B5 A4 1.8T Turbo Options

[Matt-Matt]

As some of you might have assumed or know my K03 gave out on me a couple of nights back.

Was doing a pull onto the highway (nothing too insane) and the rear end went, causing the front end to be off balance enough to shred the intake side of it.

I'm not in a financial dilemma, a new K04 is do-able right now.. But still not sure I can justify it as I've purchased KW V1's recently too.

Basically at this point I'm just after suggestions as to what I should do; as afterall, a lot of people here have older A4's with 1.8t's and have had the same experiences.

Should I;

A1. Used, have sourced a Regular K03-005 (will refund me if it doesn't work) for ~$100
A2. Used, K03-029 that has been offered to me here that needs a wastegate flapper, mine is assumably fine and just re-use my rear housing (Will need to inspect)
A3. Used Frankenturbo + New/Used Injectors + 5 Bar FPR + Tune = Less then a new k04 and a fair bit better?
A4. Used K03-073 ($550, so likely not worth)
B. Brand new K03-005
B2. Brand New K03-029
C. Brand new K04-015
D. Rebuild the turbo i have (who knows how much this will be?)
E. Leave it and live without a car until the missus and I settle in..

I'm also going to need to get a bunch of gaskets, as the exhaust gasket is definitely gone. I can probably re-use the rest of them which is nice.

Will also be grabbing a silicone intake hose, regardless of what I do as it is off right now and I think that it is definitely worthwhile considering the boost that I will/am running, especially if I end up going with the K04/Bigger

On the bright side, I won an iPhone 7 through work last night, so the missus is happy with that.

 

[jchen]

I'd be inclined to spend as little money on your car as possible.

An a4 with stock internals is never going to be a riveting car to drive.. just find a used k03 - under $100 all said and done and you're back on the road.

 

[Matt-Matt]

I agree to a point, if I was going a new turbo I'd definitely go the K04 for that bit more power.

Going a K04 (or bigger) brings in its own issues with insurance and whatnot.

I can certainly afford to do a K04 + fueling, but it's just justifying it right now when I'm trying to move out.

Maybe next time my turbo craps itself..

 

[jnrdavo]

Won't you also have to change the software to get any of the benefits if you change to a K04?

 

[jchen]

Won't you also have to change the software to get any of the benefits if you change to a K04?

of course... otherwise its a waste of money.

but to be honest.. so is a k04 on an 058.

save your money, put on another used turbo and leave the car alone.

 

[Matt-Matt]

Won't you also have to change the software to get any of the benefits if you change to a K04?

Yes and no, from what I understand it's still a bigger turbine with the same characteristics

of course... otherwise its a waste of money.

but to be honest.. so is a k04 on an 058.

save your money, put on another used turbo and leave the car alone.

I would eventually do that, haha. I've got coilovers on the way too..

Why is because it's an 058 so bad? Why would a k04 make more sense on a newer car?

I would be keen to get a 5 Bar FPR + Bigger injectors down the road and re-tune the car too, just not right now.

 

[IchBautAuto]

I'd question any assumption that you can increase the mass airflow without an appropriate fuelling correction etc etc. Sort of defeats the logic applied to tuning Turbo cars. Still, if that's what you believe, it's all yours.

On the other hand, for mine, there is nothing wrong with the A4 1.8 TQ sport. Better balance than the RS or S4 and if you drive it hard enough it will challenge a few of the "name" cars. If you have a good one, it's a driving bargain. Mine was at the tail end of the B5 run and came with the 17 x 8 wheels and harder sports suspension that the RS. I still find it a great drive and no problems with supporting it. Add a few HP and it helps but at speed, the standard power delivery is fine unless you want to drag it, at which point you have the wrong car entirely. . Unfortunate but true that any upgrades will cost more than the car fetches. If it's good enough to keep for 10 years then why not but if it's going to fold early then jchen is right about saving your money.

 

[Matt-Matt]

I'd question any assumption that you can increase the mass airflow without an appropriate fuelling correction etc etc. Sort of defeats the logic applied to tuning Turbo cars. Still, if that's what you believe, it's all yours.

