removing broken C pillar tabs??

[Rich in Boston]

The C pillar has four plastics tabs which are inserted into brass-looking fitting which appear to be pushed into a hole in the body of the car.

Mine broken tabs are stuck in those brass colored fittings and I can't get them out. How do I get them out without breaking anything? I have a used C pillar with four good tabs and I am swapping the material off the old and into the new. As always, pix would help if you have them. I can't find anything in the archives. TIA

[91e34M5]

I removed my C pillars a couple of months ago and all my tabs broke off in the brass holders as well. I used a tool best described as a heavy duty dental pick to break up the tabs in the holders and pry them out. Quite tedious considering you're cramped in the back seat working in a very awkward position. Good luck with the material swap. I removed my material, washed it, and re-used it on the original C-pillars. Be cautious on re-attaching the material. Remember that there is no backing on the material and the surface of the C-pillar must be perfectly smooth or imperfections will show through the material when it's re-attached. The glue that you use must spray onto the surface in an aerosol fashion similar to spray paint. The first spray adhesive I purchased, (headliner adhesive), sprayed on in a very "thready" fashion and would have shown through the material. I tested it on another smooth surface before applying it to the C-pillar. The method I ended up using was applying the adhesive to the C-pillar only and not to the material. This was more forgiving than applying the adhesive to both surfaces.

[Rich in Boston]

I'm curious, how did you re-use your original C-pillar if all the plastic tabs broke? I just had one broken C-pillar, so was able to find a good one. I plan on reusing my old material. The donor panel does have a thin foam backing on the material, so I will be very diligent in cleaning any old foam from the pillar.

But there must be a "correct" way to remove those damn tabs from the brass holders.

[91e34M5]

I'm curious, how did you re-use your original C-pillar if all the plastic tabs broke? I just had one broken C-pillar, so was able to find a good one. I plan on reusing my old material. The donor panel does have a thin foam backing on the material, so I will be very diligent in cleaning any old foam from the pillar.

But there must be a "correct" way to remove those damn tabs from the brass holders.

Fortunately, the small side tabs on the pillar that go along the rear window and along the base survived on mine, but those alone would not hold the pillar in place. I ended up using one trim screw at the top corner of the pillar near the corner of the rear window. The screw goes through the pillar into the headliner. I painted the head of the screw the same color of the material and it doesn't look out of place at all.

Yes...you will need to make sure any backing stuck to the pillar is removed or it will show through. One other thing I did to assist in removing the broken tabs from the holder was to use a screwdriver to spread the holder apart while digging out the broken tab. The way BMW engineered the clasps for the tabs, they were never intended to be removed.
Good luck.

[Corellian Corve]

I just did this myself. You can use a small flat-blade screwdriver to remove the old plastic left in the clip. You're not going to break anything - it's already broken.

When the plastic is out, take the metal clip out and expand it (open the mouth, so to speak) a little bit before inserting it back in the A or C pillar. This will keep the clip tight against the body and also make it easier to slide the new trim pieces in.

If you loose one of the clips (or are missing any as I was) they can be ordered from BMW

http://www.ecstuning.com/ES2538109/

[legoman67]

small screwdriver and pair of needle nose pliers usually does the job. id recommend replacing the clips anyways.

[Rich in Boston]

Grrrrrrr, two clips ended up fall through the body panel. I just ended taking the other two out and will check with the dealer tomorrow.

As for cleaning the C-pillar panel, I found out that a regular old paint scraper works well, then followed by my GF's nail polish remover. The two get the panel nice and smooth

[Ed M]

So four clips on the C pillar, how many clips on the A pillar? Parts list/diagrams do not indicate quantity. Thanks

[Rich in Boston]

Not sure, but you have to order in packets of 10 if that helps. Same for dealer or the ECS link above (which I used).

[Ed M]

Not sure, but you have to order in packets of 10 if that helps. Same for dealer or the ECS link above (which I used).

They do list individual part under Mini application same part# but sold individually. (ECS)

Thanks

[toomanyparts]

You can order anything from the dealer in any quantity you want. ECS seems to sell a lot of fasteners in lots of 10 for some reason.

[Corellian Corve]

If there is a dealer, they probably stock them and you can just grab a few. Wish I had done that. IIRC there are three on each side for the A pillar.

[adwebinc]

You can order anything from the dealer in any quantity you want. ECS seems to sell a lot of fasteners in lots of 10 for some reason.

A lot of times BMW has a MOQ, so ECS requires people to buy that MOQ so they don't have to break up the bag and keep the extra stock on hand.

In in this case, as mentioned above, this one is available individually as well - https://www.ecstuning.com/Search/Sit...187/ES2677511/

personally I usually buy the kits and I have a storage tray / rack in my garage with part numbers for clips, fasteners and screws. These bits are getting harder to come by for our cars, so I like having some extras... Or I may have a hoarding problem.

[toomanyparts]

Then you are buying from the wrong source. Never ran into a MOQ, but if you use a middleman, I suppose it may apply.

All fasteners are still available from BMW as well.

[Corellian Corve]

my local dealer has a good sized parts bin for these sorts of things. For my car, they had them in stock and I could get as few as I needed.