# Lower Outside Door Trim



## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

Gents,

I have done a search and could find no previous posts on this.

I noticed recently a rusty coloured patch on the offside rear lower door trim, the black rubber/plastic strip along the bottom of the door. Further investigation and prodding dropped rust onto the drive from within the strip so it looks like a simple replacement of this strip, rather than any work on the door is all that should be necessary. Has anyone else had this problem? The strip looks like it is attached by a couple of bolts and perhaps a couple of clips so should be pretty easy to change. Has anyone removed/replaced these? Also any idea what the cost is?

Thanks in advance

Cheers

Ian


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## Zaphh (Jul 5, 2008)

The pages of the TOC are not back unfortunately. Otherwise, you would see that there is a topic dedicated to rusting lower trims.

As you deduced, you "only" need to change the strip. This should be taken by the guarantee if you have one. I believe VW made some new strips whose central core don't rust anymore.

P.


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## invisiblewave (Sep 22, 2008)

I got one from Gilbert Lawton in Altrincham for about 45 quid, but beware, I was unable to fit mine. The design has changed slightly, there's now a soft rubber lip along the inside that makes it all but impossible to fit yourself (or myself, anyway). It's still sitting by my desk, I was planning to casually ask the dealer to fit it when it goes in for a service in a couple of weeks.

There are two very delicate screws that come with it, when you remove the old ones, they'll snap (they're behind the screwdriver holes you can see if you look from the inside). Nothing to worry about so long as you can get the new piece on, and mine's been in place without the screws for several months now. Once those are off (ie, snapped), slide the whole piece towards the rear (I think, could be the other way) and it will come out of the half dozen slots that it fits into on the door panel. Thinking about it, I suspect it slides towards the front of the car, because I seem to remember that I couldn't get it off unless the door was open most of the way.


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## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

Thanks guys I will discuss with my dealer. I am so glad it is just a trim piece, my initial concern was that the interior of the door was rusty on a 3 year old car.

Cheers

Ian


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## Prince Ludwig (Mar 24, 2007)

I believe this was discussed a while ago but appears not to have been added to the FAQ. I had the problem occur but the parts were replaced under warranty. However, the replacement parts don't seem to have been redesigned and have started bulging out again due to the corrosion... :sly:

Harry


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## adamkodish (Mar 5, 2006)

*Me too*



Prince Ludwig said:


> I believe this was discussed a while ago but appears not to have been added to the FAQ. I had the problem occur but the parts were replaced under warranty. However, the replacement parts don't seem to have been redesigned and have started bulging out again due to the corrosion... :sly:
> 
> Harry


I had my front door strips replaced about 2 years ago and they are beginning to bulge again. Your dealer might argue that you've caught the trims on a kerb rather than it being a corrosion issue.

Adam


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## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

Can any of you confirm which warranty these were claimed under? I would presume (hope?) that it would be under the body warranty (which is still valid on mine) rather than the mechanical which it is not. Also has anyone taken the strip apart to see what is corroding and whether there is anything we could do with a new strip to stop this happening again?

Cheers

Ian


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## n968412L (Apr 23, 2009)

Anybody got a picture of this? I'm having a little trouble visualizing which bit of trim is the subject of this thread....

Thanks

M


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## Prince Ludwig (Mar 24, 2007)

It's the bit of black trim at the bottom of the doors.

Harry


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## n968412L (Apr 23, 2009)

Outside or inside... sorry...... can't quite get it !


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## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

Outside along the bottom of the door. 

I have taken mine off and there is a strip of plastic with a strip of rubber on the inside held on by a piece of steel which rusts and bubbles up pushing the strip outwards. Having looked, and prodded, all my other doors I think they have all gone. Doh.


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## mrhavis (May 1, 2010)

Could someone please post some photos?

Thank you


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## Zaphh (Jul 5, 2008)

jimay said:


> Contrary to information above, there is/was no thread on this problem. There are other postings on other spot rust problems, but not this one.


 See Lower Door Trim Strip Corrosion in the FAQ. 

Fortunately, I had taken some of the photos to show my dealer when I needed to have mine changed (they were taken by the VW warranty). 

Here is the trim strip : 











that originally got to rust and bulge: 



















The solution is to remove it as the door itself is not corroded: 










By doing this you will probably snap the screw that holds it (fish for it inside the rubber seal in the inside of the door) : 










In order to remove the strip, slide it backwards. The strips should be taken by the warranty since I think that ALL phaetons lower trims are subject to this corrosion (apart maybe from those who live in Nevada and never see salt on the streets). 

And finally, a picture showing the rusted strip along with a new replacement one : 









(photos courtesy of Michael Moore). 

P. 

