MGF / TF vent repair clips are something you can use to fix a broken center vent. The vent’s horizontal slats, or planes, are clipped together, allowing them to move together. If these have broken with age, or have been broken from use of an air vent phone mount, you’ll want to fix this.
Essentially you have two choices. Firstly you could look online for a used replacement vent. These may be available new from some suppliers, although a limited search shows just the side vents being available. Secondly you can repair your existing vent with some repair clips off eBay. This was my approach after doing some searching. I had originally been looking for a replacement vent unit when I stumbled across an eBay seller, Solo Design UK. Specifically, their MGF / TF Vent Repair Clips.
Although they come with some very good instructions, I thought I’d share my experience here. That way, I can use some high resolution pictures and additional details having done the process myself.
Vent Cover Removal #
Naturally you will need to first remove the vent unit from the fascia/dashboard. Mine comes out without any effort but there appear to be 2 clips on the top and two underneath on each of the outer edges. Carefully pry the unit out while protecting the dash material.
Once you have the unit out of the dashboard, there is a front cover of the vent unit you need to remove. There are a total of 6 clip points for this front cover. Two on each side where the clip is over the large front cog. Also, there are two on the top of the unit and two underneath. They are fairly easy to find. Now, don’t forget you’re working with plastic that’s old. I suggest making sure the plastic is warm and you do this somewhere where it is warm, like indoors.
I found that the side clips are pretty easy to work with. For top and bottom clips I gently lifted the front cover up and over the retaining clip wedges of the main body. Take your time and don’t force anything. Avoid suddenly removing the cover as the slats will fall out. I learned this the hard way!
Slat/Plane Removal/Repair #
Hopefully the slats or planes didn’t fall out, If they did this will also help you orient them correctly. Once you have access to the slats you’ll see on the left side (when viewed as the vent would be installed in the car) is where the clip that connects all four slats is. There is just one clip for each half of the vent system. In each slat you have a hole for the clip to attach to. So remove the remains of the old clip and install your new clip.
Now if you vent slats fell out when removing the cover, this will help get them oriented correctly. There is a little locating post on each end of the slat. This aligns with an indention for it in the main part of the vent casing. Also note that the side-to-side adjuster is the second slat up from the bottom. This bit is kind of a fiddle, have some patience at the ready!
Reinstall The Vent Cover #
Check the orientation of the cover is correct. You can adjust the open and close wheels and then orient the cover appropriately.
Carefully align the cover and bring it closer to the main vent casing. I found it worked best to hold and slightly pry outwards the end clips that fit over the end wheels/cogs. Just be careful that the slats stay in position and get the cover mostly in place. When you are happy with the alignment continue to press home the cover. The four other clips will “pop” as they connect.
Other Materials #
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