Control panel knob replacement

[Skelly]

Hi, recently upgraded from lifetime of camping to a 2015 T5 Ocean. It is in amazing condition apart from the dodgy control knob issue which means menu selection is a bit hit and miss.
I purchased a replacement black knob (£10) from the VWCC shop online here as the official VW one (now £55!) was not available at the time. It is now back in stock.

I have studied the various videos and guides and feel apprehensive but up for changing the control panel knob. My questions are (a) has anyone done the DIY replacement on the black copy knob and if so any tips and does it work ok? (b) is the VW knob any better from a performance /fitting point of view and worth me getting this part over the copy?

many thanks

 

[flying banana]

stick the copy one in. can't be worse than the original worn out one. if it works ok no need to worry,won't look any different from standard. i would invest in some trim removal tools to help avoid damage to the trim when prizing it out.

 

[Skelly]

Thanks, that was my feeling.

 

[Sallyf]

What is the VWCC club online? When I looked for it online, it came up with an address in Istanbul! Is that right?

 

[vbk1975]

What is the VWCC club online? When I looked for it online, it came up with an address in Istanbul! Is that right?

Replacement VW California Central Control Panel Knob (Black)

Replacement VW California Central Control Panel Knob (Black), fix the fault in the menu selection panel on the VW California Ocean/Beach

vwcaliforniaclub.com

 

[-Goldie-Horn-]

Pardon our interruption...

I bought the above from eBay and did it myself see my post about it here https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/thread...anel-knob-whilst-keeping-original-knob.53775/

 

[pchmlk]

If you search my posts I did it recently. Easy, satisfying and quick to do. Don’t be scared of doing it.

 

[Skelly]

Just looping back. I fitted the knob last year. All went smoothly and has worked a treat ever since. I managed to change the knob without detaching the ribbon connectors which people advised and while a bit fiddley with my large hands, was ok.
Sally F - the VWCC shop is the shop for this site! https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/

 

[Poppins]

Hi, recently upgraded from lifetime of camping to a 2015 T5 Ocean. It is in amazing condition apart from the dodgy control knob issue which means menu selection is a bit hit and miss.
I purchased a replacement black knob (£10) from the VWCC shop online here as the official VW one (now £55!) was not available at the time. It is now back in stock.

I have studied the various videos and guides and feel apprehensive but up for changing the control panel knob. My questions are (a) has anyone done the DIY replacement on the black copy knob and if so any tips and does it work ok? (b) is the VW knob any better from a performance /fitting point of view and worth me getting this part over the copy?

many thanks

I just replaced the original knob with a much more robust one I bought after reading discussions here. The process of removing the control panel unit is worth remembering: it is also how you manually lower the roof if it gets stuck!
I didn't need to disconnect the wiring ribbons in order to get the circuit board out.
You will need a T6 . That's not a VW Transporter model, it's the size of Torx screwdriver to release the circuit board! Guitar plectrums or similar plastic tools for trim removal recommended. I had a kit I bought for replacing a mobile phone battery. If you find videos on YouTube, watch them through a couple of times before you start!
I removed both the broken knob and the clear plastic surround. The black knob looks fine once fitted and just pushed onto the metal spindle. Nice to know I can just pull it off and push another into place without all the dismantling of fascia etc. if needed in future.