Just a heads up for anyone planning to replace a cracked trunk mounted 3rd brake light. There was a revision to remedy the cracking issue that these had. Unfortunately they revised part does not fit without modifying either the brake light or the trunk lid. I suspect this is only an issue for people with early build cars but I do not know what the cut off date may be.
The modded part looks a little rough in the top picture because I couldn't find my dremel and ended up using a soldering iron and exacto knife to get the job done. Acceptable only because its hidden when installed. The smart way to go would probably be to grind off the tab shown in the third picture and then seal it with touch up paint.
There is a BMW bulletin for this issue and a updated procedure for replacement for the cracking issue. You actually cut notch in the trunk lid for that center guide on the light.
For anyone stumbling across this thread in the archives, be aware that there are many aftermarket brake lights now available which do not require the modification to the body or the lamp as shown here. I just used one from Taiwan that fit my wife's '08 128i perfectly without mods. I did use the "new" BMW springs listed in the service bulletin since they were only around $1 each, and I wanted to see what was changed. The part I got was from a company called "Brock" off Amazon and it was $54 including Prime shipping. Should work on early as well as late model 1-series cars. Here's a shot of what the slot looks like:
I was unable to get the goodwill replacement, and the service manager recommended leaving as-is "if it were his car". Thanks to all for providing the photos and supporting information!
