Hi, I’ve discovered a hole in my steering gaiter. Found replacement on EBay. Has anyone replaced this, if so is it a tough job? Looks like there’s not much space to work down there. Part number is 1H2419523B. Thanks, Paul
A while back there was a guy on eBay making / selling heat resistant covers for MK1 / 2 gaitors, not sure if your MK3's would be similar enough to allow it too? They're a tough'ish fabric weave and wrap around over the gaitor with a stud fastener / strap so you don't need to remove anything putting it on. At the price / likely hassle of fitting your replacement it might help future proof things so there's no next time? ... or if you can live with the hole beneath, protect / cover it up instead. He's none listed at the moment, but maybe worth a message (could even be on here too). https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/chrisvw16v
Used heat shield fabric on mine on mk2 with stainless ties as the exhaust is super close. Was cheap enough on ebay for a kit.
Ah, so it’s happened due to heat from the exhaust? I’ll see if I can get that protector cos it might happen again.
Regarding the actual replacement method; you'll need to separate the joint between the steering column and the steering rack/uj. There's a piece of tubing making the join, with two through-bolts, accessed from inside the cabin. Remove the plastic cover from the base of the steering column, and the trim below the pedal box if necessary. Two 13mm nuts fasten onto threaded studs attached to a plate. After removing them and the plate, it may still be awkward to slide the tube in either direction to free the connection. The parts concerned have two large flat faces for bolting the plate to, so there's no problem with losing the steering wheel alignment when refitting (unless it ends up 180 degrees out). The nuts are a special type, slightly squashed to help prevent them unwinding if they become loose. There's a recommendation to use new ones when refitting, but I've got away with not doing so. Another tricky point is the cable-tie securing the lower end of the boot to the steering rack. It's difficult to reach, with the crowded engine compartment of a 2-litre. It may be easier to reach from below, after removing the metal block attached to the subframe/crossmember. The boot does tend to degrade from exhaust heat with the larger engines, where the downpipe is quite close by.
