S204 2011: Stuck while repairing Comand knob, cannot remove ring

[marvinaki]

I have the 2011 S204 (after the facelift), the 125 years anniversary edition with the full command system. The shaft broke so I lost the rotary function, I got the aluminium replacement part and removed the knob as per the instructions available on line and the fine YouTube videos of Mr. Scott Elliott.

Until the moment I tried to push the ring that goes around the knob upwards... that thing isn't going anywhere and I feel I'm going to break, it's not moving. My model has a different knob than the one shown in all the tutorial videos (I think the one shown was the one used before the facelift?) and I'm wondering if this is constructed in a different way. See photo:

As visible in the photo, it is model no A204 870 95 58. Has anyone taken this apart successfully? One thing I've noticed is that the bit hiding below the metal ring seems to be plastic, the one I see in the videos is metal? I've tried prying it gently while rotating the knob, I've tried more forcefully, nothing moves. It does feel like it's starting to move ever so slightly when I'm forcing it, but afterwards no actual movement happens. I try pressing the centre of the knob down as hard as I can while not touching the ring while I'm pushing the ring upwards.

What am I doing wrong?

 

[marvinaki]

Found the solution from a mention in an old comment buried deep in a conversation under a youtube video... So for whoever might find this useful:

The metal ring on this knob is NOT removable as in the older version. It is permanently attached to its plastic base.

What you CAN remove is the top cap (it's a thin metal cap stuck on a plastic base). The top cap is just glued lightly on to the knob and can be lifted upwards. As in the older design, it hides the screw that will allow you to take this whole assembly apart.

There is no space to stick a prying tool in and push it upwards, so the method I ended up using was to warm it with a hair dryer to loosen the glue a bit, and then pull it up with a suction cup.