98 mk3 gl manual transmission options

[Jonathan312]

hi,i got a 98 vw jetta gl 2.0 5 speed with 130 miles on it and my transmission started going out.it first strarted with my reverse,now my 1st, 2nd and 3rd gears are all sliding as well and making the craking noise when i accelerate.sum dude offered me a 95 cabrio tranny for $300..now,would dat be an easy swap or should i jus look else were for the same oem tranny?my uncle is charging me $180 for labor,just gotta find a good tranny. i kinda wanted to race out the little 4 bangger but now im kinda iffy about it.any suggestions? ad vice and feed back would be greatly aprreciated..thanks!

[Hurt]

hi,i got a 98 vw jetta gl 2.0 5 speed with 130 miles on it and my transmission started going out.it first strarted with my reverse,now my 1st, 2nd and 3rd gears are all sliding as well and making the craking noise when i accelerate.sum dude offered me a 95 cabrio tranny for $300..now,would dat be an easy swap or should i jus look else were for the same oem tranny?my uncle is charging me $180 for labor,just gotta find a good tranny. i kinda wanted to race out the little 4 bangger but now im kinda iffy about it.any suggestions? ad vice and feed back would be greatly aprreciated..thanks!

Any transmission from a 93-99 MK3 body-style 2.0 will fit and work, they're all the same transmission (020).

It's as easy as taking the old transmission off, and putting the new one on.

[Jonathan312]

thanks for a quick response bro! glad i joined the community. would the cabrio tranny be considered an upgrade,downgrade or will i get the same performance out of it? sorry for asking to much

[aoj2108]

The Golf, Jetta, and Cabrio are all Mk3 models and when equipped with a ABA (2.0) all have the same 020 manual transmission. Just make sure the car is at a full stop before you shift into reverse to make it last longer.

[MSamphier]

Keep an eye on it though, reverse went on me and I drove it with no reverse for a few months. I went to the store one day and when I came out there was a giant puddle of gear oil underneath my car. The shards of the reverse gear got lodged in other parts of the transmission and cracked the transmission housing.

[Jonathan312]

yah i remember reading sumthing about the reverse coming out bad in these cars.sum one suggested when going into reverse to shyft into 2nd gear first, then put it into reverse.would anyone have additional information on the radiator fan??mines turns on only sum of the time....sumtimes my car be hot af and it wont turn on.they tried charging me $300 for repair! fxxxxxxxx that! haha

[Sky-Fi]

^ fan issues is either the fan control module or a bad temperature sensor. The sensors are cheap, and the FCMs are a little pricey, but you can usually find some in the classifieds for a good price.

[Jonathan312]

kool.thanks

[Hurt]

thanks for a quick response bro! glad i joined the community. would the cabrio tranny be considered an upgrade,downgrade or will i get the same performance out of it? sorry for asking to much

It's the same thing. Same gear ratios and same F/D.

[aoj2108]

When I did an auto to manual swap on my Cabrio I opted for a 02A hydraulic transmission like the ones on VR6 equipped cars come with. A VR6 trans will not fit but I sourced a "CES" coded 02a hydro trans from a "92 Passat 16v.

This type of swap requires a hell of a lot more work than just dropping in a 020 but I believe it is well worth it given the reverse in the 02A trans is a lot stronger than the 020 reverse gear. It's better to source a Passat 16v or G60 parts car to have everything you need but some Mk3 VR6 parts can be used and are much more readily available in the Mk3 classifieds. Here's what you need...

- 4 cylinder 02A trans with slave cylinder & hydraulic line
- clutch master cylinder w/ reinforcement bracket from pedal cluster to firewall
- G60 flywheel with 6 bolt holes. (VR6 10 hole flywheel will not work)
- VR6 clutch disc and pressure plate
- 4 cylinder 02A starter (VR6 02A starter will not work)

I think that is all

[Jonathan312]

how much did that cost?

[VDub2625]

- 4 cylinder 02A starter (VR6 02A starter will not work)

I don't believe this is required as I "upgraded" to a Mk4 02J starter in my Mk2 020 to delete the brass bushing requirement, and it bolted right in.

[aoj2108]

how much did that cost?

hard to say because I had all the VR6 parts laying around in the basement already but the transmission and starter I scored for $250 and I was lucky to find it in that price for a working trans. You might also possibly have a tough time finding a G60 flywheel for a decent price.

[aoj2108]

I don't believe this is required as I "upgraded" to a Mk4 02J starter in my Mk2 020 to delete the brass bushing requirement, and it bolted right in.

The Mk4 02J is a hydraulic trans so the starter would be the same as a Passat 16v or G60 4 cylinder 02A starter except for the electrical connection maybe. I tried a VR6 02A manual, a 020 ABA manual, and even the 01M auto starter and none of them fit. It has to be a 4 cylinder hydraulic trans for the starter to work for some reason

[VDub2625]

Hmm. I know it was a starter from a Mk4 2.0. They don't use the brass bushing in the trans case like the earlier starters (which wears out), they instead have a much bigger collar with a bearing built in.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[aoj2108]

yea I've heard about those bushings but I thought that was only on Mk2 020 trans and earlier. Maybe the Mk3 020 also had it but I'm not sure

[reynolds9000]

I've got a 2Y from an '89 GLi and i don't recall there being any brass bushing on the mk3 starter.

[VDub2625]

It's not n the starter, it's in the casing. Mk3 ABAs definitely have it, becuase I had an ABA starter before the Mk4 one. THe end of the starter has a long shaft that inserts into the trans casing (and bushing) when the solenoid pushes it out. The Mk4 starter just has a big-ass bearing end and no extended shaft.

[aoj2108]

^^^ Yup it's in the casing and I'm pretty sure it's not so easy to remove unless you have a small chisel or something

[VDub2625]

I screwed an old bolt into it that fit snugly and pulled.