Jason`s FWD 1.8T build

[Jason.s]

Copied from another forum from last year so forget the parts when it mentions days and times lol.

Previous to the Audi i had a Civic EK4 but sadly due to getting a new job further away and with struggling to get more than 240 miles around mk i needed something that`d be better on the mileage seeing as i was going to be doing just over 90 miles a day. Oh and the fact that i was getting a bit bored with it.

Anyway back to the Audi..
Some pics i took. Only driveway pics as it was coming over a bit ****ty and i couldnt be ***** to drive anywhere to take pics lol
3 weeks ago i got the wheels as my standard ones were shagged and the tyres were all screwed. Got some Audi A4 B7 17x7.5 wheels with decent tyres off Pistonheads so thats was sorted and the car looked like this:

Quickly got sick of 4x4 mode so ordered some FK coilovers and fitted them last weekend. Wasnt too bad, Expected it to be worse being a 12yr old car with 105k mileage but everything went ok and they were fitted. Had to raise up the rear though soon after as it was a touch too low lol. Was tucking quite a bit of tyre and scrubbed like a ***** so had to go up.

Before raising..

Today i got some TT calipers, Passat V6 discs and some new pads so i did my new 312mm brake upgrade
Before:

During/fitted: (Yes i know the pads were the wrong way round! Changed them soon after taking the pic)

Finished and painted:

And then some overall pictures. Was going to go and find somewhere nicer to take some pics after i washed it but it was coming over a bit ****ty and i couldnt be *****! So the driveway was the option..

All together the list consists of:
FK coilovers
Audi A4 B7 alloys 17x7.5
Awesome engraved Forge 007P
Pipercross panel filter
Modified airbox
Clear indicators
Satin black standard grille
312mm Brake upgrade
Debadged rear end

Xmas i got a silicon TIP and a front upper strut brace so fitted then not long after.

Needing a clutch before anything powerwise ie mapping before it dies i looked at my options and really didnt want to import one from america due to shipping costs and import duties and no one over here does one so looking around and came across one of the TDI forums about using an Audi 80 solid clutch and an Audi S2 clutch. Ordered a flywheel from work and relevant bolts getting ready for the conversion. Ordered an LUK clutch kit from GSF as Audi dont make the S2 clutch kit anymore.

Gave it all to my mate that works at Hewland Engineering in Maidenhead last and he got a guy to machine the flywheel. Basically all the guide pins needed removing and new holes needed drilling and new threads tapped in. Got it back today and im really pleased with the work the guy did and all for 20quid instead of the 75 that a local engineering shop in Bedford quoted me.

 

[Jason.s]

Small update. Nothing amazing.
Grille was looking a bit tired due to a huge collection of stone chips from the last time i sprayed it in satin black. This time got some paint from work and sprayed it in deep black pearl.
Also tried something else with the paint. Havent really seen anyone do it with a pre-facelift but i opened up the headlights which was easy as they`re 3 piece jobbies so its only clipped together and then sprayed the chrome bits. I thought about doing the indicators but i think they`re sealed and they seem very brittle. Plus im not sure if i can take out the chrome inside to spray...might be one piece looking at it so will have to think about something else to get them to match up better but its not too bad in person. Pictures make them seem a lot different when they arent.

Naked while i did it all..

Last week got some bulbs fitted to get rid of the crappy orange/yellow dull light so now i have a nicer white which looks much better
Picture doesnt really show in broad day light.

Also couple of weeks ago now i replaced the gear gaitor as original one was ripped to shreds with an ebay item which was surprising good quality and real leather for about 6quid so cant argue with that.

Got new tyres put on a few weeks ago finally getting rid of the balloon 50profile tyres i had before. Set of 4 Toyo`s from work which then left me with a bigger arch gap and wheels looked a bit lost in arches so dropped it a little more and matched the rear 5mm spacers with a set on the front.
Anyway that was was in the last few weeks.
Other month i got my hands on a 3" THS decat on ebay for a good price so thats waiting to go on when the clutch/flywheel and cambelt is done.

Same again a few months ago was time for an oil and filter change. Fitted the optional bigger filter listed by VW to try and combat the sludge issues these engines have if not changed enough.

