Thursday 26 February 2015

VW Golf GTI 16V Badges - Where are they located?

The markings for the  16V version of the VW Golf Mk2 are quite subtle and there are only a few places where it is obvious as the car otherwise looks identical to an 8V to the eye.

There are 3 different red 16V badges around the car - on the tailgate next to GTI logo, on the front grill and inside the car on the glovebox door.
VW Golf GTI 16V Badge
VW Golf GTI 16V Badge on boot
VW Golf 16V badge on front grille

When I bought my Golf GTI I soon realised one of the badges was missing - interestingly this wasn't the obvious ones from outside that could have been stolen by anyone walking past the car - but the 16V badge that is meant to be on the glovebox was no longer there.

I was lucky to find someone breaking a 1990 16V that had the badge intact and after a small payment including postage was able to restore the glovebox back to its original condition.


VW Golf 16V badge on glovebox
VW Golf 16V badge on glovebox

Tuesday 24 February 2015

VW Golf Bonnet Uneven Shutting - Missing Hinge Bolts

When I got my MK2 VW Golf I found the bonnet wasn't closing evenly and was rather wobbly. On closer inspection I found that one of the bolts was missing from the hinge. A quick check for the part number online, a call to my friendly VW dealer and the next day the replacement bolt arrived.

Once the bolt was fitted the bonnet closed much more smoothly and without the wobbling that was happening before.

VW Golf Bonnet Uneven Shutting - MIssing Hinge Bolts
VW Golf Bonnet Uneven Shutting - Missing Hinge Bolts

Fitting a Replacement Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2

Replacement Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2

Having repaired the air duct flaps on my VW Golf Mk2 it became very apparent that the heater blower fan motor was struggling and making a very annoying squeaking noise when turned on. Fortunately it still worked in settings 1, 2 and 3 showing that the resistor hadn't failed. There are guides on how to lubricate the bearings on the fan motor but after removing the blower fan motor from the car the date code showing on the side was 1989 so it was the original one fitted to the Golf from new.

Is it easy to replace a squeaking Heater Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2?

I decided that it made more sense to replace with a new fan motor as this one had given 25 years good service to the car and replacement fan motors were under £30. I ordered from my favourite VW Parts store - B&B Components trading as tierod69 on Ebay and the fan arrived next day - fantastic service as usual!

The dashboard was already removed from the passenger side so it was an easy switch to transfer the new blower motor into the housing. My drive home tonight will hopefully be far quieter than my drive to work this morning!


Replacement Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2
Replacement Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2


Fitting a new Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2
Fitting a new Heater Blower Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2


Replacing a squeaking Heater Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2
Replacing a squeaking Heater Fan Motor on VW Golf MK2

Sunday 22 February 2015

Restoration Project - Working VW Golf MK2 GTI 16V

My VW Golf has progressed so much over the last 9 months since I bought it that it's hard to remember how much has been achieved and completed in that time.


Restoring a VW Golf MK2 GTI 16V back to factory standard
Restoring a VW Golf MK2 GTI 16V back to factory standard
When the list is written down it shows why I've been so busy since May 2014!

New driver's window regulator
New window switches
Replacement seat foam and fabric
New rear stub axle
New front brake discs & pads
New rear brake discs and pads
New rear brake shields
New rear bearings
Repaired heater direction flaps
Replacement Heater blower fan motor
New handbrake cables both sides
Oil and filter change
Fuel filter change
Coolant flush
Power steering flush
Hall sensor plug replaced
New fittings for grill to remove cable ties
New fittings for radiator to remove cable ties
Seat covers removed to wash
Sold G60 wheels and replaced with original VW ones
Replacement 16V badge for glovebox

Saturday 21 February 2015

Using Peanut Butter for Cleaning and Restoring Black Car Trim

I'd read on one of the forums that peanut butter was a great product for cleaning the black trim on a car. I was a bit sceptical but for the cost of a cheap jar it seemed like a worthwhile thing to test out.

The photo below shows the left side treated and the right half uncoated. It has made quite a big difference and it will be interesting to see how it lasts.

Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning
Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning
 The photo below shows the trim before applying the peanut butter
Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning - Photo before trim has been treated
Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning - Before
 This photo below shows the trim after the peanut butter has been rubbed into the trim and then buffed off
Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning - Photo After using on black trim
Peanut Butter Car Trim Cleaning -After

Friday 20 February 2015

VW Golf Steering Problems - Jerky and Pulling on Bumps

Difficult to explain but the steering in my Golf has been rather vague and when cornering has felt as if it is fighting back plus felt very jumpy over any bumps in the road.

I'd been waiting until I got the suspension sorted to get the tracking done and finally took the plunge today.

When they checked the tracking it was way out. The garage then found they were unable to adjust on the driver's side as the bolt on the track rod was rounded off so couldn't move. The other track rod end was replaced a couple of years ago so seemed fair enough to get replaced if it sorted the steering.

After a long wait while the parts got delivered to fix it, fortunately the local pub was nearby to get lunch, I came back to get the car - wow! The drive back home was fantastic, really smooth, no tugging from the steering when cornering and felt so responsive. 

