R&R Heater Box and Steering Rack/Tie Rods

[MrFlippant]

Well, I've got a couple of projekts on the agenda this weekend, I need to replace my steering rack and TRE's (rack leaks PS fluid out of the passenger side seal, passenger TRE is going out), and also I need to pull my dashboard and replace the heater core and A/C evaporator. I was planning on a friend of mine with experience pulling dashboards helping me, but it turns out he has to work Saturday, so I'm in need of a little assistance; I can't reschedule because one of my jobs is ONLY on Saturdays, so there's a slim chance I'll have another Saturday free before it gets too cold.

Anyone ever successfully remove and reinstall a dashboard in an A4 (or any car, for that matter)? If you're up for helping me out this weekend, I'll provide beer and lunch :D

[vwmeister]

I have to admire your youthful enthusiasm to go for these projects on your own. However, I do not see you getting the rack and dash R&R done on one Sat let alone an entire weekend. Both projects, especially the heater core/ac evap job, this one is very time consuming.

If you were closer to me I’d definitely pitch in and give you a hand.

Good luck!

[MrFlippant]

Fact is, they have to be done. End of story. I'm sick of going through a $27 litre of PS fluid every three weeks, and I'm sick of having no climate control.

This is the time frame I have to complete the projects, so this is the time frame in which they WILL be completed.

Don't ever tell me I can't do something. All it does is encourage me to try :)

[GetAwayFromMe]

Just like kevin told you i will say the same you will not finish both of them in one day. Maybe if you start at 6am and stop midnight. Steering rack is a big PITA and taking out the dash is not hard but takes forever. I did many dash removals and in almost any car it takes time.

I would also tell you to take your time with both projects because you dont want problems down the road. I dont know how much experiance do you have with cars and i'm not trying to talk down to you.

[vwmeister]

Don't ever tell me I can't do something.


I reread my reply and I don't see anything about my saying you can't do it sir.

;)

[turboA4]

i took the dash out on my A4, and it was a PITA. I took all day and i ended up abandoning it because it was just to install a black one (that hadnt been remove yet)

thats my experience, i would love to help you out but i am working from 645am to 5pm :(:(:(

[MrFlippant]

you will not finish both of them in one day.

Good thing I've got two days!

[07GTI]

I would offer up my help, don't know how much help I would be though :D

[GetAwayFromMe]

If i was up in DSM i would deff come and give you a hand and you would get it done right and on time :)

[MrFlippant]

Well, I decided against doing both projects in one weekend. But with some help from my dad, I got the dash out, swapped the heater core and ac evaporator, and reassembled everything. Best part is, I NOW HAVE WORKING HEAT!! Won't know for sure if the ac works until I get it charged, but the one we installed held pressure just fine and looks in good condition, so I'm not too concerned. :D

After I had removed the steering wheel, steering column, bottom half of the dash, and center console:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1502.jpg

After we got the instrument cluster, passenger airbag, and top of dash out:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1505.jpg

After unbolting the cross-member from the body of the car and removing the heater box:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1509.jpg

Parts neatly laid out on the garage floor:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1512.jpg

The old A/C Evaporator; you can see where the leak was at the bottom right corner of the unit:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1511.jpg

On the left, the donor heater box; on the right, the heater box from my car after being reassembled:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1510.jpg

Everything going back together:
http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/aa184/MrFlippant/Dash%20Pulled/100_1513.jpg

I didn't take a before or after picture, but I promise you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them if I had :)

I got started late yesterday, about 11:00am, after getting the A/C discharged and picking up a bottle of PS fluid for the other project (you can see my new rack and TRE's on the floor with the other parts in one of the pictures above), and called it quits around 7:00pm when it got dark and we had it down to the cross-member. Started late again this morning, 11:00am again (I am not a morning person), and had everything apart and swapped the core and evap by 3:00pm. We had everything back together and working properly (and so far, no warning/service lights are on) by about 10:00pm tonight.

So in all, about nineteen hours with two people for most of it - book labor is $1200 at Lithia when I checked, and I'm pretty sure they charge around $110/hr labor, so we didn't quite take twice as long to do the job :)

Hoping to get that rack changed out at some point this week; we'll see how that goes.

[07GTI]

Nice, glad you got one thing checked off the list :D

[MrFlippant]

Yup; and I learned that the thing I absolutely hate the most about removing my dashboard is unbolting the passenger airbag. :banghead: My back still hurts from laying upside down across the passenger door sill while trying to work a ratchet with all my blood draining into my head!

[twooly]

Props to you man :tu: ....not sure if I would tackle something like that.

[cadwiz]

Good job David. I was busy doing house stuff and Helping James with the GTI or i would have been there. They cut the PVC drain to our bathroom sink so i needed to repair that and about another 100 things that i did not get done.

[OrangeDUB]

GW :tu:

Takign apart your dash doesn't look like much fun :D

[MrFlippant]

Went today to get the AC charged; found that the evap is just fine, BUT there is another leak up next to the condensor! :banghead Oh well, the bumper is much easier to remove than the dash, right? :D

Also, only four bolts and two washers were left over after reinstalling everything :D

[MrFlippant]

GW :tu:

Takign apart your dash doesn't look like much fun :D

Actually, as difficult as it was in a few places, it really was fun - one of those things that you take apart and you look at it and think "Holy crap, will this ever go back together properly???" and you kind of have to take a deep breath and keep working and just try not to think about what a hole you'll be in if you don't get it right. I always feel really good after finishing something like that without destroying anything :)

The only thing we broke was one of the leads to the sun intensity sensor on the top of the dash, but we managed to splice it back together just fine.