[horsesuitedfool]

Posted in UK area but moved here as more relevant area...

So I managed to buy a mint set of E92 gloss shadow line trims this week, minus one of the small rear quarter trims which they had damaged. I paid only 76 GBP for the set and I then paid 40 GBP to BMW stealer this afternoon for the one rear quarter trim I needed. I read many places and various places told me that I cant fit the rear quarter window trims on the car as they wont slide on, everyone seemed to think I would need to remove the rear quarter seal and fit them off the car....So anyway, I decided to have a go today and I was shocked at how easy they were to fit!! I had them done in approximately 30 minutes per side without incident and without damaging my silver trims!! I removed the wing mirrors but not the door cards. The only part that took a bit of time was cleaning the dirt and rubbish from the rear quarter window seal, I used a stiff brush and then oiled the tabs before sliding the new trim finishers on. Looks sooo much better....

[Mikey B]

Looks brilliant, i hate the chrome ones! Where did you get them from?

[horsesuitedfool]

Yes it's transformed the car, I got the gloss shadow line trim from a bmw breaker in Doncaster and I also fitted new gloss grills that I got from main stealer.... Looks so much better, it's having new body parts and interior makeover this week too

[MDecals]

Looks Great. If anyone wants to tackle a DIY project...

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=933923

[Dark_Knight_335]

God I wish they made shadow line trim for verts- but I think I know why

[iBoost]

That looks way better!

Could you share what DIY you used or can you elaborate on how you removed them with out damaging?

[horsesuitedfool]

I basically just took my time and decided to kind of suck it and see as I went along as lots DIY I read seemed to say you can't install the rear window lower trim finisher but I really couldn't see why that would be the case so I decided to give it a go....

1st you lower the front window all the way down and then you remove the plastic trim covering the wing mirror base inside the car, mine is blank as I have basic sound system but you may have a tweeter in there so be careful when removing it.

Next you undo the two torx you can see and then lift the rubber seal which reveals a third torx holding the mirror on. Undo this and carefully remove the wing mirror. Now you're ready to remove the trims....

Start by removing the lower front door window trim, start at the back of the door farthest from the wing mirror and gently pull the trim upwards, this trim lifts off easily, just be careful not to bend it. Next you remove the lower piece just under the wing mirror housing. This trim is stiff so be careful not to bend it. Start at the back where this trim meets the piece you just removed. Push a large flat head driver into it so it's wedged into the rubber seal part of the trim, not just the top piece which will bend easily. Now lift the trim upwards, gently pry it upwards until it comes out without bending it. Now you remove the main trim that runs across the top. This part is pretty easy but take your time. Put your fingers in behind the trim at the front where it is behind the wing mirror, gently pull it and it will start to pop off the clips holding it on, move from front to back gently popping each clip until the whole piece is off the car. Lastly you remove the rear window lower trim finisher piece. This piece DOES NOT PULL OFF like the others. Open the front door fully. The trim slides off the car forwards, gently push it towards the front of the car and it slides off. That's it you're all done.

To refit it's the reverse of the above but with a couple important points to remember....When refitting the main trim across the top of the windows make sure you have removed any plastic clips that are still attached to the trim. You need to fit all these clips properly to the car, they simply push fit into holes along the car. Once they are all on the car you can push fit the trim onto the car, start at the rear first as this first clip at the back clips in at a specific point whereas the other clips do not, they just push fit onto the trim at any point. Once almost all the trims are reinstalled you will have the last trim to fit which is tricky, this the rear window lower trim finisher that slides on and off rather than pulling or pushing on or off. You will see the seal on the car has little plastic clips every few inches that the trim finisher is meant to slide onto. However this area is typically very dirty and heavily soiled. You need to take a flat head driver and carefully scrape along the seal agitating all the dirt etc. next take a stiff brush and carefully brush off all the dirt, once you're happy it's pretty spotless use some spray oil or WD40 lubricant and spray each plastic clip. Now you're ready to refit the trim finisher, open the front door fully and carefully slide it onto the clips from front to back making sure it grabs each clip, don't force it if it gets stuck just slide backwards and blow it or use airline and slide it on again until you have it butted up nicely to the main trim piece that joins it at the rear curve of the rear side window. You're all done....

[iBoost]

Thanks for that write up! Very tempted now to pull them off for painting.