Satin Silver GLE 2.0

[kdevitt]

I sold my Mk5 GTi about two weeks back, and got this to do me as a runaround.

Dropped it into VW Village for a health check and quick service. Needed some minor bits - CV boot was torn, had an injector service and a repair to the aircon. They noticed the tyres had worn badly on the inside - makes sense as the tracking felt off.

Managed to pick up some GTi wheels for it - the tyres are more or less gone, but I'm happier putting new rubber on the 16's instead of the 15's which were on it. They don't exactly fill the arches, but they do look a lot better than the older ones imo.

Before:



After:



Next up was a new interior - not the best of days to do it with the heat outside, but what harm did heat stroke ever do to anyone!

Interior before:



Doorcards -











Needed to dye the carpets from grey to black or it would have looked pretty odd. I used VHT Vinyl dye - make sure to use a facemask if you're using it, pretty strong fumes.
Got part of them done while the interior was in place - so with the seats out you can see the before and after difference.



Pretty good photo showing the difference too -



Got all the plastics out:



Heres the result after one pass - I didn't get a photo after the second pass.



Turned out very well - the carpets don't go hard after being dyed. You can see from the photos before that they're a good match for the brand new OEM floor mats I put in.

[dylan8]

Nice work, car looks a million times better already
later model mk4 im guessing by the seats?

[kdevitt]

Nice work, car looks a million times better already
later model mk4 im guessing by the seats?

Yes - the interior is from a 2004 car. Its a massive improvement over what was there. Am currently getting all the interior plastics ordered - centre console, dash trim etc, which will tidy it up more. Have already bought a brand new centre armrest, also have had a sports steering wheel retrimmed which is on its way too.

H&R Cup kit should be here in a day or two, as well as a few other bits.

[leighaus]

awesome start mate.

[kdevitt]

New wheel arrived today - combination of plain and perforated nappa, thickened and with thumb grips. Very happy with it.

[GOLF MK4]

verrry nice..where from?

[PeanutButterWolf]

verrry nice..where from?

+1, very nice indeed.

I wouldn't mind getting a new one. The leather on my current one has gone all shiny (read: slippery on a hot day!)

[kdevitt]

Got it done by Royal Steering Wheels in the UK - Royal Steering Wheels | Exclusive look, unique feeling

[dylan8]

Got it done by Royal Steering Wheels in the UK - Royal Steering Wheels | Exclusive look, unique feeling

awesome.
mind giving a idea on total cost (original wheel, work done, postage etc)

[robbie]

Excellent work Ken! I'm sure the quality and feel of the steering wheel now is top notch, so I would be keen to find out if they make custom MKV R32 DSG steering wheels. Do they reupholster the original steering wheel? Or is it a complete replacement.

Some more info on the company would be great if possible.

What have you got planned next for the MK4 Ken?

[Lionbeard]

Wow, it's looking great so far! I actually quite like the two-tone seats; I didn't get that luxury in my '03 model
I'm also really interested in the steering wheel you've gotten and am going to agree with Robbie - we need more info!

[kdevitt]

You basically supply them with the wheel, and they'll retrim it how you want. Normal options are colour, type of leather (nappa / perforated), extra padding, colour and style of stitching, and whether you want thumb grips added or not. Jack who runs the place has done loads of wheels for people off my old BMW site, no complaints from anyone I know.

Taking your steering wheel off and shipping it to the UK will obviously add a lot of money onto the job - so I buy my wheels from ebay in the UK, and have them delivered to him. Makes life easier. Shipping for the wheel back to me (had an airbag - so was heavier than normal) was GBP47. Retrimming cost was GBP120. Wheel with airbag was GBP35 - bargain!

Got this one done for my MkV - but never fitted it, turns out I bought a wheel that wouldn't take multi function buttons.





Heres one of the options I had for the current wheel - more or less the same, but with lower thumb grips as well.

[kdevitt]

What have you got planned next for the MK4 Ken?

Need to get the central locking working - trying to figure out if its the locking module in the door, or the comfort module. Locks all doors from the passenger side, and unlocks all doors from the drivers door. Pretty irritating.

Next up to fit is the H&R kit, should arrive early next week. Have the comfort indicators kit to arrive as well. Then need to finish off the interior.

[kdevitt]

Got the steering wheel fitted today - makes a huge difference. Feels great anyway - the old stock plastic one was awful.





Also got the new centre armrest fitted. Need to get my hands on a new handbrake handle quickly

[kdevitt]

Finished up work for Christmas last Friday, so a chance to do more work on the car.

Have been trying to source a set of colour coded rubstrips for the bumpers and doors, but haven't come across a set, so decided to do them myself. Did plenty of searches for how to remove the rubbing strips on the doors, but there was conflicting information about whether or not they could be removed without damaging them. The strips are held on purely with adhesive tape - no clips. Some people suggested using fishing line or dental floss to get them off - didn't have any fishing line, but the dental floss only succeeded in marking my finger. Have since read that heating the strips with a heat gun will soften the glue enough for the fishing line / floss to cut through, but am happy enough with how my approach went.

First up I masked around the strips -



Then I used a blade to cut between the edge of the strip and the door - the masking tape is only being used to protect the area of the door above and below the trim. With the first bit of adhesive cut, I was able to gently insert a scraping knife between the door and trim.



Gently prise the trim away from the door - only enough to create enough space for a razor. You can then cut the adhesive tape. Just work your way along the strip. Just take your time, don't be overly aggressive and you will get the trim off in one very re-usable piece.



Et voila



This will unfortunately leave a lot of adhesive tape on the door - this needs to come off. Easiest way to do this is with a caramel wheel / eraser wheel. Have previously used one of these on my E30 - and despite being pretty safe on your paintwork, you can cut through it easily enough if you use a drill. Today I used a cordless screwdriver / drill - its easier to use, and does the job perfectly.



Again, just take your time and it'll clear off all the excess tape.



First step in colour coding the rub strips is obviously to remove the texture. This can be done in two ways - by either rubbing them done, applying high coat primer, rubbing down again, and then two more coats of high build followed by a final rubdown - or sanding down the texture and then high coat primering. The first approach is actually quicker - but I went for the second one as it was more effective on the MKV sideskirts I did a while back.

Used a 120 grit pad on a detail sander - an orbital would be preferable, but I wasn't bothered buying one just to do these. To make life easier, I quickly mounted them on some cardboard - the rubstrips have guide pins on the back that line up with the door, so I made matching holes in the cardboard.



After a few runs with the sander its taking shape nicely



One or two spots to be re-done



Next up is to shoot a coat of plastic primer -



Before this has dried fully, shoot your first coat of primer -



This will be followed by two coats of high build - after which it will be rubbed back, and shot with colour and clear coat. Will post more photos when I make more progress!