August 29, 2007: Sunroof Wind Deflector and Radar Detector Wires
Installed the sunroof wind deflector and hid the power wires leading to the radar detector.
The sun roof deflector went in easyish with NO HOLES to drill. The package from my VW Dealer ($88 w/tax) indicated it was for a Jetta four door and was too flat (no curve to follow the roof line). Included were two Phillips screws w/seats to protect the contact area between the Lexan like material of the deflector and the top of the Philips head, two metal brackets, plastic mounting clips that attached to the underside of the brackets, which were really just nipples to grip the bottom of the screw.
The brackets attached to the inside of the sunroof between the pop up deflector and the car. They hold to the roof using tension between the curving of the deflector and are attached by the Phillips screws. Total install time including clean up was 30 minutes.
Looks great! The Lexan, when bolted in, conformed to the curve of the roof. The door seal material, attached to the leading lip of the shield between the car and the shield, matches the rest of the car. While in motion the shield changes the interior of the car with the roof open and the windows down. The wind is now docile and doesn’t blast you with air (even at 100mph plus). Now it’s easier to have a conversation with the widows down at highway speeds.
The radar detector cord for my new 9500i from Escort was another issue. The new location for the radar detector is just under the rear view mirror toward the driver’s side. The mute button was installed just above the “not an ashtray” (NAA) space. I got the install cord with the blue led and the color/location matches the interior just fine, but the led is way too bright (just like the last one I had). I will fix that later.
The dash is 80% screws and 20% snap clips. Only damage suffered while disassembling the dash was the top of the steering column, which is; the top part that spans from the turn signal stalk to the wiper stalk; the vinyl between the column; and the plastic piece at the bottom of the instruments, are all one piece. On the top piece, which has two posts with snap clips just below the instruments, I broke one of the posts off. Have to order/price that one at the dealer sometime. :(
The cord was routed from the radar, around the rear view mount a couple of times (in case the suctions cups give way the cord will keep the radar from crashing to the floor) and was literally stuffed between the roof line and the windshield until it reached the B pillar. At the B pillar I didn’t have to remove the fabric covered trim, but did have to be careful to route it around the air bag.
I disassembled the lower part of the dash, steering column, shifter trim piece that surrounds the shifter, and the NAA with ESP switch to route the cord to the center of the dash just above the NAA. There is a trim panel just above the NAA that is rarely seen (unless you look up from the floor board) but is easily removed. I allowed the cord to run from the between the back of the NAA and the panel above sandwiching the wire between the two. Velcro on the panel above the NAA was used to mount the switch. I am going to need a different solution because the Velcro sticky backing has failed once from the heat already.
Assembly was the reverse of installation. All the screws on the dash are the same except for the three screws for the steering wheel.
AVIC-D3 and associated hardware are planned for the next install. The CVP intake from HPA is still pre-ordered and I am told mid September before its released.
2,500 miles and counting!!! My cheeks are sore from smiling!!!