# How To: Audi TT Mk2 Roadster Seat Rear Panel Removal



## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

I think it took me more time to build up the courage to do this than it took me to actually pull this panel! [smiley=bigcry.gif]

These instructions will show you how to remove the rear seat panel in a roadster to give you access to the rear speakers, catchment tray drain tubes and the fuel pump located in the bulkhead area between the cabin and trunk (boot). This how-to is for the left-hand drivers side, but can be used for both driver and passenger rear panels.

Note - Slide the seats fully forward and then pull the seat belts over the head-rests to get them out of the way.

Once you get the first clip loose, the trick is just getting your hand and arm behind the panel where the clips are located and pulling forward. Try to get right to the clip when you pull. They take a bit of force, but nothing excessive. Once you get a sense of it, you'll find the clips come off quite easily. Use caution as there's a small speaker in the top corner of the panel that must be disconnected before removing the panel fully. And be sure to check for missing clips and replace them prior to reinstallation.

A plastic panel pry-bar and needle nose plies are recommended and are all the tools you'll need. Should take less than 15-minutes to remove it. Good luck! 

*NOTE - There has been a report that disconnecting / connecting the speaker(s) can result in a fault code. Therefore it is recommended that the tweeter and/or woofer be removed from the panel, rather than being disconnected. *


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## Stem (Jul 14, 2015)

Great write up - very detailed (brave man - most jobs can take longer to pluck up the courage to do).


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## Stiff (Jun 15, 2015)

As above. Great write up and extremely useful when needed, as usual Swiss


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## Roller Skate (May 18, 2015)

Good effort. A few months and your headline would be towards the top of if not the top of Google search if you add "TT" between Mk2 and Roadster.


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

@ RollerSkate - Good advice...change made!


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## Stiff (Jun 15, 2015)

Meta tags! It's all about meta tags! :lol:


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## Roller Skate (May 18, 2015)

Stiff said:


> Meta tags! It's all about meta tags! :lol:


Exactly right ...


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## JohnnyFarmer (Aug 19, 2016)

Quick thanks SJP - [smiley=book2.gif]

Am doing the roadster roof drain replacement - WTF did they make these out of a bloody plastic bag! :x


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

The one's in mine look like rubber hoses and from the last time I was check out the inside of the bulkhead, they looked okay. I was actually planning on checking mine once the weather warms up so I'll be curious how it goes for you. I think there's enough access once you have the panels off and the bins and speaker out of the way to get to them. The parts illustration doesn't show a hose clamp at the drip tray, so hopefully the hose just pulls off. Please post any pictures you take. 

When you pull the rear seat panel, pay attention to the lower out-board corner. There's a clip that goes into the metal and a tab that goes into a rectangular hole in the door sill panel. In these pictures the position of the two doesn't look right because the door sill had been pulled up so the rectangular hole looks closer to the clip than it would be when you put it back together. You'll see it when you remove the panel. Don't be surprised to find a few clips still in the metal, as they can slide out of the plastic slots when you shift the panel.

Once you get all the clips loose, the panel will want to drop down by itself at which point you can disconnect the little speaker (if you have one) and then you can just lift it out.


























.


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

@ JohnnyFarmer - It's possible, but not easy, to get to the drip tray hose connection from inside the bulkhead. Once you have the rear seat panel out of the way, you can get to it. It's not necessary to remove the upper panel above it (the one for the roll bars and windbreaker).

If the drip tray is cracked or broken and is allowing water into the vehicle, you'll have to remove the entire top assembly to replace it.


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## JohnnyFarmer (Aug 19, 2016)

Thanks Swiss for the great write up & for the PM - that last pic is just what I needed - clearly my car had missed the recall - shame they time limited it - but then again I'd done the work & ordered the new drains - will give a general clean up whilst I'm there. Given the ingenuity that has been shown elsewhere I struggle to see how Audi's rainwater & drainage systems are so flawed. My old S6 leaked water straight into the RHS foot well trashing the tiptronic ECU from the blocked drain under the battery which could not be routinely serviced due to it's position - [smiley=bomb.gif]


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## nickelworker (Oct 2, 2020)

SwissJetPilot said:


> I think it took me more time to build up the courage to do this than it took me to actually pull this panel! [smiley=bigcry.gif]
> 
> These instructions will show you how to remove the rear seat panel in a roadster to give you access to the rear speakers, catchment tray drain tubes and the fuel pump located in the bulkhead area between the cabin and trunk (boot). This how-to is for the left-hand drivers side, but can be used for both driver and passenger rear panels.
> 
> ...


Brilliant review - thanks ever so much - just cleared the drivers side hose on a RH vehicle. Your instructions for how to remove the panel behind the seat were top drawer!


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

Glad it helped! 

If you haven't done it yet, you may want to take a look into the drip trays and make sure they're clear. Easiest way is to open the top so it's fully stowed, then raise it about 45°. This will get the mechanism out of the way. Then you can put your smartphone on video, and lower it lens down, facing inwards into the drip tray so you can see the drain. Then remove the smartphone and look at your video. If your vacuum nozzle won't fit, you can tape a length of 1" hose to it and slide that into the drip tray to remove any debris.

