Thread: V8 Into A4 B5 II

So with my B5 A4 Quattro Sport, I proved the V8 does fit the B5 chassis, with minimal effort.

Following the success of Outlaw's new V8 heart, I have the pleasure of doing another V8-into-B5 project. Oddly enough, it's another widebody, this time though, the project is different - it's the same AHC S8 32V motor as mine, but there the similarities end.

It's a front track, it's retaining the original 5-speed 012 tranny, and it's going to maintain the OEM S8's Bosch Motronic ECU and harness, which means no MAP sensor, and it'll be running the standard MAF.

The base car is a Ming Blue Pearl 1,8 T Sport. I spent the day prepping the bay for the larger block, removed the 1,8T motor. Mounts are already available for the V8 / B5 integration, it will also be running one of my flywheels, a single-mass 7,2kg unit. In my car, there is no chatter, even when loading the tranny from low speeds, in any gear.

I'll keep you guys updated via the usual write-ups and pictures, stay tuned!

Looking forward to this!

Awesome!

I'll be wanting one in mine, I bet, after this one's done!

Looking forward to the updates.

damn it I would love to assist on this one but in italy, ****e

The base car, B5 A4 1,8T Sport:

RS4 badges, thats a no no lol

Quite agree, a nice big fat V8 badge would be better.

Car looks good, should have the power to go with looks soon!

Those manholes in the road look a bit brutal!

Siena have you ever done a quatty conversion? good work

Side note: These are old pictures, before the current owner got his mitts on her. She looks very different now - no RS4 badges, now sporting 1-piece ecodes, and M3-style trunk lip.

The teardown began today...

Outgoing 1,8T engine:



And so the teardown continued:















Little boy 1,8T:



Big bad boy S8 32V!





Fancy kicking that big lump into the B5 bay?

Find me an S4 engine lol

Originally Posted by rasA4

Siena have you ever done a quatty conversion? good work

Thanks bud, never done a quattro conversion, cost would be prohibitive, unless on the later B6 / B7 platform, where the shells are the same, with all quattro mounting points, even on FWD.

The V8 just looks so compact and neat. Would of those fit nicely into a tdi q base car or would teh tranny and ecu / loom be too much of a mind feck?

Only issue with using any TDi as a base would be the fuel system - lines, pump and tank would need replacing.

Looks ace!

Will go even better!

:D

Looks awesome great work

RS4 clutch will be with us tomorrow, so will be able to mount the engine.

Happy days!

So... you're using the existing gearbox, with a higher performance clutch, with the V8 bolted straight to it?

The only custom parts that are needed are the engine mounts?

What about the exhaust, fuelling and wiring? Does it just use the standard V8 ECU and wiring harness, or does it use a modified 1.8T harness?

Lots of questions as very curious!

Same custom parts as in my car - mounts and flywheel, to allow the use of an S4 / RS4 clutch.

This car will be running the stock S8 ECU and modified harness.

So, pretty straight forward in terms of getting it running... its just the hard slog of actually getting it all in there then and looking pretty?

Is the engine significantly heavier so that it requires uprated front suspension?

It's a fair bit heavier than the 1,8T, the front of this particular B5 was quite low with the I4, it'll definitely require 2,5 TDI Eibach springs, as it'll bottom out otherwise.

Great progress already, can see this becoming the next "in thing" for b5's!

Just got back after a long stint in the workshop.

And discovered the mounts I had made for my own car don't line up with the I4 set-up.

Not sure if it's due to the different subframe, the front engine support fits though. So Monday, will see if my guy can rework the existing ones, or I may need to supply him with new mock-ups based on the B5 4 cylinder.

Some pictures though...

Upper oil pan that needs to be ground off, else it fouls the subframe. I also shaved the thick webbing off, will take pictures of that later:



Engine bolted to tranny temporarily:



Front panel, showing area that needs to be cut out:



Radiator test fitted:









Checking hood for clearance:

Can i bring the Avant over for S4 engine fitment or do you want to use my workshop?

You can bring it over here - you won't need tools either.

Good good. Just find me an engine, and youre fitting price LOL

Someone was selling one recently, will see if it's still available.

tempting,tempting. v8 quattro b5 does sound nice. can it be a plug and play affair pretty much if you get all the bits from the donor car?

Originally Posted by Drizz

Good good. Just find me an engine, and youre fitting price LOL

Good man. Waiting on insurance payout

Originally Posted by ian52

tempting,tempting. v8 quattro b5 does sound nice. can it be a plug and play affair pretty much if you get all the bits from the donor car?

Most of the parts from the donor car - mounts, flexi plate etc can't be used. The wiring harness, once all configured, can be pretty much plug and play though.

i've defo seen a s4 engine for sale this week with 65k light front end damage to the shell which is included i think, is it on here??? or ebay?
awesome work by the way lads.. your skills make me so jealous how on earth i became a builder and not a mechanic i'll never know

On the mounts, cant you use the V6 alloy brackets with the I4 subframe?

Afaik the subframes are all pretty similar, so if you got a pair of the V6 alloy brackets from a breaker, the existing mounts should fit?

Looking good though.

Looking good Siena, this is turning out to be a money spinner for you huh, lol, keep up good work.

Is that Solar Orange?