_URL to original post corrected - Michael_


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## mrhavis (May 1, 2010)

Thank you very much!


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## n968412L (Apr 23, 2009)

Thanks very much for this - I had not realised that these were seperate items from the steel of the door! Explains, possibly, the confusion in this thread http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4906181-Black-trim-on-sills-and-under-bumpers 

Admittedly over the phone the parts boy at the local VW dealer said that there was no touch up for the black lower body paint as they were seperate parts. Clearly this is not the case for the sills and the body, but can see now how it applies to the doors. And to think I'd never noticed they were seperate! 

Still leaves me with original question - what black paint do I use to touch up a couple of scratches on the sills? 

Regards 

M


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## Stinky999 (Sep 14, 2006)

I had the same experience, i.e., replaced originals under warranty and the replacements are now bulging too. I thought the dealer indicated that they had replaced them with the updated part, I guess not.


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## invisiblewave (Sep 22, 2008)

Looking at the one I bought, it seems that at some point there was a substantial redesign of the part. The p/n on it is 3D0.854.939 if that helps.


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## Irish Phaeton (Sep 6, 2010)

*Door strip corrosion*

I am heading towards my second set of door strips ( in a 2008 car) but these will be outside warranty. Should these be covered by the anti corrosion warranty? 
Is there any way this part could be waterprofed when fitting new ones to prevent this happening again? 
It's obviously a common recurring problem. 
Hugh


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## adamkodish (Mar 5, 2006)

Irish Phaeton said:


> I am heading towards my second set of door strips ( in a 2008 car) but these will be outside warranty. Should these be covered by the anti corrosion warranty?
> Is there any way this part could be waterprofed when fitting new ones to prevent this happening again?
> It's obviously a common recurring problem.
> Hugh


 Hugh

I had my second set fitted earlier this year and unlike on the first occasion didn't have to discuss the issue at length with my dealer. On that occasion they eventually accepted it was a corrosion issue rather than a user vs door vs kerb issue.

Adam


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## gartracescort (Apr 4, 2010)

Was that under warranty? Liverpool said it was an attachment to the body, rather than body corrosion and therefore not covered.


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## adamkodish (Mar 5, 2006)

The first time was a goodwill repair.
The second time was a warranty repair but I don't know if it was the anti-corrosion warranty or the extended warranty.

Adam


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## perfrej (Dec 24, 2009)

*Goodwill*

I think there is a general goodwill situation with them trims. I got mine replaced for free, outside of warranty but on VW goodwill. They need not be painted as far as I know. 

/per


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## hylko (Nov 17, 2009)

*same problem*

Having the same problem on 3 doors 

Pics are off to vw after sales and hope to hear soon what they offer. 
Think they might do 50 - 50 deal as they told me on the phone its 
not covered on the corosion warranty. 

will keep you updated. 

Hylko


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## jkuisma (Nov 23, 2009)

Hmmph... Replaced all four only a bit more than a year ago (at my own expense). Now, seems already like the new ones are slightly bent although they were supposed to be of the new, "improved" type. Looks like this is a never-ending saga and I, for one, am not prepared to pay for them again in less than two years  

Jouko


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## EnglishPhaeton (Dec 6, 2010)

jkuisma said:


> Hmmph... Replaced all four only a bit more than a year ago (at my own expense). Now, seems already like the new ones are slightly bent although they were supposed to be of the new, "improved" type. Looks like this is a never-ending saga and I, for one, am not prepared to pay for them again in less than two years
> 
> Jouko


 
Same problem here (x2)!! Crazy design flaw. I have a new set sitting here waiting to go on but I'm not sure how, the little screw fasteners disintegrated before I even discovered this forum! 
A more in depth step by step (idiots guide for me) would be great if anyone has first hand knowledge/experience of the procedure (I have read the thread but am more confused about the disintegrated screws than when I started)! 

Thanks 
Stu


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## EnglishPhaeton (Dec 6, 2010)

Irish Phaeton said:


> I am heading towards my second set of door strips ( in a 2008 car) but these will be outside warranty. Should these be covered by the anti corrosion warranty?
> Is there any way this part could be waterprofed when fitting new ones to prevent this happening again?
> It's obviously a common recurring problem.
> Hugh


 Hugh, 

If the replacements were fitted as part of a warranty claim then my understanding is that the warranty on the part replaced starts again in its entirety from the replacement date. can't remember if you are in the Republic, so not sure about the legal position, but its worth pestering VW about, especially given the fact that the part is obviously crap!:facepalm: 
Go on, annoy them! 

