How do you replace the heater control in a 2000 vw Jetta?

Answer 1

I just did a 1999.

I am sure these instructions are not complete. Read through and decide if it something you think you can handle. It helps to have an extra set of hands and someone to talk to during this job.

1. Disconnect battery.

2. Remove lower dash driver's side.

3. remove glove box.

4. Remove center section that holds radio/heater controls. (there will be 4 screws behind the trim piece for the heater control. Remove these and leave heater cables attached. (You may have to remove the center console/shifterzperiodz Center console was broken on the one I bought)

5. Remove metal panel at driver's knee.

6. Remove screws for fuse box, nuts that hold relay panels (under dash) and light module.

7. remove trim above and around steering column,

8. remove air bag D S

9. Remove steering wheel.

Note: I was able to skip steps 8 and 9 because I was willing to cut the bottom plastic on the corner in 2 places by the fuse box which made the bottom section flexible enough to continue.

10. Remove instrument cluster.

11. Remove upper dash.

12 remove 2 bolts going up and drop steering column.

13. Remove 1 bolt going horizontal to finish dropping column.

14 Open hood. Disconnect heater hoses.

15. Remove windshield wiper arms.

16. Remove cowl.

17 Remove windshield wiper motor assembly.

18. Remove 1 bolt behind wiper motor assembly for tubular support inside cabin.

19. Now see if you can find all the nuts and bolts that hold the heater box to the firewall. I took out 8 there was still some left because it did not move freely.

20 back inside car remove bolts that hold tubular support (2 on each end and 2 on each side of center console. Watch the ground wires, air bag harness for passenger side and all other wires. (now my turn signals are not working not sure if it was me or if it is the switch) you may have to remove some or all of them.

21. Now you need to remove the duct work. It just snaps in.

22. This is where it gets interesting.

You have numerous choices on how to get the heater box out of the car.

A Discharge A/C system if equipped to do so and if you got all the bolts out, disconnect A/C lines and remove box.

B Remove metal clips that hold the 2 halves of the heater box together (the ones you can see) and pry heater side of box away for the firewall hoping that the clips on the back of the box will pop off. (This is the method I used and got lucky nothing broke)

C Any combination of sawz all, hammer, cutting torch that you feel the job deserves.

When you get the heater box out far enough you can remove the screws in the top and pull the heater core out.

This is by far not the worst job I have done but it is very frustrating and time consuming. I needed about a week to do the job. One Saturday and part of Sunday to tear it apart. 4 days to not work on it because I wanted to smash it and burn it. And Christmas Day to put it back together.

C