Has anybody tried other brand than OEM for replacing door handle.

[bmw540san]

PO had front driver side replaced by dealer, I did the right front using OEM as well. Now the rear driver side just failed and I don't feel like spending $100+ unless necessary.
It seems that most aftermarket solutions are even worse than OEM but I didn't find any reviews for Febi Bilstein. $46 at rmeuropean:
BMW FEBI BILSTEIN Outside Door Handle Carrier 51228243635
I'm thinking of trying it unless somebody had bad experience with it.
Thanks in advance.

[Overboost]

Originally Posted by bmw540san

PO had front driver side replaced by dealer, I did the right front using OEM as well. Now the rear driver side just failed and I don't feel like spending $100+ unless necessary.
It seems that most aftermarket solutions are even worse than OEM but I didn't find any reviews for Febi Bilstein. $46 at rmeuropean:
BMW FEBI BILSTEIN Outside Door Handle Carrier 51228243635
I'm thinking of trying it unless somebody had bad experience with it.
Thanks in advance.

Frickin pot metal carriers. I've done 3 so far too...

[80stech]

I just installed the Febi one and it fits, works, and looks almost identical to the BMW one which I ordered as well to compare.

[oldskewel]

Originally Posted by bmw540san

PO had front driver side replaced by dealer, I did the right front using OEM as well. Now the rear driver side just failed and I don't feel like spending $100+ unless necessary.
It seems that most aftermarket solutions are even worse than OEM but I didn't find any reviews for Febi Bilstein. $46 at rmeuropean:
BMW FEBI BILSTEIN Outside Door Handle Carrier 51228243635
I'm thinking of trying it unless somebody had bad experience with it.
Thanks in advance.

I used the Febi from RMEuropean on both sides for the rear doors a few months ago. Out of the box, they both seemed a lot less smoothly functioning than I expected. But considering the hassle of return vs. installing with warranty, I installed.

And they're just fine. Any lack of smoothness is not noticeable at all once they're installed. And the year before, I had put Febi's in the fronts as well. Happy with all 4.

They appear to be just as well made as the originals. BTW, I think only one side had failed, but I replaced both and am glad I did. Things are very fast once I've got all the tools out and have the little tricks fresh in my mind. And buying both sides was enough to get me the free shipping.

[bmw540san]

Originally Posted by Overboost

Frickin pot metal carriers. I've done 3 so far too...

Not my favorite diy either.

[bmw540san]

Originally Posted by 80stech

I just installed the Febi one and it fits, works, and looks almost identical to the BMW one which I ordered as well to compare.

Glad to hear it. I'm ordering it. Thanks.

[bmw540san]

Originally Posted by oldskewel

I used the Febi from RMEuropean on both sides for the rear doors a few months ago. Out of the box, they both seemed a lot less smoothly functioning than I expected. But considering the hassle of return vs. installing with warranty, I installed.

And they're just fine. Any lack of smoothness is not noticeable at all once they're installed. And the year before, I had put Febi's in the fronts as well. Happy with all 4.

They appear to be just as well made as the originals. BTW, I think only one side had failed, but I replaced both and am glad I did. Things are very fast once I've got all the tools out and have the little tricks fresh in my mind. And buying both sides was enough to get me the free shipping.

You're the 2nd one to give nods to Febi and that's good enough for me. Thanks.

[amancuso]

Does the window have to be down or up when doing it?

[andrewwynn]

All brands have the same design fault. You can fix it with a piece of 16ga wire and with a Dremel you can cut off the nubbin that causes the breakage.

The last one I installed, the spring was too long and scraped on the window!

Find my threads on the topic they can be repaired for free.

Also, if you use a knock off simply swap the OE cables they are better quality even old.

Window must be up. Find some YouTube videos.

My tips:

1) cut the through the adhesive goo on the vapor barrier with razor knife it will re-adhere like new

2) turn the carrier vertical to remove and install

3) CUT off the NUB that blocks the motion when locked it will never break again. Impossible.

4) flip the airbag around and reattach to one of the mount points it will hold it safely out of the way while still plugged in: this eliminates the need to disconnect the battery

These carriers break due to a design flaw: when locked they are designed to prevent lifting the handle to give feedback to the operator that the door is locked the problem is the locking mechanism gets gummy with oil and will operate slowly when cold.

The operator will assume the door seal is iced and just needs a good tug so they do. The door handle is still locked and you tug with several hundred pounds of force compounded with leverage into 10s of 1000s of psi onto a piece of pot metal that is about 8 mm². It off course snaps.

I did a very simple modification that eliminates the flaw: it removes the NUB that blocks the handle motion when locked; it now simply "dry fires" when locked: the handle is allowed full motion since the cable is internally disabled and does nothing anyhow.

[bmw540san]

Originally Posted by andrewwynn

All brands have the same design fault. You can fix it with a piece of 16ga wire and with a Dremel you can cut off the nubbin that causes the breakage.

The last one I installed, the spring was too long and scraped on the window!

Find my threads on the topic they can be repaired for free.

Also, if you use a knock off simply swap the OE cables they are better quality even old.

Window must be up. Find some YouTube videos.

My tips:

1) cut the through the adhesive goo on the vapor barrier with razor knife it will re-adhere like new

2) turn the carrier vertical to remove and install

3) CUT off the NUB that blocks the motion when locked it will never break again. Impossible.

4) flip the airbag around and reattach to one of the mount points it will hold it safely out of the way while still plugged in: this eliminates the need to disconnect the battery

These carriers break due to a design flaw: when locked they are designed to prevent lifting the handle to give feedback to the operator that the door is locked the problem is the locking mechanism gets gummy with oil and will operate slowly when cold.

The operator will assume the door seal is iced and just needs a good tug so they do. The door handle is still locked and you tug with several hundred pounds of force compounded with leverage into 10s of 1000s of psi onto a piece of pot metal that is about 8 mm². It off course snaps.

I did a very simple modification that eliminates the flaw: it removes the NUB that blocks the handle motion when locked; it now simply "dry fires" when locked: the handle is allowed full motion since the cable is internally disabled and does nothing anyhow.

Thank you for detailed and invaluable tips. I just did last one by the book and your tips seem time saver and clever. I'll definitely use them when I do repair in the near future.