91 200 20vt

[PW200-20VT]

First off, hello everyone. I have come to love "the project pad" since my recent purchase of this type 44 (link below).

http://germancarsforsaleblog.com/10k-fr ... allic-off/

I would consider myself a "car person" but I have never performed a bottom end rebuild or any activity that involved.

I will also openly admit I had no idea about the type 44 and the rare 3b motor that can only be found in the 91 Audi 200 (In the US). I only ever wanted or concentrated on acquiring a UR s4/s6 or just go for the B5 S4 platform.

That was my train of thought when I was turning 16 (8 years ago)....needless to say I didn't get either vehicle.

My 98.5 b5 a4 2.8 30V was my first starting point. I still have the car and am about to turn 25. She is my baby needless to say.

I started to learn and modify with a juvenile approach towards the b5 but as time went on I realized that wanting a fast car that is reliable is a very expensive proposition.

The stock b5 a4 2.8 30v turned into;

A 98.5 b5 a4 30v with a PES G1 supercharger kit installed with a custom fabricated front mount intercooler set-up. It runs a smaller diameter charge pulley to boost around 11-12 PSI as well as ZZ performance supercharger coupler. It is street tuned with a split second piggy back controller, B5 s4 red top injectors, and is running custom wideband, Vacuum, and boost gauges.

JHM drive train stabilizer, Apikol Snub mount, 034 street density engine and trans mounts, Apikol rear diff mount (red), Apikol rear diff carrier bushings, OEM s4 strut tower brace, H sport front sway bar with poly bushings, 034 solid poly front end links, Nuespeed rear sway bar with sub frame reinforcement brackets, solid metal Meyle rear end links, Bilstein sport struts with Vogtland sport springs, B5 s4 front spindles, Brembo 17Z 6 pot front brake swap with C230 AMG front rotors, SS lines all around, Audi Q7 platinum 19x8 wheels with ECS custom spacers all around, Supersprint headers with custom down pipes to an OBX 3" exhaust system, B&M short throw, InPRO LED tail lights, HID 9K headlights (2 piece), RSR front bumper, B5 s4 side skirts, shaved door moldings, painted rear valence, black painted roof, 15% tint, and some other things I am sure I am forgetting.

During all of this, extensive maintenance was also taking place. Full front suspension overhaul, inner and outer tie rods, wheel bearings, timing belt, water pump, tensioner/roller, cam ten. seals, valve covers gaskets, ect ect ect ect.

After all that work, the B5 a4 2.8 30v had hit the ceiling. There just wasn't any more room for more power without an entirely different power plant, or full build and a single turbo kit. (I just didn't have 20-30K for what I want....600AWHP so ill patiently wait on that project and hopefully will get there one day)

But,

All the while we (family) acquired more cars lol. I worked extensively on my brother E36 m3 (still owns), bought an AP1 S2k (still own), 87 BMW 325es (e30, still own), and my long term project.....69 VW bug that my brother and I intend to fully restore.

Finally, about 6 months ago I stumbled upon my 200. I didn't realize what I was looking at but I did like it. BBS wheels, arches, that type of thing.

I researched and researched and validated why I "need this car" lol. So I bought it (didn't pay that asking price though) and thank goodness I didn't.

She needed work....and it wasn't the type of work you could look at the car for an hour and notice. It was fine tuning and replacing of parts that the "normal" weekend mechanic just turns the blind eye to or doesn't get "deep" enough into the vehicle to understand or notice these parts need replacing (Thank you SJM autotechnik webpage). The gentlemen who sold me the car bought it from the original owner. He told me the car needed nothing (cough cough) and gave me a stack of paper work. It was well documented but again I felt like the 2nd owner just bought the car to beat on it. And that is exactly what I think he did. Performed zero preventative maintenance but drove the old girl hard.

So I began to "dig" into her.

Full breather hose set (034)
Full intercooler hose kit (")
Full coolant hose kit (")
Street engine mounts
Throttle body boot
Replaced intercooler o-ring and cleaned plumbing
Trans mounts
Poly snub
Apikol rear diff mount
Front suspension overhaul (front was pretty shabby, rear feel and reacts fine) consisted of Bilstein HD strut insert, upper strut mounts, and strut bearings, inner and outer tie rods, bushings, dust boots, ect.
Full coolant flush with timing belt and water pump replacement, MFTS, coolant temp sensor, after run temp sensor, both knock sensors, 02 sensor, oil pressure sender, radiator temp switch, cleaned the resistor pack, new air filter, oil filter, fuel filter, cam seal, crank seal, lower pan gasket and pan side seal gasket, belts, oil pump gasket, valve cover gasket, all the stupid vac lines that run to the moisture trap and the ECU and everywhere else (I had the over boosting issue due to them being burnt to hell).
Billet BPV and some other odds and ends I am sure I am forgetting.

