[geneatals]

Originally Posted by Sisyrx

I’ve been running side reflector deletes on my F22 in CA for 7 years.

Yes, it is a legal violation and I’d lump it into the same vain of tinting taillights or running without a front plate.

Calculated risk for sure, but it absolutely cleans up the look!

same, been doing this delete since my e90 M3 back in 2008. Most barely even know it's aftermarket.

***on my G30 530e, unfortunately involved in an MVA, another car made a left turn in front of me, causing me to swerve and hit a light pole. No one even mentioned the paint matched reflectors.

[geneatals]

Originally Posted by AiredaleDad

I don't get the whole reflector delete thing. I can understand if you want a clean look and go to a body shop where they will remove the reflector, and professionally fill the spot so it looks like nothing was ever there. But when you replace the reflector with a plastic body color insert that is painted to be almost (99.9%) the same body color, but in the clear outline shape of the removed reflector, it just looks to me like you could have had something there, but did not get for the option. Like my E36 325i had fog lights. But if it didn't, it would have had an insert in the front bumper that was a fog light shaped piece of plastic that matched the bumper color. But that's just me. I like what I like, and you like what you like.

personal preference more than anything else, like any mod IMO. yes you can still see the outline of the reflector, but it's less of an eye sore than that amber reflector IMO. Yes you can have a shop to fill the gap, but a bit more expensive and time consuming than I prefer.

[ToddRGuy]

Originally Posted by Sisyrx

I’ve been running side reflector deletes on my F22 in CA for 7 years.

Yes, it is a legal violation and I’d lump it into the same vain of tinting taillights or running without a front plate.

Calculated risk for sure, but it absolutely cleans up the look!

Estoril Blue II is just a beautiful color. If I ever got an M3 or M4, I think that would be my choice

[Sisyrx]

Originally Posted by ToddRGuy

Estoril Blue II is just a beautiful color. If I ever got an M3 or M4, I think that would be my choice

It will be heartbreaking to lose it when we move to the G60 as it can’t be had via Individual right now =(
Closest I’ve seen is Sapphire Blue II Metallic but it’s missing the pearlescence of Estoril.

[Scrapula]

I love just rolled in. Hilarious.

[geneatals]

Anyone have a link for black badges. Looking for 550e and xdrive badges in black. Gloss black would be even better

[AiredaleDad]

Originally Posted by geneatals

Anyone have a link for black badges. Looking for 550e and xdrive badges in black. Gloss black would be even better

I think either RichardinCA or SkykingUSA has the black M ones. Look back in the posts. I don't know about the 550e and X Drive. But you might get them painted or Wrapped. Also check ebay and Amazon.

[RichardInCA]

Originally Posted by AiredaleDad

I think either RichardinCA or SkykingUSA has the black M ones. Look back in the posts. I don't know about the 550e and X Drive. But you might get them painted or Wrapped. Also check ebay and Amazon.

Not me I’m afraid

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by AiredaleDad

I think either RichardinCA or SkykingUSA has the black M ones. Look back in the posts. I don't know about the 550e and X Drive. But you might get them painted or Wrapped. Also check ebay and Amazon.

I have black gloss M side emblems. I'm out of town, but I'll see if I can find a link and post it for you.

[MiGs550e]

51-14-5-A4B-373 - BMW OEM GLOSS BLACK FENDER BADGE SET


https://www.getbmwparts.com/oem-part...et-51145a4b373

[nacs]

Originally Posted by geneatals

Anyone have a link for black badges. Looking for 550e and xdrive badges in black. Gloss black would be even better

I’ve not seen them but if they exist I’d be interested as I just tinted the windows and it would go so much better.

[SkykingUSA]

I am finally home from our family holiday trip to Michigan. It's nice to be back in sunny southern California. :-)

I installed the carbon fiber door sills my wife gave me. They are really nice, and very light (as you would expect from carbon fiber). When I gave my wife the boxes they came in, she asked me if I'm sure they're in there (because they were so light, the boxes felt empty). I used masking tape to mark off the bottom on each side, and to mark off one side so I could place them properly before actually sticking them down. Thanks again to AiredaleDad for providing pictures and measurements of his door sills. I ended up placing them 2 inches forward of the seam in the plastic interior beside the seats. That matched roughly to the pictures I had, and to the 9 inch measurement from the bottom of the lower door hinge and was easier to measure for me. I also decided to center them (top to bottom) in the visible space just because that is my aesthetic preference. Below are some pictures.

Over the next week or two I should have time to install the other gift from my wife: the crystal controls for the center console. That one, I'm a little more nervous about, but will trudge forward anyway. I need to make sure I have at least two hours for that one since I like to work slowly and methodically for something like that.

[paprmkr]

Originally Posted by SkykingUSA

I am finally home from our family holiday trip to Michigan. It's nice to be back in sunny southern California. :-)

I installed the carbon fiber door sills my wife gave me. They are really nice, and very light (as you would expect from carbon fiber). When I gave my wife the boxes they came in, she asked me if I'm sure they're in there (because they were so light, the boxes felt empty). I used masking tape to mark off the bottom on each side, and to mark off one side so I could place them properly before actually sticking them down. Thanks again to AiredaleDad for providing pictures and measurements of his door sills. I ended up placing them 2 inches forward of the seam in the plastic interior beside the seats. That matched roughly to the pictures I had, and to the 9 inch measurement from the bottom of the lower door hinge and was easier to measure for me. I also decided to center them (top to bottom) in the visible space just because that is my aesthetic preference. Below are some pictures.

Over the next week or two I should have time to install the other gift from my wife: the crystal controls for the center console. That one, I'm a little more nervous about, but will trudge forward anyway. I need to make sure I have at least two hours for that one since I like to work slowly and methodically for something like that.

