[AidanLee]

So the mechanic diagnosed the evaporator was leaking. He quoted about 8-9 hours for the job to the tune of about $1100 for labor and parts. Not rediculous considering the work involved, but more than i cared to afford. Saved myself about $75 on parts thanks to our discount with Libertyville VW. Had them shipped to a friend's house in CT I was visiting on a trip north the last two weeks, and had a shop there evac and recharge the system for around $106 so I could work on a depressurized system. On to the pics. The _whole_ dash had to come out:

You can't get the box out without removing the coolant lines to the heater core:

and here are the ac lines:

Took about a day and a half to get it apart and back together again with the help of my wife and our friend. Note you'll have to replace the O-rings on the ac lines and use special r134 oil to lubricate them before you screw things back together.

 

[Rusty]

Holy Cow! You have kahunas. Helluva DIY - the whole dash, wow. Good Job!

 

[Sharky]

Good going!

I even wince a little when I have to pull the HVAC box out.

 

[AidanLee]

We actually messed up the first time and sheared one of the o rings so it wouldn't hold vacuum. The mechanic was a great guy though and didn't charge us for the second visit after we replaced it.

It was a long process, but far less scary than you might think. just be gentle with the air bags :lol:

 

[Sharky]

We actually messed up the first time and sheared one of the o rings so it wouldn't hold vacuum. The mechanic was a great guy though and didn't charge us for the second visit after we replaced it.

It was a long process, but far less scary than you might think. just be gentle with the air bags :lol:

Don't feel bad about the O-rings.

A friend of mine did something with the heater core of a BMW 740.

Except when you do that, it pumps the cabin full of coolant.

 

[Guest]

This is the single most disturbing auto picture ever!

 

[Bleser]

Considering how many parts that are in just_the_dash of a modern vehicle, it is a wonder everything works day in and day out without error.

Good job! Far more technical DIY then I could handle!

 

[vuvision]

This is the single most disturbing auto picture ever!

Disagreed, this one is :shock:

 

[99blackB5]

i had my dash apart last month to same thing but i was and still am tryin to figure out what that little box infront of the shift knob is it looks like a little ecu ( i know its not but thats just an example of what it looks like?) some people have told it its for the tiptronic mode anyone know what im talking about?

 

[JokerPassat]

That little box in the center just forward of the shifter is the airbag control module. The tiptronic computer is under the carpeting on the front passenger side floor.

 

[leadfoot]

Good God man....you've got balls :bow:

 

[AidanLee]

the shame of it was i had all that carpet exposed, and the friend we were staying with had just moved into the place and didn't yet own a vacuum. :weirdo:

 

[V6er]

Holy Crap !! that look's worse than a timing belt change. :nervous:

Well done. I assume it all worked out ok and now you have cold air? :thumbup:

 

[AidanLee]

yep. The shop tested that it held vaccuum for 1/2 hour before recharging it. Been nice and cold since, so looks like we're golden :thumbup:

 

[vwpwr]

WOHH :shock: .

 

[l5gcw0b]

:bow:

 

[XedoS69]

do you have any leftovers? :suspicio:

 

[PZ]

Good work. Don't know if I would mess with that,but for that much money,I
could get an FMIC so I would be tempted.

 

[AidanLee]

do you have any leftovers? :suspicio:

heh, you caught me. I have about a half a dozen screws left over, yeah. Wasn't smart about taping screws to the parts they came off of. will be better about it next time. The dash feels completely solid and no creaking or squeaking while i'm driving around, so i'm hoping that it was just our friendly VW Engineers over-engineering the dash. :weirdo:

 

[Sharky]

Those extra screws are called "shoulder screws."

You throw them over your shoulder, if you have any.

See also "shoulder bolts," "shoulder washers," "shoulder trim."