How to retro-fit the door exit warning lights from the VW Passat (2013->)

[golfdave]

Disclaimer:- This info is for community usage. I am NOT affiliated to, or sponsored by, any company/individual to promote them or their products. Companies/individuals may NOT use my name, photos, or threads/technical guides, for financial or personal gain (fraudulent misrepresentation).

Part 1 of 4
Vehicle used in this guide
UK spec, 2014yr model, Mk7 Golf Estate (GSW), GT (Highline) trim, 1.4lt TSI (140PS) CHPA petrol engine, MQ250 6speed manual gearbox, multi-link rear suspension.

Vehicles that this guide is applicable to
Any Mk7 Golfs.

Special thanks to
I would like to thank forum member “DV52” for giving me the tech specs on the door controller modules in answer to my questions! I would also like to thank forum member “kevinm” for posting up the original info in his thread:-
Kev's GTI PP DSG | Page 2 | GOLFMK7 - VW GTI MKVII Forum / VW Golf R Forum / VW Golf MKVII Forum

So why do this post? Mainly to make it easier for search engines to find & to provide a lot more details! Also this is done on a 5dr car, & without the “illuminated door sills”.

Part I
Front, door exit warning lights, on a MK7 Golf
From the technical drawing for the door controllers, Pin16 on the blue 32pin “S004” connector is designated as “Ausstiegs-Warnleuchte”, which translates as “Exit Warning Lamp”. It appears that this pin is on all versions of the driver & passenger, front door controllers. On the GTD/GTI/R, VW use this for the illuminated door sills.
Also we need to connect to a ground pin which again is the same for all versions, Pin5 on the blue 32pin connector, BF_GND (Bedienfeld GND) translates as “Panel GND”.
VW parts list & approx costs in UK £
These are the original previous generation Passat door exit warning lights.
Item:- 1K0 947 411A, Door warning light housing (for incandescent bulb) red/white
Item.:- 1J0 971 972, 2 pin connector housing with directional clip.

This is the current (2015 ->) Passat door exit warning lights.
Item:- 3G0 947 411, LED Door warning light red/white £20.84 (x2)***
Item:- 1H0 972 702 A, 2 pin black connector housing, £3.31 (x2)***
You will need some spare clips, in case you break any. The drawing shows Item No.8 on the top edge near the hinge/mirror side, this is wrong as it is near the opening side furthest away from the hinge/mirror.
Item No.5:- 7L6 868 243, Clip, press/pull type, £0.89 (x4)***
Item No.8:- 3AA 868 246, Clip, slide type, bodywork side of clip, £0.80 (x1)***

You will also need to order VW repair wires (from VW dealer parts dept.). A repair wire is a 0.5m length of wire with the same metal pin/contact at each end
Item:- 000 979 009 E, (A05 wire set) 1.5mm pin, 0.5mm wire, for the door control module 32pin blue connector. (This wire is not needed if you have the factory fitted illuminated door sills GTD/GTI/R). £3.35 (x1)***
Item:- 000 979 019 E, (A05 wire set), 1.5mm pin, 0.5mm wire, for the door LED warning light 2pin connector. £4.57 (x2)***

***=Only these items required from the dealers in my project!***​

​

​

Other parts required:-
You also need 4m of 0.5mm2 auto wire (I got 2m purple & 2m brown colours) as “extension wire”, black cable ties, black fabric loom tape (Tesa brand is best). You could use “Scotch-Locks” to connect the cables, or solder & heat-shrink over, but I used special “self soldering” adhesive clear heat shrink joints (just use a hot air gun & heat deflector nozzle/damp cloth to protect surrounding trim).

Info
The incandescent bulb light unit (1K0) has a matching directional (one way only) connector (1J0) with the matching locating ridge/tab. This makes sure it can only be inserted one way. The new LED light unit (3G0) still has this locating ridge, however the correct connector for it according to ETKA is the 1H0 version. This connector does not have a locating ridge/tab so can be inserted either way into the LED light unit.
LED’s are polarity sensitive, i.e. they will not work if the “+” & “-“ are swapped around. So why do VW not specify the directional (1J0) connector for the LED light unit? I think that they cannot guarantee from their suppliers which pins on the LED light units will be “+” & “-“, so use the non-directional connector (1H0), so you can just remove, turn 180deg, & re-insert the connector!