Be sure to check your plenum drains while you're at it -

*How to: Plenum Removal for Drain Inspection & Cleaning*
https://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtop ... &t=1979747


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## nickelworker (Oct 2, 2020)

SwissJetPilot said:


> @ JohnnyFarmer - It's possible, but not easy, to get to the drip tray hose connection from inside the bulkhead. Once you have the rear seat panel out of the way, you can get to it. It's not necessary to remove the upper panel above it (the one for the roll bars and windbreaker).
> 
> If the drip tray is cracked or broken and is allowing water into the vehicle, you'll have to remove the entire top assembly to replace it.


Having just stripped out and cleaned my drip tray hoses and the drip trays themselves I found a piece of foam in each pipe. Each insulation was about 2 inches long but on the INSIDE of the pipe. Anyone know their purpose? I am inclined to leave out as imho they are contributing to any blockage.


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

Can you post a picture?


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## nickelworker (Oct 2, 2020)

Thanks for your interest. Here's a picture of the insulation strips that go inside the drain tubes - both of mine were bunged up and leading to water backing up in the drip trays and then overflowing into the flooring/ seat wells - horrible!

I've now got a dehumidifier sitting in the car to try and dry the carpets! Other than this the TDi Quattro (2013) Black Edition Roadster I've just bought is really fab' and am pleased I got a bargain.

Fantastic instruction by the way SwissJetPilot - gave me the confidence to have a go much to the wife's horror when we could hear all those clips breaking out. Thankfully no damage!


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## Jezzie (May 24, 2020)

Could the inserts be to prevent the pipes kinking and blocking?


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

If you look carefully at this diagram, you can see the foam insert listed as detail item #1 in the top right corner (circled image). Unfortunately my documentation doesn't mention the foam inserts or why they're there.

I'm guessing it's to help keep the shape of the tube so it doesn't collapse or "kink" at the bend (??) although I'm not convinced that's why. But I agree, it only seems to cause more problems than it solves.









Translated from the German installation instructions.

1. Water Drainage Hose
Note
For a better view the back wall is not shown in the picture.
- Remove the rear wall cover behind the seats
--> Body assembly workers interior; Rep Gr. 70
- Remove rear left mid-bass loudspeaker -R159- or rear right mid-bass loudspeaker -R160-
--> Communication; Rep Gr. 91
- Penetrate the opening and push the water drain hose out onto the nozzle of the water catch tray as far as it will go.

2 - Water catch tray
3 - Bottom plate

View attachment 201905160916.pdf


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## nickelworker (Oct 2, 2020)

Jezzie said:


> Could the inserts be to prevent the pipes kinking and blocking?


I don't think they are there to keep shape as they're soft - not even the rigidity of the foam insulation you find around copper pipes in your home. I can only think that they are there to help prevent freezing as they're at the drip tray end and that sits kinda' outside the inner bulkheads behind the seats i.e. more exposure to outside air temperature. But in any case I'm leaving them out as they are imho part of the problem - once my carpets have dried out!


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## Lord Gill (Jun 8, 2020)

Firstly MANY thanks to all that have contributed to posts on drain clearance and panel removal on mk2 roadster; it's been invaluable advice.
Got my mk2 roadster this summer and am chuffed with it, come winter and I've got soaking footwells and wet floor behind the seats. I'm not very handy with cars at all so needed to pluck up some courage and:
Cleared blocked drivers side bulkhead drain quite easily, yet to check passenger side.
Removed panels behind seats to find one drainage pipe not connected up at the bottom. I also found that bizarrely the previous owner had drilled holes straight through the under hood trays to let water out! Patched them up with waterproof tape.
Next job seat and carpet removal.
Thanks again for all the helpful posts, getting a real sense of achievement, as a complete novice, finding and fixing stuff!
As regards the bit of sponge in the drain pipes I noticed the same, I assume it's to stop debris reaching the underfloor space that the drain empties into. In mine the sponge was blocking the pipe, I think it must've been done on a previous unblocking attempt. I removed it but may well put it back.
Found one of those wires that you'd hang a net curtain with to be invaluable both for clearing the pipes and for reattaching them once removed and cleaned. Will post detail of how I did it if anyone's interested.


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## happychappy (Feb 9, 2015)

Hello and welcome to the forum Lord Gill (is your forum name anything to do with Disney's Nemo films?)

So glad you have found the encouragement to tackle the job yourself, the satisfaction levels are off the scale for me when I achieve my goal, usually with help from this very forum!

Please do list your pictures and ideas, it's what keeps us coming back to see how others have fared.


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## SwissJetPilot (Apr 27, 2014)

Just as a reminder with colder, wetter weather ahead - if you take your Roadster out on the road, don't get into the habit of tossing your coat into the roof stowage area. There have been several cases where items like bottle and cans were forgotten and they slid down the sides and ended up in the drip trays.

When this happens and the top is opened, as the roof mechanism folds down below the roof flaps, it can crush whatever's in the tray resulting in a cracked and broken drip tray. The trays can be replaced, but the entire convertible top assembly has to be removed to do it.


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