On the other hand, for mine, there is nothing wrong with the A4 1.8 TQ sport. Better balance than the RS or S4 and if you drive it hard enough it will challenge a few of the "name" cars. If you have a good one, it's a driving bargain. Mine was at the tail end of the B5 run and came with the 17 x 8 wheels and harder sports suspension that the RS. I still find it a great drive and no problems with supporting it. Add a few HP and it helps but at speed, the standard power delivery is fine unless you want to drag it, at which point you have the wrong car entirely. . Unfortunate but true that any upgrades will cost more than the car fetches. If it's good enough to keep for 10 years then why not but if it's going to fold early then jchen is right about saving your money.

It does indeed have good compression, and the bottom end looks fine according to my mechanic.

It's had a fair amount of stuff done and as I've mentioned I've purchased coilovers for it. So I do plan to keep it.

If i was to go with a K04, I'd be doing the appropriate mods for fueling. But as you've all mentioned it, likely not worth it for the money.

And yes, I have a Facelift AJL with the factory sports suspension. Just wanted something a little lower and a touch less.. Worn?

I guess what I shall do is see if this $100 turbo turns out to be okay and then go from there. If it's on there 6 months and blows up itself, grab another used one or re-evaluate the situation.

 

[Matt-Matt]

Decided that I'd get on top of this in terms of gaskets and what not. Still waiting to hear back about the k03.

Just send Ed from QMS an email asking if he can sort me out for the gaskets again (he sold them to me last time) and to see if he stocks silicone intake pipes, or can source before I refer to ebay as I know these fail from the added boost. Seeing as mine is out it almost seems like an opportune time.

 

[kermac]

I'd be inclined to spend as little money on your car as possible.

An a4 with stock internals is never going to be a riveting car to drive.. just find a used k03 - under $100 all said and done and you're back on the road.

If I could add my two cents' worth here - you can do anything you want up to roughly doubling your original factory power output with the stock internals. It's a hugely strong motor, and as long as the tune is sufficiently good to prevent power spikes, you'll be right. I have run a B5 with a GTRS and otherwise stock AJL motor for around 300,000 km and any problems I have had (and I've had a few...) have never been anything to do with the block. It's an absolute gem and you should be good for at least 250 kW at the crank with the right tune if that's on your list of options. A Frankenturbo will be well within this envelope - won't have the same top end as a GTRS but it won't be as laggy

 

[SB5]

Im with kerry - my b5 A4 currently has just over 300kw with stock internals and lets just say it gets driven hard and i have not had any issues with the block for over 80,000kms now.

It all comes down to how much money you want to put in it and how much time you want to spend changing things to make a neat, well packaged and drivable vehicle.

If you can get a turbo bigger than the k03 with injectors and tune for cheap i'd go with that. If you're not fussed on more power just stick with the standard.

My car has been through all of them - k04, gt28 and now a gt30. Its really up to how you want your set up.

My preference for a daily driver would be the gt28 or gtrs for quick spool and reasonable power. However you need to spend a little time and money to set it up. This includes water and oil lines and a new manifold u less you get one of those eliminator kits that fit the standard exhaust manifold.

I have spent more on my car than what its worth but i enjoy it!

Endless parts for these in the states and also seen alot of people parting b5s with good gear in them here in australia so happy building.

 

[kermac]

Well said, SB5! But it sounds as if Matt-Matt is veering towards a straight replacement...

The factors I'd be considering are whether you simply want to get your car going again at the cheapest possible price in which case a K03 is the way to go. There's probably no point in putting a brand new one into a high-mileage car but there are plenty of used ones around. As long as you can be sure it was taken out of the car for the right reasons (upgrading) and not because it was starting to fail you should be right. I think I have one lying around which hasn't been used for around 10 years. This is probably a better bet than a brand-new Chinese knock-off, but others might disagree.

The next step is to use this setback as an opportunity to upgrade and the simplest is a K04. Much the same applies to that as the K03 except there aren't a lot of used ones around. They're a pretty expensive bit of kit unless you can get a discounted price. To go with your K04 you will need a tune which involves either a chip (unless your present chip is up to it - I'd say not) or a flash of the ecu. Some of the more aggressive tunes require a set of larger injectors, but you should be able to get away with the factory exhaust and side-mount intercooler although you would need to keep an eye on heat soak in hot weather.

