Help!

Just pulled the dash off the Countryman, and yes, it was just as much fun as you'd think. Despite a shortage of info, including on Mitchell, I got everything apart without breaking anything and only lost one screw down into the black hole behind the support.

Now I'm putting it back together and I can't seem to get the alignment right. The screws and holes in front line up, but the middle of the dash is too high against the windshield, and you can see the edges above the blacked-out areas of glass. There don't seem to be any clips there, but there must be something it's hitting that's getting in the way because it won't push down.

Does anyone have any idea if/how this fastens down in the centre closest to the windshield? I've redone it dozens of times and I just can't get it to sit properly.

Thanks!

 

I found this pic online. It appears that there should be two tabs in the middle that go into the holes with the black tape in the pic.

 

Thanks, Denis!
I Googled a lot of different terms and never found this. I actually never pulled the dash all the way out, just lifted it enough to get at the CAS module. It seemed like there was something still holding it down on the driver's side, behind the CAS, but maybe it was just one of these tabs that had popped out.
I'll give it a try and let you know how it goes.

 

You have to lift and shove it toward the windshield to get it to line up. it helps to keep an eye on the holes just to the outsides of the side vents.

I did this same project recently and lost my solar sensor cover down the vents. I also had a shockingly high number of leftover screws.

 

So I've identified three tabs by the windshield that the dash has to clip into. But for the life of me, I cannot get them all to go in.
I never did get the dash to let go all the way...feels like something is stuck behind the CAS module...so maybe that's what's holding up the process? I spent quite some time and even got an extra set of hands to help, but never got the whole dash off. I can't lift up the driver's side of the dash more than a few inches, so I can't angle the front edge down while pushing the rest in.
I can get the two large centre tabs behind the speedo to line up fine, and the screw holes line up, but I know if I put it together without those windshield tabs clipped in, I'll have a rattle...and of course it'll irk me that it doesn't look right from the outside.

It's driving me crazy that I can't figure this out when it should be the easy part of the process.

For anyone else who wonders what the tabs look like, here's a pic. You can see the two lower parts slide under the metal flange, and the top part clips in over top. Easy, right?

 

Update:
Another two hours spent killing my back trying to get this thing in place with no luck. I did get the dash to let go all the way, finally...but it simply will not angle back in so that the tabs fit under the windshield-side clips.
It seems like lifting the edge closest to the seats and pushing down on the windshield edge while sliding it into place is the way to get it in, but it just won't go: there isn't enough room to clear the A-pillars. There's a large plastic piece that has to fit over the CAS module to sit against the metal frame behind it, and it's a very tight fit (this is what was keeping the dash from coming fully out before).
The only other option is to place the dash down then slide it forward, but again there's no room to move it enough once it's cleared the CAS. I have verified that there are no stray bolts or other bits that could be in the way. All the wiring harnesses are sitting where they should be.
I am well and truly stumped. I mean, I know that stuff on this car tends to be tight fitting and hard to work on, but this is ridiculous.

Is there anyone who can tell me what the problem might be?

Anyone?

Bueller?

 

Perhaps you need to remove the A-pillar trim and such to provide more room to maneuver into place?

 

All the trim was removed.

It turned out that it's just a ridiculously tight fit. The A-pillars slope in, so you can only tip the dash up so far at the back before it jams on them. In the end I removed the CAS so it wasn't sticking up in the way, and got a car buddy to help me wrangle. We managed to get both of the clips on the sides in by twisting and jamming, but the only way the centre one clipped in was using a wide flat trim removal tool to wedge aggressively down and back against the windshield. When I finally heard it click it was orgasmic.

My sympathies to anyone else doing this job. Hope my experiences will give you some help. Also, exploded diagrams are invaluable for figuring out which part attaches where, and which fastener goes back where if you weren't keeping track as you removed them.
https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/par...Cooper+S&mg=51

 

Oh man I just went through this again. Here's some notes for those of you that need them when you find this thread:

1. It is possible to do this by yourself. I found sitting on the center rail armrest to give me the most leverage for the center/passenger clips.
2. It almost doesn't go into the 3 clips with the CAS in but you can do it. It's harder to get the long CAS screw in with the dash clipped in (and not have it pop out).
3. Start on the drivers (CAS) side and get that clip in first, then lift the passenger side up and push down on the center of the dash by the windshield to latch the center clip. You can actually feel the clip and determine if it's in place or not (and pinch your fingers too!).
4. The dash sits below the edge of the black window edge by maybe 5-7mm and slightly away from the windshield as well when it's in place.
5. The clips are three tabs. Two side tabs that sit under the metal tab on the body and one center tab that sits above it. The clips allow for some lateral and fore-aft movement once they're in place. You can see them a bit with the dash pulled back either from above or through the underside of the dash.

Unsolicited shout out to @MiniToBe for his help in getting my CAS cloned and replaced to get me back on the road fast!

 

I appreciate that and happy to be part of your mini journey.