[RobSlaterFSI]

This isn’t a full how to but a few helpful tips if you need to remove / reinstall the following items

Drivers side door lock collar
Driver’s side lock (the part the key goes in) referred to as the outer lock below
The actual lock mechanism (inside the door)
Door handle, retainer and carrier
Inner and outer door cards
Re-sync the locks

Back story

I had to remove the outer door lock and handle to do some body work. After reading the workshop manual it seemed an easy job.

What I’ve listed below in part 1 is how to recover /reinstall all the parts if the job goes a bit wrong and you need to remove the door cards etc. to get the outer door lock collar to seat properly in order to reinstall all the other bits

Part 2 lists how the job should go.

Heads up before you start

The mk5 golf door assembly is different to the EOS

Watch the Humble mechanical’s video on how to remove the outer door lock and handle. The rest of the video doesn’t apply but gives good info so worth a watch (golf mk5 door lock install)

The video states to do 12 full turns of the screw (anti clockwise) in order to remove the lock, if you do any more the collar will drop out and end up in the bottom of the door. The work shop manual doesn’t mention this. I tested this and it works with 11 full turns of the screw.

In essence I unscrewed the lock collar screw to far and it fell into the door, hence the notes below. Details of the ‘screw’ I’m referring to are mentioned below

Door fastens snap so have a few spares (see pic1)

VCDS / scan tool – very helpful for checking the door lock is working properly/ diagnostic checks

The UK lock down meant I had a lot of time to play around with this and I didn’t need the car for work / other purposes. In all I rebuilt the parts listed over a few days, so make sure you have enough time available before you start

It took around 10 hours or so from end to end due to following factors

Trying to work out how to reassemble all the parts, and in what order
The correct position of the collar at various points during the install
Rebuilding / installing the door cards and testing the locks
If I had the info below, or need to do it again I think it may be 2 hours of work

Read Vox’s post on window regulator install to give and over view / step by step guide on how to remove the card cards etc.

You need the glass to be up in order to access the parts mentioned below

Keep the door open whilst all work is done, and don’t close it till your finished

Part 1

Tools / parts required
Usual Torx and triple bit square sockets / bits / usual hand tools
Drill driver to remove all the inner door skin bolts (hand tools work just as well)
Door fastens – These usually snap when you remove the door card so have a few spare before you start
Good scan tool / VCDS

Rebuild

• I tried to remove the outer door lock and handle as per video. Unfortunately, the lock collar fell off into the bottom of the door. See pic2 for the parts that I needed to reinstall / mentioned below
• At this point the outer and inner door cards, outer door lock, door handle, carrier / door handle retainer / spring have been removed and are on the bench
• The key to a successful rebuild is to understand how the collar works, how it holds the outer door lock in place, the order to parts need to be reassembled in in order for the lock to work properly.
• Pic3 shows the collar installed into the carrier. Note the right-hand side of the collar slips into the carrier and the screw is fully screwed in. This is the locked position.
• Turning the screw 11 full turns will move the collar to the open position.
• After lots of trial error, I found out the collar needs to be in the closed position for the door handle to latch onto the door handle retainer (white plastic part in pic2)
• The collar then needs to be moved to the open position so the outer door lock can be installed
• With the collar installed in the locked position, install the carrier and collar into the door
• Line up the lock end first, clip in the other end and screw in the single screw
• Check the collar is still seated square onto the carrier. The door lock will not seat and lock in position if its not seated / aligned properly
• Next clip in the black plastic cover (see pic2 for part) into the lock end of the outer door skin (outside) and pic4 for location
• Insert the right-hand end of the door handle into the door making sure the black plastic flap goes into the hole. don’t push it fully home, just leave it a bit loose at this point
• Now the tricky part. You need to install the door handle retainer and spring, (white plastic part). Install the spring as shown in pic4a
• Hold it flat against carrier and push the handle in from the outside and then slowly release the retainer so it latches into the handle. It took me 4 or 5 goes at this to align all the parts. see pic5 and pic6. It helps to have long arms, if not you might need a second person to help out
• If you are struggling to do this part, its usually due to the collar being out of alignment as the retainer won’t sit flush against the carrier or let you insert the door handle tabs as it gets stuck on the collar. So, recheck it if you’re stuck
• Check the door handle moves in and out smoothly, don’t use to much force as the collar will drop out of place
• Next you need to install the door handle Bowden cable. In essence it’s a short cable, 6/7 cm long with a black plastic tab on the end. See pic7
• Look for witness marks on the door handle, see pic8 , to use as a guide when installing the tab
• Push the cable through the hole for the door lock and insert the tab. You can reach inside the door and push the cable through. Again, it took a few goes to get this right
• I made a mistake here and pushed the door lock arm (the part the cable is attached to) forward and installed the tab in the end of the channel, see pic9. I think this then caused some lock sync problem, which I will cover off later
• It only fits one way and should be installed as per witness marks in the plastic housing, or if they are not visible, install the tab so there is no tension on the cable, approx. half way up the channel
• Make sure the collar is still seated correctly. Next turn the screw 11 times to move the collar to the open position. Nice and slow, if you mess this up just screw it back in and start again
• Pull the door handle open a couple of mm, slowly insert the lock and once fully home, screw the screw in until its fully home
• Check from inside the door the collar and lock are seated properly and the cable is still attached, see pic10
• Don’t close the door at this point, but it is time for coffee and a biscuit as this is the hardest part done