For not very much more you can get one of the Eliminator range of kits of which the best value is probably the GTRS like mine. These have a water-cooled core which is a big advantage over the smaller GT2X which doesn't. BUT the GT2X is more tractable and easier to drive. You will definitely need injectors and improved cooling for charge air. Either a full-size front mount or water/meth injection would do the trick. To maximize your output, a big exhaust is a good thing (I think you said you had one?) but you can get away with the factory exhaust. Again, it would be wise to monitor intake as well as exhaust air temps with such a setup. Heat is your enemy, as I have found to my cost.

It doesn't need to be anything more complicated than that. Even with the largest GTRS your stock internals should be safe provided, as always, the tune is right.

The only other things to consider if upgrading are whether your brakes are adequate to your driving style and whether your suspension gives the control you want. There's a fair bit of engineering built in to the standard A4 so it really comes down to how you use the power

 

[cutbak]

Glad to see some modding enthusiasm getting injected back into this thread.... :clap:

 

[Matt-Matt]

If I could add my two cents' worth here - you can do anything you want up to roughly doubling your original factory power output with the stock internals. It's a hugely strong motor, and as long as the tune is sufficiently good to prevent power spikes, you'll be right. I have run a B5 with a GTRS and otherwise stock AJL motor for around 300,000 km and any problems I have had (and I've had a few...) have never been anything to do with the block. It's an absolute gem and you should be good for at least 250 kW at the crank with the right tune if that's on your list of options. A Frankenturbo will be well within this envelope - won't have the same top end as a GTRS but it won't be as laggy

Im with kerry - my b5 A4 currently has just over 300kw with stock internals and lets just say it gets driven hard and i have not had any issues with the block for over 80,000kms now.

It all comes down to how much money you want to put in it and how much time you want to spend changing things to make a neat, well packaged and drivable vehicle.

If you can get a turbo bigger than the k03 with injectors and tune for cheap i'd go with that. If you're not fussed on more power just stick with the standard.

My car has been through all of them - k04, gt28 and now a gt30. Its really up to how you want your set up.

My preference for a daily driver would be the gt28 or gtrs for quick spool and reasonable power. However you need to spend a little time and money to set it up. This includes water and oil lines and a new manifold u less you get one of those eliminator kits that fit the standard exhaust manifold.

I have spent more on my car than what its worth but i enjoy it!

Endless parts for these in the states and also seen alot of people parting b5s with good gear in them here in australia so happy building.

Well said, SB5! But it sounds as if Matt-Matt is veering towards a straight replacement...

The factors I'd be considering are whether you simply want to get your car going again at the cheapest possible price in which case a K03 is the way to go. There's probably no point in putting a brand new one into a high-mileage car but there are plenty of used ones around. As long as you can be sure it was taken out of the car for the right reasons (upgrading) and not because it was starting to fail you should be right. I think I have one lying around which hasn't been used for around 10 years. This is probably a better bet than a brand-new Chinese knock-off, but others might disagree.

The next step is to use this setback as an opportunity to upgrade and the simplest is a K04. Much the same applies to that as the K03 except there aren't a lot of used ones around. They're a pretty expensive bit of kit unless you can get a discounted price. To go with your K04 you will need a tune which involves either a chip (unless your present chip is up to it - I'd say not) or a flash of the ecu. Some of the more aggressive tunes require a set of larger injectors, but you should be able to get away with the factory exhaust and side-mount intercooler although you would need to keep an eye on heat soak in hot weather.

For not very much more you can get one of the Eliminator range of kits of which the best value is probably the GTRS like mine. These have a water-cooled core which is a big advantage over the smaller GT2X which doesn't. BUT the GT2X is more tractable and easier to drive. You will definitely need injectors and improved cooling for charge air. Either a full-size front mount or water/meth injection would do the trick. To maximize your output, a big exhaust is a good thing (I think you said you had one?) but you can get away with the factory exhaust. Again, it would be wise to monitor intake as well as exhaust air temps with such a setup. Heat is your enemy, as I have found to my cost.

It doesn't need to be anything more complicated than that. Even with the largest GTRS your stock internals should be safe provided, as always, the tune is right.

