This is the drivers door lock actuator and the soft close motor,,,,they both come together as a unit,,,,,,you can see the door lock actuator is the same as in a non comfort access car,,,,it just has the extra cables going to the electric motor that works the comfort access part
It is the comfort access motor,,,which just has a small motor that pulls a cable to help close the door lock actuator,,,,,it helps close the door
This is the door lock actuator,,,,,on this f10,,,, the drivers door would not unlock,,,,,you had to use the central locking button to open the car from the inside
bmwtechnician 
Is there a way to disable the soft close “feature” on 2011 f10?, my driver side front soft close mechanism makes a horrible ratcheting noise after the door closes, it seems like it’s trying to pull the door closed even though it is already secure. Is there a fuse just for soft close motor?
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Sorry there no way to disable it,,,,your problem is the door lock actuator motor is not stopping and causing that noise.
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Thanks for the response, I appreciate it!
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Hey Andreas, thanks for the post, this is great!
Do you mind if you can help me with something? My F10 front passenger side lock doesn’t work unless I unlock it myself, by the looks of it, is the actuator. My question is, do I need to change it including the soft lock mechanism? Or can I just change the actuator itself?
The part which i was given by the shop is 51217185689 but i was wondering if you know there is a cheaper alternative? Thanks for the help.
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Sorry there no cheap way around this,,,,you have to buy the complete door lock actuator with soft close
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Hello Andreas, I have a 2013 535i xDrive F10 with comfort access (no soft close). Recently with cold weather outside (-2C .. -10C) drivers door started to give me some trouble. In the morning, the door will unlock and open but would not close. If I push on the pin inside, the door will close but then not being able to open from inside or outside. When using the outside handle I can feel that there is no resistance as if cable comes loose. Pushing the central lock button does move the pin up and down but it does not unlock the door. When the weather warms up or when I drive it to take my son to day care (about 30 minute drive) the unlock starts to work again. Happened two days in the row so far. I suspect the door latch is faulty. Do you have any ideas or suggestions?
Also, in 2016 the door latch in question has been replaced by the BMW dealer. The receipt indicates the part # 51217202143 has been changed.When I plug this number on the http://www.ecstuning.com it indicates the part does not fit my vehicle. Is this correct?
Thank you very much for help!
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The door lock actuator is probably your problem,,,,also there are 2 cables on the door lock actuator which could be a problem in the cold weather.,,,,,I would check the part number with a BMW dealer because sometime the part number might change or supersede to a newer part number
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Thank you very much! Just waiting for a warmer weather to take the actuator out. Thanks again!!!
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i have a 2011 550 GT, when i close my driver side door, i can hear the actuator’s motor eunning but it doesn’t seem to grab the door.
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Sounds like your door lock actuator is going bad
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Usually DIY most of my issues but can’t seem to find my door issues problem listed anywhere. 2013 BMW M6 with soft close. Door shuts and engages but makes 3 horrible clicking noises that are loud with door latched. Is it a bad soft close motor? Or had door lock actuator?
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That is easy,,,,you need a door lock actutor and it should come with the soft close motor
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Thanks for the prompt response. Can I just buy the door lock actuator without the softclose motor? BMW wants $570 for part bm51-21-7-226-197
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Thanks for all your knowledge! I have a ’11 535i and my key lock will no longer unlock or lock my doors. The center lock is no longer working at all so I am using my key to access the vehicle. Do you think this is a blown fuse? Any advice would be great!
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Yes I would start by checking the fuses
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After I charged my battery (it had discharged after not using car for a while) on my 2014 f10, the doors stopped unlocking and locking with the key remote as well as comfort access. I had to use the the physical key to unlock the door. Once inside, the central lock/unlock button also did not work. Reading the forums, I changed fuse 14 and all operations started working. After a short drive, the doors stopped working again. Fuse 14 had blown again. I changed it and all was well. This happened again and I changed the fuse for the 3rd time. Obviously something is wrong but not sure what to change. The forums talk about the door actuator being the problem. But which one? Also, should the actuator and soft close motor be changed together? There is not a single YouTube video of a door actuator replacement for f10 so is this not a diy? And last question, what will happen if I replace the 15A fuse for number 14 with a higher rated fuse? Thanks!!
