Upholstery question

[JaseNZ 53]

Guys on my e36 on all four doors the Upholstery is comming away, Its just a small panel around the door handle area. I know this is a common problem with this model. Looks to me as if the head lining has already been done as its fine and its also a different shade to the material on the doors.

My question is who in chch would be good at doing the doors and is it easier for me to take the door panel's (are they easy to get off) off and just take in the small sections that need doing.

Also on the drivers side window if you go to put it up you put it half way up stop grab hold of the side and pull it to the right so it pushes into the track then go all the way up. Sometimes it pinches the rubber and curls it under the glass. Have not had the panel off so not sure on how the window is connected to the motor arm and why i am having to push it into the track when i get it half way up.

When you push it over into the track it feels as if the front bottom section of the glass has slipped down so when you push it it pulls it back up into alignment.

I think the rubber may be getting a bit brittle that surrounds the window. Is it easy to replace ???

[Yuen 16]

The door panel insert is attached to the door panel by the plastic being melted over the back of the panel... remove the whole door panel then you'll see what I mean. To be re-upholstered they're likely to break the plastic bits at the back, re-cloth the insert then glue it or screw it together from the back. The whole door panel is removed by removing the plastic cover around the door handle, the 2 Torx screws behind the door panel's handle, then carefully pull it bit by bit around the door to release all the clips. Unscrew the door lock cover and lift the panel off. Btw, you'll probably need to buy some new clips as the old ones break quite easily.

About the window, I'm not sure if it would cause your problem but it's fairly common to have the plastic sliders on the window rail break. They get brittle over time. These cost a few dollars from the dealer. Would be a good idea to put some grease on the rail while you're at it.

The good news is you can fix both problems at the same time.

Edited November 2, 2008 by Mpulsive

[JaseNZ 53]

The door panel insert is attached to the door panel by the plastic being melted over the back of the panel... remove the whole door panel then you'll see what I mean. To be re-upholstered they're likely to break the plastic bits at the back, re-cloth the insert then glue it or screw it together from the back. The whole door panel is removed by removing the plastic cover around the door handle, the 2 Torx screws behind the door panel's handle, then carefully pull it bit by bit around the door to release all the clips. Unscrew the door lock cover and lift the panel off. Btw, you'll probably need to buy some new clips as the old ones break quite easily.

About the window, I'm not sure if it would cause your problem but it's fairly common to have the plastic sliders on the window rail break. They get brittle over time. These cost a few dollars from the dealer. Would be a good idea to put some grease on the rail while you're at it.

The good news is you can fix both problems at the same time.

Thanks for that might pull all the pannels off this weekend and find somebody who can do them during this week so i can give them the panels next week and jave a look at the window sliders at the same time.