[bmnut]

Since some knacker decided to put a hairline crack together with some paint chips in my 'bugs bunny' grille and it was irritating me every time I looked at it I decided to replace it with a new one.
Initial price checking suggested anywhere between £160 to £180 ish but turned out to be £140 for mine, high gloss black shadow line and the only one listed for my car (obviously!) against the VIN.
So having found a YouTube video from one of our American cousins showing how to remove it without taking the whole bloody bumper off I decided, 'why not, how hard can it be?'..........Mistake!..... Reckoned it would take me a couple of hours or so, tops....took all bloody day and had to enlist the help of my local detailer to fit the replacement new one!
So.....getting the original one off, as per the video, was scary, brute force (sound like bone cracking) but trying to get in behind it to disconnect the feeds for the parking sensors was never going to happen. The wiring is VERY short to them and I couldn't get a decent purchase on them let alone try and release the connectors.
Two big holes cut out of the grille with a sabre saw later finally got them apart!
I don't have the Tech Plus package (or whatever it's called) that has the speed related cruise control so didn't have the camera unit to disconnect, turns out that was about the only bonus.

Now to fit the new one and that's when the fun started.....what an absolute cow it was to try and get the top centre part of the one-piece grille to locate on the slots for the barbed clips and sit flush with the bumper moulding (the bit directly underneath the bonnet roundel). Trying to push the grille into place by applying so much pressure to the bumper was seriously threatening to end in tears.
In the end my local detailer came round and having loosened off all the top bumper fixing screws and squeezing my hand down between the active shutter system and the back of the bumper whilst almost removing several veins in the back of my hand and then applying pressure outwards as he pushed the grille in from the front we finally managed to get it located flush.

So if anyone else on here is thinking of doing this replacement be warned 'it's not as easy as it looks!' ... No wonder the American guy on the YouTube video didn't show the re-fitting of the grille, just how it looked once he had done it....wonder if he had the same nightmare job as I had?

Felt compelled to 'thread' this and hope it may benefit others!

[The_Tok'Ra]

Originally Posted by bmnut

Since some knacker decided to put a hairline crack together with some paint chips in my 'bugs bunny' grille and it was irritating me every time I looked at it I decided to replace it with a new one.
Initial price checking suggested anywhere between £160 to £180 ish but turned out to be £140 for mine, high gloss black shadow line and the only one listed for my car (obviously!) against the VIN.
So having found a YouTube video from one of our American cousins showing how to remove it without taking the whole bloody bumper off I decided, 'why not, how hard can it be?'..........Mistake!..... Reckoned it would take me a couple of hours or so, tops....took all bloody day and had to enlist the help of my local detailer to fit the replacement new one!
So.....getting the original one off, as per the video, was scary, brute force (sound like bone cracking) but trying to get in behind it to disconnect the feeds for the parking sensors was never going to happen. The wiring is VERY short to them and I couldn't get a decent purchase on them let alone try and release the connectors.
Two big holes cut out of the grille with a sabre saw later finally got them apart!
I don't have the Tech Plus package (or whatever it's called) that has the speed related cruise control so didn't have the camera unit to disconnect, turns out that was about the only bonus.

Now to fit the new one and that's when the fun started.....what an absolute cow it was to try and get the top centre part of the one-piece grille to locate on the slots for the barbed clips and sit flush with the bumper moulding (the bit directly underneath the bonnet roundel). Trying to push the grille into place by applying so much pressure to the bumper was seriously threatening to end in tears.
In the end my local detailer came round and having loosened off all the top bumper fixing screws and squeezing my hand down between the active shutter system and the back of the bumper whilst almost removing several veins in the back of my hand and then applying pressure outwards as he pushed the grille in from the front we finally managed to get it located flush.

So if anyone else on here is thinking of doing this replacement be warned 'it's not as easy as it looks!' ... No wonder the American guy on the YouTube video didn't show the re-fitting of the grille, just how it looked once he had done it....wonder if he had the same nightmare job as I had?

Felt compelled to 'thread' this and hope it may benefit others!

At least you got it on w/o any damage in the end.

That YT video I followed when trying to remove that bit of shadowline front off side window trim to straighten it made it look easy too, but blimey it was not!

That video was also made by an American cousin, a great big burly one, with plently of experience with trim removal. I guess both those advantages made all the difference.

In my case, putting the shadowline trim back on was the easy bit, as was refitting the wing mirror, but then aligning the A pilar door trim, and keeping it in place while also fitting the door card on my own was a bit of a pain in the arse too, but I got there in the end.

That took me five hours. When I started, i had hoped to get it done in an hour, two tops. LOL!

