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Tail light, reverse and fog not working.

ChrisV13

New member
Location
Yorkshire, UK
Hey everyone, hope someone might be able to help me out here.

I have a 2014(63) Golf Mk7 2.0 TDI and I my driver side inner lights have stopped working. I recently replaced the left inner as the casing was cracked, two days later my battery was going flat so I plugged it in to do a full charge.
When I went to move my car later it threw up the check tail light etc warnings on the dash.
I ran obd11 and the fault was the same as I'd had before and just thought the bulbs had gone, weird they'd both go together.
I had a spare W16W from my left light so tried that but nothing.

Opening up the unit yesterday I saw what appears to be rust/corrosion on the wiring loom and socket. (see enclosed photos)
Having dug around online and checking the fault codes I'd seen others had had similar issues but no answer was conclusive.
Something I did read was that potentially water ingress can make its way along the length of the wiring and cause the connectors to corrode.

If this is the case can I simply..
1. Clean them with contact cleaner.
2. Replace them? I saw the white bulb housing available but searches for the wiring loom proved unfruitful. All I got was upgrades from the Mk7 to Mk7.5 LEDs.
If it is replaceable how far does the wiring go? I'm led to believe it connects to a control unit in the boot liner somewhere.
3. If I take it to a garage is it going to be an expensive fix or is it realistically something a competent engineer could do?
I've recently had to replace the right rear abs sensor for £200, had I known what it was I'd have done that myself.
So looking to save some money.

Thanks in advance for any help and info.
Christian
 

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ZERO815

Autocross Champion
Location
Köln Germany
Car(s)
2017 GTI SE DSG
Find the water source and stop it. Is the foam tail light seal intact? By any chance are the hatch door grommets damaged or misplaced?

To fix your tail light get a new bulb housing from the dealer. W/ my knowledge and tools I would unlock the brown connector, remove all 4 terminals, cut them off and check if the wire copper isn't corroded, crimp 4 new terminals on, clean the brown connector housing, put the terminals back in, lock the housing, done. If you don't have the tools try to find a cut-off harness at a wrecker. Cut the corroded connector piece off and use butt-connectors to attach the used part.
 

ChrisV13

New member
Location
Yorkshire, UK
Thanks for the reply Zero, I will double check the seals but I've had the unit out and the foam seal seems fine.
What specifically are the hatch door grommets? Do you mean the plastic cover on the inside of the tail gate?

I guess there's no point trying to fix the connection if water is still able to get in. I've noticed after heavy rainfall or when I've washed my car that water will run down the inside of the boot frame.
I'll have a look for the parts then, I think I'll be able to manage rewiring. I've got access to the tools from a mate anyway.
 

ZERO815

Autocross Champion
Location
Köln Germany
Car(s)
2017 GTI SE DSG
The accordion grommets between body and hatch door.
 
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