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Ok,,,first things do not put in a bigger fuse could cause more damage or smoke something,,,next thing if your car has soft close then when you replace the door lock actuator the soft close motor comes with it,,,,now you have to find out which door is causing the problem and that is the problem,,,,you can put another fuse in and try just unlocking the drivers door and see if it blows again then it’s the drivers door lock,,,also do any of the door locks respond slowly that could be a problem.
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I should lock and unlock one door at a time, I get it. I can change door and key settings to only unlock the driver side door and also disable auto locking of all doors when the car starts moving. The rest of the doors can be operated manually from inside. I am guessing if when the other door locks are operated manually from inside, the actuator still activates, correct? Thanks for the advice!
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You can give that a try,,,also you are correct if you manually operate the door lock the actuator is still activates
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I have been manually locking and unlocking the doors one at a time and so far no blown fuse. No door lock is noticeably slower or make any different noise to answer your question. I don’t really use the car a whole lot, is it possible that when these actuators are not used for a while, they become sticky and when used after a while, they draw a lot more current and blow the fuse? The expert advice you are providing here is much appreciated! Are you also on any forums for which you provide help? I will go check those out as well.
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No I don’t think it’s because of the car sitting for a short period of days,,,also check the trunk lock and gas lid door lock is also on the same system,,,I was on some forums giving advice for them but I have stopped doing that to many problems.
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Hi Andreas, thought I should give an update on this. I have unplugged the CA cable in the drivers and passengers side doors. It has been a few days, the fuse has not blown. The CA wires in the door handles is also a common cause given the forums. Let’s see. But overall, it seems like this should not happen to a 2014 vehicle…I am disappointed and makes me wonder if I want to keep the car or will think twice before I buy another bmw . It is a dream to drive though!
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Thanks for the update,,,so now you are down to the 2 front doors,,,I understand your disappointment you are not the only one that feels that way,,,the problem is all this new technology is changing so fast and is causing more problem later in a cars life span,,,,that why when is see a car with over 100k miles a lot of stuff is not working on the car anymore because the customer doesn’t want to spend the money on it anymore.
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Does a soft close trunk lid have the same set up? My lid latches but doesn’t completely close (ie it seems that it is not getting fully pulled down to close, requiring me to push down until it clicks/locks). Is it the lock actuator or the motor?
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The motor should be part of the lock actuator
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Hi , i got a fault in f10 528i already replace SZL.
EPS
D51A53 Signal (Actual value of front axle steering angle 57.1.2) invalid transmittle ICM
ZGM
flexray line fault on path 3
Is it possible the ZGM cause eps’s error ?
Thanks for help!!!
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What year F10 and were you able to calibrate the steering angle sensor after replacing the SZL?
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Help!! front passenger door wont lock. the pin is in the down position and doesn’t move. when i press the lock button the pin still doesn’t move but locks all other doors but front passenger still wont lock. wondering if its a fuse, but fuses in the glove box are hard to get to and not sure which one controls the actuator.
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Sounds like the door lock actuator is faulty not the fuse
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I have comfort access on my 2014 535d. The car keeps on unlocking itself when I bring my key closer to the car. I keep hearing the mechanical unlocking/ clicking noise as long as the keys are outside and it stops doing that once the keys are inside the vehicle or if I move them away from the car. Is it a faulty sensor or the door lock actuator?
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Does this happen from passengers side and the drivers side when you approach the car,,,and you don’t have to touch the door handle to unlock the door,,,also did you have the car scanned for any faults,,,and has the car been at a body shop for any repairs?
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