Installing tail light - how difficult?
 

I need to replace the right-rear taillight assembly on my X5 - the dealer wants to charge around $180 to install it. Ouch.

Anyone have any idea how hard is it to install one of these things?

Hmmm, google appears to have the solution:

http://www.bmwmotorsports.org/pdf/e5...y%20Repair.pdf

Seems to be a trivial install.

It should be pretty straight forward. The most time consuming part is removing the subwoofer if you have the premium audio option. Took me about 15-30 min max.

simoncpw is correct, remove the subwoofer if applicable than you just have three 8mm nuts holding the light to the body. that will be an easy 180 in your pocket to take your girl out to dinner

May I ask why you're replacing your tail light? Did the dealer tell you its bad and did they mention what exactly is the problem?

I'm asking because more than a few owners have experienced corroded connectors. The fix is as simple as cleaning the connectors in the tail light.

EDIT: Funny thing is, just recently, my passenger tail light has a bulb that intermittently won't light. When I have time I need to check the connectors.

Ironic, Yesterday I was driving our other X (Fathers) and this message came up.
I first noticed this when I was following my dad one day and the pass. light wouldnt light up. I asked him if he noticed the messge he said no.

Ill have a look and follow the instructions above to see the cause... Worst case scenario... shhhh dont say anthing Ill switch my light with his and go to dealer since my still under warranty... but u didnt hear that from me....

I was told that the existing light fixture was defective. I'll spend some time this weekend and check it out more closely.

Thanks guys!

As has been said, the actual taillight it just three nuts to remove. The more time consuming part is removing the subwoofer if you have it. And yes I have also had the corroded connectors issue - all I had to use was a little bit of sandpaper to clean it up and it worked fine. Good luck

How old is the X5? If it's an older one like mine, you might have to replace the assembly rather than just repairing the housing/connectors. I had this happen multiple times and after about 3x of sanding, soldering and cleaning them up, it's finally time to just replace the housing since there's not much good material left. I think I will just go with LED's since they're not much more expensive than just aftermarket factory style replacements.