[B1nary]

I plan to upgrade my S7 phone next month to an S9+ but the phone charging cradle in the 2017 and 2018 is not long enough to allow wireless charging so I want to remove it. I've tried a few plastic spudgers to pry it loose but nothing seems to work. If you have removed one, would you let me know how you did it. I don't want to break it just take it out.

Thanks

[B1nary]

Bump.

Anyone or a source you might know?

[tennisfreak]

My M240i does not have a phone charging cradle.

Is this some kind of option?

[BEM-S4]

There have definitely been threads on this you'd need to search. You have to pry it out then pop the rear vent assembly to unplug. From there you can add a USB port for additional charging, put in a wireless charging mat, etc.

[JohnnyCanuck]

You can see my post on doing this in my M235i here: http://www.2addicts.com/forums/showt...php?t=1298958&

I did borrow from a post on F30post which is linked in the thread.

[B1nary]

I did find the cradle mods referenced in the posts mentioned here. Just FYI - the cradle option comes with the Premium Kit when you order your M240 (Car Play) otherwise it's not included. The cradle shown in the posts was different and all my prying on the sides or ends of my cradle didn't release it. I tried prying on both the passenger side (along the entire length) as shown in one post and the drivers side but it remains firmly stuck. There is YT video where the guy simply pops it out but again that is a different cradle and mine refused to move. I've been less than gentle - maybe I just need a bigger hammer . . .

[p912guy]

When in doubt, ALWAYS use a "bigger hammer".

[B1nary]

Originally Posted by p912guy

When in doubt, ALWAYS use a "bigger hammer".

I'm with you - sadly even that didn't work. I actually took a small brass hammer to tap the spudgers down along the sides to see if I could feel where it was clipped. On the drivers side I found a couple that I could get to click but not on the passenger side. I tried prying nearest the arm rest side and that did nothing but if you pry immediately beside the actual cradle you can find a couple of spots that look like clips going into the cradle and I can get 2 of them to make a clicking sound but it's all to no avail. That sucker is just trying (and succeeding) at making my life miserable.

[B1nary]

After a phone conversation with the Genius's at BMW USA and Canada I learned that the wireless cradle in the 2017 and 2018 M240 is not intended to come out and is not removable. But I'm rather stubborn so I found a way to get it out and not destroy the charging cradle in the process. First you do not need to access the centre counsel (sp). Initially I removed the inside USB charging port - it can be pried out starting on the drivers side of the centre counsel - in case you ever need access. From that and using a small mirror I could see the actual clips holding the entire base plate and cradle in place - the cradle sits inside a base plate. (Pictures to follow). To make your life easier you do not need to remove the actual base plate holding the charging cradle in place. If you look at the picture of the cradle near the back end you will see 2 indentations in the cradle. There are 2 on each side - a total of 4. One is about 40mm (1.5") from the back and the most forward indentation is about 70MM - roughly 3.75" from the back of the cradle toward the front. Here is the tough part; the gap between the base plate that holds the charging cradle and the cradle itself is extremely tight. The only tool I could get in there is a metal tool used for taking a cell phone apart - they are about 5" long X 1" wide X .4mm thick. My advice is to find a piece of very thin but very stiff metal. You will need 4 pieces. Keep this in mind. Once you see my pictures you'll understand why. To get the cradle out push your metal "tools" down between the base plate and cradle (not the centre counsel) where you see the indentations in the pictures. This will release the 4 heavy duty clips holding the cradle in place. Grasp the back of the cradle and pull up and back - hard. The front of the cradle has a monster clip holding it in place and you can't lift the cradle straight up. The cradle will now slide back and out.

If you want access to the charging cradle internals:
Starting at the back corner of the cradle insert a small plastic tool (or knife) and pry downward the bottom corner will click apart. Do this all the way around the cradle and the entire cradle bottom end comes off. There is one wired connector in there you will need to unclip. If you are removing the cradle entirely you will need to unsolder the co-ax cable attached to the PCB. Do NOT use a hand held soldering gun. You must use a soldering iron! If you use a gun there is a really good chance you will destroy a few of the Surface Mount Devices on the cradle board - you've been warned. Use a hand held solder sucker or some solder braid to suck the solder of the PCB board where the co-ax attaches. At this point the entire cradle is free. I'll upload pictures as soon as my phone charges.

The whole reason for doing this - fit an S9+
As noted above I wanted the cradle out so I could look at modifying it to fit the Samsung S9+. In case you are wondering, you will need to remove the entire back end of the cradle to get the S9+ to fit and if you have a case on the phone I doubt removing the entire back end of the cradle would allow it to fit. In brief an S9+ will not fit the cradle.

Which phone will Fit?
As noted, the S9+ phone does not fit short of destroying the entire back end of the phone charging cradle. I settled on an S9 with a Spigen Military Grade Case. This is not a recommendation in terms of a phone or a case, you can use any that fit - BUT - no matter which one you choose it cannot be be over 153 mm (6") in length. If your overall dimensions are greater than this size the phone will not go in the cradle - at least nothing over than size fit in my cradle. As it is I have to compress the top rubber portion of the case just a tiny bit when sliding the phone it.

I hope this helps someone.

The red circles mark base plate tabs
Yellow are cradle tabs
Note the 2 yellow cradle indentations. These are the ones you need the thin metal tool for.

Once the cradle is apart there is a big red circle. This is the wiring connector and co-ax.

The first picture is the base plate with red circles marking the tabs you would need to compress to get the base plate out - but you don't need to do that to get access to the cradle. The Yellow tabs are the ones that clip into the base plate - there are 4 of those and they are the ones you need to compress to get the cradle out. The 3rd picture is the cradle indentation that the base plate tabs snap into - marked in yellow.