I suggest having extra door panel clips on hand before removing the panels as the clips can often break when removing.
How to remove retaining clip bmw door handle.
In this tech article i will go over the steps involved in removing the rear door panel on your e53 x5.
Remove the screw holding the handle if you look behind you will see 2 rods.
How to remove and replace front exterior door handle on bmw e90 e91 e92 e93 316i 318i 320i 323i 325i 328i 330i 335i 316d 318d 320d 325d 330d 335d 325xi 328xi.
One is for the handle and the other is for the lock use a flathead and flip the plastic clips in order to remove the rods from the handle the door panel will need to be lifted up to remove after removing and retaining clips screws.
Looking at the pic it seems that you would pry off the plastic lever and turn the cylinder to extract it.
Once the trim is free remove it from the door by pulling it out of the inner door handle toward the rear of the vehicle.
Start levering at the rear of the door panel working your way toward the inner door handle.
Using a plastic prying tool gently pry out the decorative trim panel green arrow.
Be very careful when removing the vapor barrier.
If you have to remove the vapor barrier have vapor barrier sealant on hand.
If you can t find the fasteners you need let us know and we might be able to source them.
It has always been a wide c clip that goes through the slots in the outer body of the cylinder.
We are a wholesale trim clip supplier but everything is available to buy in small or large pack sizes.
This is what is strange as i ve taken many cars apart and i ve never seen that bmw branded washer type retaining clip.