Replace side view mirror adjustment switch of beetle?

Answer 1

I just had to do this, and I scoured for the answers. I was successful - here are the steps, distilled down... 1. Get a replacement switch. I got mine from thepartsbin.com. About $30.00 2. Carefully take off the cover of the door handle (mine is the diagonal kind - 2002) and then unscrew the two screws at the top and bottom of the handle. 3. Unscrew three screws at the very bottom of the door panel - they are the "star" kind - a tork screw. 4. Carefully pull out the snaps on the sides of the door panel. They just pop out of holes in the door frame. Be carefull not to pull too fast or suddenly. 5. Pull staight up on the door panel. Mine was very sticky at the top, but I gently worked it out of the rubber slot at the top. 6. OPTIONAL: Now that the panel is free, disconnect the electrical and door pull cables. Make a note of what connected where! You can skip this step if you can do #7 in a tight spot... 7. You'll see the assembly for the door handle, lock, and mirror switch. There is a screw by the door handle. Unscrew that, then carefully pry open the clips that hold the assembly in. The whole assembly will come forward out of the door panel. 8. Now, carefully unclip the mirror switch. It will come forward out of the assembly. Place the new switch back in its place, and re-clip. 9. AT THIS STAGE, RE-CONNECT THE ELECTRICAL WIRE TO THE SWITCH AND TEST! 10. Replace the assembly back in the door panel. Replace the screw by the door handle. 11. Re-connect the wires and cables. 12. "Hook" the top of the door panel on the rubber slot. You can check the other door to make sure it's right. 14. carefully snap back in the sides of the door panel. 15. Reconnect the three screws at the bottom. 16. Replace the two screws in the door handle, and replace the door handle cover. Worked for me - it was the first time I had removed the door panel. Hope this helps!

I read somewhere that it could be done without taking the door panel off by using a thin putty knife and a piece of wood to protect the door. I examined the new switch to see how it attached in and decided to give it a shot. First I sunk a screw into the old switch since it was obviously no good. It went in quite firm so I then attached a vise grip to it and gave it a pull. The switch did not come out but the trim piece did pop loose on the right side. This allowed me to pull it out far enough so I could release the top clip on the switch. it then came out pretty easily. There was enough wire to pull it out and remove the connector. I plugged the new one in and tested it and then popped it in as well as the outer trim piece. Job done.

I also found that the old switch came apart very easy and basically would fall out the front of the door. Next time I would just drill the front of it a bit and then pick the pieces out until the inner section could be removed. This would insure the least damage to the trim piece.