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Homelink Retrofit DIY and Upper Console Removal

JFLORES

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
707 CA
I've had this on vwvortex for a while and just realized I never posted it on here.

I basically got this idea from sfm5 so big ups to him. I just want to write a more detailed DIY for others to follow in case they want to tackle this project. It is not necessarily hard, but the most important thing is to take it slow especially when cutting the holes.

**DISCLAIMER: I’M NOT RESPONSIBLE IF YOU BREAK ANY TABS, POP FUSES, FRY WIRING, ETC. THIS IS ALL INFORMATION I’D LIKE TO SHARE AS A WEEKEND DIY’ER**

Removing the upper console:

1. Open the sunglasses holder

2. Reach under the upper trim piece and pop out the tabs on each bottom corner. It should come off with little force.



3. Use a plastic trim piece tool or screwdriver (be careful if you use this) to pop out the LED lighting cover. There are two tabs on the side closest to the sunroof located near the corners. On the side next to the mirror there is a tab in the middle and two on the outside of it. Just work your way around carefully.



4. Unclip each LED wiring harness



5. Use your trim tool or screwdriver to press into the inserts on each corner of the map lights/sunroof unit. This will unclip the 4 tabs that are holding it up. Drop it down slowly.



6. You can unhook the associated harnesses if you’d like, but I decided to keep them hooked up and let the unit hang.



7. Use a torx screwdriver to unscrew the 4 screws on each corner of the console.







8. The front part of the console will drop, but the rear will still be clipped on to the headliner/mirror trim. Carefully pull that trim piece down and push up on the back of the console in order to let it go free of the tabs.





9. Maneuver the map lighting/sunroof controller unit through the console and use a mircro-screwdriver unhook the harness from the VW connect buttons in order to let the console free.





10. DONE!

================================================== ========================

Now that you have the console removed it is time for the real work. Some tools and items I used were:

-Homelink Unit with rolling codes (found cheap on eBay or junkyard)
-Perforated board from Radio Shack
-12mm square momentary push button switch (3)
-Red LED indicator light bulb (optional)
-Regular JB weld for mounting

Optional depending on how you decide to wire your unit:
-Cat 5 cable for wiring
-Cat 5 coupler
-O ring terminal connector for ground
-2 male & 2 female insulated disconnect crimp connectors
-Fuse tap connector (for tapping into the switched 12v 20amp fuse in fuse box)
-Extra wiring

Some tools that I remember using:
-Soldering iron
-Crimp tool
-Drill
-Step drill bit (necessary to make even holes)
-Center punch
-Small clamps
-Ratchet



Below are the links to his posts and also an external link I followed for wiring.

Sfm5 posts:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...r-in-overhead-console-for-Homelink&p=86694828

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...k-Integrated-into-Overhead-Console&p=87453872

Wiring:
http://www.lieblweb.com/homelink.html

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1. First off, I started by test fitting the momentary switches to the perf board so I could measure where I would cut out the holes. You can either do this first solder the wires onto the Homelink unit



2. Make sure the trim piece is removed from the upper center console and measure the 3 locations to be drilled and use a center punch to ensure the bit won’t slip. SLOWLY bore out a pilot hole with your step bit. Doing it slow is important to try and make sure the plastic doesn’t peel. Trust me, I know.



3. Keep in mind that you will need to drill through two separate pieces. Once you have your pilot hole, attach it back to the console. I used the center punch once again on the other piece so the bit won’t slip.



4. After you get the first hole to fit the switch how you want, drill out the other two. Constantly test fit to ensure proper fitment and that the buttons can be pressed without sticking upon return. Also cut the perf board to size and keep test fitting until you are pleased.







5. Now that you have your buttons set up it is time to wire them to your Homelink unit. Open the Homelink casing and take out the circuit board from the frame.I followed the link below for my wiring.

http://www.lieblweb.com/homelink.html



6. Cut the cat5 cable in half and wire the cables in the arrangement you see below using one of those cables. Keep in mind of the colors of the wires and their locations. You don’t need to solder wires to the light if you aren’t adding one.



