stuck glovebox

[318i Turbo 0]

my glovebox lock is jammed up and i cant get in, how the hell do i get in without braking anything

[bimmer boy 21]

yea this happend to me and i lost my patience and pulled the handle off

like how u say jammed up like do u mean the lock is so u can still move the handle ok?

cos if it does id just lift it as if u wer opening it and get a screw driver and sort of pry it open

[bravo 35]

Never done it before, but heres how I would tackle it:

There are two screws/bolts attaching the hinge to the glove box which are readily accessible from the footwell. Undo these. ( have someone to help you support the weight of the box so you don't break anything or use a prop to prop it up.

Lower it enough to feel in for the straps on either side about half way between the back and front of the glovebox. You can push the plastic pins out on the bottom of the straps and release them from the glovebox allowing it to drop further. Hopefully now you have enough room to make like the rubber man and get your hand in and release the latch manually by simply pressing in on the catches. This may be easier if you own a small child.

The only other option is to employ a lock smith, or sarcrifice the lock with a great big screwdriver and some force.

[318i Turbo 0]

the lock itself is unlocked it just dont wanna unlatch itself, i think ill just rip on in and get another

[bimmer boy 21]

b careful tho

cos the handle is liky to come off then it will b even harder to get into

[gmccormack 0]

Try not to break it, as they are a real weakness in the E30 they are hard to find second hand and expensive to buy new

[318i Turbo 0]

when i fixed it, it seems that the screws holding the lock part to the glovebox had come loss and had got itself stuck but thanks to a bit of a thrash the screws came out altogether and i was able to put it back together without wreaking anything

[Aaron320iSmith 0]

Yea same thing has happened to me but the bottom of the box (i mean the end closest the enginge) has broken or something and is just hanging there so is the right thing to do, to get in behind it and try it manually?

[smokenbaby 0]

The other option is to just unscrew the 2 screws that hold the catch to the dash. This is easily done by carefully pulling the glovebox down and away from the dash. You only need to move it far enough to get the screw driver in. Once the screws are out you can carefully pull the whole lot open. Use a pair of long nose pliers to push the catch back and pop the catch out of the steel lock opening (part of the dash). Unscrew the catch and handle from the glovebox lid and you will find that the little lever that moves the catch when the handle is pulled has broken off. Your only option is the wrecker for a second hand one.

Trying to reach in from behind (firwall end) is pretty bloody hard. You need super long arms and super strong fingers to move the catch. Plus on some models there is a fabric sheet that stops things falling out of the glovebox that stops you from being able to access through the back.

[Carl 3]

I had this problem on mine.

The exact cause was when locking the box the handle lifted so as the box locked itself while the handle was sticking out or when unlocking the box the handle lifted aswell so the box was unlocked but the handle is stuck out and wont open.

Simple fix is to insert your key and jiggle the lock from locked to unlocked and back while trying to get the handle back into the unopen position.

Edited January 19, 2005 by ///Carl

[Guest WAGON]

on my old 318 all you had to do was banf the fu<ker really hard it popped out

[bmwsparkle 3]

must be a 318i thing, used the crowbar on mine, worked a treat.

[Guest WAGON]

i ended up ripping mine off cause it wouldnt bang open and there was plant in there so got out the screwdriver a rippedi fu<ker off

got my plant

[smokenbaby 0]

I was on my way to Taupo for the weekend and about 10 min north of Taihape I wanted a smoke. They were in the glovebox and for love nor money do you think I could open the bloody thing. Couldn't turn back and get more as Taihape was shut. Didn't want to wait for Waioru for a new pack. So you could imagine the frustration. My companion freaked when I started kicking the sh it outt of it. She was ended up having a go to after a while. I tell you this, the Germans know how to make the most secure glovebox out. Tried wheel brace, Screwdriver and anything I could. This is all happening on the side of the road at mid night.

[bravo 35]

hahahahahaha - smokers.... :shakes head in a disapproving manner: