DIY: Removing Sunvisor Decals

mdputnam · 07-11-2016, 10:32 AM

For convertible owners the screw covers are recessed into a hard plastic surround and you can not get a plastic tool in there to pop off the covers. However, there is a slot in the side of the covers. If you insert a small screw driver into the slot and rotate the screw driver, the covers will pop open:

Insert the small screw driver into the side slot

View of the slot with the visor removed and the covers pushed back down.

tinyTIM · 07-11-2016, 11:51 AM

I finally got around to doing this over the weekend. So nice without those annoying stickers. Thanks to the OP for a great write up.

NEUE02 · 07-11-2016, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinyTIM

I finally got around to doing this over the weekend. So nice without those annoying stickers. Thanks to the OP for a great write up.

Ha ha! My goal is to make the world sticker-less!

Glamdring · 07-24-2016, 01:31 PM

For those of you that got the sticker off in one piece...Bravo! Mine took a LOT of elbow grease. I bought the 91% solution and left it on, but still had a lot of work to do to scrub it off.

Good news is that I have a convertible, and I saw no need to remove the visors. Open the roof, flip them over, and go to work.

BentZero · 07-24-2016, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Glamdring

For those of you that got the sticker off in one piece...Bravo! Mine took a LOT of elbow grease. I bought the 91% solution and left it on, but still had a lot of work to do to scrub it off.

Good news is that I have a convertible, and I saw no need to remove the visors. Open the roof, flip them over, and go to work.

I let the alcohol sit for 15 mins and got all but the borders up in one piece. I then soaked the remaining borders for another 5 or so mins and then rubbed a bit with a microfiber towel. It definitely took some elbow grease, but nothing major.

hoppy6698 · 08-24-2016, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BentZero

I let the alcohol sit for 15 mins and got all but the borders up in one piece. I then soaked the remaining borders for another 5 or so mins and then rubbed a bit with a microfiber towel. It definitely took some elbow grease, but nothing major.

Will try this tomorrow on the other one. The first one took forever today :P

BEM-S4 · 09-27-2016, 04:03 PM

Tried this on the new vert, didn't work so switched to goof off which worked like a charm.

New tip for others who may experience the same issue, when I was done I had some wrinkling on the visor almost like the material had stretched. Annoying but not horrible.

Anyway I saturated with VLR then hit it with a hair dryer. Vinyl heated up then shrunk back to original shape, maybe even a little tighter than before. It's got a good memory since it's plastic so with some heat it will go right back to normal.

mdputnam · 09-28-2016, 10:47 AM

Just a note, we use a lot of 91% alcohol at work. This stuff absorbs moisture out of the air like a sponge. If the relative humidity is above about 40% leaving the lid off the bottle for an hour will turn your 91% alcohol into 70% alcohol and in the process become useless for removing the decal. At work we just put a pin hole into the foil seal and keep the cap on when we're not using it to retard the dilution of the alcohol.

Sleslie · 09-29-2016, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BEM-S4

Anyway I saturated with VLR then hit it with a hair dryer. Vinyl heated up then shrunk back to original shape, maybe even a little tighter than before. It's got a good memory since it's plastic so with some heat it will go right back to normal.

I've got a feeling I'm going to slap my forehead over this but what is VLR?

BEM-S4 · 09-30-2016, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sleslie

Quote:

Originally Posted by BEM-S4

Anyway I saturated with VLR then hit it with a hair dryer. Vinyl heated up then shrunk back to original shape, maybe even a little tighter than before. It's got a good memory since it's plastic so with some heat it will go right back to normal.

I've got a feeling I'm going to slap my forehead over this but what is VLR?

I'm sure you could use anything similar or just heat but I had this on hand, figured some moisture may help the process.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004N...dRL&ref=plSrch

DuPage · 10-24-2016, 07:39 PM

Can't the decal be removed without removing the sun visor?

NEUE02 · 10-24-2016, 07:45 PM

Yes, but it takes much longer and is more difficult. Much better to remove the visor. It's quite simple and faster in the end.

BentZero · 10-25-2016, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuPage

Can't the decal be removed without removing the sun visor?

Technically, yes, but it'll be a lot messier and harder to do than it would be to just pop them off real quick. I had to let mine soak for close to 20 mins. That would be a pain to try to do in the car.

DanATL · 11-11-2016, 03:05 PM

As I removed the stickers I could not help but think about how cheap and cheesy these visors are. These belong on a Yaris not a $50K car.

harma24 · 11-11-2016, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanATL

As I removed the stickers I could not help but think about how cheap and cheesy these visors are. These belong on a Yaris not a $50K car.

