URGENT: How to remove handbrake cover with full leather.

[aclwalker 3]

Hi, I've got my MoT tomorrow and I've decided to try to adjust my handbrake cables a wee bit. I believe there's a button to press to release the handle cover, but I've got the full leather interior and the leather handle doesn't appear to have such a button.

 

How do I get it off?!?

 

Where is this button, as it may still be there but simply under the leather?

 

Any help greatly appreciated as I'm currently stuck unless I can work out how to remove this handle. Thanks.

[VAG-hag 0]

It is still under there mate. Vince @ Stealth showed me how to do it but off the top of my head i cant remember exactly...... but it IS there!!

[aclwalker 3]

Thanks for the reply.

 

Well, I can see how somebody's got into in the past. They've simply broke the bit behind it. No wonder it rattles so much. I still can't find this button. Can anybody help with the location of this release button?

[aclwalker 3]

Well I've managed to do the adjustment, but I never managed to get the hand grip bit off. As I said before, somebody has already broken the bit further down from that, presumably because they couldn't work out how to get the handle off. With this bit off, it's possible to slip the other bits over the hand grip.

 

Anyway, you need to take the rear arm rest off (4 screws underneath it) and the 2 screws on the centre surround in order to get the whole thing off.

 

I didn't do a proper adjustment, just took up the slack and ensured the car still freewheels. It's binding a lot lower now though, 3 clicks as opposed to 6 or 7 before.

[jonny-5 0]

The handles on both my Corrados (one with leather) just slide off, it takes a fair bit of force mind.

 

Am I on about the right thing?

[aclwalker 3]

Yes, it's the bit of the handbrake that your hand goes on. No matter how much I huffed and puffed, I couldn't get it off. I wouldn't be surprised to find it's superglued on, because somebody has broken the plastic bit just down from that on my handbrake, because that's ultimately how I managed to get the whole thing off, without taking the hand grip off.

 

Handbrake is tight in about 3 clicks now though, which is a novelty.

[Guest]

It's not so much a 'button' more a plastic tab/clip.

It's underneath the handbrake cover, the bit you grip, at your little finger end. You have to push it in (or is it back, or forward??) using something like a flat blade screwdriver and the plastic tab unclips and allows you to slide the cover off.

Then it's a matter of wrestling the plastic sleeve over the bare metal end :shock:

 

But as you've done it now don't bother to read this :lol:

[aclwalker 3]

LOL, you know, I effing knew it was something to do with that suspicious-looking tab. Oh well, it's done now. Cheers!

[aclwalker 3]

Here's some photos to help others get at the handbrake cable adjustment.

 

You are supposed to remove the handbrake handle and then slide the lower plastic bit up, but I couldn't get this off. 'Thankfully' somebody had already previously broken the plastic bit just down from the handle so it came off easily and I just left the handle on and maneuvered the centre bit around it once I'd removed the other screws.

 

The first 2 photos show screws that need to be removed. You might need to use a stubby and a flexible screwdriver for proper access. The 3rd photo shows the 4 screws under the rear armrest that also need to be removed to allow you to get the centre console off. Once that's off, you will see another plastic bit underneath that is attached with 4 plastic 'caps' screwed onto thread posts. Once these are removed you can see that this underneath plastic bit just rests on these posts but is held in by the plastic screw caps.

 

Once this second plastic bit is removed then you have proper access to the cable adjustment locknuts. You are supposed to do this such that the levers at the rear brakes are just off the stop points (1mm or something?), but I needed to just remove massive free play for an urgent MoT so I had no time to mess around doing it perfectly.

 

If anyone could point out exactly how to remove the handbrake handle then that would be appreciated for future reference. I couldn't find it at all, and the Bentley manual tells you to go to a section that doesn't actually exist!

climatronic wiring-Golf from May 01.pdfHandbrake1.JPG[/attachment:1f045qjq]

2.8l 24v Climatronic system.pdfHandbrake3.JPG[/attachment:1f045qjq]

Handbrake2.JPG[/attachment:1f045qjq]