The only other things to consider if upgrading are whether your brakes are adequate to your driving style and whether your suspension gives the control you want. There's a fair bit of engineering built in to the standard A4 so it really comes down to how you use the power

See I guess this is what I was after to a point.. Right now I'm grabbing the $100 K03 and driving that until it dies, which will give me time to save up for a bigger turbo setup as well as the required goodies.

I already have the brakes where I want them, honestly the Ceramic Akebonos + Slotted Rotors (D2 A8's on the front) are great. As mentioned I've got some KW V1's coming, which will be nice.

It'll be a 95% street car, which is why i went with the V1's over the V2's.

You can see the "mods" that I've got in my sig, with a few more to come.

I COULD afford to go a Frankenturbo, with all of the goodies needed now. But planning to move out with my girlfriend right now.. Plus I've got a few trips planned this year.

Going to focus on suspension and getting that where I want it, and changing out the stock rubber TIP for a silicone one and whatnot first and then look at a bigger turbo when the time is right (or i find one used)..

Mind you someone on here has a Franken T21 for the Long motors..

Other things I need to do are re-tint the windows, as the aftermarket tint is peeling on the passenger side window and I'd like to go a stage or two darker.

Also need to get my Boleros machined, so they look pwetty again

Was looking at the GT2X, as it seems it's the perfect size turbo for our engines. But don't like the idea of the oil only part..

 

[SB5]

See I guess this is what I was after to a point.. Right now I'm grabbing the $100 K03 and driving that until it dies, which will give me time to save up for a bigger turbo setup as well as the required goodies.

I already have the brakes where I want them, honestly the Ceramic Akebonos + Slotted Rotors (D2 A8's on the front) are great. As mentioned I've got some KW V1's coming, which will be nice.

It'll be a 95% street car, which is why i went with the V1's over the V2's.

You can see the "mods" that I've got in my sig, with a few more to come.

I COULD afford to go a Frankenturbo, with all of the goodies needed now. But planning to move out with my girlfriend right now.. Plus I've got a few trips planned this year.

Going to focus on suspension and getting that where I want it, and changing out the stock rubber TIP for a silicone one and whatnot first and then look at a bigger turbo when the time is right (or i find one used)..

Mind you someone on here has a Franken T21 for the Long motors..

Other things I need to do are re-tint the windows, as the aftermarket tint is peeling on the passenger side window and I'd like to go a stage or two darker.

Also need to get my Boleros machined, so they look pwetty again

Was looking at the GT2X, as it seems it's the perfect size turbo for our engines. But don't like the idea of the oil only part..

Sounds good. If i could do my turbo set up again I'd go with an oil only set up. Less plumbing and cleaner engine bay. That being said i have removed the MAF and all the stock hard air lines. (I went a bit over the top) last chance i had with the wifes permission

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

 

[Matt-Matt]

Sounds good. If i could do my turbo set up again I'd go with an oil only set up. Less plumbing and cleaner engine bay. That being said i have removed the MAF and all the stock hard air lines. (I went a bit over the top) last chance i had with the wifes permission

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

Sweet! Got any photos of it!?

I picked up the K03 today, sorted out all the required gaskets too for free. (A mate ordered the wrong ones) so worked out well for me

Did a scan on a mates BF Falcon (with VAGCOM in generic mode) and managed to break his bonnet release..

It's a common issue, hundreds of forum posts about it.. But I felt bad at the time (before finding out that it's common) and offered to pay for it..

$45 down the drain, but oh well. That's just how life goes.

I'm starting to lookout for used injectors for when I go big turbo, hoping to get them cheap or a sale. Have a mate with a high flow exhaust manifold that's upgrading to a chrome/shiny one, so will probably snaggle that off him too.

Did also purchase a silicone intake pipe, which will be here by the weekend.

Goal is a working car this weekend.

 

[DirkOz]

Here's a link to JiamParts Turbo Catalogue:-
I think they probably have updated this, so contact for the latest catalogue:-
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6Kb2_oOtSQbUXFJVHgwUHk1dFh3UDFhanFHS2UzZHZsMmZJ/view?usp=drivesdk
Hope this helps your Turbo quest.

