Gap in dash trim - normal???

[machmeter]

Been bugging me since I bought the car. To the right of the NAV (or whatever you have there) there's a 1/8 inch gap between one piece of the wood trim and the other piece. Inside the gap is a white tab or plastic thingy. Why? Couldn't the geniuses in Germany design a better fit, or at least use a dark color for the thingy inside? It seems to belong there and like just glares at you, once you notice it. Here's a phone-camera picture. How many other people have seen this?

[oarnura]

I have the same exact gap in my '04 325i. A colleague of mine with a 2001 330xi thinks it isn't normal. It bugged me, when he pointed it out, But since I can't see it while driving I forgot about it.

Now It will start bugging me again. :eek:
It might be normal :dunno: but doesn't see like it should be.

[doeboy]

Try pulling the right side trim piece out and refit it in there lying closer to the center trim piece. The "white tab" you see is part of the center trim piece... they attach to the dash by pegs. The tab is attached to the right side of the center trim piece and has an eyelet in it. The leftmost peg from the right side piece fits through the eyelet and into the receptacle in the dash for that peg. There is some "fudge space" in the peg holes. I think refitting the right side trim piece might help a bit.

[machmeter]

[QUOTE=doeboy]Try pulling the right side trim piece out and refit it in there lying closer to the center trim piece. The "white tab" you see is part of the center trim piece...QUOTE]

Maybe I'll try that, so long as I don't screw it up. Thanks :)

[cruztopless]

I've noticed the gap but the white backing recently. What's up with that?? :dunno: Oh well. Like ornura I don't see it when driving which is most of the time. I may try refitting it when I get the chance.

[doeboy]

[QUOTE=doeboy]Try pulling the right side trim piece out and refit it in there lying closer to the center trim piece. The "white tab" you see is part of the center trim piece...QUOTE]

Maybe I'll try that, so long as I don't screw it up. Thanks :)

Yeah just be careful... I use something like an old credit card or something similar to get behind the trim and pull it out.

[machmeter]

It makes my friends wonder about BMW QC. :tsk:

[Ashe too]

I have had that gap on the 3 e46s I've owned. On one of them, it had the white thing showing. One weekend, I got annoyed and pulled the trim piece off and found out that the white thing was an adhesive part number sticker, which I easily removed. Upon reinstallation of the trim piece, the modest gap was still there but hardly noticable since there was no whilte sticker showing through.

I don't remember exactly how I removed the trim piece but it was a no-brainer...I think I found a DIY on this site. Search using terms like "trim removal."

[doeboy]

I have had that gap on the 3 e46s I've owned. On one of them, it had the white thing showing. One weekend, I got annoyed and pulled the trim piece off and found out that the white thing was an adhesive part number sticker, which I easily removed. Upon reinstallation of the trim piece, the modest gap was still there but hardly noticable since there was no whilte sticker showing through.

I don't remember exactly how I removed the trim piece but it was a no-brainer...I think I found a DIY on this site. Search using terms like "trim removal."

Ah yes the decal... I forgot about that and thought only about the tab that's there... Mine wasn't visible though... but then I didn't have a huge gap there either... :dunno:

[ljh824]

Holy crap I have the same thing!!! I thought it was just a fluke that I can see the white thingy, but I guess not. I tried to grab it with a toothpick but couldn't. Like some of you, it doesn't bother me too much because I'm in the driver's seat and can't see it. But every person that sits in my passenger seat comments on it. I gotta get it the hell out of there.

[SonTon2003]

I have the exact same thing. It doesn't bother me.

[RandyB]

/goes out to the garage to check...

Hmmm... Don't see anything of the sort. There is no gap to speak of in mine, plus I have titanium trim so there wouldn't be much contrast between the two colors.

[inline6]

And I thought I was the only one! I had that white crap on my car too, it was pissing me off severely. I was expectng some impossible to remove sticker or somesuch, but I was able to hook it out quite easily with a highly scientific tooth-pick-like device, aka a small stick. It does come out - it's just some dumb bit of paper, it's not even stuck down IIRC. For Dog's sake get that crap out of there now!!! If it fights back just lever the end end of the right panel up a little bit - it's pretty easy to get it out, but please be careful!

[andy_thomas]

Been bugging me since I bought the car. To the right of the NAV (or whatever you have there) there's a 1/8 inch gap between one piece of the wood trim and the other piece. Inside the gap is a white tab or plastic thingy. Why? Couldn't the geniuses in Germany design a better fit, or at least use a dark color for the thingy inside? It seems to belong there and like just glares at you, once you notice it. Here's a phone-camera picture. How many other people have seen this?
That does seem a bit "gappy". My car had a slightly smaller gap than that when it was new, but the sticker wasn't showing through - so it never really bothered me. When I later changed the old myrtle trim out for some Individual stuff, the gap closed completely (clearly there is some "wiggle room" in there) but the trim above the radio was no longer flush with the top of the radio facia. Having subsequently crawled round various dealer lots to determine exactly what warrants a "factory" fit, I decided that the factory was at least as approximate as I was.

[Mohegan29]

I wouldn't do anything myself regarding that.

A passenger pointed it out to me since I couldn't see it while driving.

While having my oil changed I told the dealer and he had the service department remove it. Of course, no charge as it should not be there in the first place.

What a stupid design thing to have...I have to assume most people have it since so many people are commenting on it.

[andy_thomas]

What a stupid design thing to have...I have to assume most people have it since so many people are commenting on it.
Rule #1 - people post to complain about stuff. Despite everything, this is NOT a cross-section of the BMW community at large :)

[doeboy]

Rule #1 - people post to complain about stuff. Despite everything, this is NOT a cross-section of the BMW community at large :)

Yup...

Mine didn't have this problem.

[Mohegan29]

Most of the posts I have seen are to ask information/feedback or to talk about how good something is. There is a fair share of complaints as well, to your point.

I don't think anything in my post pointed to anything at large in the BMW community. The gap thing is irrelevant to me...every seam has some wort of gap...it's the white sticker. Honestly...look at the pic. A big white sticker unerneath myrtle wood and black trim...and so many people have it.

That's a prblem. Albeit a very, very small problem, but a problem when assembled, inspected by the factory before it left and finally inspected at the dealership? It didn't bother me at first either because you can't see it when you drive...just the passenger.