also a manufacturer of curing membranes for the production of tires.
Not convinced...{...}
The company produces tires both of its own brand Dębica and of other brands of the Goodyear concern, including Goodyear, Dunlop, Fulda, Sava. In addition, Debica tires are manufactured by other production facilities owned by Goodyear. Tire Company Dębica S.A. is also a manufacturer of curing membranes for the production of tires.
Jakg said:
d_a_n1979 said:
Are they one of the MV alloys (always get them confused)?
MV3'sd_a_n1979 said:
What the feck are the tyres? Never heard of them... More ditchfinders, or are they part of one of the larger tyre makers, just with a non-brand name?
Never heard of them... More ditchfinders, or are they part of one of the larger tyre makers, just with a non-brand name?Their website said:
Tire Company D?bica S.A. is a leading Polish manufacturer of tires for passenger cars, vans and trucks.
{...}
The company produces tires both of its own brand D?bica and of other brands of the Goodyear concern, including Goodyear, Dunlop, Fulda, Sava. In addition, Debica tires are manufactured by other production facilities owned by Goodyear. Tire Company D?bica S.A. is also a manufacturer of curing membranes for the production of tires.
Not convinced...{...}
The company produces tires both of its own brand D?bica and of other brands of the Goodyear concern, including Goodyear, Dunlop, Fulda, Sava. In addition, Debica tires are manufactured by other production facilities owned by Goodyear. Tire Company D?bica S.A. is also a manufacturer of curing membranes for the production of tires.
Just because they're made in the 'same factory', doesn't mean they're as good etc...
Tread carefully with them (pardon the pun)
Jakg said:
Removed the phone cradle and fitted a storage tray instead.
I went for a second hand genuine one as the reviews on the Chinese ones weren't great.
It's difficult to tell in the pictures, but you gain a lot of space as the tray sits a lot lower.
Before (stock picture):
I’m liking the storage tray. I may have to locate one….I went for a second hand genuine one as the reviews on the Chinese ones weren't great.
It's difficult to tell in the pictures, but you gain a lot of space as the tray sits a lot lower.
Before (stock picture):
t job doing it on the drive. We did it on a really hot day in May. Joy.A CIC iDrive unit was retrofitted, but the original CCC controller was still used.
My reasons for upgrading were pretty frivolous.
The controller is a straight swap, but needs a new trim piece, mounting brackets (sometimes come with the controllers) and also requires 2 extra screws (4x for the CCC, but 6x for the CIC - which I didn't realise!).
The trim I got looks the same (i.e. both silver), but the original one is a semi-matt plastic, the new one is solid aluminium.
Metal is obviously nicer than plastic, but scratches more easily - luckily the difference in appearance isn't too jarring.
Trim removed - your meant to remove the gearknob to get the gaiter off, but if your careful you can get it out through the hole. I don't think it's possible in park, though, with an automatic.
New one fitted
My reasons for upgrading were pretty frivolous.
The controller is a straight swap, but needs a new trim piece, mounting brackets (sometimes come with the controllers) and also requires 2 extra screws (4x for the CCC, but 6x for the CIC - which I didn't realise!).
The trim I got looks the same (i.e. both silver), but the original one is a semi-matt plastic, the new one is solid aluminium.
Metal is obviously nicer than plastic, but scratches more easily - luckily the difference in appearance isn't too jarring.
Trim removed - your meant to remove the gearknob to get the gaiter off, but if your careful you can get it out through the hole. I don't think it's possible in park, though, with an automatic.
New one fitted
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