Hey, everybody-

My wheel arch trim came off in a touchless car wash. I'm wondering how to replace it, and whether it's standard operating procedure to replace any or all of the connectors. Here's what I've got:



And the trim piece:



I feel very lucky that I discovered this soon enough to get the piece back. I don't want this to fall off again! Do I need to replace any of the connectors to make sure it's mounted securely?

There are the five white circular clips in the photo above. At the rear is one of those "screw anchor" type connectors that plugs into the hole in the body:



I am most puzzled by this light gray tab that's still attached to the front of the wheel arch:



This somehow attaches to a U-shaped mount molded into the inside of the trim piece:



Am I supposed to leave this gray piece attached to the body and slip the U-shaped mount back over it somehow? Or do I remove it, attach it to the trim, and then insert it back into the body? Should I replace it - and any of the other clips - with new pieces?

Any assistance would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

Easiest to leave the front tab in the body if you can slide it into the appropriate spot. Mine was a @itch to get out. As long as everything snaps back in, you're good. I had to get a new rear anchor as it was deformed, but yours looks good.

 

Thanks, Eric. Yeah, I thought the rear anchor looked good, too. Which seemed a little odd to me. Every time I've ever removed one of those things, they've been messed up.

Thanks for the help!

 

When I had to remove the rear wheel arch trim, a couple of those white clips broke off. I bought new ones on line from Pelican Parts. They were OEM parts at a good price.

I believe they are listed as a vendor on nam

 

I can't believe that it just fell the F off in the first place. Good thing you did look.

 

The car was rear-ended a while back. The body shop replaced the trim piece behind this one - the one that contains the red side reflector/light and wraps around under the bumper. To remove that piece, they must have had to remove this piece first to get at the screw that holds it on.

A few weeks later, I went through a touchless car wash and drove home. When I came out to the car the next morning, I noticed the trim was missing. Went straight back to the car wash and found it sitting along the wall, behind some of the machinery.

The connectors must have been weakened when the body shop removed this piece the first time. In the car wash, my guess is that the wind from the big blow dryers at the exit somehow got under the trim and popped it off again.

So I figured the connectors had become further weakened after being undone twice now. I went down to my local dealer and bought replacements for all of them. Cost me more than $20, but I figure the peace of mind is worth it. I feel like I was very lucky to get the piece back after it came off once. Didn't want to press my luck any further!

 

Where can I buy this piece. This happened to me and I thought I had it on tight and it is now gone....

 

A bit of an old post.

I had the same thing happen on the driver side. You can find them on amazon loaded with the appropriate clips or from a mini dealership.

Even with new clips though mine wouldn't attach to the body. Mine had some kind of rubber foam to help keep them attached. I used some automotive goop and that seems to be helping them stay on, definitely avoiding automated car washes though.

 

For anybody trying to remove these trim pieces from a series 1 mini (2003-2007) - do not just pry off from the outside, as this may break the trim piece and/or the attaching clips.
To remove the fronts, remove the tire, and the wheel fender liner. Then you can get access to the back of the clips. Use needle nose plyers to squeeze the ends of the clips together, then they will come out and can be reused.
You can use jb weld or similar epoxy to repair any broken parts of the trim piece if you don't want to buy new trim pieces.
To reinstall - put the clips on the trim piece and just press into the holes.

 

It looks to me that you put the grey clip into the black plastic arch and press it onto the car body.

If you’ve pressed the gray clip out of the car without deforming, it should be reusable.

I have to replace one of these as well, so if you find a good price, please let me know.