Front Door card/trim removal
This applies to all MK7 Golf’s, Hatch, Estate/Variant/Sportswagen, 5dr, 3dr etc.

The only difference is that the front doors on the 5dr have a “slide” clip instead of a standard “push/pull” clip in one position, as marked on the photos.

Using a trim remover tool insert into the notch at the top inside front join edge of the internal handle and gently prise apart, going down the length of this front join. Then using a T-star (T-27 size) long reach bit/key undo the two bolts, one just revealed behind this cover, & the other below the handle. Then turn the plastic nut in the recess on the bottom edge of the door card 90deg using a 10mm spanner. Now the hard part! There are several push/pull clips to undo, by using a trim removal tool under the bottom edge of the door card to lever a big enough gap to put your fingers into (use clean cloths to protect the paintwork when using the trim removal tools). Then prise the door card from the door, along the bottom & side edges. Now the top corner on the door card furthest from the hinge is held on with a different “slide” clip, this undoes when you lift the door card up. So now lift the door card up (do not pivot outwards) of this slide clip & the top edge which is clipped in will now undo, lift the door lock side up further, & be carefully around the black plastic triangular trim by the mirror as this requires more force to lift the door card out of the top “clip strip”.

Now the door card is still retained by the electric connections & the “Bowden” cable from the door lock to the door handle. To undo the Bowden cable press the small hoop outwards/away along the main body & the whole mechanism will slide/pivot out. Now undo each electrical connection which tethers the door card to the door, & place the door card to one side.

There may be up to four connectors on the driver’s door & two connectors on the passenger door. The cables for these are short, & the electric window switch connector has to be undone mainly by feel as it is behind the sound-deadening material flap.

Drivers side electrical connections to undo:-
1. Alarm red LED indicator. (has a very small tab which has to be pressed away from the body)
2. Electric mirrors switch. (has a red locking tab which has to be pulled out & then the black tab pressed in).
3. Electric windows switch. (easy, press in tab).
4. Ambient illumination strip (if fitted). (easy, press in tab).
5. Central locking switch. (easy, press in tab).
The electric window switch & the alarm led connectors are difficult on the driver’s door.

Passenger side electrical connections to undo:-
1. Electric window switch. (easy, press in tab).
2. Ambient Illumination strip (if fitted). (easy, press in tab).

 

[golfdave]

Part 2 of 2

Modifying the door card panel:-
I noticed that on my 5dr, the LED exit/warning light unit when fitted with the connector was pressing into the underside of the door pocket. This would cause stress on the connector & failure over a period of time. The light unit will fit OK without modification, & you can leave it “as is”.

However to create a “bump/pocket” in the door card, proceed as follows:-
Because the card is made from fibres & glue, it requires being remoulded using heat/steam/moisture.
Fit one end of the repair wire (000 979 019 E) into each of the two slots in the 1H0 972 702 A, 2 pin connector, insert connector into the light unit, fit light unit into the door card & mark area where it touches the door card, then remove light unit.
Put on a pair of rubber washing up gloves, & get a bowl of boiling/very hot water & a cloth. Put cloth in water & squeeze out the water so you have a damp, but steaming cloth. Place this on the marked area with one hand & press very firmly into the door card to shape. Place your other hand up inside the door pocket so you can push against this. DO NOT over saturate the door card as you will damage it! This process will take some time, as you have to refit the light unit periodically to check that you have pushed in enough to create a “pocket” for the light unit/connector. Once you have the clearance needed then using a hair drier or hot air gun on a low setting, gently dry the area on the door card.

Now to undo the loom & wire up:-
First job is to release the big blue S004 connector from the controller. Gently press a small slot head screwdriver against the middle catch to release the purple handle, which can now pivot down forcing the connector out of the controller socket. Carefully cut the cable tie from the connector, then insert the same screwdriver between the blue flap & the white inner to release the catch & the whole inner will now slide away from the blue outer. Locate Pin5 (brown wire) & using a small pointed tool press in the metal catch on the pin to release it & it should pull out from the white body.

