B5 A4 01E Swap Info Thread

[Rodgman15]

to bring back a somewhat dead thread, who all has done a b6 a4 1.8t 6 speed swap into a b5 a4? is it worth it or are there more hoops to jump through than doing an 01e trans? i am building a holset powered 1.8t and my end power goal is going to be higher than my 01a will like (at least i hope i make too much power for it) and after reading and reading i am curious as to why that 6 speed is less prefered to the 01e... its made for a 1.8t and has a final drive similar to what our cars already have. but i have never seen how they are mounted or what electronics it might have that ours dont. if anyone has any info on why i should do the 01e swap instead of the b6 6 speed i would greatly appreciate it!

Mike Hood has done it. Needed custom mounts fabricated, he may have extras, look him up. Don't quote me,I may be misremembering.

[Crispy222]

Mike Hood has done it. Needed custom mounts fabricated, he may have extras, look him up. Don't quote me,I may be misremembering.

No, Mike used a B6 3.0 01E 6spd. B6 1.8t 6spd is a 0A2 and is not as strong the 01E. It will need custom brackets as the B6 does not have side brackets. It uses a W-brace towards the middle of the trans.

[Rodgman15]

No, Mike used a B6 3.0 01E 6spd. B6 1.8t 6spd is a 0A2 and is not as strong the 01E. It will need custom brackets as the B6 does not have side brackets. It uses a W-brace towards the middle of the trans.

Thanks for clarifying lol. I knew I had at least one aspect goofed up.

[freekonwheelz1]

No, Mike used a B6 3.0 01E 6spd. B6 1.8t 6spd is a 0A2 and is not as strong the 01E. It will need custom brackets as the B6 does not have side brackets. It uses a W-brace towards the middle of the trans.

i figured it didnt handle as much power. oh well! never hurts to ask! well for me to 01e swap my b5 1.8t i would need a custom mount or a new subframe anyway where as the b6 i believe needs a custom mount but uses the 3.89 final drive, if i remember correctly so it would make for an easier swap, right..? or does the b6 3.0 01e still use a 4.11 final drive? im just trying to toss ideas around in my head for when i break this 01a. third gear already isnt happy so its gonna fail me sooner or later.

[M-Hood]

No, Mike used a B6 3.0 01E 6spd. B6 1.8t 6spd is a 0A2 and is not as strong the 01E. It will need custom brackets as the B6 does not have side brackets. It uses a W-brace towards the middle of the trans.

I used a combination of a B5 S4 01E and some gearing out of a B6 3.0 01E since the B6 01E transmission was pretty much toast once we opened it up. The B6 A4 1.8t is actually a 02X, same transmission that is in the B7 A4 1.8t, they aren't nearly as strong and the reason we can't use them in the B5 is because they use 1 lower transmission mount and a cradle to hold it in place.

I did use a custom bracket on the left side to hold my 01E directly to my B5 A4 1.8t subframe, I also had another mount bracket made to work with the stock style stand up mount but did not end up using that one on my car.


IIRC the 02A transmission is what comes in the B6/B7 4.2 cars.

[freekonwheelz1]

I used a combination of a B5 S4 01E and some gearing out of a B6 3.0 01E since the B6 01E transmission was pretty much toast once we opened it up. The B6 A4 1.8t is actually a 02X, same transmission that is in the B7 A4 1.8t, they aren't nearly as strong and the reason we can't use them in the B5 is because they use 1 lower transmission mount and a cradle to hold it in place.

I did use a custom bracket on the left side to hold my 01E directly to my B5 A4 1.8t subframe, I also had another mount bracket made to work with the stock style stand up mount but did not end up using that one on my car.


IIRC the 02A transmission is what comes in the B6/B7 4.2 cars.

makes sense. audi wouldnt of left us a good tranny to swap easily too lol but i will continue my search for an 01e i suppose. im in no rush anyway. the car doesnt even run and when it does run itll be low power until i get my AEB head built and my rods and pistons dropped in. hopefully this time next year ill be collecting parts to swap my tranny for. hopefully third gear holds up until then!

[Mooseranch]

Old topic but hoping someone here can help. My son has a B6 1.8T FWD that we just swapped the AWD and 01E into from a 3.0 donor car. Everything is done but the starter does not want to engage. I didn't see any comments prior to completing the swap regarding starter problems and since the starter, flywheel and clutch are from the AMB engine, I didn't anticipate any problems. Starter bolts in fine but again seems to be hitting the flywheel teeth not allowing it to engage. The 3.0 starter is totally different due to spacer used on that combination. The starter hole in the thin 1.8T spacer/backing plate matches the transmission and the starter itself fits that as well. No issue bolting it up at all.

I don't see a difference in starter between for the 1.8's until later with a different solenoid clocking angle and connector for from the harness for the trigger wire. I have pulled the starter and bench tested it. The gear seems to through out normally and starter turns with vigor. Anyone else run into this problem.

[Mooseranch]

OK It looks like the bolt holes in the bell housing on the 01E are larger diameter than the 5spd and the bolt size for the starter itsself which allows the starter to move slightly in the opening. There is no way the 3.0 starter will work since the engine case is in the way of the mount hole for the lower bolt for the 3.0 starter. I re-installed the 1.8 starter and it worked but it is making a lot of noise so I believe it is too tight against the ring gear and whining as the gear disengages. I guess I'll have to sleeve the bolts in the bell housing to center the starter.

[Mooseranch]

It's back on the road as an AWD 6spd with no issues on it's first drive! A couple tweeks to the exhaust to clear the new rear carrier and the tail section of the 01E and installation of a resonator. Took of the Koni coilovers until we get something with less drop. Idaho is not friendly with that much drop. A few more tweeks and the kid should be happy for a while.

[OverSpun]

^ Good work!

Besides- This thread should be in the FAQ/Tech forum... I'll move this over.