[sinopath]

Hi All, I noticed that every time I pull the handle on my frameless door from outside, I can pull the door open right away, before the glass has time to drop a little bit to clear the seal, this results to the glass rubbing the seal if the door is opened too quickly. I wonder if this is normal and happens to all 4 series? I thought the car should have a mechanism to not unlatch until the glass has dropped, like there's a half-second delay of door opening.

[Gen13 F36]

I don't notice this... maybe because I don't yank my door open.

[visionaut]

Mine always drops instantly, before I can open. All 4 doors (F36).

[Skyhigh]

If you instantly pool, it will rub a bit. But why would you...

Is your battery well charged? I noticed minor delays on mine sometimes and I THINK (very unsure) they can be traced back to longer inactive periods, when the car is very rarely driven (like in the winter) and the battery voltage drops.

[Billfitz]

Originally Posted by sinopath

this results to the glass rubbing the seal if the door is opened too quickly.

I went to the doctor, told him that my arm hurts when I do that. He said "Don't do that!"

I've never experienced what you have, but I'm not in that much of a hurry to make a quick getaway.

[kern417]

Mine does the same thing. My wife's VW drops as soon as you unlock the doors, but on my 440i it doesn't drop until the handle is pulled. I has been this way since day 1.

I just got in the habit of cracking the door open, letting it drop, then opening it all the way.

[jh_f30]

Pretty sure nearly all frameless window doors do this. There was a momentary delay on my E46 from pulling the door handle to when the window was done sliding down. Just be cognizant of it whenever you open your door, whether entering or exiting. It'll probably take some time to get used to. I liken it to soft close doors...you have to "re-learn" how to close your doors until the habit is broken.

[chowser51]

Yeah I had to teach my kids to wait a second when opening a door. Then I had to yell/teach them to not close the door using the window.

[sinopath]

Thanks for the replies folks, I did quite a few searches on YouTube, and found all BMW frameless doors open instantly when you pull the handle. What I was describing was more close to this video, at 0:17, when he pulls the door to open, you can definitely hear that there are two sounds: the unlatching and the window dropping, and the window dropping sound appears after the door's been pulled (a fraction of second). This is what I meant. Maybe this is another normal thing I worry about, but bear with my questions, first time BMW owner, and first frameless-door car.

[sinopath]

And this 8 series as well, at 6:06, you can definitely hear the window drops after the door opened. Maybe this is a convertible thing. Again first time BMW owner just want to make sure everything is right, hopefully my questions help others with their concerns.

[sinopath]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

I went to the doctor, told him that my arm hurts when I do that. He said "Don't do that!"

I've never experienced what you have, but I'm not in that much of a hurry to make a quick getaway.

It takes some force to pull the handle, but once you pulled to the position where it unlatches, the inertia will open the door immediately, unless I use my body to hold the door shut while pulling the handle. It's easier to control when opening from inside because the handle is pulled backward, so I can easily execute the unlatch->wait for drop->push open sequence.

[Skyhigh]

Yes, that's perfectly normal.

[kern417]

Originally Posted by jh_f30

Pretty sure nearly all frameless window doors do this. There was a momentary delay on my E46 from pulling the door handle to when the window was done sliding down. Just be cognizant of it whenever you open your door, whether entering or exiting.

Like I said VW does it right. When you unlock the door, all windows drop slightly. If you don't open it after 10s or so, it goes back up. Then when you go pull on the handle, it drops instantly.

Especially for those of us with comfort access, we already have sensors behind the door handle. It would make sense for it to drop before the door is actually opened. I don't like how it currently functions at all, because that's how frameless doors end up leaking and having other issues with the windows after years of use. You want 0 lateral tension on the window if at all possible.

[Rebound]

Something to add to this discussion:
In addition to opening the doors gently (I pull handle, pause, open door), I'm also careful to always shut the door with my hand on the door, never on the window.

I believe that pushing on the window can get the window slightly off of its track, although you can usually push it back on without disassembly. Maybe someone will argue that none of this care is necessary, but I care for my cars.

[Skyhigh]

I do approximately the same. My normal door opening "style" does not require any extra pause but I keep it in mind if in a hurry.
However I also always close the door by pushing the door itself, never the window. If nothing else - who needs fingerprints on the windows?

[Gen13 F36]

You know what rub the seal tho, it's the triangle where the mirror is mounted

[sinopath]

I watched some more videos, and found the coupes and gran coupes (no matter what series) don't have as much a problem as the convertibles.

I never push the glass, and I close the door by pushing the handle, don't want finger prints on other areas of the door.