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Thread: DIY E39 REAR EXTERIOR Door Handle Removal/Install

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    GA
    Posts
    665
    My Cars
    e39 '98 540i6, 2007 B7

    DIY E39 REAR EXTERIOR Door Handle Removal/Install

    I searched all over the internet and could only find front door handles for exterior. I've already done that one. Then my rear handle broke off. Nice pot metal. SO, I tackled it today and figured why make some other poor sap go through this without details. This was rear left on my 540 but I assume the right is the same.

    Degree of difficulty: easy to medium.
    Estimated time: 30-45 min

    Tools needed:
    2 flat screwdrivers (med to long)
    1 Phillips screw driver
    T30 star bit (prob get away with 4mm hex allen wrench?)
    Flashlight
    Rubber cement or emblem glue (maybe)
    A stool or bucket to sit on.

    Sit on the bucket. Remove the door panel: Remove plug and phillips screw behind inside door handle, pry bottom edges of panel away from door with flat blade and work up the side with your hands pulling and popping all the tabs as you go, pull center of panel out firmly by arm rest to release center tab, then pull panel up to release from window sill tabs till released. Pull inside door handle in and then turn to fish back through the handle hole to release from panel. There is no side airbag on the rear doors so that makes it easier. Find a way to prop the panel up so that you are not hanging it by the speaker wires.

    Once the panel is off and secured, peel back top left corner of the foam vapor/sound barrier and you will see this below. Objective is this: Slide the brass (?) retaining plate to the right, which allows the 2 tabs on the bottom of the door handle to slide outward through the notches in the door handle frame. Very easy once you get the concept. Trick is, you need to move the door latch to the right so you can access the "release tab" on the bottom left of the retaining plate. (I couldn't see the release tab and the retaining plate would only slide half way. I thought I was crazy until I went ahead and removed the latch.) Then, once the new handle is in, slide it back left and it lock it in place.

    latch instructions.jpg


    Now you need to remove the door latch mechanism by the 3 bolts. Remove cable end, and wire clip to free up mechanism. Slide it down and right to allow the door lock button sticking up to come down. Keep it out of the way on the right while you release the retaining tab.

    latch bolts.jpg

    Now you will have access to the back of handle. Use one flat blade to hold the left tab UP while using another blade to slide the whole plate to the right. Then you will be able to pull the door handle out from the outside. Pull the bottom out first and then slide the top down and out.

    close detail rear door handle release.jpg

    Be sure to save the foam backing and rubber stoppers if you need them. Secure (glue) them in place.

    rubber stoppers.jpgfoam backing.jpg

    From the outside (in case you forgot), work new handle in top side first, and then line up the 2 bottom notches to push in the lower end flush to door. Then go around and do your flat blade trick to slide the retaining plate to the left and click into place. Only need one blade this time!

    Put the latch mechanism back in, but before you do, get the cable end and wiring tab in proper position, then tighten the 3 bolts.

    TEST THE DOOR HANDLE, LOCK, UNLOCK ETC, make sure all is smooth. WD40 etc, if needed.

    Put it all back the way to took it apart. Push edges of foam barrier to seal again, get panel all snapped in, put screw and plug behind handle pull.

    2 tips:

    1) Before you snap down all the panel tabs into the door, the INTERIOR handle cable, make sure it is properly fished and seated through the little plastic holder behind the handle and hooked to the handle!
    2) Make sure the center panel tab (behind the arm rest area) is properly lined up and once you have all the other tabs pushed and locked into place, then give the arm rest very firm final shove or punch with your palm in the middle to lock that one down. This goes for all door panels.
    Last edited by MontanaRob; 11-05-2014 at 02:13 AM.
    1998 (9/97 production date) 540i 6 Speed Sport / black on black / shadow trim / debadged / black-out grill / Carbon fiber roundels / 80w Yellow Fogs / 2.81 non- lsd diff. / 17" BBS Sport Style 19 wheels/ 245 all around tires / modified CDV / Stage I Dinan software / 5w30 synthetic/ 244k miles and counting

    E65 2007 Alpina B7: Black on Black, Supercharged autobahn eater, 500hp/515trq, 245/295 tires, 141k miles with major systems rebuilt/replaced!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Seal Beach, Ca.
    Posts
    3,686
    My Cars
    2003 540s, 2000 740s
    Very nice write up.
    Thanks for sharing.
    <== Steptronic Sealbeach740
    2000 740i sport: 74k Green/Tan chrome MPars, clear corners, quad brake lights, AIC hi-beams, Hoen fogs, 16x9 screen, MKIV, TFT LCD screen in back, license plate backup camera with "on demand" switch, iPod audio/video (CDC/iPod audio switching, iPod video on 16x9 screen), Basslink, gauge rings, ///M pedals, switched steptronic +/- shifting mode, E46 paddle shifter steering wheel, Dinan engine & tranny software upgrade, DDEs controlled via Euro fog light switch, painted calipers with "BMW" lettering, windows up/sunroof close via remote.

