

| Subject: | Re: VW Customer Relations & reality check |
| Date: | Tue, 28 May 1996 12:13:06 -0700 |
In a private post discussing Vanagon motor/transmission transplants in response to my desire to fit a 140 horse Audi 2.5 liter diesel TDI motor into my '83 diesel Westie, Wouter de Waal wrote: "Using the Audi transmission... possible, but idunno. Know of a guy that stuck a Citroen DS20 'box into his Kombi (read VAnagon), with a Ford 3L V6. (very popular for conversions here). Then he found out he had 5 gears in reverse and one forward :-) Being an ex-Citroen mechanic, I could have told him. Citroen engines, like most engines in the civilised world, turn clockwise if you look from the front. But the Citroen gearbox sits in front of the engine, so does the flywheel. The Maserati V6 fitted to the Citroen SM was specially designed / modified to turn anti-clockwise. Anyway, this guy fixed it by making a new cam and redesigning the oil pump to make the Ford V6 turn anti-clockwise. There was an article in CAR magazine. Dunno how long the thing lasted..." Well, I'd like any information available about what transmission options should be considered for this transplant. The AUDI A6 salvage yard donors are few, but among their number, the 6 speed manual box will be common. How about keeping it all together? I think its 214 ft.- lb. 1900 rpm torque peak could easily pull the tall gearing when just rolling along. Also, if someone is remarketing original Audi/VW bell housings with ID numbers removed to create a micro monoply so they can increase their profits, that's OK. But unmasking those OEM parts origin is also a fair end-user group research project. Reminds me of tennis. Serve, return. John Wakefield
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