Interior door handle off?

My new A2 has a slight rattle in the passenger side armrest.
It's where the inside (smooth part) of the armrest grip meets the outside (textured part). The two bits go "tick" when I go over a bump
Bit of wedged cardboard has solved the problem for now, but....
Is it easy to take this handle off? I can see two Torx head screws under the armrest.
Anyone taken it off? Easy? What about the electric window switch? Goes back on OK?
cheers
Mark

Hi Mark,
The armrest is part of the entire interior part of the door, i.e. they can not be separated.

I recognize your problem and I've read about other people that agree that this 'smooth part' is a strange construction that creaks when squeezed...

If you insist on removing the door trimming (so all of it) to see for yourself, proceed as follows:
- pry off the grill from the tweeter (in front of the door handle). A torx screw will show itself
- unscrew that one and the the other two, found when looking under an upward angle towards the armrest section.
- unclip the trimming, all around. First time will be VERY hard. Done it 6 times myself and the clips still hold quite well. Start at the bottom, where there should be a (single finger sized) hole in the trim. Pull away from the door. Expect loud bangs as the clips unhook. There are about 6 or 8 of them in total.
- then remove the trim by moving slightly out and upward (the trim 'hangs' from where it meets the glass)
- unhook the door handle's metal rod
- if needed, follow the remaining wiring towards a connector and unplug that too. but in general most leads are long enough to allow you to put the trimming on a front seat.

Fitting is in reverse order. Make sure you have all clips (white studs on black rubber foot) are in the door, not on the trimming. They could have come loose in the wrong way while ripping them out.

Now you can see for yourself that the trim is made of one part. Or at least: without screws.

About the rattle: maybe you can (periodically) spray some teflon or silicon oil inside the edges where the two materials meet. That's how dealers tend to solve rattles too.

Good luck

Edo

--
Edo
(2003 Silver 1.4 Tdi Exclusive(SE), black interior, sport seats, heated mirrors, JVC KD-SH909RB cd-receiver, Infinity Kappa 63.1 + Vifa on-dash tweeters, 12" Subwoofer on 300w Amp)

Good info swiv. I too have a bit or a rattle in the front passenger door that seems to be coming from the same place. Mark, would you mind posting a follow-up here when you have had a go at yours? I'd be interested to hear how you got on...

Cheers!

Phil. TDi Sport, silver, with Climate and OpenSky.

Thanks for the advice swiv, I think I'll leave it for now
all the A2's I've seen have this problem, the handle clicks or creaks when you close the door. Design flaw. Mine rattles too. I'll try the silicone, or a better idea of a friend was to pry the bottom gap open a bit and glue the two bits together with a hot glue gun
Maybe this weekend!

I like the hot glue gun idea. Sticky and solid, fills the gaps. Just make sure you don't spill any.

Oh, if anyone is going for the door trim removal and wants to see where the fixing studs are, look here:
http://www.megapixel.dk/albums/visalbum.php?id=2117&page=1&kode=123456

But mind you, in these photos one stud is missing too (you can spot it's hole if you look for it).

Personally, I don't think I'll bother with any of the rattles in the my car. There just are too many:
on the outside:
- strange resonance in exhaust or thereabouts between 2500 and 3000 rpm
on the inside:
- somewhere inside both front doors, intermittent. Also in the b-column, where the seatbelts are fitted
- some 'beep' from the back of the car. Reminds me of 10+ year old cars I drove in
- rattle from inside the dash, as if something in the glovebox is loose (like spare bulbs, but they're not it!)
- resonance while accellerating (hard) from 2000 rpm upward
- rear seat catches 'clunk' on potholes.
- my own carradio's front rattles when going over uneven roads

So if I fix one, I'll still have to trace the others.
Must say I'm, a bit disappointed in Audi built quality in this respect. I was hoping for my car to be free of rattles, after only 5 months and 19000 km...

Edo

--
Edo
(2003 Silver 1.4 Tdi Exclusive(SE), black interior, sport seats, heated mirrors, JVC KD-SH909RB cd-receiver, Infinity Kappa 63.1 + Vifa on-dash tweeters, 12" Subwoofer on 300w Amp)

Well, me too
They will drive me mad for the first 3 months and then I'll ignore them
I have the glovebox rattle too, I think it's at the join between the passenger airbag/glovebox unit and the central console which contains the radio. I shall start with WD-40...

mark

I believe the dealers use a silicone spray to cure noises. WD-40 does dry out and you may not like the smell. Maybe the dealer can supply you with a near empty can for free?

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit

I bought a massive can of 3 in 1 silicone spray from Halfords and blasted
- both inside door handles/armrests
- where the glovebox meets the central radio console
- under the intrument panel
- where the passenger door trim meets the wing mirror blanking panel
All rattles gone - excellent and only cost a fiver
Thanks for the advice all.

Isn't Pledge or similar household polishes a silicone spray?

I thought that hollrescue. I have some '****pit shine' that is silicone. Then I wondered how I could modify the spray so that I could aim it accurately between trim panels... I'll get some Halfords type stuff me thinks...

Ha ha! Just previewed my reply before posting it, and 'c o c k' as in 'c o c kpit' is censored! What if we want to discuss male chickens?! Oh, thats tickled me!

Phil. TDi Sport, silver, with Climate and OpenSky.

We'll have none of that in here, we are gentle people, maybe even owners of male chickens. Lets drop the **** and bull stories

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit

Darn, censored me too!

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit

Allo Allo Allo, wots all this 'ere language?

Runboy started it Miss!

Phil. TDi Sport, silver, with Climate and OpenSky.

lol - Miss, I like that

phil

tell tale tit

I'm not letting you play with my conkers anymore, so ner.

Steve - 2002 1.4SE petrol, Silver, black/black interior, Then an identical replacement 2003 A2. Now a Toyota Corolla 1.6 T-Spirit

Your all conkers, let alone playing with runboys...!

Anyhoo, picked up some silicone lube (STP - £2.98 from Motaman, but half the size of Mark's Halfords can) so I'm gonna play with that instead and fix my silly rattle. Thanks for the advice everyone!

Runboy, how do you play with conkers on your own? Perhaps thats another topic...

Cheers!

Phil. TDi Sport, silver, with Climate and OpenSky.

[8)][16]About rattles: the bottom part of my seat progressively made more and more squeeky sounds (resembling the neighbours interacting "intimately" on their bed). Luckily the dealer is friendly enough to install a new seat part....

Jeroen

1.4 TDI X-tend dolphin grey