52 16 400 Replacing seat cover for left or right front seat (sports/electric) (coupe)

WARNING: This page does not describe the selected car, but rather 21 other vehicles, including the 2013 BMW 328xi, 2013 BMW 328i, 2012 BMW 328xi, 2012 BMW 328i, and 2011 BMW 328xi. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

Special tools required:

52 0 050

Necessary preliminary tasks:

Remove Front Seat
Remove Rear Panel on front seat
Remove Outer Cover
Remove Thigh Support

Unlock retaining lugs (1).

Remove seat trim (2) downwards.

Installation:

Seat trim (2) must not be damaged.

Fig 1: Identifying Retaining Lugs And Seat Trim

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Version with seat heating only:

Unlock plug connection (1) for seat heating and disconnect.

Disconnect cable straps.

Release wiring harness (2) from cable holders on seat mechanism.

IMPORTANT: Feed the wiring harness carefully through the seat and backrest mechanism as the edges of the frame can be sharp.

Fig 2: Identifying Plug Connection And Wiring Harness

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Release screw (1).

Lever clip (2) out of seat cover on left and right.

Installation:

If necessary, replace faulty clip.

Remove trim (3) from inside of seat.

Fig 3: Identifying Seat Cover Clip, Trim And Screw

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Detach seat cover (1) from seat frame.

Fig 4: Detaching Seat Cover From Seat Frame

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Pull out cover welt (1) completely from seat frame (2).

Fig 5: Identifying Cover Welt And Seat Frame

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Remove seat cover (1) towards front/top.

Fig 6: Identifying Seat Cover

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Version with seat heater and/or with seat occupancy detector:

Pull seat cover (1) with padding forward a little and feed wiring harness (2) out.

Remove seat cover (1) towards front/top.

Fig 7: Identifying Seat Cover And Wiring Harness

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Replacing seat cover:

Release all retainers in marked area.

Fig 8: Identifying Seat Cover In Marked Area

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Release all retainers in marked area.

Remove seat cover from padding.

NOTE: Remove all remnants of clips from seat cover and padding.

Fig 9: Identifying Seat Cover And Padding

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Installation:

Bend new retainers (2) closed with special tool 52 0 050

Padding
Retainer
Trim thread in padding
Trim thread in cover
Seat cover

Fig 10: Identifying Padding, Trim, Seat Cover, Retainers And Special Tool (52 0 050)
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Replacing seat cover:

Pull trim threads out of seat cover.

Cut new seat cover to size and insert trim threads.

Fig 11: Identifying Trim Threads

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