second post and pics to follow ....

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

first set of pics ...

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

more pics ....

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Hi more pics . pic 10 did not turn out that clear so I've posted another pic that shows the the lock installed and collar locked to shows what your looking to replicate ....

 

[voxmagna]

You know Rob, I've had my door cards off and innards out a few times and never done anything with those parts. But for the last few weeks my door sounds like a tin can when I close it and I'll have to go inside. Perhaps I'll investigate this because the noise on closing is definitely coming from the handle/latch area.

From your photos it looks as though there's a lot of parts to break or work loose. If you have any tipe I'm listening! - Vox

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Hi vox

A few more pics to post and some note as well. Hopefully get some time this weekend to finish them.

Top tip have some share clips on hand and the video mentioned above is worth a watch on you tube

Regards

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Post 2

• You can now pull the handle in and out, nice and gentle, several times and compare the movement and force required vs. the passenger side. Double check the lock / collar is seated correctly. If all good you can now start to put the rest of the door together
• For reference pic11 shows the tabs that need to be pressed in on the end of the door lock mechanism when removing the inner door card. These are a right pain to reach, but can be reached when the regulator has had the 4 screws removed and you push your hand in. See vox’s post re door regulator for details
• Next undertake a visual inspection of all the parts you will be refitting. I noticed that some of the wiring was rubbing through and some of the tape needed to be replaced
• The door lock wire runs on the inner side of the inner door card. Some parts are just clipped into place some others are tie wrapped into place. I found it easier the remove the wiring altogether along with the inner door card to give more access.
• With the car lock cable wiring installed, align the card with the white tabs and gently push home. Install and couple of bolts at the top, just hand tight then pull the main wiring harness and door release cable through and seat the grommets. Route and secure all cables. Have one last look around and then install all remaining bolts / clips etc.
• Reinstall outer door card (see Vox’s guide)
• With the door now closed test all functions. I tried this with the door open and the window wouldn’t go up. Loads of testing with vcds and the regulator reported that the window was already up (100%). Removed everything, all looked OK , reinstalled everything still no joy. Disconnected the battery, left it 20 mins. still nothing. Closed the door cleared all fault codes. window worked.
• Next I tested the locks. Passenger side worked fine; drivers side worked from the inside but not the outside. To fix I adjusted the tab that fits into the handle so there was no tension on the lock arm. Tested no joy. Next you need to re-sync the manual handles by pulling both handles in and out at the same time. Do this around 20 times . yes I now it sounds daft but it worked fine. All tested fine
• vcds gives loads of info on what the lock is doing, handle position etc. You can also activate a number of test on the lock and window regulator as well . Well worth a look if you get stuck

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

one more pic....

 

[voxmagna]

When you have had the door.window controller disconnected or the battery, there seems to be TWO ways to recalibrate the 'One Touch' and get the window to come right to the top and bottom. 9 times out of 10 my windows (and sunroof) have always come back in odd positions. Scary when you first get it, but not so when you've done the recalibration procedure. vcds does not report any errors if the modules are ok and you cannot do the windows reset using it.

Method 1 (Doesn't always work)

Hold the window switch in the Up position for 15 seconds, then repeat holding it in the fully down position. Most times I've tried it this way the window just stays stuck at the wrong intermediate position. I think this method is only used to correct small errors, or if the drop down isn't working.

Method 2 (always works for MY07).

Set all the windows and sunroof into part open position.
Remove ignition key and close the drivers door.
Insert key in door lock and hold fully clockwise for 15 seconds. All windows & sunroof will move to their fully open or fully closed position (can't remember which).
Repeat holding the key in the fully anti clockwise position for 15 seconds. All windows move to the opposite fully closed or open position.
Open the door, key in ignition and try a short press on each window switch. The window should rise or fall on its own. Repeat to check the sunroof operation.

