How To PERMANENTLY Fix your MKV GTI Saggy Door Upholstery | For Under $80!

[@RatchetWrenches]

Sorry for the camera lighting in the beginning! We picked the brightest day unfortunately and the camera couldn’t autofocus in time 😬 make sure to check out our Miata content!

[@GrimKillazent]

i need help where you from bro

[@RatchetWrenches]

MerkzySZN were from somerset county new jersey

[@miguelgonzo88]

On behalf of all mk5 owners, we deeply appreciate your videos man.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Appreciate that, Thank you!

[@jacksonkahrs6334]

Ugha duga

[@CherylCold]

Great vid, nice how you are not afraid to show the mistakes that can happen. Now I know what my trimmer will go through when I send the GTI in for door cards and roof lining fix!

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you! And yeah everyone makes mistakes I want to show my faults to make sure you guys don’t have that happen or at least can avoid it as much as possible. Hahah yeah it’s gonna be put to work

[@jameswaite5603]

I have an mk5 with the same saggy door panels. Man, I love my VWs but it blows my mind how this kind of stuff is screwed up from the factory and it especially being the mk5 BEFORE VW slashed the budget for the Jetta/Golf series to be more price competitive. I began to get discouraged about the interior repairs I am having to do but then I got in some friends' Toyotas and Fords and saw their interiors LOL and instantly appreciated the simplicity of VW fixes :D

[@RatchetWrenches]

Hahah yeah they really screwed up and I feel you man! It’s definitely a little scary to replace and fix but it almost looks more complicated then it actually is. And hahah yeah some other manufacturers their interiors are god awful and so cheap.

[@HIZZLESHNIZZLE]

I found that using goo gone works best with removing the adhesive. just apply the goo gone, let it sit for like 5 minutes then wipe it off with an old rag. Then I used a wire wheel($5 at home depot) attached to my drill to get the rest of the old foam off. It's also good for making abrasions in the plastic which helps the glue adhere.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Awesome good to know!

[@MikeMcAuliffe-g2f]

Thanks for the video. I think we all can appreciate how this job is a beast! Great outcome.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you glad you enjoyed it!

[@jamescornell8184]

I did my own door panels also. Heat gun and a small flat pry bar works well on the plastic welds, to pull off and to reattach once the panel is covered. My 2 cents. Nice video, helpful.

[@RatchetWrenches]

James Cornell shit I didn’t even think of that! That would’ve been a solid way to go. Thanks for that input

[@jamescornell8184]

Ratchet Wrenches it took me a rear door screw up before I got a system for the other 3 doors. I’ve got an 08 white Gti like yours with a couple mods. Keep up the GTi content and the cool videos. Cheers!

[@RatchetWrenches]

James Cornell it’s all a learning experience for sure! But that’s awesome man and yeah we’re just trying to come up with some new content!

[@adamkorekach9936]

I’m gonna try the heat gun for sure on my VW Passat! Thanks!

[@travishohenberger7911]

Thanks for showing that. Don't worry about the negative feedback on this one. There are areas for improvement. You know that. The viewer knows that. And it is helpful to know the risks going in before one even attempts it. You could pull that driver side, do it again, and I guarantee it will go even better than the passenger side. The "professional" aspect is just a matter of practice. Keep pushing honest content and that is a service in and of itself.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you! Honestly we greatly appreciate this comment, this was the first time doing the trim upholstery and we tired our best to provide the most in depth tutorial regardless of our faults. We put it out there for the viewers to hopefully try themselves and save them some money! Thank you, we appreciate you!

[@crazy8sdrums]

Thank you for this. My Rabbit has the same issue and this vid helped a lot to learn how to fix it. TYVM!

[@RatchetWrenches]

No problem! Thanks for watching!

[@MegaTeaque]

Had to do this for my markIV back in 2014. Luckily it doesn’t have that permanent glue. They finally stopped the vinyl on the newer cars like when I had a 2016 Jetta. VW vinyl is bad. It was cool getting to change it to my own custom color though.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Ahh lucky yeah! The permanent glue is horrible lol. It's definitely cool to be able to change it to whatever color you want

[@KARIMKARIM-hd1zj]

thank you from The Kingdom of Morocco

[@RatchetWrenches]

No problem! And thank you for watching!

[@Dr_mvks]

Thank you so much for this video!! I have to do this for all 4 doors…

[@RatchetWrenches]

No problem! And damn unfortunately that doesn’t surprise me!

[@samyouhnis6058]

GTI content! love this shit man! your mkv is clean as hell!

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you, sorry we’ve been really busy with the Miata to get it where we want it for the time being!

[@echodivy4565]

Agreed with you!