So I finally decided I need help with making this sleeper into a nice 350hp sleeper that I want it to be. So thank you all in advance.

Problems still to deal with:

1. Front brakes stick sometimes? I took everything apart and there doesn't seem to be ballooning lines. I have read that the engine bay gets too hot and the MC sticks. Causing the brake caliper pistons to not properly disengage? Also the pedal does feel quite hard when first driving the car for the day. Brake bomb bad? I don't know if those are interrelated?

2. DIY for a head unit upgrade? Right now the stock deck doesn't even power on. Sometimes it will but if I turn up the volume it shuts right off.

3. DIY for a headliner removal and replacement? I saw photos of another individual on here replacing his? Do you happen to have a step by step for this process?

4. Not really a problem but something I want to do. My hall sender sensor looks literally glued on and then zip tied around the distributor's body. I have ordered the brass cog, the proper size rotor (slim tip) and new wires with the correct plugs. But what if this hall sender sensor is, well, not reusable? isn't it integrated into the distributor itself? I just want to know what the hell I am getting myself in to. When you change the BMW e30's cap and rotor its like any other. This seems like a bit more effort and I think somebody has already been in there and messed up/broken something. Thoughts? It does seem harder to start once at full operating temp and then parked for a short time and then re-started again (grocery store stop).

5. I want more power. But again with the effort put towards reliably.
-Stage one 034 chip set
-full 3" exhaust with 034 dp and rs2 manifold
-? Thoughts?
Thanks for all your knowledge.
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[loxxrider]

Welcome! Great first post. I remember commenting on that listing on germancarsforsaleblog. It certainly seems like a nice example. The maintenance you've done so far is commendable! I would add some of those to the lost of things I'd like to do to my avant to keep it bulletproof.

I will spend more time answering these later when I don't need to be sleeping, but I wanted to touch on the brakes.

In my experience, every single time I've had a problem with brakes sticking (never had the problem on my audis, but several times with my BMWs) it has been becuase a caliper needed rebuilding. I'd look into that first becuase it's cheap and easier than you'd think! That's assuming you can get the parts.

Putting an aftermarket radio in is no different than in any other car although if you still have functioning bose speakers, that is a bit of a lie. We'll come back to that one when you confirm their existence or lack thereof.

I've done the headliner in my sedan. I'm not sure if there is a diy for it. I will look to see if it's in the Bentley manuals. You really should get yourself a set if you don't have them. They're invaluable! Basically you have to take the sun visors off as well as all grab handles, pull off the rear window trim (easy), release some tabs around the sunroof, and then it's glued in the area aft of the sunroof. Getting it unstuck from there is the hardest part. You'll need something to reach up in there with and cut away at the glue. Getting the thing out of the car can be done through a rear door if I recall correctly, with one of the front seats folded and slid all the way forward. That's all from memory, so take it with a grain of salt

I'd definitely get a whole new dizzy in there while you're doing the metal gear. A new hall sendor would be great to have.

If you want more power and it isn't chipped, definitely chip it! It makes the car a lot more fun. I'd, skip on the exhaust and manifold until you upgrade to a bigger turbo. There are so many options for chips, don't limit yourself to 034 products. Marc Swanson (Efiexpress.com) is a great person to talk to about this kind of thing! Give him a call for any and all of your power needs

[Aktapod]

Good to have you here! This forum can never have enough T44's

Looks like your 200 is in great hands! These cars will reciprocate if you treat them well and get their needs taken care of.

If you're not looking to get a whole new dizzy, you can replace the hall sensor in the unit. There's a great DIY write-up that goes over how to do so, and you can order the sensor from Marc at EFI Express. The website lists it for the AAN, but it fits and works perfectly in the 3B distributor.

Given how you describe yours, if you've got any parts broken or missing, I've got a disassembled damaged dizzy, and you're welcome to anything you need from it.

To add onto what Chris said about the headliner, you'll also have to move your pillar trims out of the way to get the panel to come down. The A pillar trim just pops out of its clips, but if you're not careful to pull straight out in the direction of the clips, it's very easy to break the plastic. I can snap a picture of some I have lying around if you'd like to see how they should come out.

