Misc Questions

[archive@porknet.ml.org (Toby Reed)]

Hey,

I just got an 87 16V and came up with some questions that listers might be
able to help out with:

1. I'm not used to having a trunk, so getting my key every time i want to
open the hatch is bothersome. I bought a trunk actuator kit from MCM
Electronics that has a pull-action solenoid. I haven't looked at the
mechanism in the Scirocco much yet, but I was wondering if anyone here has
any experience putting trunk actuators in a Scirocco. The kind of actuator
i'm looking for opens the trunk without affecting the position of the lock
(ie. popping the trunk with the actuator will not unlock or lock it). In
my Bentley it refers to a vacuum actuator in the hatch.... does
anyone have one of these (i'm guessing it was an option), and are the
common enough that you could hack one in from junkyard parts?

2. The grommet/gasket around the key cylinder in the hatch has cracked and
fallen off from old age. Is it necessary to replace it to repair leaks? If
so, where could I find a replacement gasket? I'm thinking if I don't get
something before the rain comes I'll just caulk the inside around the lock
cylinder (and hope it works)... Anyone else had this problem? If you
removed the gasket, did it look better or worse?

3. What is involved in changing the seal around the sunroof? (the seal you
see from outside when the sunroof is closed) Where can I get a new seal
and how much will it cost? Mine is sagging a bit and I'm afraid it will
leak.

4. My passenger seat rocks sideways when you sit in it and go around a
corner or something. I think maybe its just missing some bushings or
something... where should I look?

5. The car I have is missing some interior trim pieces. Is there a plastic
piece that covers the fuse panel or are you supposed to see the fuses and
relays from the drivers seat?

6. Under the hood there is a metal-cased factory relay just in front of
the battery fastened with a special bracket and two screws. Anyone else
have one of these? What's it for? I tried to follow the wires but they
went into sealed factory looms. I'd pull the relay and "see whats broken"
but im in the process of getting a new battery (one of the cells in my
current battery died).

7. Accustomed to riding around in my friend's GTI, I was disappointed to
see that Sciroccos lacked the "oh shit" handles found in GTIs. I was
thinking about a transplant but now I'm wondering if there is any metal to
drill into above the headliner in that area.

8. What is up with the funky windshield washer controls?!? Up, Down, Push,
Pull... nothing short of turning the ignition off will stop the windshield
wipers (!), whether it be the wipers front or the one in the rear. Could
someone please explain this? I'm usually really quick to get used to
different controls in different cars, but this one is really elusive.

9. I think my back-up light fuse/relay/bulbs might be dead. Do the back-up
lights come on when the ignition is at "run" but the engine is off? They
don't in my case, and I can't start the engine to see if that fixes the
problem.

10. I'm used to a carburated stick shift, where I clutch-started the
engine just for fun whenever I was on a hill. I haven't tried this yet in
my rocco, but I hear it can damage the engine or transmission. Any
comments on this? What if I'm in the middle of a desert and my battery is
dead? Just how bad for the engine is it? Do I need to hotwire the fuel
pump or something?

11. Do I need to pull the steering wheel off and/or remove part of the
dash to take off the steering column covers?

12. I just went to a locksmith and paid $20 to get new keys cut from a
lock cylinder code (thanks guys for telling me where to find it :P).
Unfortunately they aren't the cute black factory kind with the silver VW
in the middle. Is there any way I can get ahold of either a factory key
with my lock code or a factory blank? When I bought the car it came with
only one key which was a cheap hardware store copy.

13. Sometimes the oil pressure light, parking brake/seat belt lights and a
buzzer of some sort will come on intermittantly when i'm driving. I know
the oil pressure light is wrong because its blinking at an unsteady rate,
there is plenty of oil in the car, etc. Anyway, any idea of where I should
start looking for shorts? Do you think its possible that the oil pressure
sensor is faulty? Can I nab one from a VW parts place or do I have to pay
a dealer....

14. An ill-driven car backed into mine and slashed the black moulding
along the side of the car (among other things, like a wheel-sized dent). I
imagine I could get replacement moulding from a junkyard, but how should I
re-attach it? My car is silver and I think it looks better with moulding
than without so removing it all isn't a good solution.

15. The car needs a new battery so I bought one but unfortunately I didn't
notice until I got home that it had only side terminal posts. Naturally
while it fit perfect in the battery seat, the side terminals didn't. Well
okay they did, but the positive terminal shorted to the sheet metal :P
Before I go to return it tomorrow, is there any good place to put it where
it wouldn't take up any of the trunk space (except maybe in the side of
the trunk under the speakers).

16. My rear wiper makes a ton of noise compared to the front ones. Are all
of them like this? Part of it is probably that I was running it dry. (Oh
well, the blades are shot anyways)

17. How hard is it to change the shift bushings? Maybe I just need to
adjust the linkage, but its a little hard to get it into 2nd sometimes.

18. Are armor door plates needed on the Scirocco? If so are they the same
exact model as for other VWs? They're ugly, but I don't want the little
chumps around here taking my stuff without asking.

19. My car doesn't have an MFA but I think it'd be a neat addition. How
difficult is it to stick one in? Do I need a whole new gauge cluster or
just a replacement for the LCD clock thingy, a circuit board and a new
wiper control wand?

20. I had the wheels off when I swapped tires and took a look at the
brakes. It looks like the pads are glued instead of bolted on. Is there a
trick to changing these?

21. The car has 124k miles on it, is there any reason to switch to
synthetic oil? I don't have any noticable oil leaks at present but I'm
afraid if I switch the thinner oil may start to leak out of the 12 year
old seals, but at the same time I'd like to keep the engine parts
lubricated well. What should I do?

22. Where could I buy accessory switches that match those in the dash for
the headlights, emergency flashers, etc? I'd like to put an oem-looking
switch in for fog lights or a three-position (two on, one off) switch in
for a special circuit i designed. Too bad there's only room for one :P

23. Can anyone recommend some good but inexpensive hood lifts? I really
hate putting up that flimsy metal rod.

24. What can be done to make the sunroof slide smoother? It takes quite a
bit of effort to open mine and I'm thinking maybe WD-40 or grease would
help. The last thing I want is the sunroof to jam open and get rain all
over the place.

25. Anyone gone to the trouble of converting that horrid white headliner
to something more attractive, say, black fuzzy stuff? Every time I look in
the rearview mirror and see the white ceiling i feel like im in a
cabriolet with the top up :P

Ooof...thats a lot of questions! I'm not an idiot, I just enjoy hearing
other people's experiences on certain things before I attempt them myself.

Thanks,

-Toby

--
To unsubscribe, send "unsubscribe scirocco-l" to majordomo@scirocco.org.
If you experience other problems, email: scirocco-l-probs@scirocco.org