Recovering your armrest - DIY

[paniolo]

I ordered new 2 tone shifter boot, e-brake boot and arm rest cover from Red Line (see group buy forum) some time ago. The 2 boots were simple to knock off on a lunch break, but for some reason I thought the arm rest was going to take some time, so it just got procrastinated. Finally got sick of old tattered one that had even worn down through the padding. Don't know why I waited so long, easy job maybe 30 min with cutting and putting in new foam.

Tools: 1 small Phillips head driver
Spray on adhesive
New armrest cover

From the back seat pull out the center ash tray and undo the two threaded push pins below it. Note the light on the right.



Pull out that insert. Next remove the back top cover. You don't need to unscrew that single screw. The whole piece snaps in, there are 3 clips along the back and 2 clips at the bottom on both sides.



The little clips at the front bottom are just under my finger tip.


Now get the front cover off. Bend these little side clips out over the plastic post below on each side and lift cover off.



Now rotate arm rest vertical and insert small screw driver through hole and lightly push to release hinge pin.



Insert your finger and slide the hinge pins out on each side.



Here is the catch on the hinge pin. On the opposite side is a channel to guide it in proper location.



The armrest just pulls straight out after that. About 5 min of work.

[ganzibye]

can only see one pic...

[paniolo]

Well now that I finally figured out how to link to Picasso ... I hope!

Turn armrest upside down on workbench. There are 3 plastic plugs that cover screws. A pocket knife works great.



Remove those 3 screws.



Peel the old cover edges up and over the top.



Here is the old cover. Note it is so worn that the padding underneath is worn down to the backing plate.



I got some foam from a craft store. It was under $2.



I removed all the old foam off the top with a knife and by scraping/tearing so the difference in height between the old and new pad would not be as noticeable.



New foam trimmed to size. I also cut the edges on a diagonal with scissors to try and make it curve into the original. Once it is under the new cover it will compress everything together.



Used spray glue along edges to hold new cover. Pulled it down along all edges to try and get all wrinkles out.



Put everything back together the way it came apart.

Here is the finished product along with the 2 tone shift boot and e-brake boot.



Closer pic of arm rest.



Turned out about as good as I could expect The foam felt too soft in the package, but once installed it firms up a lot and feels just fine.

Easy job ... maybe 30 min, including replacing the foam. Really picks up the interior appearance.

[fadownjoo]

wow very nice, i really want to do this, gotta reconnect my ebrake wire though first.

[bmw328ic]

Good write up. Thanks

[paniolo]

the write up took a lot longer than the job!

[walker7182006]

thanks for the diy i spent like three hours trying to find out how to take it out about a week ago. dam ashtray didnt want to come out so i figured there was nothing under there until i just manhandled it out. i don't think it was taken out in ummm forever. i needed to get to the ebrake in the bottom.

dude what happened to your passenger seat tho . my driver seat is riped up to but dam yours looks like you sitting on a sheep good job on the diy

hears some pic's as to why i had to open her up

[ganzibye]

very nice..impressive

[Eric93se]

Just ordered a black leather cover, big thanks paniolo

[paniolo]

The passenger seat looks like sheepskin ... cause it is! The seam ripped on the passenger seat so I put an old sheepskin over it to keep it from getting worse, or at least so I can't see it getting worse. 180k miles and the seats are getting pretty worn.

The new foam is definitely a lower density. You don't notice it at all if you put your forearm on it, but if you rest the point of your elbow you can feel the backing plate a lot more than with the oem foam. Something like an old closed cell sleeping pad for backpacking would probably be perfect.

Thanks for the nice comments.

[das borgen]

he approves

[justridden]

Where did you get the arm rest cover? Thank you for the awsome pics!

[paniolo]

I got the armrest along with the shifter and e-brake boots from RedlineGoods.com They are a supporting vendor here and check the group buy forum or this post for current discount codes. It is about $50 for the cover alone. Several years ago I got all three for about $100.

[b9m4w]

Thanks for the DIY...this is on my weekend to do list.

For those looking for the covers - I ordered mine from here:
http://www.rallyroad.net/content/e36-bmw-armrest-covers

[MPuds682]

Thanks for the write up helped out so much.

[YETINEWMAN]

These tips are helpful. I can't wait to get rolling on these mods.

[Bimmer XP]

Very nice DIY commentary. My armrest is not as bad as yours was, but it's very dry rotted, and deserves a facelift. Thanks

[paniolo]

Try to redo it before the foam gets exposed and starts wearing away. Replacing foam looks pretty good, but the OEM is a nice high density so your elbow does not feel the steel backing plate.

[Brian 328is]

This writeup gave me the know-how and confidence to give it a try.

Thanks.

Here are before and after pics.

Lots of wrinkles in the final product. I used a hot glue gun that worked perfectly to mount the new leather.

Brian

[paniolo]

Brian, Glad to hear it helped you! It is amazing how it improves the look of the interior. Yours turned out nice, where was it from? If you glue down one side then work at the leather and really pull and stretch it down you can pull out those wrinkles and then keep that pressure on while you glue the last side down. Still looks 100% better though! :bounce

[Matt Cramer]

Just found this thread and I'll probably be ordering one soon myself. Thanks for sharing!

Now, if only I could find some cloth upholstery for the seats...

[stretch1982]

Does anyone know where to find the Red Line group buy forum?

[pajskiblu]

Hi....that looks great! I did the same thing, except I sewed the cover myself and it looks great!! I'll try to post pic soon.

I didnt fully remove the armrest.....it is still really easy to replace so [U]DONT WAIT til your foam is damaged!

[dkadylak]

Dude, thanks so much!!!!

[tstcbx4v]

wow!
looks great in two tone