I consider myself moderately intelligent, but sometimes I wonder... I'll ask a stupid question anyways, and dare the wrath of the trolls:

I replaced the coolant sensor on my 2000 A4 the other day. I couldn't get the electrical connector off the sensor, so I just pulled the retaining ring to get the sensor out without disconnecting.

And I still couldn't get the connector off. I tried pushing tabs, pulling tabs, moving tabs down, etc, and only succeeded in eventually breaking the retainer. But at least the connector finally came off.

Now that I think about it, the connectors on all my spark plug coils are broken, so I'm not the only one that has problems with this; the PO did also.

Does anyone have a video or decent picture showing the proper way to separate these connectors? Does it take a special tool? [who am I kidding; it's German. Of COURSE it takes a special tool!]

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

I feel your pain, the clips can be a real pain in the *** sometimes.

What I've found works best is to push the connector in as much as possible while pushing down and back on the tab. Pushing the connector in helps to take the pressure off the latch and helps it open easier.

 

I haven't had problems with that connector, but have with many others. Like BaseDrifter, I push in while I squeeze the latch mechanism, then pull. Sometimes it's a real fight.