One of mine was missing from the trim panel next to the alarm LED. Rather than pay high prices second-hand, I decided to make my own.
I bought some 2mm black ABS plastic sheet to do the job, however at the same time I bought a laptop lithium battery pack to use the batteries inside for a job I was doing. I noticed that the battery pack plastic case was exactly the same texture as the BMW blanking panel, the same thickness and it was flat in an area of sufficient size to make two...
The battery pack was Battery For HP EliteBook 8440p 8440w 6930p Compaq 6530b 6535b 6700b 6730b Laptop battery, pack model 6535.
I applied some masking tape to the battery case, drew around the original BMW blanking plate and cut out two blanking plates using a jeweller's piercing saw.
File the blanking plates down to be the same size as the original (easier to place it together with the original and adjust the size, rather than measure with a ruler/micrometer). Bevel the undersides of the plates along the two shortest sides to make them a neat fit into the trim openings.
Cut two small rectangular plates of the 2mm ABS sheet to form the mounting for the retaining clips for each one. Temporarily mount the blanking plates into the trim panel with tape and superglue the two strips onto the shorter ends of each blanking plate so that they are hard up against the inner sides of the trim panel. Avoid gluing the blanking plate to the trim panel.
For each blanking plate, cut two more similar rectangular plates, but make them 'U' shaped to have two tongues to engage with the underside of the trim (of sufficient separation to be either side of the raised part of the trim). Glue the first one in place onto the blanking panel. With the blanking plate removed, glue the second planel with tongues on. Now file the last panel's tongues down so that these two tongues can be located underneath the trim panel when the plate is bent outwards slightly (having located the longer tongues in the trim panel first).
Picture 1 - laptop battery pack case, original blanking plate and two plates cut out
Picture 2 - rear of blanking plates with first rectangular sheets glued on
Picture 3 - blanking plate with first plate with tongues glued on
Picture 4 - underside of trim panel showing raised part of the trim
Picture 5 - rear of trim panel with blanking plate located
I bought some 2mm black ABS plastic sheet to do the job, however at the same time I bought a laptop lithium battery pack to use the batteries inside for a job I was doing. I noticed that the battery pack plastic case was exactly the same texture as the BMW blanking panel, the same thickness and it was flat in an area of sufficient size to make two...
The battery pack was Battery For HP EliteBook 8440p 8440w 6930p Compaq 6530b 6535b 6700b 6730b Laptop battery, pack model 6535.
I applied some masking tape to the battery case, drew around the original BMW blanking plate and cut out two blanking plates using a jeweller's piercing saw.
File the blanking plates down to be the same size as the original (easier to place it together with the original and adjust the size, rather than measure with a ruler/micrometer). Bevel the undersides of the plates along the two shortest sides to make them a neat fit into the trim openings.
Cut two small rectangular plates of the 2mm ABS sheet to form the mounting for the retaining clips for each one. Temporarily mount the blanking plates into the trim panel with tape and superglue the two strips onto the shorter ends of each blanking plate so that they are hard up against the inner sides of the trim panel. Avoid gluing the blanking plate to the trim panel.
For each blanking plate, cut two more similar rectangular plates, but make them 'U' shaped to have two tongues to engage with the underside of the trim (of sufficient separation to be either side of the raised part of the trim). Glue the first one in place onto the blanking panel. With the blanking plate removed, glue the second planel with tongues on. Now file the last panel's tongues down so that these two tongues can be located underneath the trim panel when the plate is bent outwards slightly (having located the longer tongues in the trim panel first).
Picture 1 - laptop battery pack case, original blanking plate and two plates cut out
Picture 2 - rear of blanking plates with first rectangular sheets glued on
Picture 3 - blanking plate with first plate with tongues glued on
Picture 4 - underside of trim panel showing raised part of the trim
Picture 5 - rear of trim panel with blanking plate located