Also to go with the clutch/fly and cambelt job i did some thinking in the way of an uprated front snub mount to combat engine movement as i get a lot of stick movement when accelerating and letting off. As i like to see what i can get through work in the way of uprated stuff i thought i`d look at the RS4 snub mount. Looked alright from pics so ordered that and a standard one to compare. All looked good and its much harder and stronger than the standard which is foamy rubber stuff which you can squash with your fingers so its pretty pants. Saved about 20quid against an uprated poly item and it shouldnt be much less in the job it does.

Anyway popped to tesco later that night, heard a knocking sound. Obviously having the exhaust off i thought it was that so carried on. After a bit further i started to feel it through the steering wheel. Slowed down and took it a bit easier but it got worse so i had no choice to pull over, pulled into a junction and suddenly a bang and lots of scraping. Got out the wheel and fallen off!! It had bend the arch lip out, carved up the inside of my newly painted wheels without a jack either i was up sh*t creak but managed to borrow one from a passer by and had to take a bolt out of each of the other wheels as i`d lost ALL of the bolts in said wheel.
Now needing a new hub and bearing costing about 70quid
Now the A4 and Passat being retarded and having the multilink suspension its an **** to take apart as most of the bolts seize up especially the top bolt holding in both top arms.
This is how it came out in the end..

and this is the damage on the wheel. I`ve sanded it and sprayed it again so it might not look like its bad but it was and some nice bit chunks were taken out, all outer weights scraped off and the tyre outer edge has some small bits missing from the arch lip being bent out.

Basically moral of the story is kids...Always use longer bolts when using spacers regardless of size!!
Which i bought today from motorserv infact. Cost me another £35quid for 20 bolts.
On a lighter note they look a bit better lol

 

[Jason.s]

Been thinking about this for a long time. Both my Civic and Yaris i fitted a rear strutbrace and it made a good difference! Now ****** all is available for the Audi. Theres only about 2 fronts listed and one is from the American side of OMP im sure. Other is an FK which i already have.
Looking around work i couldnt find anything. Suddenly they caught my eye! The support bars on some of our parts racking! haha. Was a bit too long but nothing a hammer to squash the round bar down couldnt solve! flattened the ends further, drilled new holes and then fitted it at home.
Rear end is fairly solid now just need a rear ARB sorting! Took it for a spin and its improved the handling a decent amount. Not that there was much roll anyway but theres even less now and seems a bit more precise turn in wise which is all good

Going to take them off tomorrow and try to polish them up a bit as they`re pretty ****ty still from having years worth of dust sitting on them.
All in all for a free mod its win win

Couldnt be bothered to paint it. Doesnt get seen asmuch and being where it is it`d probably get rubbed off from the boot liner..

Rear end is pretty solid. If i ever get a rear ARB sorted my god it wont move in the slightest lol. Need to sort the front ideally next. Maybe a lower brace under engine and up the front ARB from 27mm to 29mm.
Need some better supporting seats now also. Car handles too well for the seats as you just roll out of them now lol

 

[Westy]

No pics of your new seat

 

[ScottD3]

Gutted bout the wheel mate but at least you learnt and others can learn from you.

 

[Jason.s]

Thats all i have from the other forum. Since then basically the clutch and flywheel were fitted. Not a bad setup at all! It took a full seriously hot day at Shakey last year so it does it job well enough!

Erm fitted the RS4 front lower subframe brace that Scott found on a site a while back.

Deleted some Evap cannister and some of the other piping, binned the hockey puck in the TIP and have gone external crankcase breather setup down in the lower front grille.

Also have a Jetex cone and made my own heatshield too

In december i got a lovely tax rebate which paid for a 2.5" Jetex catback which came with both res and non res centre sections. Naturally i used the non res and since then its bedded in as the rear box was brand new never fitted and it sounds alright.