I just wish I'd done it earlier so thanks to A2 Tyres for a brilliant service today.
VW Golf Track rod end/tie rod nut rounded off

 As shown in these photos the nut and thread on the track rod end/tie rod was rounded off so the adjustment to the tracking couldn't be set. These were replaced and the tracking is now spot on!
VW Golf Track rod end nut rounded off
VW Golf Track rod end nut rounded off

Saturday 14 February 2015

Heater Problems VW Golf MK2 - Heater Controls Removal

The saga of heating problems in my MK2 Golf continues!

Despite removing the bypass valves last week and flushing the coolant the car is still not warming up. The air coming into the car doesn't feel freezing so isn't the temperature of outside air - but equally isn't enough to have any significant warming effect on the interior. In addition the heater fan is making a squealing noise when blowing air. It seems like the problems with the car are never ending - one issue with a 25 year old car I guess.

VW Golf heating doesn't warm up the car
VW Golf heating doesn't warm up the car

When investigating the cause of the lack of heat in the car I checked the pipes feeding the heater matrix from the bulkhead under the bonnet. Both pipes were hot showing that coolant was flowing around the system and the heater matrix.

VW Golf Heater controls
VW Golf Heater controls
The heater controls are meant to allow you to adjust the flow of air to different vents and to set the temperature. As you move the levers the air direction is altered by flaps under the dashboard in the heater box. Strangely these were originally covered in foam across panels filled with holes which can break down over time then letting air flow with no directional control.


Once I removed the air vents and had access to the heater control box it was very obvious what the problem was. All the foam had come off from the heater flaps so they no longer performed any


Even peeking through a small gap as the duct was removed showed how clean the flaps were. All the other photos have shown at least some foam remaining on the metal - these were totally clear with nothing left at all.

Heater control flaps missing foam covering
Heater control flaps missing foam covering
This clearly shows the foam missing - the metal should not be visible and should be covered in thin foam.

I managed to be able to glue new plastic onto the metal flaps without needing to remove the whole heater control box from the car. It would have allowed me to replace the heater matrix but that seems to be working ok.

 There are some really useful guides for getting access to the heater flaps and removing the heater box and heater matrix on a MK2 Golf so I won't repeat the steps here. The links I found most useful are below. What I would say is that I found a great use for all the junk mail envelopes that I receive every day. Collecting a few of them together and using them for the different screws and components when dismantling the dashboard and heater and then writing on each envelope made it much easier to know which screws needed to go back in which locations.

Removing VW Golf MK2 Heater matrix
VW Golf heater flaps foam

Monday 9 February 2015

VW Golf - Brake Fluid Reservoir Overfilled after Fitting New Brake Pads and Discs


I recently replaced the brake discs and pads on my VW Golf. This weekend when using the car I found that the front brakes seemed to make a grinding noise when driving and more so when braking. On further inspection the brake fluid reservoir was overfilled right to the top of the container.


VW Golf - Brake Fluid Reservoir Overfilled after Fitting New Brake Pads and Discs
VW Golf - Brake Fluid Reservoir Overfilled after Fitting New Brake Pads and Discs

Obviously when the new pads were fitted and the callipers piston retracted it must have pushed more brake fluid out back into the reservoir.

Brake fluid reservoir overflows after new pads and discs fitted
After fitting the new discs and pads the brake fluid reservoir was completely full and well above the MAX marker line. I used a syringe to remove brake fluid from the reservoir and took out around 40-50ml before it got back down to the maximum marker level.

MK2 Golf brake fluid reservoir

Brake fluid reservoir overfilled after changing brake pads and discs
Brake fluid reservoir overfilled after changing brake pads and discs

Removing excess brake fluid from reservoir using a syringe
Removing excess brake fluid from reservoir using a syringe

Sunday 8 February 2015

VW Golf MK2 Heater Matrix Recall - Bypass Valve Failure

When I owned my previous MK2 Golf back in 1998 I received a letter from VW inviting me to bring the car in for some recall work to fix a problem with the heater matrix.

Roll the clock forward 16 years and I now have a problem with my current MK2 Golf where the heater is not giving out any hot air. It appears that it is now a common fault on MK2 Golfs that the fix applies for the recall back in the late 1990s is now failing and stopping the heater from warming up!

VW Golf MK2 Heater Matrix Recall - Bypass Valve Failure
VW Golf MK2 Heater Matrix Recall - Bypass Valve Failure
The problem that caused the recall notice for VW Golf MK2 cars was that the heater matrix could fail and spill hot water into the car. Amazingly this only became apparent some 10-15 years after the cars were made, probably a testament to how well they were engineered. My car was 13 years old at the time of the recall notice.



The fix from the recall was to fit 2 bypass valves on the pipes that feed the heater matrix so in the event of pressure build up the coolant would divert avoiding the heater matrix. The bypass valves can clog over time which stops any coolant reaching the heater matrix.

The bypass valves are at the rear of the engine bay where the pipes enter the cabin through the bulkhead. One solution is to remove the bypass valves and replace them with sections of 22mm copper pipe which then allows the coolant to pass into the heater matrix and warm the car. If doing this it is also advisable to replace the heater matrix with a Golf Mk3 version which doesn't have the same tendency to burst as the Mk2 version.

Before starting to remove the bypass valves I decided to drain down the coolant from the system. This can be done by removing the bottom radiator hose to allow the coolant to drain out.



Once the valves are replaced I intend to swap the matrix for a Mk3 version too