020 transmission tear-down (5th gear swap)

[BlackTieTD]

http://www.thediygroup.com/020teardown.htm

http://scirocco.dhs.org/cheapassron/020tranny/index.htm

two good links for any of you guys wanting to tear into your 020s or go to a longer 5th.  

[Northboundtrain]

Very cool.  I can see that there are a lot of specialized tools necessary to teardown and rebuild a tranny.  What would a tranny shop typically charge to install a longer 5th gear or final drive ratio?

I just got back from a 1,500 mile road trip with the Jetta.  I was pushing it pretty hard, trying to maintain between 75 and 80 mph, and it revs pretty high at that speed.  Fuel economy drops way off.  When I have the tranny out for the new engine install in a few weeks, I might like to change the gearing too.

[BlackTieTD]

first step would be finding out the transmission code so you know what gears you have in the car. if you already have a .75 or .71 and a long final you won't be able to do much better without taller tires. if you have a shorter 5th... start looking for someone selling a .71 for a good price. i don't know of a shop to recommend.

[chrissev]

first step would be finding out the transmission code so you know what gears you have in the car. if you already have a .75 or .71 and a long final you won't be able to do much better without taller tires. if you have a shorter 5th... start looking for someone selling a .71 for a good price. i don't know of a shop to recommend.

Nice, thanks for the info.  Now I need to figure out if a 0.68 fifth out of a fox transmission would slide onto an 020.  The junkyards around here are full of old foxes, and no one cares what I take from them (I can rip the engines and transmissions apart and take little bits and pieces,no one at the parts yards give a s*&^ as long as I pay for what I take).

[addautomotive]

WOW! That first link is fantastic! I wish I'd known about that when I replaced my reverse last year!

I'll post some pics of my homemade "specialized" tools.

[addautomotive]

5th gear tool: (made from a 12mm socket)



case splitter: (had the guys at crappy tire weld this up for free. Yes, you read that right... for FREE)

[addautomotive]

FWIW, I've done the 5th gear swap 3 times, and each time I did it with the transmission in the car.

Took me about 4 hrs the first time, can do it in about 2 hrs now. Not a bad job at all, and depending on the ratio change it can make a huge difference.

There's a ratio calculator on those links BlackTieTD posted.

[lusob]

Hi,

I have in my Golf 2 with SB engine gearbox 4T. From what gearbox can I take a 5th gear? My 5th gear is 0,745098. I read here about 0,684, but I don't know in what gearbox is this gear? Can you tell me a code of it? Are in 020 gearboxes better ratios and in which gearboxes, than 0,684?