[@simplyspeed4108]

great video, covered everything perfectly. i suggest using Lacquer Thinner or maybe Acetone when scraping off the glue if it’s a little difficult getting it to come off, other than that everything so far has come out perfectly for me just need to lay the fabric and put it all back on 👍 (then do it on the other side 🙄)

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thanks for the comment! And true I didn’t think of those. They’d prob eat that glue right up! I’m glad yours is turning out well!

[@stellarosa9121]

Bought my very first gti 2 days ago .....already dug out my staple gun🙃

[@RatchetWrenches]

Yeah unfortunately these cars are notorious for saggy headliners and upholstery. They used too much material from factory

[@lavachemist]

Nice. That didn't seem to be too difficult. I can't wait to fix my door cards! Thanks for the video.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you! And yeah it’s more just tedious and having to be careful with the plastic. Otherwise it’s a pretty easy job. But hahah I bet, it gets to a point where enough is enough with the saggy material. Did you or do you have saggy headliner? That was a b*tch when I replaced it haha

[@lavachemist]

@@RatchetWrenches Yeah, I have saggy headliner, saggy door cards, saggy rear seat panels. All the sagginess unfortunately haha It really detracts from the car a lot. I'm sort of ashamed to let people see inside because it makes it seem like I have the crappiest hoopty ever, even though it's actually mechanically a pretty good car.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Ahhh man! But I can relate, for a period of time I’d hate having ppl in my back seat because the headliner legit sagged in their face 🤣 I just said screw it and replaced it all. Agreed it’s such a good car! As long as you maintain it properly it’ll last you a long time!

[@georgecatalinnicuta8559]

It was good to specify that the window and mirror control panel does not come out as easily as it seems in the video, especially if it has never been removed. I struggled for about half an hour to remove it to change the mirror control button. I broke some plastic tools in the process because that plastic from the factory is very hard. Anyway, it's a very good tutorial to give an idea of ​​how to do it for those who want this process, one of which is me. One question, did you use fabric material with a sponge on the back? it's hard for me to decide which material to use, I was thinking of an Alcantara imitation.

[@lizlaughin7806]

Volkswagen interior does not hold up in hot states 😒 so disappointed with the reupholster shop quotes to fix 4 saggy doors thanks for this video 📹 👏

[@RatchetWrenches]

Yeah they really dropped the ball on the interior for this generation. And I’m sure it’s really highly priced ! But no problem!

[@bubbaskywalker3129]

Helpful vid. I need to reglue the vinyl inserts on the door panels of my Mk5 jetta wagen. Hopefully I can scrape and reuse the vinyl because they are molded to shape.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you and yeah you’ll need to try and reuse or maybe a custom upholstery shop can do it

[@bubbaskywalker3129]

@@RatchetWrenches Hope we can reuse it. Trying to stick to a shoestring budget. 🤣

[@akhil6987]

I tried this before .upholstery went well but the panel kept poping out when weight was applied . I re-melted the plastic bits with a soldiering gun .how is your panel holding up with the contact glue?

[@RatchetWrenches]

Gotcha and honestly ours was holding up really well for the year or so, I sold it so I’m not sure how it is to this day unfortunately

[@MK5Snowboarder]

Ahh I found this video and you already did the doors fabric :) Now I would enjoy to see you do the fabric in the back seat ;)

[@isaacswisher7799]

I know I’m still looking at trying to just take out the panel. Have tou seen a video with it?

[@MK5Snowboarder]

@@isaacswisher7799 I havent been looking very hard to find one. I’m just dealing with it for now :(

[@isaacswisher7799]

I did it, if u need help lmk

[@MK5Snowboarder]

@@isaacswisher7799 how was it? i'm guessing you have the 2 door?

[@isaacswisher7799]

@@MK5Snowboarder yes I have the 2 door, I’m in the process of the rear panels now, used a heat gun to get the speaker out from the panel I need to re upholster, broke them on both sides but they went back together with glue and u can’t even tell they broke there perfect

[@slimpickens8589]

When you glued the upholstered piece back to the door, how did you clamp it together so the glue could set?

[@RatchetWrenches]

I didn’t end up clamping anything. I let gravity do it’s job. But you can use some plastic clamps with some small pieces of wood pressing down on it.

[@JulitoPapitoo]

Use a nylon brush to clean off the old glue, it works great just scrubs right off.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Noted! Thanks, I’ll do that with the rear trim pieces

[@vitalbrace5094]

nicely done!

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you!

[@timjoo5690]

Nice vid, very helpful. What adhesive and procedure did you use to attach the fabric section onto the door back on?

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you! And I used this adhesive, amzn.to/2T2Ds72 and the procedure is pretty much the same as the one here just a tad bit different in the removal process

[@Mroberto7.077]

Just wondering how many cans of adhesive did you use ?

[@RatchetWrenches]

If I recall correctly it was just one!