7. On the perf board side turn it over and solder the common wires from the bottom left notch of the outermost left switch to the bottom left middle switch and then to the bottom left right switch. Keep in mind the orientation of the switches. They look to be in a vertical position.



8. Next, grab the unused half of the cat5 cable and solder the same colored wires to the momentary buttons that you did for the Homelink unit. Based on my wiring:

Left Button:
-Bottom left position orange wire on Homelink / Top left position on perf board
-Top right white-orange on homelink / Top right on perf board
Middle Button:
-Both blue wires on top right position
Right Button:
-Both white-blue wires on top right position



This is how everything should look when coupled together



9. What I did next was test my wiring to make sure everything actually worked before mounting it all to the center console. I used alligator clips to connect the positive to the battery and ground to my cars ground terminal.





10. After that was all good I put the casing back on the circuit board and soldered the power and ground wires.



11. From there it was time to mount everything. I drilled a hole on the top of the sunglass holder to put the LED bulb through. Make sure wherever you decide to drill doesn’t interfere with the closing of the sunglasses holder. Prep the areas that will get JB weld on it by sanding and cleaning for a better adhesion. Grab your clamps and test fit the buttons. This is a crucial step. Make sure all the buttons can be pressed and when let go can go back to normal position without interference. Once you have this down get your JB weld concoction ready.



12. JB weld where you feel appropriate and let it dry. I did the outsides of the perf board, let that dry for 5 hours, and then added some JB weld on the inside for better structure integrity. I did not add any JB weld to the VW connect button side just in case it oozed too far out on that side. Make sure the JB weld does not come in contact with the button itself or it can keep it from being pressed after drying. I let the console dry vertically to keep this from happening. I followed the recommended drying time.







13. I chose to mount the Homelink unit itself with Velcro just in case I needed to take it out/off of the console and unhook from the cat5 coupler. I’m glad I did it this way cause I had to take it out after I installed the console in the car to fix some wiring.



14. Finally the last steps of the install which is actually wiring it onto the car. I decided to use male and female disconnects for when I need to take out the center console. I cut the power/ground wire coming out of the Homelink unit. Then I crimped a male connector on each of the two wires on the Homelink side. The two female connectors were crimped onto the two wires that I cut. For the ground wire, crimp your O ring terminal on the opposite end of the female connector.
***Disregard the tap-in squeeze connector on the 12v power side. I initially tapped into the wire/location sfm5 did, but it did not work for me. It functioned on accessory mode, but when the engine was on it didn’t work at all. That defeated the purpose for me so I tapped into the switched 12v 20amp fuse in the fuse box instead***



15. Now go into your car and screw your ground terminal into the lone bolt inside the console location. There is no need to sand any paint since it is already bare metal once the nut is removed.



16. I don’t have many pictures of this step since I did it last night but now we need to get to our switched 12v power supply. Since my wire was too short I soldered a longer one to it. Now to access your fuse panel open the driver’s side cubby and squeeze at the top tightly and pull out (YES THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID) to free the two tabs.. Then with the door open, pop out the left panel with your trim tool and pull out the other curved trim piece. (If this sounds confusing you can Google it).

Once the cubby and panel is removed, fish your power wire from the console location through the headliner, then to the A pillar, then down the rubber sills (tuck the wires under the sills), and into the dash. You can slightly pop out the top of the A pillar to make routing the wire easier. There are also diys on this routing for radar detectors.



17. Look in your fuse panel for this 20amp fuse. I believe it is for the cigarette lighter socket. Grab your fuse tap, attach it to the fuse, and reinstall (http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/detail/CTI0/85606.oap?ck=Search_fuse+tap_-1_-1&keyword=fuse+tap). Make sure you put it back in the same location cause 1 notch up makes the fuse constant power instead of switched. This is no good if you park your car outside, unless you don’t mind.



18. Reinstall the overhead console by doing the reverse steps and plug in your male/female connectors for power and ground.



19. Reinstall everything else and tuck the wires into the headliner.





20. Program your garage. Now enjoy your retrofitted Homelink unit and the TLC you just gave your car. :beer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZWYa_JjQII
 

160dB

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
San Jose
Great work and good details. I had a garage door opener retrofit on my todo list. I think you just convinced me to put it on the top of my list.
 
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