bottom panel deposit box (aka "shift surround)

[Dexm]

http://img141.imageshack.us/i/101j.png/Finally, time to get serious about replacing the wood bottom panel deposit box (aka "shift surround"). It's no. 9 in the illustration below.

All are listed as the wood color "Bungina Hochgl" (the wood color Nussbaum is no longer available) from 1/1990 forwards.

What's perplexing to me is the distinction made between:

Part nos.: 51168126224, 51168126232, 51418126226.

They're all for "vehicles with leather trim," but middle (and possibly latter) part no. is qualified with "only applies to ASC/EDC/PDC
Bottom Panel Depositing Box Wood.

But here's the thing: the actual design of the part shouldn't be any different if the car has the ASC button or not, since it doesn't have anything to do with the panel itself. That switch is mounted to the actual lower dash.

Or am I missing something and are there distinctions I'm not noticing?

Any insights appreciated,

Thanks.


http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HD13&mospid=47408&btnr=51_1998&hg=51&fg=45

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/3705/101j.png


Just to get more confusing, there's also these two separate part numbers: for item #2:

51186810551 (color: Bubinga Matt) for those vehicles with wood trim & ASC

and

51168101997 (color: Bubgina Matt) for those vehicles simply with wood trim.

Again though, there doesn't seem to be any reason to make a distinction between a part that has ASC or not.

http://img547.imageshack.us/img547/4056/88345836.png

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HD13&mospid=47408&btnr=51_2230&hg=51&fg=35



(http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HD13&mospid=47408&btnr=51_1998&hg=51&fg=45)

[ross1]

Cars with ASC have a button in the forward portion of the console. The wood surround for these cars has a notch where the holder for this button goes.

[Dexm]

Cars with ASC have a button in the forward portion of the console. The wood surround for these cars has a notch where the holder for this button goes.

Thanks. I don't know why I didn't have that in mind. I assumed that the notch was there regardless of whether or not the ASC was there. That is, that BMW would've made all consoles the same, and then left the area where the button placement is blank. Sort of akin to the way they did (afaik) for the rear fogs further up on the dash.

[sfgearhead]

Nope, some are notched, some aren't.

What's wrong with yours? Can't it be stripped and refinished?

[Black 535i]

I have some clearcoat cracking on mine and would love to have it redone but am hesitant. When I was doing my heater core last year I had the complete console out and saw how it was attached. Is there a way to remove the wood without removing the console? I saw it was attached from below with some plastic clips on the backside of the wood panel. Is there a way pry it up without the console removal? This being done it would be the last time I would ever have to remove the console.

[Dexm]

I have some clearcoat cracking on mine and would love to have it redone but am hesitant.

The e32 forum has a discussion on this, linked to the e38 discussion.

I've got the clear coat cracked, as well as the actual wood veneer below, so it's no go for a refinish. Given the time it takes to re-do, it seems cheaper to replace, if you have the resources, and if the part's still available. One finish, at least, is still available for what I need. Checking on it with an online dealer now...



When I was doing my heater core last year I had the complete console out and saw how it was attached. Is there a way to remove the wood without removing the console? I saw it was attached from below with some plastic clips on the backside of the wood panel. Is there a way pry it up without the console removal? This being done it would be the last time I would ever have to remove the console.I haven't taken it out, yet. Just clips according to the parts CD I have. There was a discussion of this in the archive. Maybe on the classified ads as well.

[cmgreensr]

Slide something thin in between the surround and the front of the console. In my case, I used a tiny allen key and after I pushed it down, I turned it essentially making a hook. Then pull straight up. This is of course after removing the shift knob and I think 2 screws. Either way, there is no need to remove the console.

[Dexm]

I got my new wood shift surround in from getbmwparts.com -- it looks good. That combined with the new shift knob and the new leather boots for the shifter and the e-brake, and it's going to look good. I got the new leather boots from Redline. The material is a very close match -- slightly darker perhaps than silber grau hell -- but the cut is a bit off. Not so much that it'll affect an OEM look though. Though the top bit of the shift boot is "tucked in" on the OEM part and the redline part doesn't have that feature, which is a drag.

For boots, silber grau in the e-brake boot is still available OEM from Schmiedmann and the price is right. Silbergrau hell isn't.

[Dexm]

Nope, some are notched, some aren't.

What's wrong with yours? Can't it be stripped and refinished?

It's pretty cracked. The wood veneer is so thin that I'm not sure that it would look right re-finished. Not to mention the time do it (and do it right) is prohibitive. In cases like this, if an OEM part is available, I always choose replacement instead of refurb. The whole junkyard/refurb aesthetic has its limitations. That said, I should probably offer up the old one in the classifieds. Someone is bound to want it.

[Dexm]

I have some clearcoat cracking on mine and would love to have it redone but am hesitant. When I was doing my heater core last year I had the complete console out and saw how it was attached. Is there a way to remove the wood without removing the console? I saw it was attached from below with some plastic clips on the backside of the wood panel. Is there a way pry it up without the console removal? This being done it would be the last time I would ever have to remove the console.

