smlporsche

I agree with those that say:
1. get the car sorted first (I have an S2 tranny....) A reliable car will be more enjoyable than one you have to constantly fiddle with to get it running.
2. upgrade the suspension to MO30 specs for street use. What sways do you have???
3. Then consider if you have any $ let over for boost goodies...

JohnKoaWood

It appears that his car is already sorted, but with a noisy gearbox.
Maybe he should go for the MAF, Stand alone (individual coils or even the wasted spark system) Engine management (Oh I would love the sequential fuel injection)..

Or even step up to a nice shiny turbo upgrade...

DarylJ

And...ya know...a blown head gasket.

JohnKoaWood

Yeah there is that...maybe his leakdown will actually show the only problem is a loose nut in the drivers seat... JUST KIDDING..... NOT TRYING TO HURT ANYONE'S FEELINGS, JUST POKING FUN...

I hate reading someone else is having problems, but do like reading about people spending unreasonable amounts of money on a 20+ year old car worth half what they paid for it, and only getting more up-side-down by the mile... Makes me feel better about doing it myself...

theykallmekem

+1 but really focus on getting the car running before doing any further modifications. make sure the car is strong first then you can upgrade and modify and take it to the limits

Tom R.

leave your rear end alone. I wouldnt touch your rear end and i suggest you not let anyone touch your rear end.

rear ends are noisy by nature. when the r&p goes deal with it. you can go years with a noisy rear end. most people spend their lives with noisy rear ends.

a lot of the noise is because you dont have a rubber bushing to dampen it. the rubber clutches absorbed a lot of that noise.

keep your eyes open for a used LSD rear end. then after your rear end blows have that LSD rebuilt. be cheaper in the long run i bet.

Techno Duck

My 951 was mostly stock when i bought it with the exception of APE chips, LR boost enhancer and a 3'' exhaust. I started modifying this car with 300whp in mind, however my #1 goal was reliability. While i agree with alot of people that you need to completley sort the car out before modifying, there are alot of those 'modifications' that will really improve the reliability of the car at the same time. Ive had the car about a year now and it has seen significant changes, so much i think Tom R. who was the previous owner wouldnt even recognize it.. .. I did things in a pretty logical order. Mind you alot of the 'steps' were done because i had to keep things in a pretty tight budget, ideally the headgasket and MAF would all be done in one shot.

Step 1) Replace headgasket
-widefire headgasket
-o-ringed head, headwork done by LR
-cycling valve deleted in favor of the LR black ****
-Tial 38mm dual port wastegate
-replaced all vacuum lines and hoses under intake

Step 2) Replace AFM, chips. I drove the car only about 2000 miles (i was out at sea a good portion of the time also) with the APE chips and boost enhancer. I knew the tune was horrible (mega lean at the high end, mega rich in the mid range) and drove the car pretty gingerly in that time.
-Vitesse MAF
-72# injectors, i went big knowing i would eventually go with a bigger turbo
-3 bar FPR, obviously required

Step 3) Now having a solid top end and good tune, i could swap the turbo at my leisure. My K26/6 had some bent blades and it was starting to blow oil out the hotside. So i replaced it this winter with a larger unit. No need to fuss around with retuning anything or having new chips burned for the turbo. Literally all i had to do was bolt the turbo on and drive the car. The Vitesse MAF required NO changes at all. It couldnt get any easier than that.

Alot of people will say you dont need the MAF and that is true. But it has improved the drivability of my car significantly. Its an expensive upgrade, but at the same time improves the reliability of your car with basically perfect AFR's. I dont mind paying more upfront if it keeps me from replacing the headgasket every year. There was no trial and error on the dyno or the need to make changes to the chip, no messing around with fuel controllers either.

choinga

Hilarious actually. No offence taken...sadly, it's probably hitting a little too close to home.

I have wondered the same thing as I contemplate spending almost as much as I paid for the car to get it into decent running shape, but in the end I knew that's what I was signing up for. And, when I get in the car and drive it...it's a freggin blast....and worth it.

Hopefully none of us bought these 20 year old P-cars thinking it was an investment.

choinga

In the end, probably not the most horrible thing that could happen (provided there's not any other significant damage in there that I can't see...) - it's as good a time as any to get in there and change it for a wide fire as well as get the intake off and replace all the vacuum lines and crusty hoses, seals and gaskets that haven't been touched in 22 years.

Provided that's all it is, I'll definitely go with the new WG and strongly consider a Vitesse MAF. I gutted my AFM a while back - looked good...cleaned up the contacts and such, but I know others have said that the Vitesse stuff really makes the car run better than stock and it's not like you have to run it at 18PSI.

If I can get that done as well as the gearbox sorted out, I think I'm in really good shape. I don't know that I'll do any more HP/PSI upgrades post MAF. Frankly, the car at stock has enough juice for me - but if a Vitesse MAF can get it running better with a little nicer kick, I'm all for it.

I love this car and plan on keeping it for a good while. So, a decent investment now that keeps me on the road is worth it.

hacker-pschorr

I would build a custom turbo for my 87 - S powered by MegaSquirt.

DarylJ

The most important thing I can say is:

You obviously know what you're getting into. I'm not trying to dissuade you from the upgrades. Far from it. I'd just like to see you make sure you don't do it at the expense of a solid car FIRST, because you'll be able to enjoy it more in the end.

While most on here will tell you to go for the suspension "because its the biggest bang for the buck" (which I agree with), if your thing is light-to-light and for some reason you picked something that runs with the best of the minivans, go for the boost. I'm not one to judge what anyone wants to do with their car in the end. In fact, against all reason I bought a complete POS and have put more money into it than what a good example would cost simply because I wanted to do it myself, my way....even though that's definitely not as good as a unmolested car.

choinga

Thanks Daryl,

The car ran great actually until I stuck the chips/LBE in. I was probably overboosting and thus the blown head gasket.

The more I look at the M030 stuff, the better it's sounding to me - and honestly, I can probably handle that myself. I can't do the head gasket, I could probably do the WG if none of the screws seized or sheared on me...but that ain't gonna happen...and a Vitesse MAF is iffy...mainly because of the wiring harness and such...I don't want to screw that up. The gearbox - I have no clue. It could be something really simple (not likely, of course) or I'll need a new one. Who knows...I don't even know where to start looking in there...leave that to the pro's.

I've got a really good local guy who will take care of it. It will cost me $4k in labor to get it all done, but at least it will be right and I'll have a pretty tight ride.

I'm going to try to get it in later this week so they can start working on it. Going to have it towed down - I'm scared to death of hydrolocking the damn thing since it's been sitting for 5 days now. I'll keep everyone posted...

JohnKoaWood

My car is holding value beter than my portfolio... so who knows...

Good luck

I have spent over 5K on a car I paid 3200 for ... I am adopting the Mantra of Go Big or Go Home.... New suspension bits and pieces should be showing up this week and into next, and then... Fun Fun Fun till the PoPo take my license away....

Before boost upgrades I am thinking MSD 6A and a MSD Coil, I like the response my N/A got from just the coil...

pjburges

Gearboxes are a pain to rebuild. I speak from experience! Buy yourself a good used one with limited slip if you dont have LSD already. I will help you put it in! ha. The whirring is most likely the ring gear. Ring and pinion wear is common on these Audi boxes.

Or....just dont mind it. Yours doesnt whir anything like mine does, and having ridden in your car, I didnt notice very much slop in the drivetrain anyways.

Why do you think you blew the headgasket? I doubt it was that pre-ignition, that was very minor and probably due to the 89 octane that had ended up in the tank...

Tom R.

That's two saying leave it alone or get a LSD.