Here's a link to Pelican Parts Step by Step Turbo Rebuild for Audi Turbo:-
https://www.pelicanparts.com/techar...ger_Rebuild/24-TURBO-Turbocharger_Rebuild.htm

I bought these items from Kiam Parts to rebuild K03 029.
Also bought a new K03-029 and installed in my A4 B5 1.8T AEB Quattro 5 speed manual.
Has 10,000 km on it and still going.
Some are China haters, but this is a factory outlet, not a distributor.
I'm confident in recommending them.
Just send an email with your current part number and engine type, and ask what they can recommend and let them know how far you want to go with supporting mods.
When I contacted them, they asked why not go for a K04. I decided on caution, and got the K03-029, as the motor had 400,000 on it already, and I didn't want to stress about overboosting and breaking something. It's just a nice "daily"
They said they can also do a Borg Warner K03/K04 hybrid.
I get lost in the terminology with my very limited experience.
Is that what people call a F21 "frankenturbo" or something else?
I think the BW K03/K04 hybrid is a 3 bolt K03 "hot side" coupled with a K04 Turbine and compressor housing.
I've also heard of K03s hot sides coupled with K06 turbine wheels and K04 Turbine Cover too.

IDK for sure, but I think the hybrid will bolt directly to a stock exhaust manifold and will work with the Stock Side Mount Intercooler (SMIC)

Follow the link for pics and source:-
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qLmL8yi1RTRUPLJ9OWPioBH5MX08JHdKucXyAYMUHMA/edit?usp=drivesdk

Highly recommend get a gasket kit and new mounting bolts, as I snapped 2 turbo to manifold bolts. I'm sure the bolts just give up after so many heat cycles.
In another post I read someone has suggested Copper Grease as an anti-seize on these bolts. I just torqued to spec.

 

[gmx]

Sweet! Got any photos of it!?

I picked up the K03 today, sorted out all the required gaskets too for free. (A mate ordered the wrong ones) so worked out well for me

Did a scan on a mates BF Falcon (with VAGCOM in generic mode) and managed to break his bonnet release..

It's a common issue, hundreds of forum posts about it.. But I felt bad at the time (before finding out that it's common) and offered to pay for it..

$45 down the drain, but oh well. That's just how life goes.

I'm starting to lookout for used injectors for when I go big turbo, hoping to get them cheap or a sale. Have a mate with a high flow exhaust manifold that's upgrading to a chrome/shiny one, so will probably snaggle that off him too.

Did also purchase a silicone intake pipe, which will be here by the weekend.

Goal is a working car this weekend.

I literally just threw out Bosch green giants. Apparently modified by Genesis to 415cc. "Genesis 415cc".

If anyone wants a bigport longitudinal IE manifold, pm me.:big_wink:
I have a lot of random B5 stuff like phaeton brake ducts and dust shields and a S4 rear bumper that I forgot about wrapped in bubble wrap.

Sorry for the hijack and all the best! You have awesome roads in Tassie, keep the response as much as possible...

Just my opinion, but touching anything before ME7 is pointless.

 

[Matt-Matt]

I literally just threw out Bosch green giants. Apparently modified by Genesis to 415cc. "Genesis 415cc".

If anyone wants a bigport longitudinal IE manifold, pm me.:big_wink:
I have a lot of random B5 stuff like phaeton brake ducts and dust shields and a S4 rear bumper that I forgot about wrapped in bubble wrap.

Sorry for the hijack and all the best! You have awesome roads in Tassie, keep the response as much as possible...

Just my opinion, but touching anything before ME7 is pointless.

Want to check your trash? ��
ME7? Not sure what you're referring to, it's likely something really obvious though

Yeah, it's good to have a spirited drive occasionally but I'm not stupid on the roads

 

[G-Ride]

Want to check your trash? ��
ME7? Not sure what you're referring to, it's likely something really obvious though

Yeah, it's good to have a spirited drive occasionally but I'm not stupid on the roads

I've got quite a few different sets of injectors laying around, stock, 386cc, 440cc, might even have some bosch 550's unless I sold those to a friend.
If you ever decide you want to go down the e85 route though. You'll want the compatible bosch 550's. Not every injector is built to spray ethanol.