When I pulled (gently pried :) ) the surround cover off, the metal plate below also came off. It's pretty caked on with adhesive, so I was going to clean that up too. There's that layer of what I assume is sound insulation below that's cracked. Maybe it's for something else. It's the same stuff (dark grey -- rubber or rubber-like synthetic material) that insulates the back seat from the trunk. It was an easy job though and as someone above said, no need to pull up the whole console.

What I didn't know is that while the shift boot is attached to the plastic frame with a glue (what glue I wonder?), the e-brake boot is attached with staples. So I've got to take out the original frame and re-attach to the new brake boot. If you buy the OEM brake boot (unlike the Redline) you'll get a new frame. Which might be useful as I can see it possible to break the frames on either boots when detaching. At least I could see myself doing it.

[Dexm]

Comparison of old and new wood shift surrounds.

The new shift surround appears to have separated from the plastic frame that seats the surround to the console.

Were they originally glued together with some sort of adhesive? Each piece has a sort of very thin grey-black foam on the undersides.

Was it just that this piece (or 2 pieces rather) were sitting in a parts' warehouse for so long that the adhesive dried up or do they come as two pieces?

What is the suggested adhesive? Or can you make a good recommendation? I think I've got some Wurth spray or 3M 77 or 90 around here...

Cheers.


PS. The old plastic underside I'll put up for sale if someone wants it. All tabs intact, though the lower two are a little weakened. (I'm posting photo of the underside of the plastic piece in the event that it helps someone who wants to gently pry the piece up and not break the tabs) :)

old wood shift surround (off my '91 535i):
http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/1862/pb120019.jpg
old plastic backing plate for shift surround:
http://img39.imageshack.us/img39/604/pb120020u.jpg
old wood veneer peeling from sheet metal base:
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/6251/pb120022q.jpg
New OEM wood shift surround and plastic plate:
http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/3927/pb120033.jpg

[Dexm]

ba da bump

[jehu]

What adhesive to use when the wood comes loose from the bottom? mine is flipping about when I shift hard... the bottom is still stickyish but not enough to hold the wood... I have Gorilla Glue which I assume would hold it but seems wrong...

[htharkere34]

why not just fabricate a new one from real wood? The shape is not very complex.

[pennpen]

where can i get that plastic replacement?

[Dexm]

What adhesive to use when the wood comes loose from the bottom? mine is flipping about when I shift hard... the bottom is still stickyish but not enough to hold the wood... I have Gorilla Glue which I assume would hold it but seems wrong...

I sorta felt the same way -- gorilla glue may work but it "seems" wrong. I was going to try the Wurth adhesive or maybe the 3M #77 or #90 adhesive? I'll try something this weekend, but I just don't wanna mess it up.


where can i get that plastic replacement?

I believe you have to order both pieces. I don't have the part no. for the piece (or rather pieces) that I ordered but you get both. Once I sort out installing the new one, I'll have my old one available.


why not just fabricate a new one from real wood? The shape is not very complex.

I'm not sure if you're reply to my post, or to another within this thread, but perhaps I didn't make my post clear: I purchased a new shift surround (New Old Stock OEM from Germany). But when it was delivered, it was basically in two pieces. The metal piece with the wood veneer on top, and the plastic piece. It appears that the adhesive (if that's what the ultra-thin foam on the bottom of the steel is) has dried up. Whether that's because the thing had been sitting in a parts' warehouse for 20 years or because it's supposed to come in two pieces or something else, I don't know. But I don't need to fabricate a new one. I've got a new part (or parts) :)

[Dexm]

I just bought a can of 3m #90 spray adhesive. Sprayed both sides, waited for it to get a bit tacky, and then clamps the parts to a table, with some weight in areas that I hadn't clamped.

We'll see if the whatever that material is that was on both the plastic plate and the sheetmetal/wood veneer plate will affect (negatively) the bond -- it's sort of a foamy material (in the photos above). Maybe it's dried out adhesive from sitting on a warehouse parts shelf all these years? :dunno:

[Dexm]

Just an update: The 3m 90 didn't hold the two parts together -- probably because of the spongy residue of adhesive that had come with the OEM parts. So I took the plastic piece first and tried to remove the spongy residue: tried mineral solvents, goof off, Wurth Clean Solve, and finally 3m adhesive remover. First used small wire brushes; now using a razor blade to scrap off the last bit of adhesive. It's like tar.

I'll have to mask off the wood piece and get that side tomorrow. And then see if the 3m 90 will work on sheetmetal to plastic. If not, I've got a can of Wurth Hi-Temp adhesive around here somewhere....

[barry8108]

Your making this a lot harder than it needs to be. Just like headliner material, you can never glue 2 parts togeather that have residue on them. Scrape it off and put some 5 min epoxy and clamp it togeather. Done. It's not that hard of a problem. This is not a high stress area.

[Dexm]

Your making this a lot harder than it needs to be. Just like headliner material, you can never glue 2 parts togeather that have residue on them. Scrape it off and put some 5 min epoxy and clamp it togeather. Done. It's not that hard of a problem. This is not a high stress area.
Nor am I stresed. The residue (if that's what it is, or was) was difficult to remove. But it always good times with the E34.