    2003 540i sport: 81k, Sterling grey/grey, MKIV Nav, PDC & CWP - Added license plate backup camera with "on demand" switch, paddle shift steering wheel, windows up/sunroof close via remote, Akebono's, painted calipers with "BMW" lettering, quad brake lights, iPod audio via AUX mode/video via 16x9 screen, BMW TV tuner, ///M pedals & gauge rings.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    San Diego
    Posts
    1,477
    My Cars
    97 E39 540/6
    Thanks for the write up. I did this on the front doors about a month ago. I believe it was a little less involved than this since you don't have to worry about the cable. The handle I got was plastic, and I was replacing a metal door handle. It didn't fit as well, or maybe I didn't do it good enough. Not sure. Just felt like it wasn't as secure as the metal one was.

    "Life is a numbers game. Increase the numbers, win the game"

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    GA
    Posts
    665
    My Cars
    e39 '98 540i6, 2007 B7
    Thanks guys.
    1998 (9/97 production date) 540i 6 Speed Sport / black on black / shadow trim / debadged / black-out grill / Carbon fiber roundels / 80w Yellow Fogs / 2.81 non- lsd diff. / 17" BBS Sport Style 19 wheels/ 245 all around tires / modified CDV / Stage I Dinan software / 5w30 synthetic/ 244k miles and counting

    E65 2007 Alpina B7: Black on Black, Supercharged autobahn eater, 500hp/515trq, 245/295 tires, 141k miles with major systems rebuilt/replaced!

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Williamsburg, VA
    Posts
    448
    My Cars
    85 380SE 5.6, 99 540i/6
    Is there some trick to how you slide the exterior handle back in?

    EDIT: So, apparently the hinge pin acts as a guide, and apparently it can sometimes drift from side to side. I couldn't get mine in because of how much it had drifted, but without careful study this would never seem like a problem. If anybody has the same problem, the pin needs to have equal amounts of overhand at both ends of the hinge. If one side is to have more overhang than the other, it is the rear side that has the more overhang.
    Last edited by marlinspike; 02-14-2015 at 11:54 PM.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Location
    Beccles, Suffolk, UK
    Posts
    2
    My Cars
    2002 BMW 530i

    Rear Door Handle removal

    Thanks!!!
    Very useful for when I did mine.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    aurora, co, usa
    Posts
    123
    My Cars
    94 325is vin# ef44406
    thanks for the awesome write-up!! my left rear door handle literally came off in my hand this morning!! now I should be able to fix it no problem!!

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Location
    TX
    Posts
    1,844
    My Cars
    '98 528i 98k 5-SPP
    You can R&R the outer door handle w/o having to take out the inner door panel and/or door handle carrier.
    This should only take 1 minute w/ small flat blade screwdriver to pop out the oval peep hole cover on the side edge of door , and then wedge your flat blade into the peep hole to bend up that locking tab on the slider brkt, and then w/ same flat blade, slide the locking brkt forward to unlock the handle. Shift and lift out the old, and shift and lift in the new handle, then slide brkt back to lock. Done.


    See this video, but note the sliding bracket shown is for the front door. The hole at the end of front door brkt allows a spring install tool to slide the bracket.



    This is the spring install tool.


    https://www.amazon.com/motorcycle-ex.../dp/B009YFEL0M


    for the rear door sliding brkt, it's easier to use a small flat blade to unlock, and then I
    used a dentist hook tool (vs spring puller tool per above) to hook the brkt and slide it back to lock.

    Last edited by DHoang; 05-05-2018 at 11:06 AM.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2021
    Location
    PA
    Posts
    1
    My Cars
    530i
    Thank you, great info, tips -knee pads a good option to bucket, t30 stripped with hex4, dremel to a flat head

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