The upper B pillar trim is held in place by the door seals, so you just have to slip that off to get it free. For the C and D pillar, they pop off like the A pillar, but I didn't have trouble with them breaking. Make sure to disconnect the window defroster wires on the D pillar and you should be good to go!

Agreed on the chip! They redefine the car, and I remember thinking how much it woke up 3rd gear in particular. If you keep your eyes peeled, you might find a used chipset come up for sale, or you could go the route Chris suggested. I'd steer clear of 034's tunes, if at all possible.

I'm looking forward to seeing what you make of this! Also, uh... pics?

[PW200-20VT]

Hey thanks for the replies!!!

I hope it is in good hands. I have spent more $ on her than I originally intended for the first 6 months of ownership. That’s for sure.

I will post pictures soon hopefully.

Since the headliner isn't my top priority I will readdress this subject at a later date but I am definitely going to get it replaced/replace it myself.

Just for clarification…what is the general opinion on 034? I have kept going to them for the 200 because I don’t know any better source? Advise?

Ok so back to this distributor; (Thanks for offering me up any parts from your damaged one!!! You are too kind)

http://www.quattro123.com/Audi200DistributorRepair.htm

-I don't see any source that offers me a brand new distributor (with metal cog and new hall sensor installed). I see places offer the rotor, the cap, the new cog, but that is it.

-If I pick up a new hall sensor from EFI express (which I cant find on their web page?), and then get the proper cap, rotor, cog, wires and plugs that is all I will need…correct? It looks like to me that the hall sensor actually fits into the distributor (glued or what?). So break/snap off the old rotor, glue back in place, replace the plastic cog with the new brass one I have ordered. Remove the old hall sensor from my original distributor and install the new hall sensor back into my original distributor. Replace the old cap with a new one, plug in hall sensor and replace wires and plugs. Other than following all of the “timing rules” is there anything I am completely botching up?

As for the chip. I think I will just take Chris’s advice. That being said, I have read many people like a tune from an individual named “Ben Swann”. Has anyone heard of this tune, ect?

All your help and knowledge is greatly appreciated everyone.

I want this car to be another I am proud to show off, while also being 100% confident it will be reliable.

[PW200-20VT]

Is this the correct part from EFI express?

http://www.efiexpress.com/catalog/produ ... ucts_id=95

Thanks,

[PW200-20VT]

I was finally able to open up the "12v DIY write up" and can clearly see that the EFI express product is in fact correct. Thanks for that!!!

That being said the part I see zip tied and JB welded on my car is the "external 3 pin electrical connector" that "slides" into the distributors body.

Anyone know were to buy that specifically?

Aktapod, do you have this part fully intact by chance?

[loxxrider]

Marc might have those available. If he does, it'd be a simple solder job away from being fixed.

[Aktapod]

Sorry about the delay; I shot you a PM

[PW200-20VT]

Sorry for my delay. I responded.

For the record, taking that little pin out of the drive shaft for the distributor did not go as easy at the DIY described. (when does it ever though?)

I dremeled off the pin head and tried to dislodge it but it just wouldn't come out. I had to drill out the entire pin unfortunately.

Also, someone who clearly didn't know what they were doing had been in there before. I found the 7a rotor installed..........

[PW200-20VT]

Side note:

Anyone have any single piston ATE front calipers they would sell me? I need to tackle this problem of the front calipers sticking as soon as possible.

Would a bad brake bomb cause this problem?

I will go calipers first, and then MC replacement.

[PW200-20VT]

Ok so maybe i missed something or did something wrong. I thought you could pull the distributor without setting the engine to TDC as long as your marked the position of the rotor in relation to the distributor body before you remove it and then install them in the same position.

The car is all put back together and will crank but simply wont start. I rewired the new hall sender in correctly, installed the bronze gear and drove in the new spring pin, fixed my broken hall sender electrical connector, replaced the wires, plugs, cap, and rotor.

Please advise.

[loxxrider]

Check that the mark on the cap matches with the one on the rotor at TDC.

[PW200-20VT]

yay!!! A response.

Ok I will go about doing that.

How do most people set their 200 to TDC.

Is it just socket to crank pulley and rotate two full revolutions? Look for the "0" in the trans hole?

I guess what I am asking is for my b5 a4 you had to get the car into service position to set the crank at TDC. Does the same apply to the 200? V-belts must come off, ect ect?