Now carefully cut & undo the fabric loom tape for several inches along the loom. To connect the new brown “GRD” wire to this brown wire I decided to join as per the factory. So I carefully marked a place where the wire would lay flat in the loom (space for the join to not get stressed) & VERY carefully using a scalpel removed the outer insulation for 1/4inch. I then held a stripped end of new brown “extension” wire against this bare section & passed a heat shrink solder join over the Pin5 & slid it over this new join & then heat shrunk it.

Now insert one end of repair wire (000 979 009 E)into Pin16 of the blue S004 connector. Again carefully mark a place where the wire would lay flat in the loom (space for the join to not get stressed), & cut off the other end & surplus repair wire. Now join on a new “extension” wire to this (I used purple colour). Now refit the connector together but do not plug back into the controller. Using fabric loom tape wrap the two “extension” wires together from the brown wire join. Wrap enough length of wire to get to the lower part of the electric window motor. Next route this new “loom” alongside the existing loom, down to the green cable tie at the rear of the electric window motor. Then tie this new “loom” to the existing loom using fabric tape at the white plastic loom holders & in between these points.

Next fit one end of the repair wire (000 979 019 E) into each of the two slots in the 1H0 972 702 A, 2 pin connector housing, & hold this next to the two “extension” wires. Now allowing enough length to connect to the exit/warning light unit & to get the joint position in a “neutral” area cut both the repair wires & “extension” wires where they meet (see my photos for positioning). Now connect these wires together, Pin1 on the 1H0 972 702 A, 2 pin connector housing to the brown “GRD” wire (Pin5), & Pin2 on the 2 pin connector to the purple, Pin16 wire. Now using the fabric loom tape, wrap this section, & re-wrap/make good the section by the blue connecter which you undid earlier! Now using a new cable tie, replace the one you removed from the blue connecter at the beginning. Now you can plug the blue connector back into the door controller.

Refitting the front door card/trim:-
Firstly check that all the clips are re-installed & are sitting in their “extended” positions. I found it easier to connect the electric window switch connector first, followed by the other connectors. Then re-connect the Bowden cable (reverse of removal). Now to re-fit the door card you have get the top edge in the clip strip first. To do this hold the door card facing you, so that the mirror side edge is forcing up into the plastic mirror “holder”, & the other “lock” side is about 4inches higher. Now carefully force/manoeuvre the mirror edge up /over & into the clip strip. Then you should be able to lower/press the rest of the top edge down into the clip strip. Now do now worry if you have not managed to capture the “slide clip” because it will press-fit in OK.

Now firmly press the door card where the press studs are, but not the bottom edge ones yet! Re-fit the upper bolt for the handle, plug the connector into the exit/warning light unit & then tape it to the door card. Do not properly fit in case the connector needs reversing! It is best practice when using VCDS to close the doors so that the “door open” display does not show on the central binnacle maxi-dot display. This is why you have to partially install & tape the light unit out of the way.

Now for VCDS:-
Plug in VCDS to re-code both the drivers & passenger door control modules as follows:-

· Select Control Module [Select]​

· [42-Door Elec, Driver] & [52-Door Elec, Pass] will need coding separately.​

· [Coding -07],​

· [Long Coding],​

· [Long Coding Helper],​

· Byte1,​

· Bit2, tick the box marked “Door exit/warning light installed”.​

​

If the lights do not work, remove the light unit from the door card, unplug the connector & rotate it 180deg & re-insert it. It should now work!

Now you can properly fit the light unit into the door card. You will need to gently flex the bottom edge outwards to get your fingers behind the trim to pull the bottom edge down, & then the light unit will press fit in easier. Then press the other studs in, turn the plastic nut 90deg, fit the lower bolt for the handle, re-fit the handle cover, etc.

Job done & enjoy another item which should be factory fit!

 

[golfdave]

Part 3 of 3
Rear, door exit warning lights, on a 5dr MK7 Golf

Audi cars get the exit warning lights in the rear doors as they are fitted with rear door controllers (part nos. 5Q0 959 595 B & 5Q0 959 395 B) with the control pin moving to socket S003 Pin 12. VW cars do not get exit warning lights to the rear door as they are not fitted with rear door controllers. VW prefers to “piggy-back” the control for the rear doors from the front door controllers. However you would think they would also be able to “piggy-back” the function of the exit warning lights from the front door controllers whilst they “piggy-back” the other functions! Idiots!!!

