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Thread: I modified my head unit location and added microsuede trim -pics inside

  1. #1
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    I modified my head unit location and added microsuede trim -pics inside

    I've been wanting to modify my interior for quite some time now, but never really got around to doing it. This weekend I finally did!

    Finished pic first!


    Here's how I had things before. I didn't like the sudden cutout in the trim. I just didn't look good. I also don't like the gloss, especially on sunny days.


    So here's how it all went down.


    I started out by cutting out the center of the MID face plate. (I have an extra MID that will probably sit in the glove box, so I'm good to go.)




    Here are a few dry run pics.







    The next step was to fill up those button holes with some body filler. I didn't want to use an excessive amount of body filler so I created a backing using an old insurance card I had in my wallet.









    Here's another dry run in the car.



    I needed a way to remove the head unit once it was installed, so why not use what they gave us.





    Body filler added.





    Paint. Needs more body filler.





    That'll do, pig. That'll do.









    The finish isn't the best, but I was in a hurry to get it in the car for work the next morning.






    Because of the space limitations in the dash area, I was unable to put the head unit where I wanted it, so I had to do a bit of soldering.









    Installed in the car.





    It'll still play CDs.



    Close up.


    2003 540i/6

  2. #2
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    Very slick.
    Is the micro suede actually offered? Or did you wrap the old woodgrain?
    Ed CT
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  3. #3
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    I wrapped the woodgrain. When I first installed the trim, I immediately thought the black might have been a bad idea (bland), but after driving around a bit, I really like it.
    2003 540i/6

  4. #4
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    I really like that micro suede! To me that looks better than almost every trim option I've seen, except for maybe the amazing trim Brandon has in his touring.

  5. #5
    geargrinder's Avatar
    geargrinder is offline Having No Trouble Here BMW CCA Member
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    Nice! Great job. Can I suggest vinyl trim paint for that face plate? Looks like you could still get a better texture on it - i'd wetsand a bit and then try that?

    I think the black MS might be one of those "looks awesome for display but is bit high maintaince for DD " things but let us know. I have alcantara / MS shift/brake boots and it's dust fussy... Shows dusty dirt and not good for wet stains unless you spray the crap out of the pieces w Scotchgard (which I recommend). Now it cleans up easy w a quick vacuum although still shows dust fast.

    But does look cool. Dumping the retro lux wood trim is almost always good...although if there's an interior that wood looks good with its black.
    2003 M3CicM6 TiAg
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  6. #6
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    I might be in the minority here, but I actually think the wood trim looked better. I love wood trim though, so I'm pretty biased. The gloss doesn't bother me either, and I live in Arizona where it's super sunny all the time.
    Last edited by dannyzabolotny; 01-16-2017 at 01:56 AM.
    1995 525i 5-speed - Thread

  7. #7
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    I'm definitely not 100% satisfied with the finish on the face plate. The paint I used was meant for plastics and was a paint/primer mix. -I didn't even think to use an interior paint. I might revisit this when the weather gets better.

    One thing I don't like about the face plate is the body filler. It has a much different thermal properties than the plastic. On colder days, the filler is visible, but when it warms up, it is almost not noticeable at all. Thankfully, the body filler outlines aren't incredibly apparent, so I'm good with it for now.

    For the reasons stated above, I'm sort of on the fence with the microsuede. I'm thinking Grey would have been a better color choice for hiding dust and debris. Not sure how it would look though. I do, however, love the suffocating feeling of all black interior.

    I've considered covering the center console in the microsuede, but looking at the accumulated dust in my shift boot, I'm thinking that would be an absolutely horrible idea. I will probably paint it flat black. I also plan on getting a black shift knob and replacing the steering wheel leather.

    The wood trim always reminded me of cigars for some reason. I do agree that the black wood trim looks great, and I'd put up with random trim glare for that, but I just couldn't justify the cost.
    2003 540i/6

  8. #8
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    You are seeing those ghost lines because you just painted over them with the black paint? If so, you need to give the plate a couple coats of primer, let it dry properly, then wet sand 6 or 800 grit, lightly, then re spray the black over it. Another thing, you should only use filler to fill in low sides on a surface. For what you did, you should use epoxy and fiberglass for a long lasting strong piece. The filler can chip and crack after a while, bumps on the road, vibrations from the car, that kind of stuff will cause fatigue in the long run.
    Set the controls for the heart of the sun

  9. #9
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    For a single DIN option, I'm impressed. I even like that you made it so the existing CD-Player plate is usable. There was an actual Alcantara trim option on some Individual M5s, but I'm not sure I'm feeling it, especially on a black interior. I have the piano black in my all black interior with Alcantara headliner and it's a bit too dark. I'm thinking of hydro-dipping it with Birdseye Maple or something like that. I can't go with an off the shelf trim unless it's painted anyways, since I'll have a custom center console with the idrive controller cutout and relocated buttons. For now I'll get it painted to match the piano black though.

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  10. #10
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    I'm really digging the (mostly) all black interior today. It's really growing on me. I appreciate the feedback. I'm definitely going to keep the painting tips in mind.