[loxxrider]

Any way you can find to turn the engine will suffice, but a socket on the crank pulley is best. I like to go by the mark on the crank pulley when I'm just quickly verifying TDC. I usually combine that with sticking something down cylinder 1 to make sure it's at the top of its travel.

You might be 180 out on the head when using that method, but you'll know if that's the case when you look at the distributor marks. I'm betting it's probably just slightly off. Get it lined up, and she'll fire.

By the way, I said the mark was on the cap, but it's on the body of the distributor, not the cap. You'll know it when you see it though.

[PW200-20VT]

Got the car off of the ground last night after putting the e30 into a ditch yesterday morning......directly after the installation of my brand new Billy Boat exhaust system the night before....sigh. The car is at the shop. The exhaust made it though.

So I performed two full revolutions after finding the TDC mark on the flywheel through the transmission hole. Disassembled the dizzy and sure enough the body line mark was off from the shutter wheel but the rotor was pointing correctly at plug one.

Loosened the stupid 13mm nut and was able to rotate the body to the correct orientation.

She did in fact fire right up.

With the new plugs, wires, rotor, cap, hall sender, and new bronze gear, all while knowing that timing is correct, the car felt great to drive last night.

The stock boost gauge (all I have right now) was reading 1.7 bar.

Now to address the front brakes.

Thanks for the help.

[loxxrider]

Glad I could help! Sorry about the E30. Is it just some cosmetic damage? What kind of E30 do you have? My E30 M3's engine just blew up lol.

[PW200-20VT]

I am glad you did. I needed to get that thing out of the garage. Atleast for a day or two haha.

It is an 87 325es. I have gone over the car immensely over the past 9 years. Bought it from a family friend (well my father did) for 800 or 1k that many years ago. The two front seats are literally worth that, that is the condition of the car and the way I keep things.

The old lady who owned it just never drove it. Literally. It had 78K on the odo when it came to be ours.

It is my little cafe racer daily driver. Updated/Upgraded "stock" perfection is what the car means to me. And it gets 30MPG on average.

No????!!! really? Is it an s14 motor? Or did you swap like an s52 in it?

[loxxrider]

I am glad you did. I needed to get that thing out of the garage. Atleast for a day or two haha.

It is an 87 325es. I have gone over the car immensely over the past 9 years. Bought it from a family friend (well my father did) for 800 or 1k that many years ago. The two front seats are literally worth that, that is the condition of the car and the way I keep things.

The old lady who owned it just never drove it. Literally. It had 78K on the odo when it came to be ours.

It is my little cafe racer daily driver. Updated/Upgraded "stock" perfection is what the car means to me. And it gets 30MPG on average.

No????!!! really? Is it an s14 motor? Or did you swap like an s52 in it?

Very nice. My friend has a turbo'd 325i which has been extremely fun. It made 330 whp on 13 psi, but we have run it to 22 psi or so and it regularly runs at 18 these days... or it would still be doing that if he hadn't hydroplaned on the highway and crashed it. He has a 325is body he is swapping it into currently however. It should have easily been making 400 whp at those boost levels and it was a BLAST! It would pull on my E39 M5 pretty handily after getting in it's powerband. The M5 always gets the jump because of the massive torque, but then he'd reel me in.

Anyway, that car is mostly stock other than that except for some light suspension work in the form of some bushings and "spec E30" springs/dampers. You don't need to do a lot more other than put some sticky tires on it and you have a wonderful thing. There is a reason why the e30 is so well-loved. The M3 takes that even further though, and I have really come to appreciate that car for everything that it is.

It does indeed have the stock S14 in it. It is completely stock (engine and chassis) save for a few poly bushings and bilstein struts/shocks. Even in completely stock form, I have never experienced this level of front end control and feel along in addition to such perfect balance and controllability. The only thing that has ever come close was a 458 italia that I drove. I think that says a lot for the little M3! Of course, the 458 was as good or better in all of those ways, but was it as much fun trying to control all of that power and capability? Nope! As they often say, driving a slow car fast is much more fun that driving a fast car slowly (relatively speaking).

I suspect rebuild costs to be about $10k all in with engine removal and installation. I had a pretty good investment before this happened, but now I'll probably be breaking even this year. Hopefully appreciation continues so I can appreciate the fruits of my labors, but if not, at least I've been enlightened by the thing! I never know how much fun 195 hp could be

By the way, you should post some pictures of your E30 if you ever get the chance.

