Matt Danger's B5 S4 Owner Log

Almost 2 years ago I had a minor front end accident. At the time I repaired the mechanic bits and put bandaid stickers over the dented body work.

That was “good enough” for then and the bandaids got a bunch of laughs. But I’d grown tired of a haggard car.

My friend owned a silver S4 that was rear ended and available for parts, so I pulled the front end off.

Hood transplant

Freshened up for the cruise to Great Lakes GTG a few weeks ago (ignore Casey). Also, new wheels (pictures soon).

So that took care of the front end. The rear end also needed some attention. The rear bumper & 1/4 panel needed a respray and the trunk had some rust coming through around the license plate frame & lights. Off to paint:

Finished pics coming soon!

It was bound to happen.. my 1-2 shift collar locked up at the track in October. The early 01E transmissions have a 1st/2nd gear shift collar tolerance that is too tight. If any burring or wear develops in the collar it will not slide smoothly. In addition, the stock brass synchronizers wear down prematurely and need to be replaced. I bought a rebuild kit from Scott @ Advanced Automotion. He took good care of me and helped me through any questions I had. I also sent him the center differential to modify to have a 4:1 rear bias. To make the rebuild easier I ordered a instructional DVD from JHM. This DVD was very helpful, without it the rebuild would have been a lot more confusing and stressful.

If you want to tackle this job you’ll need a few basic mechanics tools and some more specific tools like a gear puller, hydraulic press, c-clip and snap ring pliers and various little picks and things.

I borrowed a used core trans from a friend to reduce down time. This one was also in need of a rebuild. I used a pair of vice grips to shift through the gears. 1 and 2 were impossible to engage.

I popped off the tail housing and pulled out the center diff, and reached inside and pulled out the debris magnets.

They had some metal on them, but nothing abnormal.

Pulled the shift level out.

To remove the tail housing a bolt on the end of the input shaft had to be removed. To do this, I had to engage two gears at once to prevent the input shaft from spinning. The input shaft bolt is on quite tight and since I was working alone I had to strap the trans to the bench to keep it from rotating.

Once the bolt was out I had to pull the housing off from the input shaft. Undid the case bolts first. There is a bearing race that is pressed onto the shaft and holds the housing. I used a gear puller, though a modified steering wheel puller like that one used by JHM in their rebuild video would have worked better. I would tighten the gear puller a little, then pry between the case, then tighten the puller, then pry a little more, etc.

Then off came the 5th and 6th gears.

Then popped off the center housing & the gear sets. I installed a worm clamp on the end of the main shaft to prevent the front diff shaft from balling out and the bearings falling all over the place.

Here’s the center casing partially disassembled. Reverse and the input shaft have been removed, along with the shift forks and front diff shaft. I also painted the case.

After this I didn’t take many pictures. The remaining process involved pressing the gears off from the input and main shafts and reinstalling them with new synchronizers and 1-2 shift collar. That part was straight forward and went very quickly.

Reassembly was basically the opposite of removal. Some bearings & guides were heated and hammered on. I spent about 12 hours over the course of 3 weekends with the whole thing. I’m sure I could do another in a day or two.

The transmission has been completed for a few months waiting for the right time to install it. Hopefully soon!