The paddle shifters which come from the VW factory however are very tiny and very plastic. It doesn't feel like you are up/down shifting but rather it can be likened to pushing a button a Playstation controller. The good news is that one is rather spoiled for choice when it came to this mod as there appeared to be numerous brands all offering replacement paddle shifters.
- Oettinger
- Maniacs
- TID Styling
- OSIR
- S2T
Oettinger replacement paddles. Quite bland and doens't look too nice in my opinion.
Maniacs replacement paddles. This goes over your original OEM paddles using double stick tape. No thanks...
The paddle replacment offering from TID Styling. Not bad, but again, double sided tape job? Really?
OSIR O-Shift paddle shifters. Don't really see the point in this as they're not that much bigger than factory?
S2T Paddles. Full replacement unit. CNC milled 6061 Aluminium. We have a winner!
To be perfectly honest, I was never going to buy some shifters which only "stuck" over the OEM ones as that is just, in a word, s-h-i-t. I was always going to replace them with full proper replacement paddles and that would require me to disassemble the steering wheel. The S2T paddles were purchased from here and out of all the options mentioned above, it was the most expensive. But hey, quality speaks for itself, you pay for quality and you gotta pay to play. That's just how it is. Do it right the first time round.
I was lucky to find an instructional YouTube video that guided me on how to disassemble the steering wheel. The demo was done on a MK5 golf with the Oettinger paddles but the principles are still the same and can be applied on the MK6. And you can see in the video how short the Oettinger paddle shifters are. They're longer than the OEM's though. But look wise, they don't measure up. Not for me anyway.
As per that instructional video, you have to turn the steering wheel 90 degrees each side to gain access to the tabs holding the airbag in place. The video makes it seem so easy but trust me, this part is an absolute bitch to do. But patience and persistence pays off and just be careful not to damage your trim with the screwdriver when trying to pry it off.
There's the little sucker...
Pry it gently and by pulling on it with a little bit of force, it should pop out. Turn the steering wheel to the other side and repeat.
OEM Paddles. Very tiny and no feel whatsoever.
Everything was taken off and replaced but there was a problem. The left paddle shifter (the "-" downshift paddle) was fitted perfectly and it was working great. However, with the right paddle shifter (the "+" upshift paddle), the bit where the paddle curves down and towards you was actually hitting against the leather steering wheel. The leather was too thick and so every time you pressed the upshift paddle, it would rub against the leather and if you kept doing it, it would no doubt leave an indent on the leather of your steering wheel.
No bueno. As you can see, the sloping part of the paddle would rub against the leather whenever you pulled back the paddle.
You can also see the indent beginning to form.
You can also see the indent beginning to form.
I decided to take it apart, use a Dremel with a tiny sanding bit at the end and shave off a few millimetres of the sloping part. Sure, it got rid of the nice black anodized coating but it was going to be hidden from view anyway. A good 10 minutes with the Dremel, I sanded it back about half a millimetre and it now works a treat. No rubbing.
Muy Bueno!
Michael Bello of S2T was informed about this issue and the new paddles coming out now have shorter slopes to eliminate that effect. S2T also offer flat back paddles as well as grooved. If you would like to purchase a set, please visit :
Street 2 Track Performance Products
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