Finally did it - .71 5th Gear swap...

[El Romano Loco]

So last Sunday, I finally swapped out the 5th gear I purchased about a month ago that was being used as a paper weight at work

I'll try to make a step by step (i am not good at this crap):

1. Took the wheel off

2. Removed the fender liner.

3. Drained the tranny.

4. Removed the six 11mm( ) bolts that hold the end cap.

5. Removed the bolt holding the shift fork bracket.

6. Removed the two bolts holding the shift fork and took it off.

7. Wiped of as much oil as i could of the gears.

8. Took off the big Torx bolt and washer holding the "big" gear on the left.

9. I took off the ring and the three clips that hold/push the syncro, slid that out of the way (but i don't think it's necessary).

10. Wiped as much oil as i could off the gear.

11. I used a propane/butane torch to heat up the gear(not the shaft!) for about a good minute.

12. I modified/grinded the hell out of the "fingers" of a gear puller, to fit it behind the gear(big one).

13. It came off real easy with an impact(weakest setting).

14. Took torx bolt off the smaller gear on the right.

15. Heated it up for a minute too.

16. As i went to install the puller, the gear fell off!

That's pretty much it. When i put the new gears on, I also heated them up for a minute and they went on real easy Don't forget to fill up the tranny. I used the OEM stuff, 1.9 liters.

Driving impressions: For those of us with the 3.94 final drive, it should have been like this stock.

Just to give you an idea: My revs use to be 4500 at 100mph. Now, at 4500rpm I am right at 135mph I couldn't believe I was cruising along at about 120mph(normal for the autobahn) and the motor wasn't screaming for help.

Not to mention the powerband is much wider in 5th. It's real nice to shift from 4th to 5th now. Actually pulls harder at higher speeds, because i am in the meat of the torque.

I am not for sure about MPG savings, but i am very curious(especially with gas prices) This is totally worth it in the sense of noise and engine friction while at higher speeds. It sounds like a completely different car in 5th. I will post MPG changes in the next week or so.

BTW I purchased the gears locally for about $230. and I can get any combo you need, just let me know.

Adrian

[Sid-Rage]

that sounds great.. thanks for the input

[O2VW1.8T]

how does the car feel at 170. I know mine at 160 feels real light. Maybe its the stock suspension and H rated tire's. Who knows, its pretty scary

[El Romano Loco]

Honestly, it feels the same after about 150mph. Everything goes by real fast I have race springs with Stiffest Bilsteins available, so its very controllable. However, at those speeds, one little movement and you are three lanes over...

FYI, I don't normally drive a 170mph. This was just a test to see the difference. I use the same flat strip of autobahn I always do for my tests My hands were sweating big time, but I wasn't nervous or anything, just natural reaction i guess...

[QuickK03Crap]

Good info.

[spoolin turbo s]

so at 60-70 mph where are you at rpm wise

[El Romano Loco]

The rpms are at 2100@ 60mph, at 70mph not sure, but I can check and post later. Keep in micd that I have the old 3.94 final drive, yours is a 3.6XX I believe...

Ad

[spoolin turbo s]

no mine is more like 4:10

i have a six speed in the ole turbo s beetle

i was just curious i love my gear ratios the way they are right now............i wish first and secons were a little longer but other than that i think its perfect.......... just not for drag racing

[El Romano Loco]

Gotcha... Didn't notice the "S" sorry. Yeah, i actually considered the 02M 6speed, but with my budget, the 5th swap was ~$1500 less

Adrian

[flanders]

Quote, originally posted by El Romano Loco »

The rpms are at 2100@ 60mph, at 70mph not sure, but I can check and post later. Keep in micd that I have the old 3.94 final drive, yours is a 3.6XX I believe... Ad

ahhh...that's perfect! I still gotta get around to doing this

[El Romano Loco]

Just got back from a beautiful drive on the autobahn. 70mph is right at 2500rpms.

Lovin' it!!

I can get this setup for $250 shipped. Nobody else offers it in the states...

