Salty's 2005 330Ci ZHP Jet Black Coupe Restore

Awesome fix. No better feeling than repairing what you've got instead of replacing, even if it's cheap.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SaltyNC

A lot of information out there in forums and in videos unfortunately has some bad information. They say to rotate the mirror mount counterclockwise to remove it from the glass, and that seems like it would be the right thing to do. But, BMW says that can actually damage the mirror mount, which may be what caused this one to be loose in the first place.

The correct procedure is to remove the rear housing, disconnect the electrical connector, center the mirror, rotate the mirror down as far as it will go, so the ball joint is at its lowest point, then give it a quick hit toward the glass with the ball of your hand. The mirror will pop right off. That's what I did, and it worked like a charm.

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Just be careful - this can result in a cracked windshield. I've had better luck with the rotation method several times, thankfully with no loose mount.

John,

I just went by BMW's instructions:

This was at the top of the document:

Caution!
Do not under any circumstances turn the interior rearview mirror when removing it.
Twisting off the interior rearview mirror from the mirror mount will damage the rear catch.
The mirror will wobble while installed if the rear catch is damaged.
Do not snap out the interior rearview mirror (1) towards the rear (windshield breakage).



And this was in the detailed removal instructions:

Caution!
Do not remove interior mirror (1) towards rear or by twisting (risk of damage).
When snapping out, do not damage control unit (3) for rain sensor.
Snap out interior mirror (1) from mirror mount (2) towards front by striking with ball of thumb and remove.

Attachment 31835

It didn't take a lot of force to pop the mirror off using BMW's method, but I could see if the glass was chipped or weakened in some way, it could be a risk.

Salty

Thanks Dane and ZHPizza!

Salty

Man that procedure is bizarre. I've twisted the mirror on and off at least a dozen times and never even considered it to not be the correct method. Love that BMW's professional instruction is to punch the little bastard right off.

Here is the link to the BMW official document if anyone needs it:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CI8...ew?usp=sharing

Hope that helps.

Salty

:thumbsup

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Today the car was driving strangely. The steering wheel had some vibration, and it almost felt like I had a flat tire when I went around a turn. I drove a little further and realized the driver's side front brake caliper was sticking. I checked for heat, and sure enough, that rotor/wheel was hot.

There are several things going on that may all be related.

1) The DSC and BRAKE light are on in yellow. My alignment is off, so I assumed the lights were probably alignment related because the steering angle sensor was complaining of the steering wheel pointing left while the car was going straight. New tie rods and alignment will be done soon. My tie rods just came in, today. But, these lights didn't come on until after I did a quick cleaning of the calipers and rotors after I purchased the car, and the car was out of alignment when I purchased it. The rotors and calipers were pretty rusty when I picked up the car. I wonder if the DSC and BRAKE may be on because the brake caliper is now sticking because of all the rust and crud I put into motion.

2) I thought I felt some vibration in the drivetrain recently. It wasn't very pronounced, but it was something I didn't feel when test driving the car. I was hoping if it was transmission or differential related, my planned fluid and filter change would take care of it. Well, now I'm thinking there isn't anything at all going on with the drivetrain. I think the vibration is coming from that stuck caliper.

So, I'm going to see if I can clean-up that caliper and get it unstuck and get some remanufactured ones on order. Since I planned to paint them, anyway, this will make life easier. And maybe I'll get lucky and the vibration and lights will go off.

But it still needs an alignment and fluid change. :)

Salty

Dirty break fluid and sensirs will trigger the yellow light trifecta

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Thanks, Vas. I only have a bifecta. :) I have BRAKE and DSC in yellow, but not ABS. I do plan to clean all of the sensors and check the wires. Brake fluid will be replaced soon, too, but I hope it can wait a little while. I have a room full of parts I need to get installed, but I have to get the brakes working first. Can't have bad brakes.

Salty