Disconnecting and reconnecting the battery often should be avoided because you can induce other problems in controllers. I only do it as a last resort or if I need the battery disconnected for maintenance.

Method 1 does calibrate the 'glass fully down below wiper seal' service position. This is the motor stall point and is useful if you need to replace or clean the long blade seals attached to the door. In normal operation the glass should stop just above the stall point, about level with the top edge of the wiper blade. I think the same motor revolutions count is what determines the EOS 'drop down' distance when a door is opened.

PS: Your last photo showing the locking claws is the biggest pain being hard to see and release when all the lock and handle parts are attached. I now use a 12 point torx to remove the screws holding the lock plate on the door which allows the whole lot to be wiggled about so you can see and get to the claws a lot easier.

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Hi vox

Good tip re key in door lock . I couldn't get that to work before as I wasn't holding the key long enough in the hold position

Regards

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[voxmagna]

I've never understood why sometimes you have to try both methods to get the result, but 'key in door' seems to work more consistently for me. Until I read your post, I hadn't realised how many parts were inside the flap and lock assembly.

 

[PaulInCharentes]

Hi more pics . pic 10 did not turn out that clear so I've posted another pic that shows the the lock installed and collar locked to shows what your looking to replicate ....

Rob, thank you very much for these posts and for the pointer to #Voxmagna's relevant posts. They really saved me an awful lot of head scratching today!
Yesterday, during the replacement of an inner door handle cable on the passenger door of my 2014 Eos, I suffered the same problem as you - the retaining ring for the outer door handle fixed piece dropped into the door skin as I reinserted the piece into the handle housing. I had obviously unscrewed the handle screw (accessed through the hole in the back edge of the door) too far. I managed to fish the ring out of the door yesterday and, after a failed attempt to replace it yesterday, decided to sleep on the thorny problem of its replacement. I found your post this morning.

Just out of interest, I managed to replace the ring without completely removing the outer door panel and the handle assembly. This was only possible thanks to your excellent photos and text. Here's a summary of what I did:
1. Windows all fully closed before opening door, then ignition off and key (mentally) labelled "Don't use until job finished!"
2. Removed the inner door panel - taking extreme care not to break the claw clip retainer on new inner handle cable that I had just replaced! (Cable connector to window operating switch removed too of course)
3. Removed all bolts from the outer panel and screws from the window motor assembly.
4. Disconnected all visible cable clips and removed cable connectors to motor assembly.
5. Unclipped the door operating cable from its slot in the external door handle (note position of the cable end piece before easing it out of the slot). NB - the fixed part of the handle was already removed due to yesterday's problem
6. Removed the two door lock retaining screws (M6 'Triple Square').
7. Carefully eased the outer panel assembly forwards until the lock assembly was free of the door skin. I supported the panel with a bungee fastened around the bottom of the motor opening and hung from the upper edge of the window.
8. I could then see the inner assembly of the external door handle clearly and relate it to your photos.
9. Screwed the door handle screw (T20 head) fully in and then eased it back one turn.
10. Whilst laying under the door, I then replaced the retaining ring. It took several attempts and manipulation of both the ring and the T20 screw to get the ring properly engaged with the handle housing.
11. Holding the retaining ring in place, unscrewed the T20 screw 11 full turns (per your experience). The first couple of times that I did this, the retaining ring moved out of place and I found that I had to hook it firmly with a long Allen key through the door hole to keep it in place as I unscrewed the T20.
12. Relocated the outer door panel and secured the door latch with its M6 'Triple Squares'. As the panel and door latch are rehoused, I made sure that the short operating cable for the outside door handle was in place and could be 'fished' through the fixed piece of the door handle is housed. Secured the door panel in place with just a couple of its bolts, hand tight.
13. Clipped the external door cable back into its slot at the rear of the handle (see step 3 regarding position).
14. Looked through hole to see that retaining ring was still in place (the first time I did this, it had moved and I had to go back to step 3) and that its lugs appeared to be in the correct place to 'accept' the fixed piece of the handle..
15. Pulled the door handle fully out to the 'door open' position and held it there whilst carefully inserting the fixed piece (lock assembly on driver's door) of the handle.
16. Whilst pushing in the fixed piece, fully screw the T20 door handle screw in. The fixed piece will then be 'fixed' if it has correctly engaged with the lugs on the ring. (If it is not fixed in place, then unscrew the T20 11 full turns, remove the fixed piece of the handle, check the position of the ring, pull it back into place with a long Allen key - manipulating the T20 screw if necessary to rotate the ring to re-engage it - then repeat installation of the fixed piece. It is possible that 11 full turns of the screw is not enough to get the lugs into the correct position to engage with the fixed piece - judge by eye and trial and error!).
17. When the door handle is successfully reassembled, secure the outer door panel completely and remount the electric motor assembly.
18. Reconnect all cable clips and connectors. NB - when the main connector is reconnected to the motor assembly there will be a disconcerting movement of the window, even though ignition is off! Don't worry about that - see steps 20 & 21.
19. Reinstall the inner door panel - don't forget to reconnect the window switch cable and be careful with the spigot and claws on the inner handle operating cable!
20. Once the door is fully reassembled, keep the key OUT of the ignition and open and close it a couple of times to check that inner and external handles operate the latch. NB - the window will remain in the slightly low position that it moved to when the motor cables were reconnected.
21. Ignition on. Open and close the door again - the window will stay in low position. Close the door and use a window operating switch to close the window. Open and close the door. The window may not move as it should. Lower and raise the window and try again. So long as all work has been done without the ignition key in and without disturbing the position of the window or its carriers, the system will restore itself to work as designed.

