When the spoiler deploys on my '05 Limited coupe, it squeaks unpleasantly. I looked in the service manual and couldn't find any instructions for lubricating the spoiler.

Has anyone lubed their spoiler? If so, what lube did you use and what joints did you lube?

 

I bought some Permatex White Lithium Grease (#80345) in a small squeeze tube from AutoZone. I applied some of it to every hinged joint under the spoiler I could find. I smeared it into the joints with a latex-gloved finger and wiped off the excess with a paper towel. So far, it seems to have fixed the problem. The spoiler made no noise the half-dozen times I raised and lowered it in the garage. I won't know for sure if the squeak is gone until I've driven it for a few days.

 

If my memory serves me correct... if you read the service schedule, it tells you when and what lubricant to use for the spoiler.

 

I looked and couldn't find it.

 

I lubed mine a while back and it's not that hard. If was like mine, the squeak is coming from the gear assembly on the inside of the hatch so that means you will have to do a little disassembly.

Open the hatch and look at the inside of it. On the right side there is a handle that can be used to close the hatch with. In the center of this handle there is a little round cover. Pry it off with a suitable instrument and you will expose a philips-head screw.

Look on the left side for one as well. (I can't remember exactly because I did this over a year ago).

Once the screws are out simply find a lose edge on the plastic cover and pull gently. It should start to pop off in spots as the small plastic retainer clips disengage. I started from where the cover meets the hatch glass and worked my way down and around. BEWARE: sometimes these clips will fly out as the release so keep your eyes open and watch where they land!

Once the cover is off you can see the motor/reduction gear assembly for the spoiler. Apply a light coating of a suitable grease to the gears and button everything back up. Put the little clips back in their slots, pop the cover back into place with your fist, and replace the screws. It should take you about 10-15 minutes to do the whole thing.

I used BMW lubricant #10, which is a very sticky high-temp grease used for lubing transmission input splines. I believe DC calls for some kind of heinously expensive white lithium compound which I didn't have at the time, so YMMV. I believe the service manual has the compound listed if you want to look for it...

 

Thanks for the instructions. If the squeak comes back, I'll give that a try.

 

I told the dealer that my spoiler would sqeak on warm days after it had been sitting out for a while. They replaced the whole unit under warranty!