HA! I had the same thought when I removed the stickers from mine!

BentZero · 11-11-2016, 10:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanATL

As I removed the stickers I could not help but think about how cheap and cheesy these visors are. These belong on a Yaris not a $50K car.

Lol, totally agree. My first car had better and that was a 1979 Honda Accord hatchback.

Maynard · 11-17-2016, 10:40 AM

Ditto with the surprising cheapness on these visors - and I'm picturing a station on the automated assembly line where a special robot sharpens the edges with a grinding tool. I think the management made them do this intentional cheapness, so that they could keep a few 4-series buyers.

krhodes1 · 11-17-2016, 12:05 PM

On the bright side, if you want to get rid of those nasty ugly labels the right way, the sunvisors actually are stupid cheap. I think I paid $120 for the pair of them in Budapest while on my Euro Delivery - that includes 20%+ tax. No stickers of any kind on the Euro spec version. Euro Spec visors for my 3-series were more than 2X as much.

The visors are cheap because ultimately this is a cheap car. The hatchback version competes with Golfs in the old country after all. Just because we buy the sexy version with the big motor and all the toys doesn't mean they don't have to save some Euros here and there.

42395_skyline · 11-24-2016, 11:13 PM

Just did mine and wanted to just let everyone know who's lazy or impatient, take your time and make sure you use the highest % alcohol and make sure to leave it soaking with a paper towel all over the label for at least 15 min. It comes off with almost no adhesive left over and repeat the process to remove the left over adhesive. I did the second one with this method with great success. I wasted 40 minutes on the first one by being impatient and waiting 5 minutes and then spending 35 min failing at removing the left over adhesive. Tried the above method I mentioned on the adhesive and it just came right off.

Fugly M3 · 11-29-2016, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ehagerty

Did mine today

...took me way more than 5 min but I think I purchased some falsely advertised alcohol

Is that cheese cloth? there's a new use for that!

mdputnam · 11-30-2016, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DanATL

As I removed the stickers I could not help but think about how cheap and cheesy these visors are. These belong on a Yaris not a $50K car.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harma24

HA! I had the same thought when I removed the stickers from mine!

Quote:

Originally Posted by BentZero

Lol, totally agree. My first car had better and that was a 1979 Honda Accord hatchback.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maynard

Ditto with the surprising cheapness on these visors - and I'm picturing a station on the automated assembly line where a special robot sharpens the edges with a grinding tool. I think the management made them do this intentional cheapness, so that they could keep a few 4-series buyers.

I upgraded mine to BMW's carbon fiber M Performance Sun Visors. They were only $880.00 per visor, but I feel it was well worth the improvement in looks and saved 0.3 oz in weight. I'll be doing some acceleration runs to document the improved performance.

BentZero · 11-30-2016, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mdputnam

I upgraded mine to BMW's carbon fiber M Performance Sun Visors. They were only $880.00 per visor, but I feel it was well worth the improvement in looks and saved 0.3 oz in weight. I'll be doing some acceleration runs to document the improved performance.

Check those cornering g's too since you've lowered your center of gravity.

07-11-2016, 10:32 AM	#23
mdputnam Lieutenant 289 Rep 556 Posts Drives: 135i & M235i Convertibles Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: SoCal iTrader: (0)	For convertible owners the screw covers are recessed into a hard plastic surround and you can not get a plastic tool in there to pop off the covers. However, there is a slot in the side of the covers. If you insert a small screw driver into the slot and rotate the screw driver, the covers will pop open: Insert the small screw driver into the side slot View of the slot with the visor removed and the covers pushed back down.
	Appreciate 1 mwickens63.00 Quote

07-11-2016, 11:51 AM	#24
tinyTIM Private First Class 33 Rep 101 Posts Drives: 2016 m235 xdrive Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mars,PA iTrader: (0) Garage List 2016 BMW M235xi [0.00]	I finally got around to doing this over the weekend. So nice without those annoying stickers. Thanks to the OP for a great write up.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

07-24-2016, 01:31 PM	#26
Glamdring New Member 8 Rep 24 Posts Drives: M235i Vert Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Acworth, GA iTrader: (0)	For those of you that got the sticker off in one piece...Bravo! Mine took a LOT of elbow grease. I bought the 91% solution and left it on, but still had a lot of work to do to scrub it off. Good news is that I have a convertible, and I saw no need to remove the visors. Open the roof, flip them over, and go to work.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