Stu


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## stefanuk (Jul 7, 2010)

I have the same problem on all 4 of my lower door trims, but just haven't got round to having them replaced yet. 
I wonder for all of us that when they are replaced, covering the metal backing rod in Waxoyl, to stop any further corrosion, hopefully then not having to renew them every couple of years or so. I used to use this over the years riding bikes in all weathers and never had any problems with corrosion. For those of you who are not aware, motorcycles have absolutely no corrosion protection on them from new and rust at the slightest sign of rain! 

Stefan


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

stefanuk said:


> ...covering the metal backing rod in Waxoyl, to stop any further corrosion...


 Stefan: 

I believe that the metal rod within the lower door trim strip is fully encased by the plastic material that forms the visible portion of the trim strip. For this reason, it would not be possible to add additional protection. 

The problem with the 'original' strips (the strips that corroded on MY 2003 and 2004 vehicles) was that this metal rod was not adequately coated/protected before being encased within the plastic material. 

Michael


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## JockMacMad (May 18, 2011)

*Took mine in today*

The VW Warranty guy agreed to do all 4 of them without any pushing once I opened the printout of this thread


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## stefanuk (Jul 7, 2010)

Aah thanks Michael......i didn't realize that the rod was fully encased within the plastic. 

Stefan


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## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

I replaced the right rear on my car 18 months or so ago at my own cost. The remaining 3 panels have now also gone so I raised ths with the dealer when it was in for some other routine work.

Initial response the dealer got from VW UK was that this wasn't a body warranty issue as these are 'trim' and treating as a good will issue they were not prepared to sanction a repair. I therefore escalated to the VW Luxury car centre and spoke to a guy there. Having taken down all my details and after initially claiming that this must be the result of accident damage he said he would talk to the dealer and come back to me. Spoke to them again yesterday and having tried to pass the costs for this repair onto the dealer, who declined this generous offer, they have now told me that they can take it no further. A very disappointing response as even if they had only offered me the parts at cost or similar I would have been happy. As it is I am a somewhat hacked off.

This also raises a number of questions in my mind:-
Firstly, what is goodwill and how do they decide whether there is any left in a car? For info I bought the car as a 3 month old demonstrator from a VW dealer in Hampsire and it has been serviced fully by the local VW dealer in Worcester. There have been various warranty issues with the car but these have been covered either by the original VW warranty or its replacement with Warranty Direct. Does the above indicate no goodwill from either dealer or VW?

Secondly, given that the construction and design of this part, mild steel encased in plastic, is it reasonable to expect this to last in our climate given it's location and the affects of road spray etc. Surely this is a design fault and VW should fix the original design and offers us all replacements? Wishful thinking I know but.....

Ian


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## dlouie (Oct 31, 2008)

Maybe it would be prudent to somehow treat the new or existing undamaged lower panels befor putting them back on with some sort of rubberized elastomeric coating. Anti-corrosion Wax spray might be a good idea for the whole area!

Sorry I didn't see the above post regarding the encapsulation. It doesn't make sense. If the metal was completely encased in plastic, there would be no opportunity for moisture to penetrate and start the corrosion process. There must be areas where the metal must be supported during the plastic molding process. This is the area we need to seal. Look for them carefully.

Damon


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## Paximus (Aug 26, 2011)

Ian: That is disappointing, as I was hoping to have all four of mine replaced under the UK's 12 year corrosion warranty at next service using the precedents in this forum. Surely not all the dealer replacements were in the US and Canada?

Mine drop loads of rusty material on the road if they are lightly pushed. If that isn't perforation of the metal (albeit an embedded rod) I don't know what is.

This particular trim is arguably a proper piece of the car, since there are no models without it, and it's not an option, and if you left it off the bodywork would be visibly incomplete. It's rather a feature, designed to stop the paint on the base of the open door scraping on the pedestrian pavement.

And it's not as if the warranty requires a part to be welded to the carrosserie to be covered, because the doors aren't welded on! I don't think they are megabucks, but that's not the point.

Maybe this is one of those circumstances where the outcome depends on the way you approach the dealership. Michael made a post on that, but I can't find it right now.


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## Paximus (Aug 26, 2011)

Just trying to find out when these parts were improved by VW. I found that the suffix letters were changed during 2008, but I can't find any info on the 2010 refresh, other than the recent part no quoted in this thread which is the same as 2008. Has anyone any experience of late model parts? Is the newer design awkward to put on?

