Continued
Then I started getting into some problems. I ordered a Sach's power clutch kit and I installed it, bolted up the trans and put it in the car and everything, only for me to be able to pull my clutch lever up all the way. the clutch would never disengage. something was wrong with the PP. but I'd rather not remember that because it was 2 weeks of my life wasted. So isntead, I returned it and went to bahnbrenner and got a SPEC Stg3+ PP and clutch kit.
not only did that suck, but I also tried to rebuild my turbo and when I took it apart I found this:
no good. well, why not upgrade while I'm at it? I didn't want to go BT yet because I didn't have the $$ for it, let alone the software and everything else needed. so instead, I went with a k03-s off of a mk4 gti. slight upgrade, only $130. In my price range. and clocked differently so it made it easier to run boost pipes.
In she goes:
I picked up an evo 8 intercooler off of a friend for $50. it was a steal, so I made it work. I had to move the radiator for it to though.
Bracket made:
more custom fab and ghetto rigging ;)
Had to completely cut all around the rad shroud. slim it down, re-weld the fan mounts back on and use the slimmer Passat fan with my rabbit radiator.
Also, Intake Manifold is from an Audi TT (225hp model), it's the only 1.8t manifold (besides the sharon van) that runs to the drivers side of the engine bay.
Found a bunch of free intercooler piping at Volvo. Mocked it all up myself:
got this purdy little thing in the mail:
mocking:
I want to relocate the battery to the back, but didn't have time to yet
I had a really fun trip to Autozone for coolant hoses
my convo:
AZ: (repeating) "well, what car is it for?"
me: "Trust me, this isn't in your computer, just let me look at the hoses you have."
made my own downpipe. local exhaust shop down there wanted to charge me $300. so I said nooo thankyou. those silver bungs are spark plug non-foulers. They back the sensor out of the stream so that it doesnt throw a code for not having a cat.
I hated wiring. It was literally only like 8-10 wires to splice and connect, but I'd rather do the mechanical side of a swap over electrics any day of the week. Anyways, I went to start it up for the first time and it kept dying out. realized my fuel pump power was connected wrong, so i fixed that and ran it again. It ran, but smoked from leaking oil onto the downpipe. turbo oil feed line fitting didn't quite fit.
This is the point where I had to pack up and head home because my internship was over. within 2 weeks of being home, I had ordered a few new fittings and luckily one of them fit. It was a tight squeeze between the manifold and the turbo, but I made it work.
Then, I ran her for an amazing half hour. was almost back home when i heard a weird noise and realized I was leaking oil EVERYWHERE. really badly.
typical. fix one problem, get another. great.
the car then sat for a few months because I didnt have time to work on it while i was in school. I ended up figuring out that I had spun an intermediate shaft bearing because I found it in pieces in my oil pan.
I ordered a new bearing and was lucky enough to be able to use the same intermediate shaft plate as the mk3 ABA I still had lying around. That motor was well worth the catalytic converter I traded for it.
Anyways remember how I always fix one problem and get another? well, somewhere along the line while re-timing it, a valve managed to get bent (how, I have no idea, but it happened). after replacing the intermediate shaft seal and bearing, i tried to start it and it wouldnt idle. electronics were all fine but i was misfiring like crazy in cylinders 3 and 4. I pulled the head to see what was up and found bent valves.
Well, it was cheaper for me to find a used head on craigslist than to get my head rebuilt, so i found a good one on Craigslist and the guy was really cool. ended up letting me borrow a tool to use for my Eurospec non-stretch head bolts. and gave me the bottom end of the 1.8T that I got the head off of for free. Now I've got an extra 1.8T laying around. I'll eventually build the head with bent valves and put some nice internals and cams in it.
that episode was a few short months ago.
Kimberton Car show next to my pops' Fury III
next to dumple's Redline:
2 weeks ago I replaced a bunch of ish.
-all 8 injector seals, new outer tie rod ends, camber bolt kits, installed a lower Scirocco K bar, fixed my oil return line, new oil and filter, etc.
Oh, and I'm chipped on a United Motorsports tune. Tune advertises 19 psi, with my huge front mount I should see around 17. I only actually see 10 peak and ~-17 @ idle. I also run really rich, so I'm pretty sure I've got a boost leak somewhere. I'm going to smoke test the boost pipes tomorrow to see where it's leaking from and hopefully I'll solve my issues
pic at mk1madness this year:
Even though I think I have a boost leak she's still pretty quick. I kept up with a brand new STI today, even around the turns
Pretty sure I had him beat, but he was all over the two lanes so I couldnt actually pass him before he turned off
I'm eagerly awaiting the full 17psi.
and a new long-ratio trans. 4500 rpm @ 75mph gets old reallly quickly. I probably top out (6500rpm) around 110 mph, which is when it just starts to get fun on the highway
I've got the new trans, just need to find time to build it and install it.
Well, thanks for watching guys! You are now up to date and I'll post all my new progress here. I hope you enjoy it!