So how to solve this? You could run a “piggy-backed” cable from Pin 16 the front door controller in the front door, through into the main body, then out into the rear door. But that would be a lot of work, & complex. However there are people who have managed to connect up the lights & get them working by using the switched live from the lock switch.

Read forum member “Sootchucker’s” post here:-
My Pure White GTD DSG 5 Door | Page 3 | GOLFMK7 - VW GTI MKVII Forum / VW Golf R Forum / VW Golf MKVII Forum

VW parts list & approx costs in UK £
These are the original previous generation Passat door exit warning lights.
Item:- 1K0 947 411A, Door warning light housing (for incandescent bulb) red/white
Item.:- 1J0 971 972, 2 pin connector housing with directional clip.

This is the current (2015 ->) Passat door exit warning lights.
Item:- 3G0 947 411, LED Door warning light red/white £20.84 (x2)***
Item:- 1H0 972 702 A, 2 pin black connector housing, £3.31 (x2)***

You will need some spare clips, in case you break any
Item No.5:- 7L6 868 243, Clip, press/pull type, £0.89 (x4)***

You will also need to order VW repair wires (from VW dealer parts dept.). A repair wire is a 0.5m length of wire with the same metal pin/contact at each end.
Item:- 000 979 019 E, (A05 wire set), 1.5mm pin, 0.5mm wire, for the door LED warning light 2pin connector. £4.57 (x2)***
***=Only these items required from the dealers in my project!***

​

Other parts required:-
You also need 4m of 0.5mm2 auto wire (I got 2m purple & 2m brown colours) as “extension wire”, black cable ties, black fabric loom tape (Tesa brand is best). You could use “Scotch-Locks” to connect the cables, or solder & heat-shrink over, but I used special “self soldering” adhesive clear heat shrink joints (just use a hot air gun & heat deflector nozzle/damp cloth to protect surrounding trim).

Fitting
The rear doors are the same construction & have the same removal procedure as the front doors on a 3dr Golf, i.e. no “slide” trim clip. If you have manual rear windows you will have to remove the window winder handle. This is usually a press/slide clip, i.e. press/slide out a clip on the winder handle where it connects to the shaft. The handle will then easily come off the splined winder shaft which protrudes through the door card/trim.

There will be no more than two electrical connectors to undo to remove the door card/trim from the door:-
1. Speaker (tweeter).
2. Electric windows (if fitted).

Now to wire as per “Sootchuckers” post, door contact switch connector Pin5 for the switched live supply to Pin2 on the door exit warning light unit connector, & Pin2 (brown wire) on the electric window motor for the ground/earth to Pin1 on the door exit warning light connector. You will have to splice/join into both the existing wires. Loom routing & finishing will be similar procedures as for the front doors.

Personally I have not bothered with the rear doors as I am trying to fit all the options that VW could/should factory fit without major alterations or “cheats”. Also I feel that because the light is so close to the hinge side of the door it is of little functional use as a warning light.

 

[flygteye]

Thanks for this!! So you can use either of the Passat lights (old or new)?

 

[golfdave]

Thanks for this!! So you can use either of the Passat lights (old or new)?

correct!

 

[Universal_Remonster]

You can then replace the bulbs with LEDs like these: http://deautokey.com/product/volkswagen-door-warning-puddle-light-led-fits-many-models

 

[wave]

Awesome guide, thanks for this!

Question though: I don't understand why if you are tapping into the existing light panel output that the car has to be recoded? Can anyone tell my why I must recode the car, because from this DIY it seems like the puddle lights would piggyback off of the existing door panel lighting? Thanks!

 

[golfdave]

Awesome guide, thanks for this!

Question though: I don't understand why if you are tapping into the existing light panel output that the car has to be recoded? Can anyone tell my why I must recode the car, because from this DIY it seems like the puddle lights would piggyback off of the existing door panel lighting? Thanks!