Due to my initial task (inner cable replacement) time, the mistake I made yesterday and incorrect positioning of the retaining ring during my first attempt this morning, I've spent about 12 hours actually working on the car this weekend. My final attempt, with all lessons learned, took a steady 2.5hrs earlier today - I could've replaced the inner cable during that time too as the work needed to relocate the retaining ring provided all the access needed. Thanks again Rob and Voxmagna - I think that I would still be at it without your posts!

 

[voxmagna]

Normally I don't need to go near the handle and lock mechanism but the last time I had the card off I wanted to investigate an irritating metallic noise when the door is closed, but only when the glass is at the top. In the process of removing the lock to have a look then replace it, it turned through an angle I couldn't get it back the same way it came out. Then I re-learned the location of the hole to insert the tool, slacken the screw and pull the handle away from the door. Then I could get the lock back and the round part of the handle mechanism fed into the lock and all the releases worked.

Despite having had a good look in the dark spaces of the door skin and not seeing anything wrong, I haven't stopped the metallic ring\clunk yet as the door closes and I'm wondering if I've displaced a nylon slipper on the aluminium regulator slider which would make it rattle against the track? Or one of the bolts holding the glass has got loose. I've got to go back inside again and I might as well remove the glass and regulator for a better look.

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Rob, thank you very much for these posts and for the pointer to #Voxmagna's relevant posts. They really saved me an awful lot of head scratching today!
Yesterday, during the replacement of an inner door handle cable on the passenger door of my 2014 Eos, I suffered the same problem as you - the retaining ring for the outer door handle fixed piece dropped into the door skin as I reinserted the piece into the handle housing. I had obviously unscrewed the handle screw (accessed through the hole in the back edge of the door) too far. I managed to fish the ring out of the door yesterday and, after a failed attempt to replace it yesterday, decided to sleep on the thorny problem of its replacement. I found your post this morning.