Then bought the Neuspeed rear ARB from Awesome gti which didnt get delivered until this month due to them having to order it from America but thats fitted and has made a nice little difference. Now tripods quite nicely

Also went to Rtech for mapping which the results were fantastic. Thread here: http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a4-s4-forum-b5-chassis/142887-rtech-mapped.html

Have just a good condition OMP Grip fixed bucket seat from Ebay last week which Westy kindly brought up here for me. Bought some low profile OMP side mounts for it so hopefully going to get that mounted up soon as possible. Standard base model seats are shocking!

Just going to save a bit of cash now and then get some brakes sorted.

Probably going to go for some Mintex M1155s on the front and M1144s on the rear. Will probably go for some Hel or Goodridge braided lines and some fluid.

The it`ll be track time! Going to be going to Bedford Autodrome a few times probably june onwards maybe then we`ll see what the weaknesses are after some track abuse. Probably new suspension as the Fk`s are pretty shagged in true Fk fashion. Not sure what i`ll get. Then it`ll probably be bushes and so on.

Wheels also are on the list somewhere as these B7 wheels i have at the minute weigh a tonne and im very bored of them, especially in blue lol.

 

[Jason.s]

No pics of your new seat

Was getting to it!

 

[aragorn]

Stick with the same pad compound all round!

Looking good otherwise!

 

[Jason.s]

Yeah? Ok will do that. The difference in price is minimal anyway

 

[Foxmeister]

Looking good mate, glad to see the thread!

Can i ask thou, why is there a bar here???

 

[Bradderz_1988]

It's a sort of custom rear strutbrace to stiffen things up !!

Think you posted the wrong pic aswell mate that looks more like a wheel than a bar lol

 

[aragorn]

Yeh, If you fit different compounds you get weird bias shifts as the brakes heat up. The milder pads will bite harder at lower temperatures then fade out as they get hot, whereas the more aggressive ones will start soft and come in later.

Best to keep it all balanced!

 

[Foxmeister]

It's a sort of custom rear strutbrace to stiffen things up !!

Think you posted the wrong pic aswell mate that looks more like a wheel than a bar lol

I understand that where he has done it between the rear strut towers yes, but that pic shows a bar goin between the boot floor mounting on the rear bumper bolts? Cant imagine that will aid any flex there!

What wheel? Its clearly a pic of a bar!

 

[Jason.s]

Ah right thanks for the advice!

And yeah basically had a spare bar left so saw the bolt heads, laid it down and it fitted fine so thought why not...My ex had a similar brace on her Celica GT4 so thats what made me think. Whether it does anything or not im not bothered but if there was just an ounce of flex then brace it up! lol.

 

[Foxmeister]

And yeah basically had a spare bar left so saw the bolt heads, laid it down and it fitted fine so thought why not...My ex had a similar brace on her Celica GT4 so thats what made me think. Whether it does anything or not im not bothered but if there was just an ounce of flex then brace it up! lol.

Ah right, fair play to you, cant do any bad i suppose!

I looked into rear strut braces aswell a while back n didnt find much, might knock one up myself! How do you find the fit of that front one, supposedly they were usually too tall and hit the bonnet etc? I need to do one but thought i need to get the Audi parts for it, be easier to buy this if it fits properly.

 

[ScottD3]

Ah right, fair play to you, cant do any bad i suppose!

I looked into rear strut braces aswell a while back n didnt find much, might knock one up myself! How do you find the fit of that front one, supposedly they were usually too tall and hit the bonnet etc? I need to do one but thought i need to get the Audi parts for it, be easier to buy this if it fits properly.

Audi A6 strut brace mounts fits the A4 really well, you just need to trim down the main bar a couple of CM.
TonyA4 has one on his car, bought it off a A6 Ebay breaker for a couple of quid.

Why not fit a bar from the top mounts to the other bumper bracket bolt on the other side?
Not sure it will do any good but might look cool.

 

[Jason.s]

Seen a DIY brace in America where they`ve joined it up so basically a H brace. I still use the boot for biggish things so for the minute couldnt go over the top. Plus i cant weld so would have to pay and for what its worth it probably wouldnt be worth it. Where as these bars were laying around at work doing nothing(other than supporting some racking *cough*)

 

[ScottD3]

Weld?
Pikey it right up and bolt it.

 

[Jason.s]

Dont tempt me

 

[ScottD3]

Dont tempt me

They can be removed if you got to carry something heavy.

