This is still the place to find Bettie I my 98 740iL who is now being driven by someone lese around the San Jose California Area. I traded her in on Bettie II my current 2004 E65 745i Sport.

Read here about how Bettie was transformed over time inside with step by step write-ups and photos for all of the modifications she has had.

Page 2: - Angel/Demon Eyes Omnitec Gen I
Page 3: - Angel/Demon Eyes Levi Gen II
Page 4: - Photos of Angel/Demon Eyes
Page 5: - 99-01 DIY headlight upgrade
Page 6: - Fender filler ideas
Page 7: - Rear powered sunshade retrofit
Page 8: - Exhaust tips project
Page 9: - M Parallel Wheels and Pole Positions added
Page 10: - DIY SilverVision bulbs
Page 11: - Adding the 99-01 Rocker Panel Covers Project
Page 12: - DIY HID retooling/retrofit
Page 13: - BMW Navigation Retrofit (retooling) for a virgin E38
Page 14: - Betties's Calipers get painted
Page 15: - DIY Shdowline Trim with Blackout Tape

Bettie's cosmetic appearance has been somewhat modified by me to update her looks a bit.
-2001 clear light lenses all around
-Silvervision signal bulbs-rear
-Titanium signal bulbs-front
-Chrome kidney grills
-Chromeline 99-01 headlight upgrade-DIY
-Angel Eyes added
-License plate bracket removed
-Rear window powered sunshade added
-Chrome trunk strip added
-Chrome Quad exhaust tips added
-18" M Parallel Spoke wheels
-Bridgestone Pole Position S-03 tires
-99-01 Rocker (Side Member) covers retrofit/retool
-HID (Xenon) headlight upgrade -DIY of course!
-OEM BMW MKIII navigation system added
-Dual Rear Brake Lights

I recently succumbed to my desire for 99+ look headlights so I bought the parts to update the 95-98 sytle headlights look like the 99+ style. But as usual I used parts to modify the old headlight vs. paying the $$ for new assemblies. These turned out really nice and the cost was a fraction of new headlights. Check out how to do this mod on page 5.

This is a close shot of the front end with the modified 99+ headlights and turnsignal lenses in place. The gap below the new turn signal lens used a filler piece out of the old turn signal lens that was painted to match. See page 6 for my latest fender filler idea.

Bettie sure looks good with new headlights and Angel Eyes!!! Plus I got the chromed grilles for Christmas 2001. Read up on the Angel Eyes update on my pages 2 and 3. Also DaveK has posted a complete chronicle of his efforts to conquor the Angel eyes retrofit project. He used the Gen II Omnitec kit and came up with some great solutions for cosmetics. This is his web site: DaveK's Demon/Angel Eye Chronicles

Before Nav

After Nav
I read so many times that guys were adding the Nav systems to their E38s, and at first, I thought it didn't appeal to me. Atfer thinking and reading posts from people who had completed this mod, I decided to give it a try. It seems like a difficult task, but in the final analysis, it takes patience and careful reading of the available documentation. Read about my navigation retrofit it on page 13.

The rear light assembies are from the 2001 7 series with the crystal clear turn signal area, which looks so much better than the standard ones from 98. I also added the chrome strip across the rear deck lid like the newer E38's have.

I also added a power rear window shade. See page 7 for more details on this project and its latest updates. Bettie didn't have a power shade which I thought she did! Unfortunately, I drove an Oxford Green one with the shade and then bought the Black one and voila, I was screwed. My used car dealer (non -BMW) felt bad and offered to put one in if he could, but when the dealer told him the retrofit shade was going to cost $5,000, he balked at giving me this. I found a used power shade on the web and got it for $250.00 so I researched and developed the mod to retrofit a power rear shade to a car that didn't have it when new. By the way, BMW offers a retrofit kit for this in Europe but the BMW NA dealers don't know much about it. I have the official BMW dealer instructions for this and I bought the small parts and wiring harness to get it done.

Here you can see the chromed steel exhaust tips I had added to Bettie's pipes. See page 8 for details on how I had this done. They are welded onto the original silencers, but they really look nice in my humble opinion. I had an E32 7 Series before this one, and I was really disappointed to find that they hid the dual exhaust tips on this model, so I changed it.