TDI upgrades of parts

[witchcraftz]

This has to do with the parts I'm buying in the WTB forum. My car is an 05 PD BEW jetta with tiptronic. Are there upgrades in these parts which will work with my setup?

* fuel sender unit
* turbo
* lift pump
* glow plug wiring harness
* injectors

[CGDoig]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

The BEW engine mostly just needs more air unless you plan on going all out. First upgrade you should do it the turbo. Buy a hybrid, go bigger first, only really want to do it once. IDParts has the 17/22 for $1400 and on tdiclub, ryanp has large turbo kits for $3000. The injectors in the BEW are good until ~ 170hp. Then decide on a good tuner. DO NOT COOKIE CUT, get a real tuner, Mark Malone, Jeff at Rocket Chip basically the two TDI power houses. If you feel you want more power after that, upgrade your injectors to some PD130/150 units. They're fairly expensive but are good to about ~220hp with supporting turbo. Keep in mind the 17/22 hybrid struggles with EGT and EMP at 190hp.

In order here's what your upgrade list should look like.
1> Turbo
2> Tune
3> Clutch
4> Exhaust
5> Injectors
6> FMIC
7> Suspension
8> BEW camshafts are prone to failure if improper oil was used. Maybe plan on a Colt Cam with the next timing belt change as well

As for other stuff. Keep a rainy day fund. These cars are very reliable when taken care of with a proper maintenance routine, but when that one thing breaks it can be pretty pricey.

[witchcraftz]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

I can probably get my hands on a VNT17 that should work almost as good as the 17/22. Then the tune part I'm thinking Malone but I really don't know.

[MechEngg]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Cam, want to correct you on one issue, he can't upgrade his clutch. The odds of the transmission holding up with the torque this setup is going to produce is slim to none. Instead of upgrading the clutch you need to upgrade the torque converter and get your valvebody machined. This will increase your clutch plate pressure and make your clutch plates last longer with less slipping. Contact level10 for pricing but to get both of those its probably around $1600-$1800.

I had a 5 speed tiptronic on my last jetta and I would not put more than 275tq (flywheel) through the transmission. Its the weakest of the mk4 available transmissions.

[CGDoig]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

The difference is up to you really. 17/22 will achieve close to 170hp with a tune, with no supporting mods (more with, I put down close to the ~190 mark). the 17 will be about 140-150 max, even with supporting mods.

^^ Jynx Yeah, I just realized that after re reading. These diesels have pretty extreme torque values. I'm probably close to 350 ft/lbs now. My clutch slips like a mother in 3rd even. An auto would have failed already.

[witchcraftz]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Okay, I was kind of figuring the torque converter was what I would need to upgrade since it's a not a manual. I'm looking around for some better torque converters right now. but it wasn't exactly part of my original build idea, lol. I'm not trying to turn my car into a track monster but some extra "woohoo!" when I want to stomp the gas would be great.

Seems the cheapest place for an upgraded converter might be a little shop in Ontario which has reputedly done them for $150.

[witchcraftz]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Here is kind of my build with estimated cost

Engine/Power Mods Price
Bigger Injectors 150PD 500
ECU chip reprogram 400
Fuel filter upgrade 120
Glowplug harness 70
Glowplugs 100
Lift pump 70
VNT17 200
Timing Belt Kit 270
Custom torque converter 300
TOTAL 2030

Cosmetic Mods Price
3 spoke GLI/Audi steering wheel 200
Audi/R32 pedals 50
Replace all lights with LED 30
Trunk light mod 10
Rearview mirror with auto dim & bluetoooth 70
Brushed chrome R32 style trim 150
New Beetle parking brake 50
Automatic Shifter handle R32/Audi 50
LED door sill protectors 60
LED Audi style with DRL headlights 300
TOTAL 970

My first priority is to get this running. Then I will look at slowly doing the rest of these mods. And yes I have found a VNT17 for $200 off a wreck.

