Searching Pics of dash internals
09-02-2007, 09:00 AM
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Looking for pictures or how-to's of the dashboard. I need to put some electronics in there but am not sure yet where and how to get to what part.
09-02-2007, 09:38 AM
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Originally Posted by BMDiesel' post='465031' date='Sep 2 2007, 01:00 PM
Looking for pictures or how-to's of the dashboard. I need to put some electronics in there but am not sure yet where and how to get to what part.
09-02-2007, 11:48 AM
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Originally Posted by Rudy' post='465041' date='Sep 2 2007, 07:38 PM
There's a ton of information already posted in these forums. Browse around and/or do some searching and I'm sure you'll find loads of good stuff...
09-04-2007, 12:25 PM
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What sort of equipment do you want to connect??
Where are you thinking of siting it? Above the dash, the iDrive area or above the ashtray??
My experience with the E46 is that it is very awkward to find a way through from the cabin to the engine bay because of the firewall. On my E46 the easiest way was actually through the fresh air vent behind the glove box!!
Mike
Where are you thinking of siting it? Above the dash, the iDrive area or above the ashtray??
My experience with the E46 is that it is very awkward to find a way through from the cabin to the engine bay because of the firewall. On my E46 the easiest way was actually through the fresh air vent behind the glove box!!
Mike
09-09-2007, 05:35 AM
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Originally Posted by AlwynMike' post='465793' date='Sep 4 2007, 10:25 PM
What sort of equipment do you want to connect??
Where are you thinking of siting it? Above the dash, the iDrive area or above the ashtray??
My experience with the E46 is that it is very awkward to find a way through from the cabin to the engine bay because of the firewall. On my E46 the easiest way was actually through the fresh air vent behind the glove box!!
Mike
Where are you thinking of siting it? Above the dash, the iDrive area or above the ashtray??
My experience with the E46 is that it is very awkward to find a way through from the cabin to the engine bay because of the firewall. On my E46 the easiest way was actually through the fresh air vent behind the glove box!!
Mike
For this I want to remove the parts that can be removed (such as the piece above the light switch left from the speedo)
Also I need to remove these in order to find mounting points for things like a cupholder or a sunglasses holder. As I do not want to drill and like a clean look, I'm looking for such hidden screws.
I've seen an exploded view of the center console, and that helps but it's the dashboard around the speedometer that I want to learn about.
09-10-2007, 05:34 AM
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I can help you with the easy bit from memory - I can't help with the difficult bit without taking my own car to pieces.
What I would suggest is to remove the panel from above and to the side of the footwell. This will allow you to see up behind the dash and to the bulkhead. Search around here for a "hole" to thread your wire or whatever through to the engine bay or wheel arch. Once you have got your wire there, things will get easier. Pull off the door sealing rubber (you have to do this to get the footwell panel off IIRC). You can then thread your wire up between the dashboard and the door pillar, and then up behind the trim panel on the screen pillar. Just thread the wire inside this panel so it won't interfere with the airbag. This panel's sides don't go flush with the body, so there is plenty of room. When you get to the top of the pillar, you will find that the head lining is also not flush with the body, so you can continue threading along to the mirror/centre lights to fit whatever you want. There is a big space behind the panel aft of the courtesy lights (the panel just pulls off with fingernails). - I was at one time going to fit my SatNav in there. The storage box left of the steering wheel is a good place to put a small switch. You can easily remove the box to drill a hole in the top, so the toggle switch "hangs down" into the box. The switch is easily flicked on/off. When you sell the car, just remove the switch, as the hole cannot be seen unless you lie upside down on the floor!
The panel to the left of the steering wheel, where the air vent is, just lever's off. Carefully prize it out with a wide blade screwdriver. Some people prefer to use a scraper (like you would use to remove wallpaper) - it's personal preference. There is not a lot behind the panel. The panel above that is part of the dash and would be difficult to remove.
Depending on what you want to mount, it is possible to fabricate a thin plate that is fixed to the top of the air vent, behind the trim (small holes with small nuts and bolts). This plate would stick out above the air vent, from behind the trim. Again, all fixings would be concealed. This is how I mounted my speed camera detector in my E46. It wouldn't take any serious weight though - sunglasses - yes, a litre of Coke - no!
Have fun!
Mike
What I would suggest is to remove the panel from above and to the side of the footwell. This will allow you to see up behind the dash and to the bulkhead. Search around here for a "hole" to thread your wire or whatever through to the engine bay or wheel arch. Once you have got your wire there, things will get easier. Pull off the door sealing rubber (you have to do this to get the footwell panel off IIRC). You can then thread your wire up between the dashboard and the door pillar, and then up behind the trim panel on the screen pillar. Just thread the wire inside this panel so it won't interfere with the airbag. This panel's sides don't go flush with the body, so there is plenty of room. When you get to the top of the pillar, you will find that the head lining is also not flush with the body, so you can continue threading along to the mirror/centre lights to fit whatever you want. There is a big space behind the panel aft of the courtesy lights (the panel just pulls off with fingernails). - I was at one time going to fit my SatNav in there. The storage box left of the steering wheel is a good place to put a small switch. You can easily remove the box to drill a hole in the top, so the toggle switch "hangs down" into the box. The switch is easily flicked on/off. When you sell the car, just remove the switch, as the hole cannot be seen unless you lie upside down on the floor!
The panel to the left of the steering wheel, where the air vent is, just lever's off. Carefully prize it out with a wide blade screwdriver. Some people prefer to use a scraper (like you would use to remove wallpaper) - it's personal preference. There is not a lot behind the panel. The panel above that is part of the dash and would be difficult to remove.
Depending on what you want to mount, it is possible to fabricate a thin plate that is fixed to the top of the air vent, behind the trim (small holes with small nuts and bolts). This plate would stick out above the air vent, from behind the trim. Again, all fixings would be concealed. This is how I mounted my speed camera detector in my E46. It wouldn't take any serious weight though - sunglasses - yes, a litre of Coke - no!
Have fun!
Mike
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