[PW200-20VT]

Yea the m20 turbo builds are literally insane. It seems that the m20s have such a following that you can literally find any type of build for that motor and the e30 platform and just replicate what you like.

My friend had an outback sport with a fully built STI swap that pulled only 2-3 car lengths on a boosted 325is at 15-17PSI. Impressive.

I personally will always keep my e30 N/A but the only move I would ever consider (lol it will happen) for increased performance is the "885 head swap" out of the 325i/is m20 motors. The 327i build. This is something I yearn for.

As for the e30 m3 I cant agree more. There is a reason those cars are so highly sought after. Yea they are rare but truly they are a car built for a driver and the real BMW heads will pay to get them. I am so glad you didnt remove the s14. I hate it when I see e30 m3s for sale with an s52 or s50 swapped in them. I literally cringe. Ill never forget the first time I rode in an e30 m3. It literally sounded like nothing I have ever heard before and felt very well balanced. The (our) AP1 s2k is so balanced and the e30 m3 felt on par. To me that is saying a whole lot.

Oh she will always keep appreciating, especially since the s14 power plant is still in there.

I just need to post pics of all of the projects but I will try to work on atleast getting the 200 and the e30 posted.

Slacking, I know.

[loxxrider]

The head swap is definitely a good avenue to go down from what I hear. Better yet, get one done up by Bimmerheads. M50/S50/2 swaps are pretty awesome in normal E30s too, but there is something about that sewing machine sound from the M20 that is endearing. It's the same reason I like the M30.

I have always thought the s2k would be great fun. That engine is to die for. I hear they are a little unforgiving though. Any comments on that? That's another of my favorite aspects of the M3. It is so incredibly forgiving in every situation. Overcooked it a little? No problem, just modulate the throttle accordingly. It's one of those cars that you can literally steer with the throttle on the limit.

ANYWAY, back to the Audi action. Otherwise our fellow project-padders will whine about all the BMW talk in an Audi thread

[PW200-20VT]

Oh I do agree. They are awesome but just not "right" and I truly do love the sound of an m20 and its solid lifters.

As for the s2k, all I can say is that Honda made sure the AP2 model (04+) was far more tame. Now ours is a MY 2000 s2k which is an ap1 and is anything but forgiving. The car is meant to be driven by someone who knows that a mistake can lead to being in a ditch, crying and looking around like what happened. The ap2 only revved to 8k, and the whole front and rear suspension components were "diluted" to ensure anyone could handle the car. Driving an ap1 vs an ap2 is literally night and day.

Ok so back to the Audi action....I am going home tonight and will get the car nice and hot to see if I can get the front calipers to stick. I will then proceed to dump cold water out of a bottle over the MC to see if that stops the front calipers from binding/sticking.

I truly hope it does so I can just replace it and be confident in the fact that the MC is causing my front brake issues.

[loxxrider]

Did you try anything with the calipers yet? Unless both calipers are sticking, I wouldn't suspect the master cylinder.

You can figure out what's missing if you replicate the issue and then pull over and feel for heat coming from both brake discs (don't touch them, just feel for heat *near them). One should be hotter than the other if a caliper needs a rebuild.

A Harbor freight heat sensor gun thing is really helpful for that kind of thing.

[Aktapod]

Not to butt in off topic again, but I thoroughly enjoyed the BMW content! Though I've never owned one, I dailied my friend's E30 318i for a few weeks while the 200 was down for repairs. It was an early M10 powered (this is a generous term) little bugger running so poorly I doubt it was making even half the blistering 103hp it was given 30 years ago. The linkage had so much slop you had to shove the center console over to get reverse. Half of everything didn't work. You had to floor it downhill if you intended to make it over the next crest.

To date, one of the most fun cars I've driven.

[loxxrider]

Haha they're great for unexplainable reasons. Same as our beloved t44s. We shouldn't care for them on paper, but in practice, they're impossible not to love.

[pilihp2]

So regarding the sticking brakes,
Not to disregard Chris' suggestions, but.
It's a pretty common thing for the MC's in these to stick when they get hot. Covering the shit out of the MC in foil/some sort of shielding helps.

Go for a drive, bring a spray bottle with water in it with you. When the brakes start to stick, get out, spray down the MC, see if they un-stick.
It's possible it's the calipers, but it's quite common for the MC's to do this from everything I've seen

But yeah. Welcome!