Just an FYI. I called FCP Euro for confirmation of the blower motor I listed above because all the videos I have been watching show a 3 point mounting as opposed to the 4 mount mounting in the one shown.

The website showed that one worked for the X5 3.0L and figured the image was incorrect. The guys over there were great and searched many different sites running my specific VIN and found that there are 2 different blower motors for the X5, one with automatic air conditioning and one without. The one without being the 4 mounting points. My VIN came back as automatic air conditioning and they swapped my order with the correct one at no additional charge even though the one I need was nearly $100 more.

Can't say enough about the customer service at FCP. They saved me a huge headache of tearing everything apart only to find I have the wrong part. This is the correct one for automatic air conditioning.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...53-64118385558

Have only had good experiences with their CS dept. Just a couple of days ago most recently. Always buy from them if I can wait a week to week and a half for parts. Actually... And I probably shouldn't think about this but I'm sure I've spent over (well over) $5000 with them over just the last 12 months. Stupid German car addiction. :D

Good luck with the dash removal OB. I always wanted to remove mine to have it upholstered in leather but that is a pie in the sky dream ATM.

A leather dash would look amazing indeed but definitely not in the cards for me. If I had my unlimited budget from a month ago, I would want buy a new FSR and ignition switch while I had everything apart but we just can't justify it at the moment. At least neither of those require the dash out to replace when that time arrives.

Removed the dash to replace a squeaking fan.
I also wanted to change the dash to black. My lower half was beige. Maybe I can just paint it with vinyl paint.

In the process of removing the dash I learned why my check engine light never worked lol
Now how much more do I need to remove to replace the front carpet in one piece....
https://i.ibb.co/Tmq14m8/20210612-222656.jpg https://i.ibb.co/Vqn9GhH/20210612-222646.jpg https://i.ibb.co/bWZTg20/20210612-222640.jpg https://i.ibb.co/gVQXgwP/20210612-215745.jpg https://i.ibb.co/2K6319F/20210612-215523.jpg

Holy hell, it looks like a a bomb went off!

That is some varsity wrenching. Nice work

I want to replace the front carpet without cutting. Still a long way to go. The biggest challenge is to figure out how to remove the heater assembly in the middle lol

Nice work! Like another user said, I would almost sell mine and buy another X5! But, I'm a DIY guy. So the challenge would be accepted. I'm going to turn on the rear blower at full speed and already use only the lower speeds up front. Clean and repair as much as you can while the dash is out!

This is a crazy thought but...

Let's say you don't have time/desire to replace the blower motor,
can you use a portable fan that plugs into the cig socket?

Can you still get heat (winter) or AC (summer) using portable fan?

I just replaced my blower since I had the same symptoms as everyone with a bad blower, chirping and then finally quitting altogether.

It took 1 hour and 20 min to get the dash out. A second set of hands to actually remove it is almost necessary. Maybe another 2-3 hours to get it back in and tested.

TIPS:
Remove A pillars, glove box, radio, climate control, instrument cluster, loosen center console (no need to completely remove), just slide it back a couple inches, no need to remove steering wheel, just remove the 2 hex bolts and lower it down.

Lots of screws in the dash, maybe 12-16? One is behind the light switch, the rest are pretty visible.

Before you completely remove the dash, unplug the speakers at each side (door).

It's not that bad to remove the dash, definitely not as bad as I thought it would be. Careful removing it and reinstalling it so you don't break anything.

Actually replacing the blower is like a 2 minute job.

Test the blower and blend doors before you bolt everything back up. Plug in air bag first so you don't get the SRS light.

FCP Euro had the Hella Blower for $137 I think? Not terrible.

The brushes in mine were completely shot.

Works 100 times better now! Don't be scared!

I hope I NEVER have to do that job.