Adrian

[Ricky_Rockstah]

good to see someone doing this. I' m *VERY tempted*

[El Romano Loco]

IMHO, It's totally worth it

Ad

[16vracer]

Quote, originally posted by El Romano Loco »

Just got back from a beautiful drive on the autobahn. 70mph is right at 2500rpms. Lovin' it!! I can get this setup for $250 shipped. Nobody else offers it in the states... Adrian

Sweet. Sounds like a great winter time swap

[enginerd]

This is more of an afternoon swap. Piece of cake.

[16vracer]

Quote, originally posted by enginerd »

This is more of an afternoon swap. Piece of cake.

True, but it'll be winter before I have the extra cash to do it

[El Romano Loco]

lol, no poop. I was counting on 3 hours min... I was done in less than two, cleaned up and everything

If you guys want to start a group buy we can do that too

Adrian

[E7TDI]

You have part numbers?
John

[Boostin20v]

i did this in '01, got the parts from http://www.thescirocco.com/ - cost was ~200ish

[d0wnShifT]

oh and how i wish i was back in the motherland again. The autobahn is something everyone should experience at least once in their life.. I need to come visit


Modified by d0wnShifT at 11:20 PM 10-18-2005

[RoyalOakMichiganJim]

........I wish it was that easy for the six speed trans that I have.... That O2M with 2 final drive ratios is a different breed of cat........

[El Romano Loco]

John, the part number are:

02a 311 361m & 02a 311 158r

these are for the .718XXX ratio. Also available for any 02A or 02J tranny are the .75XXX and .68XXX gear sets. For about the same price. Actually the .68 is about $10 cheaper...

other guy, Yes the 02M is a diff story all together.

other guy#2, I checked that link and didn't find anything.

Adrian

[Boostin20v]

as other guy #2....the site doesnt list half the stuff you can get from them....but if you contact them you can get the gear sets needed for the conversion.

[El Romano Loco]

lol, other guy #2, couldn't remeber your SN and didn't wan't to go back... So, you did this same swap? .71XX gear set? What was total price shipped?

Thanks!

Ad

[an204421]

Is there anything like this for an automatic (the 4 speed), maybe adding a fifth gear

[JDriver1.8t]

Unfortunately, there isn't anything that can be done for an auto.

[Boostin20v]

I paid ~200 bucks shipped for the parts back in '01

[QuickK03Crap]

Any chance you could see what the rpm drop is between 4th at redline into the new 5th? Where it puts you after the shift basically.

[Schoolbus]

Great info - thanks. I have these gears on order right now. They are currently available in the US. 1stvwparts has them for $285. Prices have definitely gone up over the recent years. Below is what I had previously recorded for pricing.

As for speed/gearing, I believe my estimates (with 3.94 final) were suggesting:
85mph - was:3800, will be:3200
80mph - was:3600, will be:3000

Here's the previous pricing info I had found:

For the .717 gearing you'll need:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=713538 (2/18/03)
02a311361M is $80.50
and 02a311158R is $122.10

I just (8/18/05) checked these sites and found:

1stvwparts.com:
02a311361M: $110
02a311158R: $174

worldimpex.com:
02a311361M: $142
02a311158R: $226

[slickfisher]

Congrats.

Your my hero.

Only when I have the money, time and energy.

Big envy.

[Boostin20v]

on my AWD revs dropped roughly 500-700rpms after the install. Sorry but I cant be more specific, the car was down in '01 for 8 months and this year its been down since May.

[El Romano Loco]

Quote, originally posted by QuickK03Crap »

Any chance you could see what the rpm drop is between 4th at redline into the new 5th? Where it puts you after the shift basically.

I will check tomorrow morning... on my way to work I usually see 130mph, and if I am running a bit late, well... you know

Schoolbus, Yeah those are old links and they don't work. I have no idea why the prices would go up ( maybe cause gas prices ). I talked to the manager of our local VW dealer and he said he would give me discount for sure if I were to buy 5 or more sets.

Adrian


Modified by El Romano Loco at 9:56 PM 10-19-2005

[zooyork155]

Very interested in the MPG difference. I commute in 5th and the RPM drop should save $$$

[Ricky_Rockstah]

Quote, originally posted by QuickK03Crap »

Any chance you could see what the rpm drop is between 4th at redline into the new 5th? Where it puts you after the shift basically.

That's totally what I want to know as well.

[KGilman]

K-Town ....swing by Hohenfels and say hi for me, I miss Germany.