How to remove the Shifter Trim on a Tip?

[getslideways]

I have a 2000 A4 Tiptronic, i want to remove the shifter trim around the gear selector and refinish it since its not in the best of shape, and i was wondering if anyone had any tips or ideas on how to go about this? After searching I read some tips for removing this same piece on a 5-speed here: http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...e+shifter+trim
So i was wondering if there were any tips or writeups about removing it on a Tip car since i am sure there will be some added steps with the auto trim and clunky gear selector knob. Thanks

[kampfer]

http://www.audiworld.com/tech/int46.shtml
That should help.

[getslideways]

thanks for the link, it gives a good idea of the process overall, but does anyone know the differences when doing a tip surround compared to a manual? What extra steps are involved

[the_pirate]

i did that just recently its pretty easy. just use a plastic putty knife and gently pop it off from the front.

[zrowcool]

you take off the balck plastic one, it just pulls off. then you take off the shift knob by pulling out on the button and pulling up. then the cover comes off by 4 little fragile clips that are almost guarenteed to break. i did this when my car was tip and sanded it to make it look brushed aluminum

[getslideways]

zrowcool, the_pirate, thank you both for the tips (no pun intended), i think i am going to tackle this project tomorrow!

the_pirate that turned out really nice. is your trim piece suede, leather, or painted?

[biketsai]

its supppper easy. get a credit card, slide it under the front of it, and lift up (hard)

[getslideways]

thanks for the tips everyone, i slid a name tag into the front (ebrake side) of the plastic trim and pryed up and it popped right off.

I was thinking that i had to take the chrome shifter bezel off too because i thought that the chrome piece sat on top of the plastic trim, but it does not, the plastic trim goes around the bezel so you can leave the shifter setup alone. Cool stuff i hopefully will have some updated pics of the finished product soon!

[the_pirate]

mine is painted good luck and post pictures when your done

[karmad]

i did that just recently its pretty easy. just use a plastic putty knife and gently pop it off from the front.

Wat did u use to paint that shifter plate black

[the_pirate]

dulpi-color plastic paint. glass black.

[Naudi_Mat]

i did that just recently its pretty easy. just use a plastic putty knife and gently pop it off from the front.

Very clean!

[biketsai]

What I did was I just scraped off all of that rubber stuff and now its super clean.

[ConroeS4]

What I did was I just scraped off all of that rubber stuff and now its super clean.

What rubber stuff?

[biketsai]

What rubber stuff?

Well it comes from factory with this textured coating.

[the_pirate]

What rubber stuff?

the paint it. is like that plastic dip stuff. it sucks when it starts to peel.

[getslideways]

Thanks for all the help. So love it or hate it heres what i did. I was going to just spray it with plasti-dip from home depot, but then i decided i would try something a little different, and then if i didnt like it i would paint it. I got the idea from my old Z32 interior, so I bought 1/4 yard of some blackish suede from the fabric store, then removed the trim piece (very easy, slide a credit card between the console and the trim at the side nearest to the e-brake handle and viola!) then used 3M adhesive on both the fabric and the trim piece then attached the two




Then after that i flipped the piece over and using scissors and a hobby knife i cut all my excess trim and made slots in the corners so i could fold the edges over. I then resprayed the adhesive and folded the parts over and let everything dry overnight.




Then the next morning i installed this, and here is the end result! Let me know what you think, so far i am quite happy with it and the end result. Who knows maybe when i get tired of it i will plasti-dip it, but for now im happy with the finished product installed. So here are the pictures, it looks a little more blueish in these photos then it is in real life.