[@jazminwallace7846]

Do you have a video for the back part of the car?

[@RatchetWrenches]

I don’t unfortunately! I’m sure there’s a bunch of write ups online that show very quality pics and explanations

[@jackattack6045]

Your Miata is sick though ngl

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you. Just wait for the turbo

[@funkblack]

Do you have any door panel rattles after taking it apart? It drives me crazy. I took it down again and tried to fix it but couldn't locate the problem.

[@RatchetWrenches]

I don’t have any rattles no, but I’ve had rattles before due to some of those aluminum tabs not being in the plastic holder anymore and they just rattle around all over the place. Have you seen it any of the tabs are missing?

[@nicklewdor1290]

If you want to use the old liner that was on there already because mine is leather how do you take the sticky stuff off the old leather liner?

[@RatchetWrenches]

Honestly I’m not sure because whatever you do to scrap it off you risk potentially tearing thru the leather, and chemicals could ruin the leather too. I’d say the best way unfortunately is to get new leather

[@HatckBackBaby]

I dont know if you're going to see this but do you have to disconnect the battery

[@RatchetWrenches]

It never hurts to!

[@danielmarquez8517]

Where did you get the cloth from? Link please

[@jessicah3450]

Did you do the upholstery on the rear panels in your GTI? Mine are sagging worse than the doors. I have the fabric held in place with a strip of cardboard shoved between the panels, it keeps it in place but looks bad. Just finished my headliner.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Hey I haven’t done my rear panels yet, they’re not as bad as I thought. I might try and hold out on replacing them for a while. But that’s actually kinda clever how you have it held in but YeH I bet it’s an eyesore

[@isaacswisher7799]

I can help

[@mattm9]

How big is the speaker attached to the door card?

[@ggwyatt]

there are the 4 inch and the 6.5 inch

[@AngieS07_]

Can u tell me please some modern radios (good) for 2008 gti volkswagen?

[@RatchetWrenches]

This is the one I used when I had my VW amzn.to/35MW3qx

[@rlindros16]

How was it reupholstering the headliner? The one in my gti is starting to sag.

[@RatchetWrenches]

It wasn’t too hard. The hardest part is getting the headliner out the hatch. Plus I don’t have a sunroof so it made it easier. If you have a sunroof it’ll be tough

[@rlindros16]

Ratchet Wrenches sounds good. No sunroof here. I’m gonna have to find some fabric and give it a shot. Thanks for the info.

[@RatchetWrenches]

Ryan Lindros okay yeah it’ll be easier without that sunroof for sure. Just make sure to disconnect the battery when removing the side pillars because they all have live airbags. So other than that it’s just removing plastic trim and then maneuvering the headliner out the hatch! Best of luck 👍 messages on Instagram or Facebook if you have any questions. Links are in our bio

[@melissamitchell1937]

Dang! I was hoping to learn of a solvent or solution to rid of the old sticky foam & adhesive funk. That stuff is super annoying.

[@darrellroireau4061]

Maybe a wire wheel would blaze that shit off.

[@hunterfairchild3854]

Just finished mine in plaid with matching rears and matching headliner. This is quite a or deal

[@RatchetWrenches]

That’s awesome that you got the plaid headliner and yeah it’s not an easy task lol

[@kylensloyer]

Do you still have this car? If so hows everything holding up

[@RatchetWrenches]

Sold it many years ago unfortunately

[@alanawampler6455]

Noticed you must be a drummer.

[@RatchetWrenches]

😂 why would you say that?

[@hunterfairchild3854]

A wire brush takes the old glue off effortlessly

[@WiseRebellion]

You should’ve done red

[@RatchetWrenches]

Was going to but I couldn’t remember the headliner color name so i didn’t want two different reds haha

[@declansimpsonbmx7840]

My Golf V doesnt sag and im hoping it doesnt

[@RatchetWrenches]

You’re lucky! Most do hahaha

[@johnathanellis9010]

Great video. Seems tedious. I’ll look into paying a professional

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you. Yeah it’s very tedious

[@ggwyatt]

it says it’s for under 80$ to do all of it, but the headliner itself is 100$

[@RatchetWrenches]

Hmm idk which brand headliner material you search but it’s $49.99. The exact one I used is down below in the description

[@jobouchard1862]

Im probably the only one that didn’t have this problem 😂

[@RatchetWrenches]

Hahah you’re lucky! It’s notorious for the mk4-mk5 generations 😬

[@KaiLew]

Fuck this took forever sweat and tears not worth it

[@RatchetWrenches]

It’s worth it, that saggy headliner material is such an eye sore

[@albanianstars5645]

not professional . from 1 to 10 i give you 3

[@RatchetWrenches]

Cool I’m glad we got graded

[@erikastvg365]

Looks terrible :D

[@RatchetWrenches]

Thank you!