MK5 Golf GTI
All Things Mk5 => How to Guides / Troubleshooting => Topic started by: Jaywoo-GTI on June 18, 2009, 09:25:54 am
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I did mine last weekend without taking the spoiler off, Was a bit brutal and completely broke the old brake light.
First thing i did was use a trim tool to prize the brake light down away from the spoiler after a couple of cracking noises it fell out leaving the 2 captive nuts and screw to be slid out of the spoiler.
Then unplug the light and plug the new one in, Push the grommet back into the hole and job done for the wiring.
Now take some double sided trim tape an put 2 little pieces on the rear of the brake light, Push the remaining wiring into the spoiler and locate the brake light into position till you here it click into place. the brake light will hold in anyway on the clip but the trim tape is just to make sure.
Total price £34.79 and half an hours easy work.
Not bad compared to VW quote of around £300. :wink:
Part number is 1K6 945 097F (changed from revision E to F now) @ £34.79.
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thats good to know,if ever i need to replace mine,i didn't fancy having to rip the spoiler of to do it :happy2:
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nice write up but pics wouldve been even better :)
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Yeah was going to get some photos but my camera needed charging and my phone takes rubbish pictures, Even so it a really easy job the is pretty self expiatory,
I mentioned doing it when i had my car serviced and even the bloke in sales said have a go at doing it myself because of how big of job it is to do at the dealers.
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fancy doing mine, as mine has condensation and a couple of LEDs not working ;-(
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Not really cus its not a nice noise having to break the old unit out. but if it save you over £250 im sure it worth havin a go yourself like i did.
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But wont it just fill up with water again after a while. :smiley:
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But wont it just fill up with water again after a while. :smiley:
I had mine done under warranty TC, and its been perfectly dry since, I think the newer type have a lot better waterproofing. :happy2:
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But wont it just fill up with water again after a while. :smiley:
I had mine done under warranty TC, and its been perfectly dry since, I think the newer type have a lot better waterproofing. :happy2:
But correct me if i am wrong, he has not fixed the bit where the water is entering he has only replaced the bit where the water collects :smiley:
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^^^ Correct Mr Cat, I can't see it being any better as this method doesn't allow you to be able to screw the new unit back on to the spoiler which is part of making it water proof :confused:
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I thought the water ingressed only from the rear washer jet, which can be turned to point at the 2 o'clock position to stop this from happening?
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^^That was my understanding and indeed what I have witnessed. After scooshing my rear screen I went out and water was merrily dripping out of the light :surprised:
The light unit itself should be fully waterproof and not be relying on any seal against the spoiler - this is the crux of the bad design IMO. Turning the jet to 2 O'clock should mitigate nicely against this happening in the first place.
Clearly the OEM method if installation / repair doesn't work at all as so many of us have this issue. At least with the Jaywoo method if the unit does fail again it should be a lot easier to repair...again :mad:
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There are quite a few people on here who dont even use the rear wash jet and still have a light full of water. My guess is if it was that easy to fix then VW would have been doing it a long time ago, rather than have lots of costly warrenty claims to sort out. :smiley:
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I've heard of a couple of people who have taken their cars in to VW and they were repaired using Jay's method - The original light unit may not have been sealed against water but the new part maybe is? Or maybe they just wanted to take a short cut? Dunno - just speculating.
Anyway £400 vs £40... I know which I'll be giving a go first :wink:. Apart from that, the idea of cheese wiring my spoiler off and getting them to colour match a new one and refit it properly fills me with dread :surprised:
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I've heard of a couple of people who have taken their cars in to VW and they were repaired using Jay's method - The original light unit may not have been sealed against water but the new part maybe is? Or maybe they just wanted to take a short cut? Dunno - just speculating.
Anyway £400 vs £40... I know which I'll be giving a go first :wink:. Apart from that, the idea of cheese wiring my spoiler off and getting them to colour match a new one and refit it properly fills me with dread :surprised:
Yep i agree totally with all of the above, worth a try me thinks. :happy2:
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Thte new F revision of the light is a completely sealed unit unlike my original lamp tha had a couple of open sections.
If it dont work i will replace it again and make sure it is sealed but its still worth a go for 10% of the price you would pay from VW.
Also the bolts dont create a seal or connection they are on there to hold the rear lamp, the unit has a flyin lead with a grommet that connects inside the car.
VW have to fit the brake light correctly so this means they have to fit the bolts. Where as i dont so can leave them out and make it hold in with trim tape.
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i think robin had the best idea with a small hole.
although mine doent have a drop in it and all the LEDs work fine. (05, 43k) :smiley:
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I think if you catch it early the small hole is the best solution. Unfortunately the first I knew of the problem was when I saw the rear LED in a reflection and it was flickering like a cheap set of xmas lights. Then the individual LED's started to completely fail one by one until eventually they all failed.
I was quite baffled to begin with as I couldn't see any sign of condensation..... until one day I realised the problem was that it was FULL of water.
Ordered my new LED's today and will give the DIY fix a go next weekend. I'll try and take some pictures to add to this thread...
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Jaywoo
Just reread this thread http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=3122.0
and am a bit confused - did yours just fall out or did you have to break it out? Do you think your procedure is going to be typical for anyone else who attempts this?
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http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=121067.0
:jumpmove:
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I had a go at takin it out a couple of week before i did the swap.
I prized it a little then heard a couple of snaps the it came straight out, At first i thought someone had had a go at takin it out but it was just the captive nuts in the unit thea snapped out,
Surprised how easy it actually came out.
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Changed my light today with this method. 10 minute job! :happy2:
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I need to do this, mine looks sh*t and really dim!!!! didnt think id have to break it but prob what VW do anyway!!
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Noticed mine the other day, was so dim I had to squint to see it :smiley: off to the stealers tomorrow then :chicken:
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Hi guys I just had a mini service at VW. Among the plethora of things they recommended, I also was found to have the dreaded high level brake light not working. Was quoted £169 which I was amazed at. I've read through the posts but could someone tell me a bit more about how you DIY this job. I don't want to damage my spoiler. And where do you source the [presumably much cheaper than VW quote] part? Thanks all. Glad to see I'm not the only one with this problem hehe. It's funny as both my rear numberplate lights at hanging out by their wires as well. £61 to replace so not too bad. Almost feel like the car's been vandalised ffs. I'm getting a 12v in car camera with several hours ignition-off run-time when I get round to it. Can't stand the paranoia anymore.. :smiley:
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Hi guys I just had a mini service at VW. Among the plethora of things they recommended, I also was found to have the dreaded high level brake light not working. Was quoted £169 which I was amazed at. I've read through the posts but could someone tell me a bit more about how you DIY this job. I don't want to damage my spoiler. And where do you source the [presumably much cheaper than VW quote] part? Thanks all. Glad to see I'm not the only one with this problem hehe. It's funny as both my rear numberplate lights at hanging out by their wires as well. £61 to replace so not too bad. Almost feel like the car's been vandalised ffs. I'm getting a 12v in car camera with several hours ignition-off run-time when I get round to it. Can't stand the paranoia anymore.. :smiley:
I replaced mine recently as when I bought the car the light was completely not working so I wasn't sure if it was the light or faulty wiring. So I took the chance and picked up a new one of eBay for under £60, read the forums unfortunately all the pictures was blocked because mainly being held ransom by companies like Photobucket asking you to now pay for third party sharing.
Watched the following video which was a great guide. Just take your time and don't slip. My new one now works perfectly touch wood lol