 

[Foxmeister]

Ive got a bit of tuneage goin on in the boot, so will have to look into knocking up a custom brace to fit around that and work with the uprated rear roll bar when i get that!

 

[Jason.s]

Few small updates. First came when i stripped the rear interior. rear seats, everything in the boot, seatbelts and so on. I had already ripped out the CD changer a long time a go and all the bits to go with it. Weighed it all and including the spare wheel and came in at very close to 50kgs.

Next came fitting my Weitec GTN coilovers to get rid of the aweful FK crap! The quality and fitment differences were massive and the car drives so much better with them fitted.

Only pic i had of it. The rear is a fixed damper and spring but has notches with a circlip to adjust ride heights with a max of 50mm so it went on the lowest but because the car has lost some weight it sits quite high compared to what it was. From arch almost level with the top of the tyre its now about 3"s off but the main thing is handling and ride are hugely improved.

Next came getting my seat and harness fitted on tuesday. Fantastic job done by gary at GM Bodycraft

Picked up some cheap Sparco 4 points from ebay for a wopping £16 which will do for the time being.

Im going to paint up the bars and other areas at some point to tidy it up and also either code out or resistor job the airbag warning light from the seat and rear belts.

Its amazing what being held in properly to the car can do to the feeling of the car. It felt like fitting coilovers for the first time all over again. Also feels like you`re driving something more special than you actually are lol!

Next came my gearlever extension. Coming from the Japscene previous to the Audi i knew of these and now i was in a better seating position the idea popped up again. Searing around the only one i found was in america and finding a decent knob was hard too. I mentioned it to a friend that works at Hewland Engineering. He got me one of thier own machined gearknobs they make in house and designed me an extension. Was made in about 10minutes by one of the guys in the workshop and he brought it up for me last night. The job they`ve done is awesome but then i expected it to be seeing as they make and upkeep half of the GT3 grid and the DTM grids gearboxes amungst otherthings.

Where the old lever sat was about 7"s away from the wheel so now with the extension its about 4"s away. The extension itself is 4". Obviously with the notorious slop these cars have its made that more comical but a shortshift has been ordered from ebay which will reduced the increased throw from extending it but it will also reduced the height by about 2"s but nevermind as its still going to be a lot closer than standard. I`ll then look into renewing the linkage to tighten it up some more and then finally engine mounts.

 

[aragorn]

Nice one.

What you doing with the old shonky coilovers?

 

[Jason.s]

Sitting in the garage at the minute in the box not doing anything lol.

Found out the cause of the slop! Its the actual linkage rubber bush. Like the UJ type looking joint before it goes into the box. It has so much play in it. But looking at it its £90 retail!!! Do you think it`d be available anywhere else?

 

[aragorn]

JHM do a metal replacement for the linkage piece.

Will send you a PM about the Coilovers.

 

[Jason.s]

Well the techs say that joint is fine eventhough i thought it moved a hell of a lot but they said its fine? Who knows. Also where the grub screw goes through to hold the linkage onto the shifter shaft coming out of the box theres movement so looks like the hole for the screw has widened. I tried to put a normal bolt in but it wont go in the hole so im not sure what to do there as theres about 1-2mm play in that hole. Maybe drill it out slightly so the screw goes further in the hole?

 

[aragorn]

Its probably "supposed" to have movement in the rubber as the soggyness isolates the transmission noise from the cabin. Big difference between what Joe "sunshades" Smith wants when hes buying his nice new Audi and what you want from it though!

No idea on the grubscrew though, maybe it just needs tightened?

 

[Jason.s]

I tightened it asmuch as I dare before it ended up snapping on me. Not sure what to do. Those are the issues for the massive slop I'm sure.

 

[Jason.s]

Bought a shortshifter from ebay so waiting for that to arrive. Should make a nice difference. Also jacked up the car and got the missus to wiggle the lever (no rude comments ) while i was under and watched the joint. So much movement so the cure is going to have to be one of these JHM Solid Linkage Upgrade for B5-B6 A4-Passat, 1998 - 2004 - JH Motorsports Inc. - -- JHM. Shifting Pretty price though which sucks but theres no other way of curing it.