09-27-2016, 04:03 PM	#29
BEM-S4 Major General 4515 Rep 8,942 Posts Drives: Dinan M235, Dinan Sport Wagon Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Philadelphia iTrader: (5)	Tried this on the new vert, didn't work so switched to goof off which worked like a charm. New tip for others who may experience the same issue, when I was done I had some wrinkling on the visor almost like the material had stretched. Annoying but not horrible. Anyway I saturated with VLR then hit it with a hair dryer. Vinyl heated up then shrunk back to original shape, maybe even a little tighter than before. It's got a good memory since it's plastic so with some heat it will go right back to normal. __________________ 2022 Macan S 2016 F31 328i xDrive Sport Wagon 2006 E46 330ci ZHP Convertible
	Appreciate 0 Quote

09-28-2016, 10:47 AM	#30
mdputnam Lieutenant 289 Rep 556 Posts Drives: 135i & M235i Convertibles Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: SoCal iTrader: (0)	Just a note, we use a lot of 91% alcohol at work. This stuff absorbs moisture out of the air like a sponge. If the relative humidity is above about 40% leaving the lid off the bottle for an hour will turn your 91% alcohol into 70% alcohol and in the process become useless for removing the decal. At work we just put a pin hole into the foil seal and keep the cap on when we're not using it to retard the dilution of the alcohol.
	Appreciate 3 Maynard3830.00 snaketh99.50 Rick4345469.50 Quote

10-24-2016, 07:39 PM	#33
DuPage Registered 0 Rep 2 Posts Drives: 228i Join Date: Jul 2016 Location: Chicago iTrader: (0)	air bag decal removal Can't the decal be removed without removing the sun visor?
	Appreciate 0 Quote

10-24-2016, 07:45 PM	#34
NEUE02 Lieutenant 267 Rep 554 Posts Drives: M235i Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: St Louis iTrader: (0)	Yes, but it takes much longer and is more difficult. Much better to remove the visor. It's quite simple and faster in the end.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

11-11-2016, 03:05 PM	#36
DanATL Private 43 Rep 72 Posts Drives: '89 635CSi, '16 M235i, '23 X5 Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Atlanta iTrader: (0)	As I removed the stickers I could not help but think about how cheap and cheesy these visors are. These belong on a Yaris not a $50K car.
	Appreciate 1 Maynard3830.00 Quote

11-17-2016, 10:40 AM	#39
Maynard Colonel 3830 Rep 2,866 Posts Drives: 228iX & M2C Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Upstate NY iTrader: (1)	Ditto with the surprising cheapness on these visors - and I'm picturing a station on the automated assembly line where a special robot sharpens the edges with a grinding tool. I think the management made them do this intentional cheapness, so that they could keep a few 4-series buyers.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

11-17-2016, 12:05 PM	#40
krhodes1 Colonel 1430 Rep 2,525 Posts Drives: 2011 328i Wagon Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Westbrook, Maine, Port Charlotte, Florida iTrader: (1) Garage List 2011 128i [10.00] 2011 BMW 328i Touring [10.00]	On the bright side, if you want to get rid of those nasty ugly labels the right way, the sunvisors actually are stupid cheap. I think I paid $120 for the pair of them in Budapest while on my Euro Delivery - that includes 20%+ tax. No stickers of any kind on the Euro spec version. Euro Spec visors for my 3-series were more than 2X as much. The visors are cheap because ultimately this is a cheap car. The hatchback version competes with Golfs in the old country after all. Just because we buy the sexy version with the big motor and all the toys doesn't mean they don't have to save some Euros here and there. __________________ '11 328! Touring - Tasman on Chestnut, 6spd manual, factory upside-down "i" option '11 128i Convertible - Space Gray on Savannah Beige, 6spd manual, also '14 Mercedes-Benz E350 wagon, '95 Land Rover Discovery, '74 Triumph Spitfire
	Appreciate 0 Quote

11-24-2016, 11:13 PM	#41
42395_skyline Second Lieutenant 58 Rep 245 Posts Drives: 2017 M240i Join Date: Jul 2016 Location: Orlando iTrader: (0)	Just did mine and wanted to just let everyone know who's lazy or impatient, take your time and make sure you use the highest % alcohol and make sure to leave it soaking with a paper towel all over the label for at least 15 min. It comes off with almost no adhesive left over and repeat the process to remove the left over adhesive. I did the second one with this method with great success. I wasted 40 minutes on the first one by being impatient and waiting 5 minutes and then spending 35 min failing at removing the left over adhesive. Tried the above method I mentioned on the adhesive and it just came right off.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search