Got My First VW today - 2024 Golf GTi
05-02-2024, 02:22 PM
#21
Thread Starter
No no, you just discovered German engineering at its finest. JDMs do a decent job with their clips in that they generally will release when you press and pull, but sometimes you get a grumpy one, or have a randomly different one that's buried behind something that you can't see that happens to be a little different like needing to lift a lock tab or some bs. Domestics are terrible, just a hodge podge of random connectors which oftentimes break if you're not familiar with them. But ze Germans overengineer everything, so long as you know it needs a key, and that you have said key, you then have a consistent, effortless disconnection. Much of their older cars are the same way, if you know the order in which to disassemble something, it may be tedious, but there's a very matter of fact way that makes them actually easy to work on, despite being time consuming. Good example is like a timing belt on Boxsters. You'd think it'd be an absolute nightmare to do, but then you take out the seats and a few interior trim, there's an access window, and then boom full access, loosen tensioner and it's off. Spark plugs require a lift, taking the wheels off, liner, but once you get to them, boom easy access. Unlike say a BRZ, which per manual requires you tilting the engine (most people just use a series of articulating extension and a can do attitude). Modern German cars, or cars in general, are becoming increasingly the same, but that point about needing a key for the connectors sounds about par for the course.
I also dislike the idea of wheel bolts vs. lugnuts, and you also have caps on the wheel bolts, one more step in the wheel removal process, not my fancy.
The following users liked this post:
TheDonEffect (05-02-2024)
05-02-2024, 02:27 PM
#22
No no, you just discovered German engineering at its finest. JDMs do a decent job with their clips in that they generally will release when you press and pull, but sometimes you get a grumpy one, or have a randomly different one that's buried behind something that you can't see that happens to be a little different like needing to lift a lock tab or some bs. Domestics are terrible, just a hodge podge of random connectors which oftentimes break if you're not familiar with them. But ze Germans overengineer everything, so long as you know it needs a key, and that you have said key, you then have a consistent, effortless disconnection. Much of their older cars are the same way, if you know the order in which to disassemble something, it may be tedious, but there's a very matter of fact way that makes them actually easy to work on, despite being time consuming. Good example is like a timing belt on Boxsters. You'd think it'd be an absolute nightmare to do, but then you take out the seats and a few interior trim, there's an access window, and then boom full access, loosen tensioner and it's off. Spark plugs require a lift, taking the wheels off, liner, but once you get to them, boom easy access. Unlike say a BRZ, which per manual requires you tilting the engine (most people just use a series of articulating extension and a can do attitude). Modern German cars, or cars in general, are becoming increasingly the same, but that point about needing a key for the connectors sounds about par for the course.
You might be right, but the set I bought had about 50 keys in it and had to go one by one to figure out which one fit the connectors I needed. Maybe easier with some experience, a total PITA for first timers.
05-02-2024, 03:43 PM
#23
Yeah, that's sorta the thing about them, which is why those who specialize in certain German brands tend to stick with them, and why others may not be extra motivated to work on them.
05-03-2024, 07:32 AM
#24
So true. I had to help my brother in law replace spark plugs on his BMW 1 series, I also found the coil pack connectors to be a pain the rear end, and some of them were broken before I even touched them, from prior people messing with them.
I also dislike the idea of wheel bolts vs. lugnuts, and you also have caps on the wheel bolts, one more step in the wheel removal process, not my fancy.
I also dislike the idea of wheel bolts vs. lugnuts, and you also have caps on the wheel bolts, one more step in the wheel removal process, not my fancy.
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
The following 3 users liked this post by jnewtons2k:
05-03-2024, 08:39 AM
#25
Get one of these: https://www.ecstuning.com/b-schwaben.../002840sch01a/
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
Last edited by windhund116; 05-03-2024 at 08:43 AM.
05-03-2024, 09:52 AM
#26
Thread Starter
Get one of these: https://www.ecstuning.com/b-schwaben.../002840sch01a/
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
The following users liked this post:
jnewtons2k (05-04-2024)
05-07-2024, 03:58 AM
#27
Get one of these: https://www.ecstuning.com/b-schwaben.../002840sch01a/
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
Makes re-mounting the wheels so much easier...
https://www.suncoastparts.com/product/99957107430.html
The following 3 users liked this post by jeffbrig:
The following users liked this post:
WolfpackS2k (05-13-2024)
05-12-2024, 02:35 PM
#30
Thread Starter
I rarely own vehicles out of warranty, but the GTi looks pretty simple to work on if I ever needed to do basic repairs. One thing I never worry about is repairs as I have never had to do a basic repair on any of my daily driver vehicles over the last 40 years, just regular maintenance. My S2000 was the only vehicle I owned that suffered a major engine repair issue and I had to cover it myself, but it wasn't my daily driver.
I once owned two Dodge SRT-4 vehicles - both versions of it - and I remember Honda forum people constantly saying how unreliable they would be. Those cars turned out to be some of the most reliable vehicles I had owned back in the day, I did not have a single issue with the vehicles, zero defects and no reliability concerns.
I once owned two Dodge SRT-4 vehicles - both versions of it - and I remember Honda forum people constantly saying how unreliable they would be. Those cars turned out to be some of the most reliable vehicles I had owned back in the day, I did not have a single issue with the vehicles, zero defects and no reliability concerns.
Last edited by zeroptzero; 05-13-2024 at 03:11 AM.
The following users liked this post:
JohnE (06-25-2024)