Just out of interest, I managed to replace the ring without completely removing the outer door panel and the handle assembly. This was only possible thanks to your excellent photos and text. Here's a summary of what I did:
1. Windows all fully closed before opening door, then ignition off and key (mentally) labelled "Don't use until job finished!"
2. Removed the inner door panel - taking extreme care not to break the claw clip retainer on new inner handle cable that I had just replaced! (Cable connector to window operating switch removed too of course)
3. Removed all bolts from the outer panel and screws from the window motor assembly.
4. Disconnected all visible cable clips and removed cable connectors to motor assembly.
5. Unclipped the door operating cable from its slot in the external door handle (note position of the cable end piece before easing it out of the slot). NB - the fixed part of the handle was already removed due to yesterday's problem
6. Removed the two door lock retaining screws (M6 'Triple Square').
7. Carefully eased the outer panel assembly forwards until the lock assembly was free of the door skin. I supported the panel with a bungee fastened around the bottom of the motor opening and hung from the upper edge of the window.
8. I could then see the inner assembly of the external door handle clearly and relate it to your photos.
9. Screwed the door handle screw (T20 head) fully in and then eased it back one turn.
10. Whilst laying under the door, I then replaced the retaining ring. It took several attempts and manipulation of both the ring and the T20 screw to get the ring properly engaged with the handle housing.
11. Holding the retaining ring in place, unscrewed the T20 screw 11 full turns (per your experience). The first couple of times that I did this, the retaining ring moved out of place and I found that I had to hook it firmly with a long Allen key through the door hole to keep it in place as I unscrewed the T20.
12. Relocated the outer door panel and secured the door latch with its M6 'Triple Squares'. As the panel and door latch are rehoused, I made sure that the short operating cable for the outside door handle was in place and could be 'fished' through the fixed piece of the door handle is housed. Secured the door panel in place with just a couple of its bolts, hand tight.
13. Clipped the external door cable back into its slot at the rear of the handle (see step 3 regarding position).
14. Looked through hole to see that retaining ring was still in place (the first time I did this, it had moved and I had to go back to step 3) and that its lugs appeared to be in the correct place to 'accept' the fixed piece of the handle..
15. Pulled the door handle fully out to the 'door open' position and held it there whilst carefully inserting the fixed piece (lock assembly on driver's door) of the handle.
16. Whilst pushing in the fixed piece, fully screw the T20 door handle screw in. The fixed piece will then be 'fixed' if it has correctly engaged with the lugs on the ring. (If it is not fixed in place, then unscrew the T20 11 full turns, remove the fixed piece of the handle, check the position of the ring, pull it back into place with a long Allen key - manipulating the T20 screw if necessary to rotate the ring to re-engage it - then repeat installation of the fixed piece. It is possible that 11 full turns of the screw is not enough to get the lugs into the correct position to engage with the fixed piece - judge by eye and trial and error!).
17. When the door handle is successfully reassembled, secure the outer door panel completely and remount the electric motor assembly.
18. Reconnect all cable clips and connectors. NB - when the main connector is reconnected to the motor assembly there will be a disconcerting movement of the window, even though ignition is off! Don't worry about that - see steps 20 & 21.
19. Reinstall the inner door panel - don't forget to reconnect the window switch cable and be careful with the spigot and claws on the inner handle operating cable!
20. Once the door is fully reassembled, keep the key OUT of the ignition and open and close it a couple of times to check that inner and external handles operate the latch. NB - the window will remain in the slightly low position that it moved to when the motor cables were reconnected.
21. Ignition on. Open and close the door again - the window will stay in low position. Close the door and use a window operating switch to close the window. Open and close the door. The window may not move as it should. Lower and raise the window and try again. So long as all work has been done without the ignition key in and without disturbing the position of the window or its carriers, the system will restore itself to work as designed.

Due to my initial task (inner cable replacement) time, the mistake I made yesterday and incorrect positioning of the retaining ring during my first attempt this morning, I've spent about 12 hours actually working on the car this weekend. My final attempt, with all lessons learned, took a steady 2.5hrs earlier today - I could've replaced the inner cable during that time too as the work needed to relocate the retaining ring provided all the access needed. Thanks again Rob and Voxmagna - I think that I would still be at it without your posts!

Hi,
Glad it helped out


Regards

 

[Cor Barnery]

first set of pics ...

Hi Rob, I need to remove the lock cylinder. Can that be done from outside? Do you have some pictures? I have a 2012 VW EOS Thanks in advance. Kind regards Cor

 

[RobSlaterFSI]

Hi Rob, I need to remove the lock cylinder. Can that be done from outside? Do you have some pictures? I have a 2012 VW EOS Thanks in advance. Kind regards Cor

Hi

I don't think so as the screw is on the door end and only visible when open . I take it the door lock has failed ?

Regards

Sent from my SM-A526B using Tapatalk

 

[voxmagna]

If V.W made it easy to remove the lock cylinder from outside then plenty of perps would be breaking into V.Ws and stealing your stuff! IMHO manufacturers design them so some parts dismantling by workshops and tools are needed. They can also 'hide' locking pins' which you may need to find to get the cylinder out. In the case of higher security steering locks, they used to use Loctite and shear head bolts. Once torqued down with the head sheared off, you would have to drill the bolts out to replace the lock assembly.

 

[Cor Barnery]

Hi

I don't think so as the screw is on the door end and only visible when open . I take it the door lock has failed ?

Regards

Sent from my SM-A526B using Tapatalk

Yes, I think the door lock cylinder.

 

[voxmagna]

Can the drivers door be opened on the remote fob or not? Is the passenger door open. That would seem a new starting point for the discussion? Or is this an EOS parked somewhere that needs to be stolen.

 

[Cor Barnery]

Can the drivers door be opened on the remote fob or not? Is the passenger door open. That would seem a new starting point for the discussion? Or is this an EOS parked somewhere that needs to be stolen.

Drivers door can be opened with the remote control. But not with the key. What do you think. Do I have to remove the door panel completely?