PS. Damn your finger almost looked broken in that picture, lol

That pic with the finger in freaked me out. I thought it was your right hand and you had some kind of freaky thumb! Then a friend pointed out (get it?) that it was your left hand and your 'pointy' finger... phew!

Still looks a 'bit' freaky...

i noticed something wasnt quite right with Siena's finger, 'but couldnt put my finger on it'

My B5's color is Audi Inca Orange Pearl.

My finger? Lol. I'm double jointed.

Great work so far, keep it up! Cant wait to see it all finished Siena. Bet the owner so excited!

Excellent, very good work

A little update:

So many things differ between an I4 and V6 B5, as far as installing the V8 goes.

1) Mounts - new custom mounts made to integrate V8, different from V6 base car.
2) Subframe - tranny n/s bracket needs to be cut off, and V6 one welded in place.
3) Tranny n/s mount - being replaced with V6 bracket, to allow n/s catalyst to fit.
4) Airbox - 1,8T unit has intake facing front of engine, being replaced with V6 item.

Car is now running, for some reason though, the S8 immo would not code to the B5's key and immo box, so a different approach was needed.

It involved obtaining a B5 ECU, immo box and key from a junkyard. All came from a 1998 A4 2,8 quattro. The immo box was then plugged into the car, the transponder removed from the new key (was glued in, what a b4stard it was to remove). Finally, the immo processor was carefully desoldered from the 2,8 ECU, and soldered in place of the old one in the S8's ECU. Voila!

Had a scary moment last week - the fuel filter decided to spring a leak of major proportions. It was so rusty, I was surprised it held pressure up to that point. It looked like a cylindrical brick, and after replacement, the injectors had to be removed, and taken for an ultrasonic clean. The fuel lines were then flushed through, before replacing the injectors, and firing her up.

Another issue...the cluster in a B5 is designed to work for either 4 or 6 cylinders. While the cluster in this particular B5 1,8T could be coded to work in a V6, a V8 wasn't an option. The C5 A6 uses the same basic cluster, and was available as a V8, but as the C5 came later than '96, which this B5 was, fitting one wasn't an option, unless a whole bunch of wiring was on the cards...

...It wasn't.

The existing cluster was pulled apart, and certain key components were replaced, (thank God for Maplins) so now works accurately.

A few pictures of progress so far:

Rusty, porous fuel filter:



New harness in progress. Involves deleting massive auto trans ECU connector, auto trans tranny connectors, as well as configuring the S8 connectors to plug into the B5 chassis. They also needed to be extended from the left side of the scuttle, to the right:





Engine mounts:



Front engine support bolted in place:

The wiring's finally done, today was spent tidying things up.

Why?

A little snag - the central plastic engine cover Paul ordered is off an earlier car, so the "V8" section is broader than mine, and fouls the expansion tank:



Will be carefully trimmed tomorrow.

Picture showing the 1,8T airbox, with forward facing intake, where it would normally go to the turbocharger's cold side:



Will be replaced with a V6 item, as I'm loath to fit an induction kit. The ignition amplifiers and evap. purge valve can then be mounted on the upper cover. The S8's MAF sits within the airbox, pretty much like an AEB, but I'll be fitting it in a conventional manner, in series with the throttle body and airbox.

Originally Posted by GGrmk

Why?

Why what?

Originally Posted by Siena

Why what?

Uh why swap for a v8? Why not just go buy a Charger or Camaro is you want a v8?

Originally Posted by GGrmk

Uh why swap for a v8? Why not just go buy a Charger or Camaro is you want a v8?

And be like every one else running a Camaro, right?

If you read the thread from the beginning, you'd realise it's not my car, though the V8 conversion mirrors my own, which is also a V8, albeit with a 6-speed manual and quattro drive.

Besides, I'm old enough not to be answerable to anyone but myself. I fitted a V8 to my own car, because I can. Again, I fitted a V8 to the blue B5, because I can, and the owner wants it.

Originally Posted by Siena

And be like every one else running a Camaro, right?

Yes, because you're running or your customer are running a V8. Which is essentially the first thing anyone thinks of in terms of a swap. O let's get a 6L V8, supercharger that, and get 2mpg (sarcasm). Why not swap for some crazy engine no one has ever done? Why not stand out and strive to out do everyone, instead of dropping in a V8. O no it's another V8, miracle!

Originally Posted by GGrmk

Yes, because you're running or your customer are running a V8. Which is essentially the first thing anyone thinks of in terms of a swap. O let's get a 6L V8, supercharger that, and get 2mpg (sarcasm). Why not swap for some crazy engine no one has ever done? Why not stand out and strive to out do everyone, instead of dropping in a V8. O no it's another V8, miracle!

If that's the first thing that comes to people's mind, then their minds have a pretty narrow range of thinking. This is the United Kingdom, we don't run Camaros here.

If the cars produce 2mpg, and we can afford it, it's cool too!

As for standing out, being unique, where else in the UK has the S8 motor been installed into a B5 chassis? Lol @ "dropping in a V8". I'd like to see you "drop" one in - if it were that easy, there's be loads running around.

Miraculous? No. Unique and ground breaking? Yes.

Saying that, I'd truly love to see you better my efforts, with your BT 1,8T - if striving to outdo everyone's your bag, why is your car still running the stock engine, with everyday "tried and tested" mods?