Illuminated Door Sills!
Some of you may know that I've been considering this "mod" for awhile now. I've been asking this in the DIY thread but no one seems to have done it. Anyway few weeks ago I finally decided to go for it and ordered the parts from Pacific BMW ($600+) and asked a local body shop (B-Line, for those of you live in the San Jose area) to install them for me.
They billed me 3 hrs of labor at around $70/hr, being their first time and all, which I have no problems with. I must say they did an excellent job on the installation, with no scratches to the interior at all. So anyone in SJ area, if you're interested, give them a call. Now that they've worked on at least 1 e90 they'll probably bill you with less labor time.
A word about the parts: the original door sill (the black ones that come with the car) was pure plastic and pretty filmsy. You probably can't tell from the pics I posted below but they are very thin. Not bad, but nothing compare to the illuminated ones, which is as far as I can tell identical to aluminum trim material. It's actually a lot thicker than the origianl ones and once installed you see them sticking out (shown in photos below). They're very nice quality and the finish is superb. It complements the aluminum trim very nicely.
The light is very subtle. You won't be able to tell it lit up during the day. It's similiar to the LED light underneath the door handles, except it is a lot whiter, and not so blue-ish, despite what the photos show. They look white when you see them in person. At night they are simply stunning!
Overall I am very happy with this mod. The OEM parts are very nicely constructed and up to par with what you'd expect from BMW (actually, they'd better, considering they go for $600+). And B-Line did an excellent job installing it. Now I love my car even more.
And btw, for those of you still debating whether the Comfort Access option is worth getting, consider this: this useless, purely cosmetic "option" costs around $800+ (and more if you do it at the dealership). At $500, and with the convenience it offers, Comfort Access is a STEAL!
Ok enough talk. See pics below. I've attached both before and after pics for comparison.
-hkj
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