I understand. Same when I got all kit. The spoiler box was like feathers.
Love the way sill looks when I installed
Mine I went by the pics off bmw site
Same
With the M badge on the fenders.

[SkykingUSA]

I finally installed the crystal controls today. It was really slow at work so I took the afternoon and did the install at my desk. I like how it turned out, but it was much more stressful than I thought it would be. Others said it took them an hour or so to complete, so I allowed myself 2-3 hours to be safe since I'm not the gentlest with these things, nor the most patient.

I'm happy to report that although it took me between 3 and 3.5 hours to complete (including gathering all the tools and cloths together), I was able to complete it with only one minor casualty, and one major scare which fortunately turned out fine in the end.

The pictures are below, but here are the basic steps I took and some lessons learned.

• I started off by following the Shift Handle Video in order to do the left side of the console (shifter and Start/Stop button).
• Some steps were a little tougher than others, and required a lot of patience in order to not break anything, but this is where I encountered my first and only casualty. One of the little plastic clips that holds down the cover around the left section of the console broke off and went flying across the room when I was trying to pry it loose. Fortunately, it's just a minor casualty because there are many other clips around the cover to keep it in place, so there doesn't seem to be any looseness or rattling. Whew!
• IMPORTANT - Do not follow that video all the way through to the end! When I got to the part of that same video where the guy starts working on the right side of the console and the first step is to pry off the iDrive controller knob, that's where I thought I was going to have a heart attack! I pried off the knob like in the video, but then realized that it didn't come off anything like in the video. In the video, just the knob comes off and leaves the main console part under it in place. When I pried it off, the whole center portion came up and would not pull away from the console. When I looked at it closely, I could see that the ribbon connector underneath was still connected and I was pulling up the whole center assembly! Fortunately, I was able to position it carefully and push it back into place, but was worried that I may have broken something (fortunately I did not).
• At this point, I continued with the other video called Multimedia Knob Video. It showed how to deal with the volume roller and iDrive controller knob properly. I found it difficult to remove the black cover on that component by prying more clips away from the base, but finally got it done - it required a little more force than I expected and none of them broke off, so that was a relief considering I had broken a clip on the left-side part previously.
• At the end of that video, I just went back to the first video and continued near the end where they start re-assembling the whole thing in preparation for putting it back in the car.
• I only needed three screwdriver bits - two Torx (sizes 20 and 15), and one medium Phillips.
• I used the pry tool that came with the crystal control kit, and some of my own tiny slot-head screwdrivers to pry the clips with. I used some large microfiber cloths to lay everything on and to wrap around the pry tool so as not to scratch anything.
• After I finished, I was also very glad that the center console seemed just as sturdy as it was before I started. I did not detect any looseness anywhere or rattling, or motion where motion does not belong.

It was quite an experience and I'm not sure I would do it again, but I think it looks pretty good - let me know what you guys think. It does seem a little odd that the Start/Stop button now shows Start/Engine/Stop when my i5 doesn't have an engine, but that's a minor thing I decided to live with.

I hope this helps anyone else who decides to do this mod, or who is just thinking about doing it.

Here are pics of the kit, and the before and after shots. I don't have an "after" picture in the daylight, but if I think of it, I'll try to add one later.

[RichardInCA]

Nice work! I do think that the crystal controls are a nice upgrade.

[AiredaleDad]

It looks really nice. It's just not for me.

[Scrapula]

Lots of work. I think I would have just ordered the crystal controls, if I had wanted them. They look great though.

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by Scrapula

Lots of work. I think I would have just ordered the crystal controls, if I had wanted them. They look great though.

I definitely would have ordered them if I could, but they were only available in the Executive Package at that time and I didn't want the other two items that came with that package - the Sky Lounge and the window shades. I would have probably been ok if it was just the shades, but the Sky Lounge was a no-go for me here in SoCal.

This was my best option I guess. I forgot to mention the other item that is a little annoying - the new crystal roller for the volume is not back-lit, but I think it IS back-lit when ordered from the factory. Other than that and the words on the Start button, it looks identical.

[AiredaleDad]

Originally Posted by SkykingUSA

Other than that and the words on the Start button, it looks identical.

I believe the word "Engine" in the Start/Stop button has to do with ICE versions. My 540 has it on there from the factory and it does not have the crystal controls. I think the aftermarket company just made one button for all, and did not differentiate between ICE and BEV versions.

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by AiredaleDad

I believe the word "Engine" in the Start/Stop button has to do with ICE versions. My 540 has it on there from the factory and it does not have the crystal controls. I think the aftermarket company just made one button for all, and did not differentiate between ICE and BEV versions.

Yep. Even if I could get another one without the word engine on it, I'm not sure I'd bother to take the whole thing apart again and risk it. :-)

[Scrapula]

Originally Posted by SkykingUSA

I definitely would have ordered them if I could, but they were only available in the Executive Package at that time and I didn't want the other two items that came with that package - the Sky Lounge and the window shades. I would have probably been ok if it was just the shades, but the Sky Lounge was a no-go for me here in SoCal.

I did want the Sky Lounge but not the sunshades or crystal controls. They do look nice though. It’s not like we could see them in person before we ordered our cars. The Sky Lounge was available as a stand alone option but nothing else could be ordered separately, kind of weird.

[SkykingUSA]

Originally Posted by Scrapula

I did want the Sky Lounge but not the sunshades or crystal controls. They do look nice though. It’s not like we could see them in person before we ordered our cars. The Sky Lounge was available as a stand alone option but nothing else could be ordered separately, kind of weird.

I was able to see the crystal controls on one of the models I test drove before I ordered my car. That's why I was hoping to get them. I remember seeing them for the first time in the demo car and thinking, wow that looks really elegant. I'm glad I have a version of them now.