[2GOOD]

Changed mine on my G23 from chrome to the gloss black last year, getting out the front sensors was not like the American video at all. Thought I’d broken one of the sensors when I first started using the car but grill off again & a couple of tweaks fixed the near side. Few weeks later & it started playing up again, turned out to be the offside, so again more tweaks. Last year & a bit no issues but I can no longer get the middle bit of the grill at the top to sit fully in. In hindsight I’d have paid the dealer!

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by 2GOOD

Changed mine on my G23 from chrome to the gloss black last year, getting out the front sensors was not like the American video at all. Thought I’d broken one of the sensors when I first started using the car but grill off again & a couple of tweaks fixed the near side. Few weeks later & it started playing up again, turned out to be the offside, so again more tweaks. Last year & a bit no issues but I can no longer get the middle bit of the grill at the top to sit fully in. In hindsight I’d have paid the dealer!

You're absolutely right when you say the sensors aren't anything like the connection the American video showed at all. That video was a 4 series Gran coupe and I wouldn't have thought the wiring would be any different but clearly it is!

The only way we could get the top part of the grille to press in flush was to exert what felt like an inordinate amount of pressure to the grille and at the same time with my hand down the back of the bumper moulding pressing outwards towards where my mate was pushing inwards ....what an absolute fluck about! We had also 'pre-heated' the barbed plastic clips on the bumper moulding with my wife's hair drier to try to soften the plastic and make it a bit more pliable in the hope the clips would 'catch'.

The only problem was then re-aligning the bumper to get the shut line uniformly spaced against the leading edge of the bonnet as we had to loosen all the top bumper mounts in the engine bay to be able to ease it forward enough for me to get my hand down behind it.
I definitely do not relish having to do that job again......ever....hopefully!

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by The_Tok'Ra

At least you got it on w/o any damage in the end.

That YT video I followed when trying to remove that bit of shadowline front off side window trim to straighten it made it look easy too, but blimey it was not!

That video was also made by an American cousin, a great big burly one, with plently of experience with trim removal. I guess both those advantages made all the difference.

In my case, putting the shadowline trim back on was the easy bit, as was refitting the wing mirror, but then aligning the A pilar door trim, and keeping it in place while also fitting the door card on my own was a bit of a pain in the arse too, but I got there in the end.

That took me five hours. When I started, i had hoped to get it done in an hour, two tops. LOL!

Just had another look at the American guy's video and the sensors are connected differently, his straight on and ours at right angles. Also looks like they are differently located on the bumper due to our cars needing a number plate carrier perhaps?

What is really interesting is the new CSL style grille he's fitted looks like it stands proud at the top and not flush either!

[The_Tok'Ra]

Originally Posted by bmnut

Just had another look at the American guy's video and the sensors are connected differently, his straight on and ours at right angles. Also looks like they are differently located on the bumper due to our cars needing a number plate carrier perhaps?

What is really interesting is the new CSL style grille he's fitted looks like it stands proud at the top and not flush either!

I watched that video, I agree it stands proud and not flush either, but in the very last image in the vid it looks OK, so not sure, fixed later?

You might be right about the number plate carrier, or BMW just changed the part for some reason. Looking at the parts calalogue might give a clue.

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by The_Tok'Ra

I watched that video, I agree it stands proud and not flush either, but in the very last image in the vid it looks OK, so not sure, fixed later?

You might be right about the number plate carrier, or BMW just changed the part for some reason. Looking at the parts calalogue might give a clue.

I'm really not sure, still, no matter. I've just picked it up from the detailers this morning after it's annual coating check and decided to have the hydrophobic coating refreshed as well as the new grille ceramic coated and it looks spectacular so I'm a happy bunny again!

[The_Tok'Ra]

Originally Posted by bmnut

I'm really not sure, still, no matter. I've just picked it up from the detailers this morning after it's annual coating check and decided to have the hydrophobic coating refreshed as well as the new grille ceramic coated and it looks spectacular so I'm a happy bunny again!

The parts catalogue for your car shows the PDC sensors are 90° side exit. Take from that what you will. NOTE:- The page might take an age to load!

https://www.bmw-etk.info/parts-catal...48/66/66_0591/

[bmnut]

Originally Posted by The_Tok'Ra

The parts catalogue for your car shows the PDC sensors are 90° side exit. Take from that what you will. NOTE:- The page might take an age to load!

https://www.bmw-etk.info/parts-catal...48/66/66_0591/

Looked at the part as per your attachment and that's exactly what they look like and they're an absolute bitch to disconnect with the grille hanging free!

Thanks for the info Tok'Ra!