Glovebox repair.
There have been many threads on here about how to repair the dreaded snapped hinge on the A4 glovebox. Some seem to have limited success, other none at all. The following is a step by step guide of how I fixed mine. It has been done 6 months now, and has experienced a full range of temperatures with no signs of failure.
Required:
Torx tools, Small flat blade screwdriver, Large wire cutters, Hammer, Stanley knife, 2mm drill, JB-Weld, 90 degree angle bracket, Tape and glossy card.
Step 1
Remove the entire glove box from the car. It is held in place with 4 torx bolts (T20 I think). Remove the two top ones first as these are accessed inside the glovebox, then close it up and remove the two below. There will be a small lead for the light inside, use a small flat blade screwdriver to remove this. If you have the optional chilled glovebox then there will be some kind of ducting to remove, but I don't have this so I cannot advise.
Step 2
Remove the door. Sorry I didn't photograph this!
There is a plunger attached to the broken hinge by a plastic split pin. Undo this union but don't lose the pin. Lay the glove box on one end on clean surface and put a towel down down so you dont damage it.
On the top most hinge, using a large pair of wire cutters, grip the hinge around the collar about 3mm from the end, hit the wire cutters with a hammer in the direction of the other hinge, to pull it out. You shouldn't need to hit too hard. You can try just using pliers, but mine were very stiff and I didn't want to chew the ends up.
Repeat for other pin, and the door will come away.
Step 3
Place the door face down on a covered surface, gently using a small scraper, slot the blade between the two halves, breaking the thermal welds all the way round. WARNING, the two halves are bonded in lines from top to bottom all the way across the lid, so you won't do this easily or in one go. I went around mine about 5 times, just levering it open a bit at a time
Step 4
Where the hinge has snapped off you will see that there are lots of fins, using a sharp knife, cut between these fins, to open the gaps, this will give the glue somewhere to go. Next take the hinge and clean its surface with a file. Now glue requires imense friction to work, and this is a small surface area, so it needs some help. Take a 2mm drill bit, and make some holes in line with where the hinge snapped off. This will allow the glue to flow through and pool on the other side, making one big piece of resin rather than relying on the grab properties.
Step 5
I used JB Weld, which is a cold weld resin. Technically it is not glue. The holes I drilled in the hinge and the gaps cut in the case allowed me to fill the gaps with glue, which made for one continuous piece of weld.
You will need to clamp the lid in place and using something to hold the hinge as the liquid weld cures. I covered the open side of the hinge using tape and literally filled the void using the weld. I did the same with the gaps in the fins on the case before putting the two together. I actually put the glove box door back on with the hinge pins loosely in place, to make sure I got the positioning exactly right. I supported the broken end and place pieces of glossy card down the sides of the hinge, to stop the weld transferring to other surfaces.
Follow instructions for curing time.
Step 6
Once the initial repair was complete, I was happy it was as stong as it was going to be, but I didn't want to have to have to repeat this exercise. Taking a metal 90 degree bracket, which you can get at most hardware shops for about 50p (Mine was about 40mm x 40mm with two pre-drilled holes on each side) I used a vice to gently open the bracket up to the same angle as the hinge. This was quite fiddly but worth it.
Initially I did drill my lid and hinge, planning to screw the bracket in place. This meant that the cover would not go back on properly, so I opened the holes up in the plastic, and used another mix of liquid weld to bond the bracket on, making sure the weld went right through the holes in the metal and into the plastic.
I gave this a good 2 days to cure as the weld was quite thick. Next it was a case of loosely putting it all back together to check operation.
On the back of the cover, you will need to completely remove the thermal weld residue where it overlaps the repair, or the cover will not fit back on.
Once satisfied, I covered all the thermal welds on the lid with silicone,
placed the two parts back together and clamped along the bottom and top edges with timber and ratchet clamps.
When I released the clamps, the top part of my facia came away slightly so I had to repeat the process with stonger glue.
Next I refitted the glovebox exactly as I removed it.
Hope this helps, mine is still going strong!
