1.4 ABD'd Golf gearbox - 5th gear gone

[unkleGsif]

at the start of a long drive london (wasnt even supposed to be in the golf, but the EZBleed burst while doing teh brakes on my Saab c900Turbo) i lost 5th gear... not good on a 600mile round trip...

the clutch has been getting low for a while, and i beleive the release bearing is rattley, but had no prior warning to losing a gear at all.

i am now left with ANOTHER car that needs work... brilliant, just what you need when its turns ******* cold


question....
i know there was some crossover between golf's and polo's with the 1.4 ABD engine etc, but does anyone know of either a reputable source for 2nd hand boxes, or what i may be able to do with this one to get 5th back (ie, are there any common problems?)

symptoms were:
driving along at 65, and it popped out of 5th
put it back in and was fine for 80miles or so, then it did it again, then again.....etc etc
now it pops straight out at all times, and even holding it in 5th doesnt work, with a jerking feeling from the box

thanks in advance
G

[unkleGsif]

anyone....?
getting desperate here...... are there any common faults that I should be aware of (and therefore know fixes) and/or reputable 2nd hand supplies of boxes?

G

[DropKickMurphy]

Hi there,

i notced there is at least 1 compatible gearbox on ebay atm for £50, reputedly out of a car which had covered 80k - something like this should do the trick

it'd be heaps cheaper than getting your current box out and having it rebuilt IMHO. i knoked a hole in mine about 2 years ago and got a replacement delivered for £100. it looked like someone had dragged it out of a swamp, but its stil going strong 2 years later!

i have a feeling all gearboxes are interchangable provided you have the correct CV joints, but for a 1.4 DO NOT go for a driver gearbox (i think they are the CHW but could be mistaken) as it will take eternity to get to 30mph as they are designed for the extra power and torque of a 2.0 litre engine.

I will consult mr haynes later but i think a CHV gearbox is what you should look for.

hope this helps a bit

DKM

[DropKickMurphy]

ok, had a bit of a browse and now i'm mopre confused.

i think any box as long as it doesnt come out of a diesel will work ok, but avoid boxes from the larger engined golfs, and 'driver' models as these have very long ratios designed for cars with more grunt.

if you go for one of these you will get amazing economy, but will take all year to get to 60 mph!

i'll still consult my haynes manual later for you

DKM

[kenney]

15 mins work will remove the rear gearbox housing to inspect or repair 5th gear

[DropKickMurphy]

right, got my Haynes Manual in front of me now.

i'd suggest getting a 02K transmission with one of the following codes:

CHW
CHV

or a 085 transmission with one of these codes:

CCK (10/91 - 08/92)
CEC (08/92 - 05/94)
CHX (08/92 - 05/94)
CWM (09/94 - ON)
CZA (05/95 - 05/96)

apparently these are all 5 speed and compatible with the 1.4 ABD

The 085 transmissions have a shorter final drive ratio (4.063:1 compared with 3.941:1 for the 02K)

hope this helps a bit

DKM

[unkleGsif]

cheers mate.... navigating through this as we speak

if only VW were more like my old Saab, where a box from a 1968 99turbo would fit a 1994 c900 turbo, life would be a great deal more simple (saab gearboxes are considered "Service Items" in the performance world tho )

G

[Housemaster300]

right, got my Haynes Manual in front of me now.

i'd suggest getting a 02K transmission with one of the following codes:

CHW
CHV

or a 085 transmission with one of these codes:

CCK (10/91 - 08/92)
CEC (08/92 - 05/94)
CHX (08/92 - 05/94)
CWM (09/94 - ON)
CZA (05/95 - 05/96)

apparently these are all 5 speed and compatible with the 1.4 ABD

The 085 transmissions have a shorter final drive ratio (4.063:1 compared with 3.941:1 for the 02K)

hope this helps a bit

DKM

I have about 120 Haynes manuals but non on the mk3 Golf,any chance you can tell me what box's are interchangeable with a 1.8 driver abs engine?Ive asked this question before and had no luck.
Basically 2nd gear has gone on it so i used some mtl oil and it will do for now,but when i come to replace it i wondered if a gti box would be better?Or the same.
Cheers DKM

[DropKickMurphy]

Hi Housemaster300

as I understand it all golf gearboxes are interchangable but the CV joints can be a pain to sort out. it depends on whether you are after acceleration or top speed (both are relative terms!)

the 'driver' gearbox has a longer final drive ratio than the 'regular' version, and is designed for economy on motorways where you would be doing approx 130mph at 5500rpm in 5th compared with 115mph at 5500rpm with the 'regular' version. obviosly these figures are theoretical - i'm not sure if it is possible to hit the red line in 5th in a golf!

my 1.6 AEE is fitted with a 02K/020 CHW gearbox which has a final drive ratio of 3.941 and 5th gear ratio of 0.850, the CHV version has the same final drive but has a 5th gear ratio of 0.712 meaning top whack would be approx 135mph, although i sincerely doubt it could get anywhere near that.

the 2.0 GTI engine had a final drive ratio of 3.667:1 and a 5th ratio of 0.805 giving a slightly shorter gear ratio than the CHV (?) and a top end speed of about 130mph. obviosly the bigger engines have more power and torque so tend to negate the downside of longer gear ratios, but in a 1.6 AEE for example it would take a lot longer to get to 70 mph with the longer ratios, but a GTI would be running out of revs before you ran out of grunt with the CHW box.

I would suggest a straight swap if you can procure an identical gearbox as this would involve minimal hassle but if you have enough time and patience i understand anything is possible.

a useful resource for this that I have found is this URL:

http://www.kabamus.com/garage/gears.html



I dont claim to be an expert and stand to be corrected on the above.

DKM

[unkleGsif]

hi there again guys.... i have found a few likely candidates for boxes on the bay, but none of the vendors seem to know jack all about either the engine that they were attached to, or the code for the gearbox itself. i have asked several of them, and they all just come back saying "its off a 1.4Golf mate"...... yeah, cheers for that, helpfull

is there a way of visually identifying from the outside, if they cannot confirm its origin via a particular code?

this is starting to do my head in now.... as it is yours, probably

Ta
G