So everyone that doesnt like the slop in the gearstick then that is your fix with possible this kit too JHM Solid shifter stabilizer bushing for B5-B6 A4-Passat, 1996-2004 - JH Motorsports Inc. - -- JHM.

 

[Jason.s]

Fitted the shortshifter last night. What a pain it is on a pre-facelift! half the dash and center console needs to come out! Once thats done its pretty straight forward.

Also fitted a new linkage which didnt move in the joint compared to my old once which was like a d!ck in a bucket!

Slop has greatly been reduced, shift throw has greatly been reduced especially after fitting the extension. Feels much more precise and firm going into gears now so i`d recommend that change. The kit i bought was AUDI A4 GEARBOX QUICK SHIFT SHORT SHIFTER KIT 96-03 | eBay

Another good thing is that its got rid of the pre-facelift push down reverse!

Just need to sort the bushes in the other rod ie the stabilizer bushes i linked above and then it should feel really good!

On a different matter i weighed my standard seat i replaced with the bucket. 23kg in total compared to 9kg OMP seat and about 2kgs extra for mountings

 

[Jason.s]

Not much of an update but will post it anyway.

Thanks to Scott the lovely Porsche caps arrived this morning so fitted those. Need to tidy up the rest of the engine bay as its a state and everything is pretty manky lol.

Also last week adjusted my heatshield so it actually works instead of just being there as before the filter was still getting warm and the shield was pretty hot on the filter side. Wrapped it in thermal tape and also insulated the intake side with some corex (stuff for sale signs are made of) randomly as i found a sign sitting around at work so cut it up. Surprised to say the filter is much cooler to touch. Still every so slightly warm but no where near what it was before and you can actually touch the shield without burning your hand lol.

After noticing my nasty Euros wheel bearing i fitted last year is knackered already i ordered up another better quality item from GSF and thought while i was at it i`d order up some solid S4 Tierod ends and will get it aligned up at Unit18 in the next couple of weeks. Hopefully should sharpen up the steering feel with these compared to 117k standard rubber filled items.

 

[ScottD3]

You need some Passat covers, facelift scuttle cover and it should start looking spanking mate.

I'm happy you got the caps.
Not bad delivery for posting on saturday.

 

[Jason.s]

Covers add weight Just need a new coolant bottle, paint up the rocker cover when i change the gasket as its leaking, probably paint up the inlet a cleaner silver or black, new filter and clean up all the metal work and plastics.

Oh and the battery will get relocated to the boot at some point this year.

 

[aragorn]

yep, i swapped my facelift scuttle for a PFL one, and binned all the other bits of plastic under the bonnet for that same reason

Though i was sensible and kept the standard airbox rather than adding about 20kilos of heatshielding

 

[Jason.s]

Although the shield is about half the weight of the standard airbox even with the extra stuff i`ve wrapped around it lol.

Need asmuch weight removed from the front as possible so adding trims and covers is out of the question.

 

[Reesy]

Although the shield is about half the weight of the standard airbox even with the extra stuff i`ve wrapped around it lol.

Need asmuch weight removed from the front as possible so adding trims and covers is out of the question.

To be honest, if you skipped breakfast, had a dump before going out in the car or put on tracksuit bottoms instead of jeans that would probably compensate for the weight of the plastic covers!!

 

[Jason.s]

What if i do that aswell as not having engine covers..double win!

 

[Reesy]

What if i do that aswell as not having engine covers..double win!

Thought someone would say this..

You might as well go drastic and drive everywhere in a mankini.

 

[Jason.s]

Bit chilly at the minute. Maybe when the weather picks up a touch..

 

[aragorn]

Weight saved is free performance.

If you can remove the weight from the car in such a way that you cant notice it, then why not?

On mine, i ditched all the plastics under the bonnet, removed the viscous fan, removed the foglights and the broken AC compressor and condenser, removed the rear parcel shelf speakers and removed the CD changer and its huge metal cage.

The only thing you'd notice from the cabin is the lack of AC, but the AC was busted when i bought the car anyway as someone had crashed into it and broken the condenser.