About $98, on ECS tuning. Maybe cheaper elsewhere. OE BMW, as in the part that lasted 8 years. Let us know how long this lasts. Just curious.

Well, now I'm part of this fine club as well. We had rain last Saturday evening followed by a drop in temperature overnight. Wife went to open the front passenger door and it was stuck, probably moisture around the seal that had frozen. She yanked on it a couple of times, still wouldn't open, so I popped the inside handle and pushed, and it came open, but I suppose the damage was already done. When we were still unable to open the door from the outside, I figured (was hoping) it was just residual ice in there. Nope. Pretty sure I've got the broken carrier. :rolleyes:



Considering the fact that this was jaycotter's last post on the forum, I suppose we'll never know whether his buddy's repair idea and welding skills did the trick or not. Has anyone else successfully repaired this part instead of replacing it?


That's some pretty slick stuff! I'd never heard of it before, but looks like it'd be worth a try. Thanks for the link!

not to sound terribly stupid but when ordering, left side = drivers side in the US? Not sure why I am blanking?

Yes; driver's side = left side.
Passenger side = right side.

It is always as if you sit behind the steering wheel. So picture yourself inside car, and left is driver side, right is pass side.

thanks - I've read the write ups. Any advice? I'll be doing this theoretically in the dark after work thursday. Should take about an hour or so right?

I've done window regulators on the E46, this seems about the same level of difficulty.

Also, when I disassemble the old carrier, what specifically breaks that causes this?

Not sure exactly. I have never had the pleasure of doing this on the X. If it was my first time. I would allot a bit more than an hour. Getting that foam off the inside of the door will be a pain in the ass. Get yourself duct tape for when you rip it, and want to put it back. Or get a razor blade, and pull back that foam, while trying to cut the adhesive. It will stick back onto to itself so don't worry. Just taking that shit off will piss you off and most likely take most of your time.

Everything else is a function of having the right tools. As long as you have a decent set of tools, it looks like the job is very straight forward.

I will make that foam my bitch. I had the doors off the e46 umpteen times between speakers and 3 window regulator fixes. since this is a classy car, I may even get a tube of acoustic sealant and even repair the goop instead of just shoving it back on. Especially if its cold.

All done. Took about 90 minutes. Had a few problems getting the new carrier lined up right. Still not sure it's right but I gave up. There is a gap between the Handle and the cylender that wasn't there before. Used a uro part. Otherwise straight forward. Physically hardest part was getting the cable in its clamp.

Yea I hear people having that gap with aftermarket carriers. Some have more luck than others, but if you go back at it, you might make it better. Only OE seems to line up right away.