Helping with installing Strut tower bar

[M3Newbie88]

Hey guys.. ok got a tower strut bar and looking to install it..

Thought it was an ez remove the nuts on the car and bolt on but the stock strut is blocking one of the nuts coming off..

I did read somewhere to remove the oem strut by removing a center piece on the upper plastic dash or watever you call it..

The question is how? do I pull (I tried), do I turn it because of the long slit?

Some help would be good.. didnt find anything in the DIY section.. either that or I am blind.. thanks in advance guys!!

[adrean8j]

There is a circular piece in the middle of the upper cowling you have to remove....in there is a bolt you have to loosen and then the two ends from the strut bracing can be removed....then install your strut bar and replace those two pieces as well....what strut tower bar do you have?

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

There is a circular piece in the middle of the upper cowling you have to remove....in there is a bolt you have to loosen and then the two ends from the strut bracing can be removed....then install your strut bar and replace those two pieces as well....what strut tower bar do you have?

Hey.. thanks so the question is how to remove that circular piece lol.. I tried to turn.. pull and I didnt want to break it..

got the JIC CF bar... to match my Cf engine cover I just got

[adrean8j]

It has a little slit in it for a screw driver(little round plastic puck like piece)


IMG_1524 by Adrean8j, on Flickr

...just turn it and wiggle it back and forth until it comes out. I have the same bar on my car but not in the above picture (That pic is from the first day I got the car in Jun '08)

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

It has a little slit in it for a screw driver(little round plastic puck like piece)


IMG_1524 by Adrean8j, on Flickr

...just turn it and wiggle it back and forth until it comes out. I have the same bar on my car but not in the above picture (That pic is from the first day I got the car in Jun '08)

Hmm.. well it has a slit in the middle.. so in the slit your saying is a screw? I will take a look again.. Maybe I couldnt see it because I work on my car in my underground parking and the lighting sucks lol...

[adrean8j]

No I am saying the plastic piece has a slit in it....put a flathead screw-driver in the slit and turn....you wont break anything....

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

No I am saying the plastic piece has a slit in it....put a flathead screw-driver in the slit and turn....you wont break anything....

Oh so that LONG slit around ------------- this length is the area to put the flat screw driver haha.. ok ok.. hmm i did try that.. am I turning counter clock wise?

[adrean8j]

Yes that slit....I can't remember which direction to turn and I am in the middle east right now so I cannot get to my car to check But it isn't that hard to do...seriously it is the easiest part of the install

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

Yes that slit....I can't remember which direction to turn and I am in the middle east right now so I cannot get to my car to check But it isn't that hard to do...seriously it is the easiest part of the install

HAHA OK.. cool cool.. the engine cover was pretty ez lol..

[M3Newbie88]

Ok so I went to try to do the install again.. removed the circular cover and maybe I am weak or something damn I can't even get the bolt/screw to even budge.. its not your regular bolt.. it has many ends to it.. is there something I am doing wrong? I do see a regular bolt below it but it was not covered by the circular cover..

Btw there are many more things I installed that is alot easier haha..

[adrean8j]

No I meant removed the little plastic round piece is the easiest part of this particular install. If I recall correctly the bolt has a torx/star type head on it....so you need a torx socket/wrench to remove it. It is a simple install IF you have the right tools....LOL....and yes you need to put a little muscle to loosen that bolt...you wont break anything though...

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

No I meant removed the little plastic round piece is the easiest part of this particular install. If I recall correctly the bolt has a torx/star type head on it....so you need a torx socket/wrench to remove it. It is a simple install IF you have the right tools....LOL....and yes you need to put a little muscle to loosen that bolt...you wont break anything though...

Damn I did use a wrench but its so hard to leverage myself to get a good pull or push.. maybe Ill get my shop to do it geez.. or try it again tomorrow or something.. Thanks for all the help!

[adrean8j]

I used a ratchet with a 3" extender and the correct Torx/Star socket...I don't remember the size Socket...i just went on and bought a whole set of Torx/Star sockets..

[M3Newbie88]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

I used a ratchet with a 3" extender and the correct Torx/Star socket...I don't remember the size Socket...i just went on and bought a whole set of Torx/Star sockets..

Ya maybe I will borrow mt neighbours mastercraft set and see.. he has ove 300 pieces... one of them must be right LOL...

[thez99]

I was considering this as an issue as well, yet I figured it would be fine if I just loosened the bolt on the end of the stock bar (the star/torx one thats impossible to loosen) and lifted the stock bar just enough to get the bolt underneath out and seat the new bar underneath, no point in removing all the plastic pieces above the cowl, i hate messin with that shit, something always seems to break or not fit back on the way it should.

[adrean8j]

You don't have to remove the cowl...I didnt say that...

[thez99]

Well then what was all that bit about messing with the plastic piece with the slit, etc.?? Why not just get arnold swartz to remove the single bolt on the stock bar and lift it up half n inch and booya??

[adrean8j]

Originally Posted by thez99

Well then what was all that bit about messing with the plastic piece with the slit, etc.?? Why not just get arnold swartz to remove the single bolt on the stock bar and lift it up half n inch and booya??

Have you installed the strut bar yet on an E82??? You have to remove the plastic piece to get to the bolt that holds the two pieces of the existing strut brace...you can't loosen them enough by removing the bolts on the strut towers...trust me I have installed the exact same type/brand of bar on my car and you need to move those two pieces to get the bar installed properly. I tell you what....go out and buy a strut bar and try to install it your way....when it doesn't work then refer to what I said above....
You don't have to remove the cowl...the two pieces slide out of holes cut into the cowl itself.

[thez99]

What im saying is I can lift off all of the nuts on the strut tower except ONE, and we're talking like 2 mm of space is needed to lift the nut off. Then with the nuts all off I can seat the new strut bar (cusco) and get the nuts back on. So im saying i literally just need a couple mm for the right side of the oem strut bar to be lifted, I have a feeling i can nudge it up that much by just removing the outside bolt. My inquiry was how in the shit to remove that bolt cuz i tried those closest fit torx driver I had and murdered it, didnt budge..is there a specific "star" driver or something I need to use?? Pictures? Im not a tool know-it-all

[adrean8j]

Hmm....can you take a pic so I can see exactly where you are talking about? A crappy phone pic will work do....I know when I installed mine you had to take out that center bolt under the cowl to move the bar over...I wanna help you all get it installed! Nice half-life 2 avatar BTW

[thez99]

Originally Posted by adrean8j

Hmm....can you take a pic so I can see exactly where you are talking about? A crappy phone pic will work do....I know when I installed mine you had to take out that center bolt under the cowl to move the bar over...I wanna help you all get it installed! Nice half-life 2 avatar BTW

on the avatar, <<Half-life veteran

Im too beat up, greasy and lazy tonight to go back down n take one, prob will tomorrow. You say you needed to mess with the center bolt to MOVE THE STOCK BAR OVER, where as all I need to do is LIFT the right bar up literally a couple mm's. I cant believe that if I remove the outside bolt on the stock bar, that I couldnt lift it up at ALL..i just need to figure out how the fuck to get that bolt off on each side. Its like the fuckin thing is welded onto the strut bar...

[adrean8j]

LMAO...I feel you man...been there done that (worse one was my intercooler...on the performance bumper...it was cold, and then got windy, and then rainy all within an hour of me starting...frustrating evening that was). I will take a look around and see if I can come up with a solution to the problem

Some of my best gaming memories come from Valve and their work..namely Half-Life 1 and Portal (some of the best stories and game endings EVER).