[MechEngg]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Just a few pointers...

- Just a torque converter will probably not get you the holding power you are looking for. Upgrading your valve body is what actually prevents the slipping of your clutch plates.
- R32 pedals for $50? Where are you finding these lol, i want a set for this price
- R32 brushed aluminum trim for $150? Again where are you finding this...a brushed aluminum set is usually over $1000 for a full set in good condition
- LED audi style headlights....please don't get these. Even if you do like they way they look their light output is far worse than even stock headlights. They are by far the worst headlights that i have seen on the market, no offense to anyone who has them. But i would stay away from these if i were you.

[dJ]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Your VNT 17 is going to need some other mods to make it work. An OMI, a lower and larger lower intercooler pipe, might want to upgrade the pipes all together from IDParts. You also might want to think about increasing your exhaust size or removing the cat. Also a boost valve is a must as well as a gauge, and egt gauge would be a smart idea as well.

[CGDoig]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Yeah DJ is right, the BEW has clip style intercooler piping. You'll need to change the whole system or buy an adapter. Also exhaust for sure, you'll have to expect some boost creep and spikes with the restrictive stock stuff. If you open it up it will limit any bad stuffs. You'll also need an different EGR pipe for the VNT17 as well, or block of plates to remove the EGR completely.

There's a recall for the BEW engine's through VW right now until the end of the year I think. Its for the glow plugs. When you get the car running take it to the dealership before doing any modding and you will get new plugs and an ECU reflash to accommodate.

[witchcraftz]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

Just a few pointers...

- Just a torque converter will probably not get you the holding power you are looking for. Upgrading your valve body is what actually prevents the slipping of your clutch plates.

Alright, I'll have to look into that too then. But who does that in Canada? And what's the price on that?

- R32 pedals for $50? Where are you finding these lol, i want a set for this price

I found a set of R32 pedals from ebay UK.

- R32 brushed aluminum trim for $150? Again where are you finding this...a brushed aluminum set is usually over $1000 for a full set in good condition

It's just a trim cover set. I'll upgrade to some real ones down the road if I feel like it's worth it.

- LED audi style headlights....please don't get these. Even if you do like they way they look their light output is far worse than even stock headlights. They are by far the worst headlights that i have seen on the market, no offense to anyone who has them. But i would stay away from these if i were you.

I'm looking at a set which has the standard bulbs for lights, but the DRL are an LED audi style strip on the bottom. LEDs are not powerful enough for real lights, in fact I usually run Osram SilverStars (not the nighthawk crap) imported from Europe.

[rojhero]

Re: TDI upgrades of parts

There's some great info on here and I thought I'd add my two cents.

I would recommend going with simple tune for the engine and highly recommend Malone because of his excellent service. You'll get somewhere between 120-140hp and 220-250 ft/lb of torque depending on what your turbo can handle. The KP-39 can have significant boost creep hence the range of safe power. You also won't want to upgrade the intake or exhaust since upgrading the exhaust could cause more creep. Personally, I wouldn't do any more than that on a tiptronic. I think you'd just be asking for trouble.

A lift pump should cost you $200 minimum (buy OEM) and the new updated glow plugs can be bought for less than $50. In fact they'll give you new ones if you haven't done that TSB yet. You'll want to do that before tuning with Malone. Also, if your tuning you'll want to buy Vag-com or I can lend you mine.

Some other mods/maintenance I would consider:

Evolution aluminum skid plate - to protect the thin aluminum oil pan
Intake hose mod to keep it from popping off
Suspension - Koni Reds or Bilstein TC/HD, LCA bushings while you're at it
New parking brake cables - they tend to freeze or break
Rainy day fund for cam issues. Sounds like from the other thread you might already need a new cam. I'd stick with 505.01 oil in Calgary or maybe use Rotella T6.

TDIclub.com is a great resource. If your car doesn't start I'd look at this thread:

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=199398

Good luck!