If you have the ambient lighting in the door (Gt/highline spec) when you could I suppose splice into that wiring. BUT the door warning puddle lights would remain ON all the time at night as does the ambient lighting. You only want them to come on when the door is opened!

Therefore you have to join into the correct pin in the module,. GTD/GTI/R use this pin for the illuminated door sill strips.

 

[wave]

If you have the ambient lighting in the door (Gt/highline spec) when you could I suppose splice into that wiring. BUT the door warning puddle lights would remain ON all the time at night as does the ambient lighting. You only want them to come on when the door is opened!

Therefore you have to join into the correct pin in the module,. GTD/GTI/R use this pin for the illuminated door sill strips.

Thanks, now here's an even more ignorant question. If my GTI has the illuminated door sill strips, can't I tap into that wire for the puddle light to enable them to work correctly without coding?

 

[golfdave]

Thanks, now here's an even more ignorant question. If my GTI has the illuminated door sill strips, can't I tap into that wire for the puddle light to enable them to work correctly without coding?

yes you can splice into your existing wire for the illuminated door sill strips, that what forum user kevinm did in his thread.

 

[wave]

yes you can splice into your existing wire for the illuminated door sill strips, that what forum user kevinm did in his thread.

Oh, I didn't see kevinm's thread on it. But that's great, thanks so much for your help!

 

[golfdave]

Oh, I didn't see kevinm's thread on it. But that's great, thanks so much for your help!

I mentioned it & linked to it at the very first post in this DIY thread with in the first few lines,.........

 

[fullyswitched]

Tonight I added the driver's door warning lamp to my US spec '16 GSW 1.8TSI. The door control module coding works properly and just as described pins 16 & 5 are the power and ground respectively. I bought the FAW-VW lamps for sale on ebay which are original equipment VW as far as I can tell but they were intended for the Chinese market. One key detail about the Chinese market lamps I bought is that their 2 pin connector is offset so they fit the door trim panel without modification.

What do I consider to be signs that these ebay lamps are genuine VW parts? Apart from the molded in VW logo and being boxed/labeled as FAW-VW which is one of VW's Chinese vehicle manufacturing partners. The white body of the lamps is marked as containing glass fibers and I believe the lens is noted as being polycarbonate. There are cheaper materials out there. There is a diode inside the lamp. The bulbs inside the housings are Toshiba W5W, which is a typical VW/Audi bulb supplier. The connectors included have the correct part numbers molded in and they are marked as GERMANY. The wires included are the correctly terminated for the Golf VII door control module, but they do need to be elongated a bit to reach the door control module. The contacts on the wires are not junk. The lamps fit the door trim panels quite well. The lenses even came with a thin anti scratch film applied. I believe the boxes the lamps come in are marked as L3AD-947-411.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/181318478259?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

I'm using Morimoto LEDs and the lamps provide ample light.

 

[wave]

I mentioned it & linked to it at the very first post in this DIY thread with in the first few lines,.........

Ah, yes. Well no one ever said my reading skills were great

Thanks again man!

 

[golfdave]

Tonight I added the driver's door warning lamp to my US spec '16 GSW 1.8TSI. The door control module coding works properly and just as described pins 16 & 5 are the power and ground respectively. I bought the FAW-VW lamps for sale on ebay which are original equipment VW as far as I can tell but they were intended for the Chinese market. One key detail about the Chinese market lamps I bought is that their 2 pin connector is offset so they fit the door trim panel without modification.

The lamps fit the door trim panels quite well. The lenses even came with a thin anti scratch film applied. I believe the boxes the lamps come in are marked as L3AD-947-411.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/181318478259?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

.

Had a look at those & they look the same as the original ones which kenivm used (on his 3dr) & I mention in the start of this thread for the previous generation Passat.

My quote:-
These are the original previous generation Passat door exit warning lights.
Item:- 1K0 947 411A, Door warning light housing (for incandescent bulb) red/white
Item.:- 1J0 971 972, 2 pin connector housing with directional clip.

However they are not "handed" or "mirror image" so I thought that one would still interfere with the door pocket at the connector. I decided to chose the LED Passat units for full OEM LED as new status.