The part nos for 2004 US cars given by vipa/Viorel in one of the related threads back in 2007 was:
3D0 854 939 B V7S
3D0 854 940 B V7S
3D0 854 949 V7S
3D0 854 950 V7

The part nos for post-03/2008 vehicles in colour 'basalt' listed here as MY2009 are:
3D0 854 939 C V7S - left front
3D0 854 940 C V7S - right front
3D0 854 949 C V7S - left rear SWB
3D0 854 950 C V7S - right rear SWB
3D7 854 949 A V7S - left rear LWB
3D7 854 950 A V7S - right rear LWB

The fixing parts are listed as:
N 909 602 01 - hex socket head locating bolt, M4X7, 5X12 [is this a pack of 8 pcs?]
N 013 089 2 - threaded pin, M5X8
N 106 020 01 - threaded pin, M5X10 [alternative part to the above]


Regarding the warranty discussion issue with VW, the parts are listed under Exterior Equipment/Protective Strips/Cover Strips, not under Trim. Probably means nothing.


Chris


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## JockMacMad (May 18, 2011)

*UK Repairs*

Mine goes in next week to have them done under warranty in London.


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## Paximus (Aug 26, 2011)

Hi JockMcMad,

Is that under the dealer's vehicle warranty (ie not the corrosion warranty)?

Cheers,
Chris


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## vipa (Nov 20, 2006)

I have to change them again...It seems that on this outside door trim design its life expectancy is around 4 years (if you drive the car in winter!).


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## Faszination (Aug 18, 2007)

Paximus, mine are as bad and I also get rusty water deposits on the sill.

JockmcMad, is this under the body warranty or under 'Goodwill'? Both my dealer and the VW Luxury Car line were adamant that these are 'trim' items and therefore not covered by the anti corrosion warranty. Would be interested to know how you have persuaded your dealer differently?

As for approaching the dealer differently I am not sure how I could have done this. I have used the same group for the last 4 years for all my work and have never had any cause for complaint and to be honest I don't believe this is a dealer issue it is a VW issue. I will admit to getting very frustrated when talking to the VW Luxury Car line as they refused to awknowledge any culpability for the faulty part and I felt tried various excuses to get rid of me. When this failed they tried to push the liability onto the dealer in the form of a 'Goodwill' claim and when this failed gave up altogether.

As I said before this is not major stuff as they are not that expensive but it is just disappointing that VW would rather save a few pennies rather than sort out an obvious design fault with their premium vehicle.

Ian


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## JockMacMad (May 18, 2011)

*Well*

Well it's not 3rd party/dealer warranty I have not used that. As I have not, nor ever have been to this dealer before I am presuming its the corrosion warranty.

I am taking it in this morning let me see what they say.


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## Realist42 (May 14, 2006)

Faszination said:


> Paximus, mine are as bad and I also get rusty water deposits on the sill.
> 
> JockmcMad, is this under the body warranty or under 'Goodwill'? Both my dealer and the VW Luxury Car line were adamant that these are 'trim' items and therefore not covered by the anti corrosion warranty. Would be interested to know how you have persuaded your dealer differently?
> 
> ...


Hi, 

In the UK, these items have de facto become part of the anti corrosion warranty, as it more often than not causes pinching of the paint behind the part, which is the fully covered. The main point in the UK is that they have set the president in covering these in the past, thus are in a weak position to argue that they should not cover some in the future, that is until 2013-2014 when the oldest vehicles start falling outside the anti corrosion warranty anyway.

Regards,

Johan


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## stefanuk (Jul 7, 2010)

i have raised this with VW as all four of my lower door trims are corroded and my car is booked in with my local dealer for checking/photos in a couple of weeks, i will know then whether VW will agree to replace or not.

Stefan


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## PanEuropean (Nov 3, 2001)

Faszination said:


> The strip looks like it is attached by a couple of bolts and perhaps a couple of clips so should be pretty easy to change. Has anyone removed/replaced these?





invisiblewave said:


> ...I suspect it slides towards the front of the car, because I seem to remember that I couldn't get it off unless the door was open most of the way.





EnglishPhaeton said:


> ...A more in depth step by step (idiots guide for me) would be great if anyone has first hand knowledge/experience of the procedure...


I have to replace one of these lower door trim strips next time I get home - I snagged the bottom of the door on a block of frozen ice this past winter, and bent the trim strip.

I'll post an illustrated how-to guide when I do the work. My VW dealer just called me and advised that the trim strip (and the two fasteners) that I ordered has arrived. But, right now I am in Romania, and will not be back to Vancouver Island (where the car is) for about another 4 weeks.

The original discussion about corrosion of these trim strips is at this post: Lower Door Trim Strip Corrosion, which is listed in the Phaeton Forum 'Table of Contents' (FAQ by Category). I would really like to merge this newer discussion with that existing discussion, but because there is some overlap in the dates, I can't do that without having unwanted consequences. So, I am going to lock this (newer) thread up, and ask that everyone please head over to the original conversation and carry on the discussion there. I will post a link to this (now locked up) discussion so that the information here is not lost.


*Please continue discussion of this topic here: **Lower Door Trim Strip Corrosion*

Michael


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