    The ghost lines weren't as visible right after painting. You can sort of see an outline in one of the pics on top of the washing machine. Temperature fluctuations seem to affect them, but that could just be in my head, or the lighting in the car is better than my garage. I think I just rushed things. I started out by sanding the surface, and then painting a light coat of that primer paint mix. Waited for it to dry, wet sanded with 800 grit, filled in the low spots with more filler, then sanded again and repainted. After that dried, I briefly wet sanded with some higher grit sand paper. I can't remember what grit it was, but it was for finishing. I really don't think the paint was ready for sanding though.



    The original plan was to machine a new face plate using the existing head unit circuit board, but dammit, I got no energy for the details.

    The idea started off big, but due to my knowledge limitations, it slowly dwindled down to what you see above.

    I had even sourced soft touch buttons, so It would feel just like the BMW MID. No clicky tactile switches for me.
    cutaway_03.PNG

    First idea was to merge the existing MID with the aftermarket head unit. This is when I learned about Elastomeric connectors (Zebra Strips). The Elastomeric connector is a rubbery conductive strip that sometimes connects a LCD to a circuit board. (The MID uses a ribbon cable to achieve this.) So the Zebra strip is spec'd out to the display and the board as far as spacing goes, and I needed a longer/taller? strip. I wanted to leave the LCD mounted to the board where it was, but there were clearance issues with the buttons. So that idea was scrapped.
    1-9-16.PNG 1-9-16-2.PNG


    So I did some soul searching and decided to scrap the MID, and do a retrofit face plate. Then.... I started focusing on the details. It had to have the auto-dim feature like the MID does, and all the buttons should be backlit. So now I had to figure out how to auto-dim LEDs, and from that, I learned that a photo-diode or photo-resistor was used. The next issue is how to power 20+ LEDs while allowing the dimmer features to still work. The MID dimmer is controlled by the dash switch, but also controlled by the photo-resistor, and the head lights being switched on or off. More circuitry to learn, which branched off into circuit sim programs, which then branched off into simulating the car model. I even tried re-creating the MID LED circuit. Which didn't make sense to me. At this point I was frustrated. I can identify components and solder, but I'm clueless when it comes to creating a circuit.
    REV-B_001.PNG REV-B_002.PNG

    On top of that, I work in CAD all day long. The last thing I want to do when I get home is more CAD. Then there's the machining side of things. Once the design is finalized, I'd need to create a multi-setup program to machine it. -something I've never really done before. I'm also concerned with the translucent button text. The idea was to paint over the buttons and then engrave the lettering, but I'm not sure that would look very nice. I've yet to create a sample though. It's a very discouraging project. So I gave in and took the easy route.
    2003 540i/6

  11. #11
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    If any leds need to be color matched to BMW, there is a guy here that sourced the proper leds to match. I think his name is FMZIP (could be wrong) and I know he had some on Ebay also. I have the link somewhere if you need it.

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  13. #13
    geargrinder's Avatar
    geargrinder is offline Having No Trouble Here BMW CCA Member
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    Wow! That was ambitious! Lotta climb effort for the resulting view I have to say so kinda understand why you backed off.

    Here's example of kind of vinyl paint you want, gives that "soft feel" like the oem... It's sorta like a super thin coat of plastidip. You don't need to buy the rustoleum version, I think Duplicolor makes some too and their paints are supposed to be good. I havent done it myself but I've seen it used to restore the "soft feel" top coating on oem bmw and Audi dash/consoles and it can come out very good. We are lucky - the E39 plastic quality is excellent... E46 isn't nearly as good and it wears through that coating in no time (as do similar era Audis).

    https://www.rustoleum.com/product-ca...y/vinyl-spray/
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  14. #14
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    Thanks for the info on the LEDs. -I do believe we've spoken about this before. I've read that the color is around 605nm -which are fairly easy to source, but I'd need to buy a few samples to visually see the diffusion caused by the buttons.

    Awesome, GG! Plastic quality/coating isn't something I had really thought about, but now I'm thinking back to my buddy's old Jetta. When he first got it, the plastic had a really nice soft feel to it, but after about a year, it looked like it had some sort of skin disorder. Thanks for the link. I've used the Duplicolor stuff before, but it's been a good 8 years since, so I don't really remember what the finish was like. I do remember being happy with it though.

    http://duplicolor.com/product/vinyl-and-fabric-coating

    I'll probably give both brands a try and share the results.


    I'm feeling kind of motivated now!
    2003 540i/6

  15. #15
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    Hi Waters17,

    Kudos to you for the project and how you've gone about it all ! Compared to some other similar attempts, your's is a lot better !

    As you are feeling a little more motivated, I will drop you a PM shortly, there's something in my brain cell I need to consult with you about!

    Cheers, Dennis!

  16. #16
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    I used Rustoleum chalkboard paint with some staright primer on my cupholder delete and it matches texture and finish very well.

  17. #17
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    That's funny you mention chalkboard paint. My son suggested the same thing today. hmm..

    I'll be waiting, Dennis.
    2003 540i/6

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