Have given up at the second hurdle today !

[macabethiel]

I put some neat LED contactless front side light bulbs in my Jeep so today decided to put a pair on my BMW.

Put the steering on full lock to access the plastic covers that are fitted inside the wheel arch liners. Nice and easy fasteners that turn with a coin and gave me access to the back of the actual lamp covers.

Released the spring as per U-Tube video and tilted back the plastic cover and despite my two fingered grip said cover fell down into the void below and out of sight.

After finding my long spring grabber tool I managed to find a purchase for the claw on a bit of the plastic cover. On about the fourth attempt got hold of the cover and wiggled it free via a route under the bonnet near the air filter body.

With my Aldi LED illuminated telescopic mirror managed to actually see the sidelight bulb holder tried to get my hands on the small bulb holder but despite having a Pianists fingers could not reach the catch to release it from the lamp reflector.

TBH had I released the bulb holder odds are I would never have managed to get it back in place. Re-fitted the above mentioned covers and decided it would have to wait until a warm summers day when I could take off the front wheel and the front part of the wheel arch liner and be able to do the job with 20/20 vision.

Went inside to wash my hands only to find that my right wrist is covered in red blotches and bruises from my efforts. (Thanks to Asprin & other heart meds.) Groan I hate being defeated by modern car design!

To cheer me up my Mate rang me as his Missuses car an old Mercedes A Class was in the garage as the charging light had come on with dire warnings if not taken to the workshops. To remove the alternator needs a partial drop of the engine/gearbox unit as the alternator sits above the engine between it and the front floor with no top access panels! Sounds like that will be an expensive fix if it is the alternator and not just the belt.