Advice on plastic body rivets for underneath my X3...

[staianoa]

Does anyone have any experience with the little plastic rivets that hold on the aerodynamic pieces underneath my X3? I'm trying to put on the drivers side undercarriage spoiler which is in front of the front left wheel but I can't figure out how to attach the one time use plastic body rivets. I asked the service tech and they use a rivet gun which essentially pulls the center piece down while crushing the top and securing the part. I thought I could do it with pliers, but I can't seem to get it done. Does anyone have any experience with these little guys? Does the club toolbox have anything that will work? The dealer wanted to charge $80 to install the part which is absurd for three plastic rivets. Any suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!

Andy

[m20power]

Andy,

In my experience, the plastic rivets usually have a center pin that is either pushed through (using a drift or nail) or pulled out. With the pin removed, the prongs of the rivet are free to collapse.

If these are deformable rivets, as you describe, I would think that the only way to remove would be to drill-out. Perhaps you could buy new ones at the dealer (you'll need anyway) and see how they work. HTH

Bob

[staianoa]

In my experience, the plastic rivets usually have a center pin that is either pushed through (using a drift or nail) or pulled out. With the pin removed, the prongs of the rivet are free to collapse.

Bob,

Thanks for the response. You're correct and these are the pull out kind of rivets. I was able to remove the old ones and already bought new ones at the dealer. My problem is figuring out how to "pull out" the center piece while simultaneously holding the head flush to the plastic parts. As you mentioned, as the center piece is pulled out (the dealer uses a rivet gun to do this) the inside will crush causing the connection to become secure. Any advice on how to do this?

Thanks!

Andy

[kbsilver]

If they are like the ones on my car I use a diagonal wire cutter to grab the pin and pry against the rivet heat to pull out the center pin. Of course I do not press hard enough to cut the pin but for me the wire cutter was just the right size to get under the pin and easily pull it out.

[staianoa]

If they are like the ones on my car I use a diagonal wire cutter to grab the pin and pry against the rivet heat to pull out the center pin. Of course I do not press hard enough to cut the pin but for me the wire cutter was just the right size to get under the pin and easily pull it out.

Thanks for the advice Kevin. I used a pair of long needle nose pliers to pull the center pin down while I braced the head with a pair of regular pliers. The combination generated enough leverage to crush the rivet inside and hold everything tight. Then it was just a matter of snapping off the center pin so everything was flush. Thanks all for the tips!

Andy