There have been many threads on here about how to repair the dreaded snapped hinge on the A4 glovebox. Some seem to have limited success, other none at all. The following is a step by step guide of how I fixed mine. It has been done 6 months now, and has experienced a full range of temperatures with no signs of failure.
Required:
Torx tools, Small flat blade screwdriver, Large wire cutters, Hammer, Stanley knife, 2mm drill, JB-Weld, 90 degree angle bracket, Tape and glossy card.
Step 1
Remove the entire glove box from the car. It is held in place with 4 torx bolts (T20 I think). Remove the two top ones first as these are accessed inside the glovebox, then close it up and remove the two below. There will be a small lead for the light inside, use a small flat blade screwdriver to remove this. If you have the optional chilled glovebox then there will be some kind of ducting to remove, but I don't have this so I cannot advise.
Step 2
Remove the door. Sorry I didn't photograph this!
There is a plunger attached to the broken hinge by a plastic split pin. Undo this union but don't lose the pin. Lay the glove box on one end on clean surface and put a towel down down so you dont damage it.
On the top most hinge, using a large pair of wire cutters, grip the hinge around the collar about 3mm from the end, hit the wire cutters with a hammer in the direction of the other hinge, to pull it out. You shouldn't need to hit too hard. You can try just using pliers, but mine were very stiff and I didn't want to chew the ends up.
Repeat for other pin, and the door will come away.
Step 3
Place the door face down on a covered surface, gently using a small scraper, slot the blade between the two halves, breaking the thermal welds all the way round. WARNING, the two halves are bonded in lines from top to bottom all the way across the lid, so you won't do this easily or in one go. I went around mine about 5 times, just levering it open a bit at a time
Step 4
Where the hinge has snapped off you will see that there are lots of fins, using a sharp knife, cut between these fins, to open the gaps, this will give the glue somewhere to go. Next take the hinge and clean its surface with a file. Now glue requires imense friction to work, and this is a small surface area, so it needs some help. Take a 2mm drill bit, and make some holes in line with where the hinge snapped off. This will allow the glue to flow through and pool on the other side, making one big piece of resin rather than relying on the grab properties.
Step 5
I used JB Weld, which is a cold weld resin. Technically it is not glue. The holes I drilled in the hinge and the gaps cut in the case allowed me to fill the gaps with glue, which made for one continuous piece of weld.
You will need to clamp the lid in place and using something to hold the hinge as the liquid weld cures. I covered the open side of the hinge using tape and literally filled the void using the weld. I did the same with the gaps in the fins on the case before putting the two together. I actually put the glove box door back on with the hinge pins loosely in place, to make sure I got the positioning exactly right. I supported the broken end and place pieces of glossy card down the sides of the hinge, to stop the weld transferring to other surfaces.
Follow instructions for curing time.
Step 6
Once the initial repair was complete, I was happy it was as stong as it was going to be, but I didn't want to have to have to repeat this exercise. Taking a metal 90 degree bracket, which you can get at most hardware shops for about 50p (Mine was about 40mm x 40mm with two pre-drilled holes on each side) I used a vice to gently open the bracket up to the same angle as the hinge. This was quite fiddly but worth it.
Initially I did drill my lid and hinge, planning to screw the bracket in place. This meant that the cover would not go back on properly, so I opened the holes up in the plastic, and used another mix of liquid weld to bond the bracket on, making sure the weld went right through the holes in the metal and into the plastic.
I gave this a good 2 days to cure as the weld was quite thick. Next it was a case of loosely putting it all back together to check operation.
On the back of the cover, you will need to completely remove the thermal weld residue where it overlaps the repair, or the cover will not fit back on.
Once satisfied, I covered all the thermal welds on the lid with silicone,
placed the two parts back together and clamped along the bottom and top edges with timber and ratchet clamps.
When I released the clamps, the top part of my facia came away slightly so I had to repeat the process with stonger glue.
Next I refitted the glovebox exactly as I removed it.
Hope this helps, mine is still going strong!
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