T6.1 left hand kitchen door handle

[Mansfieldman750]

The left hand kitchen door handle split close to where it is screwed to the door and eventually broke off completely. Is this common on T6.1s ?

 

[tobyprivett]

Yes. I was at the dealer today, booking in some repair work. I added a ‘new kitchen door latch’ to the list.

I’ve broken it three times now. Poor design (and I’m clumsy)

 

[Saesneg Shaun]

I'm on my 2nd latch.
IMO the problem is that side of the kitchen unit gets colder because of the fridge running which makes the plastic brittle.
Ths last replacement was £20 and lasted 1 trip. I'm not paying out for another.

 

[The Tall Luthier]

Mine broke too so I bought another.
The breakage allowed the right hand drawer to slide past the left hand which was v annoying. Super glue is not your friend with this plastic either.

 

[subthree]

Ours is broken. If I replace it surely it is just going to break again. Poorly thought design.

 

[Saesneg Shaun]

Ours is broken. If I replace it surely it is just going to break again. Poorly thought design.

Yup, Good game at £20 a go.
Our left hand door doesn't slide open on its own so the catch is staying broken now.

 

[tobyprivett]

Blimey. That’s a lot of latches. Mine have been replaced under warranty but have got used to it being broken more times than not

 

[Mr T]

I’ve been using a demo Coast for the last week and the left hand cupboard latch was broken on that too!

 

[subthree]

To be honest the door doesn't slide freely when driving so little benefit in the catch. If it did slide around then that would be different!

 

[Bumble The Van]

mine too after 3 weeks of owning !!!

 

[Mansfieldman750]

Glad it’s not just me then but not glad the door catch has broken with so many other owners. The catch is flimsy and really VW should come up with a solution.

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Anybody got the part number for the latch?

 

[Mr T]

Anybody got the part number for the latch?

Is it part of the handle?

VW California T6.1 Cupboard door handle left hand - CampervanBits

This is the cupboard door handle from the T6.1 kitchen unit left hand side

vwcaliforniaclub.com

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Is it part of the handle?

VW California T6.1 Cupboard door handle left hand - CampervanBits

This is the cupboard door handle from the T6.1 kitchen unit left hand side

vwcaliforniaclub.com

It is @Mr T

Thanks didn’t realise the club shop sold them.

 

[Mr T]

It is @Mr T

View attachment 94961

7LA068025B

 

[subthree]

Half the price of the club shop...UK supplier of genuine OEM parts.

https://www.lllparts.co.uk/product/7la068025b-genuine-vag/mpn/7LA068025B

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Ordered a replacement but having found the broken off piece am giving a repair a go with dollop of Araldite

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Ordered a replacement but having found the broken off piece am giving a repair a go with dollop of Araldite

View attachment 94975

Repair successful. Lets see how it stands the test of time.

 

[tobyprivett]

What are the steps to take the latch off? Can you do it without removing the door?

Thanks

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

What are the steps to take the latch off? Can you do it without removing the door?

Thanks

Yes you can @tobyprivett .
There are 3 Torx screws to undo as per my first picture. You have to work by touch but it’s not too fiddly. When reassembling I screwed the screws back into the plastic first and then replaced the unit and tightened them up. The profile of the ‘handle’ means that everything just lines up. Easy job.

 

[Mansfieldman750]

There are only 3 small Allen screws holding it on. If you like to see what you’re doing take out the cupboard shelf, lie along the backseat and put your head and a shoulder inside the cupboard, easier for a small lad or lass.

 

[Hawthorn37]

We had a broken handle on a demo van we hired from a VW van centre 2 years ago. The chap who dealt with us sad that this, plus the table stowage latch, tend to be the most common breakages. The LH cupboard handle gets impacted by the RH door when you open it too harshly and it impacts on the other handle. Knowing this, we’ve been treating our van with a ‘light touch ‘.

 

[WelshGas]

We had a broken handle on a demo van we hired from a VW van centre 2 years ago. The chap who dealt with us sad that this, plus the table stowage latch, tend to be the most common breakages. The LH cupboard handle gets impacted by the RH door when you open it too harshly and it impacts on the other handle. Knowing this, we’ve been treating our van with a ‘light touch ‘.

Could be worth putting some sticky backed foam on the R hand door edge to cushion the impact on the catch.

 

[Hawthorn37]

Could be worth putting some sticky backed foam on the R hand door edge to cushion the impact on the catch.

Good shout I’ll take a look. The RH door basically acts like a guillotine ! It should be designed with a door stop really. It can’t be anything too thick though, as the door has to be fully open for the cutlery drawer to pull out.

 

[WelshGas]

Good shout I’ll take a look. The RH door basically acts like a guillotine ! It should be designed with a door stop really. It can’t be anything too thick though, as the door has to be fully open for the cutlery drawer to pull out.

Maybe a screw, or even a lump of BlueTac in the slider.