Urgent help needed! Is this transmission bad?

VE1.9

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
My ALH TDI manual has bad differential bearings. I can move the axles radially and axially a considerable amount, and it's leaking a lot of trans oil. I'd rather not have to rebuild it as it is starting to get cold and I don't have a garage, so I prefer to just swap in a good used one.

I'm at the wreckers right now and there is a manual 04 TDI. I've done some research and I know the trans will work with my ALH. This one doesn't have bad diff bearings, as there is absolutely zero play when trying to move the axles. However, I thought that when turning one side of the diff, the other is supposed to spin in the opposite direction. On this one the opposite side spins in the same direction as the side I'm turning. Is there something inside this transmission that could be bad? Or am I just so lucky that the owner had put in an LSD?

[VIDEO]https://drive.google.com/file/d/1s95sdR8M3biQ8aU-vkZd6OZl26bIX64H/view?usp=drivesdk[/VIDEO]

Also, there is a scuff mark on the housing near the driver side axle flange as seen in the pics. Is this something to be concerned about? This junkyard is pretty far away from me, so I'd rather not have to come all the way back. I'd appreciate any guidance.

Thanks


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mr.loops

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Nov 24, 2010
Location
Kelowna
TDI
2002 jetta, 2003 Bora 1.8T
If that scuff is quite deep In the magnesium housing I’d pass on it. To be honest it doesn’t look too bad.
I would also drain a bit of trans fluid and check for silver glitter

Trans in neutral;
If you hold one drive flange and spin the other you can check the condition of the spider gears
You should also be able to spin the drive flanges in opposite directions with both hands







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VE1.9

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Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
Thanks for the quick response.

Ok, so in neutral each flange spins in the same direction when spinning one side, but I can hold one side still and spin the other in either direction. I can also manually spin them in opposite directions.

In gear if I spin one side, the opposite spins in the opposite direction. I also did drain a bit of fluid and it looked perfectly fine. So I guess I'm talking this thing home.

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mr.loops

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Nov 24, 2010
Location
Kelowna
TDI
2002 jetta, 2003 Bora 1.8T
Bench testing a trans can give you some clues to the health of it, but you’ll really won’t know until you install and drive it, or better yet, open it up

If you didn’t hear any bad noises when spinning the DS or see any glitter in the oil - grab it!

One more thing I’d check...
Check the function of the selector tower. Go through all the gears ( at the tower) and make sure everything feels smooth


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VE1.9

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Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
Hey, thanks a bunch for your guidance. I actually ran out of time. The yard closed and I didn't quite get it out. I was trying to remove it through the bottom, but the back end got caught in the subframe, so rather than trying to rush things, I decided to just go back tomorrow morning and finish getting it out.

I did row through the gears at the selector tower and everything felt great. I think (hope) it's gonna be a good trans. Thanks again.

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mr.loops

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Nov 24, 2010
Location
Kelowna
TDI
2002 jetta, 2003 Bora 1.8T
See if you can get someone to spot you while your down under the car. You need the ps drive flange to clear the engine while dropping the trans. You can remove it to make life simpler :)
I find rotating the trans 30* forward while dropping the 5th gear end helps the removal process. You’ll hit the k frame a few times, I’m sure of it, but it’ll come out


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WildChild80

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May 30, 2016
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Nashville, AR
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI 2000 Jetta TDI 2000 New Beetle TDI ALL 5 speeds
Pull the crash bar off and come out the front, if you're not worried about the stuff on the front side if the car it takes almost no time, use a knife and whatever you need to get it clear

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2000alhVW

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Aug 30, 2018
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Silver Spring, MD
TDI
2000 Golf
I read thread title "is this transmission bad?" hoping it asking about an 01m so I could answer "yeah, that thang is reeeeeel bad. Get rid of immediately!"
 

VE1.9

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Joined
Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
Ok so I went back and finished pulling the trans. I actually removed the front end and ended up pulling the engine together with the trans.



Someone had already removed the engine mount, so it seemed this was the best way. Upon separating the trans from the engine, I found a nice surprise.





Looks like the owner had put in a Valeo VR6 clutch and flywheel kit, so I grabbed that too. I actually assembled the clutch/flywheel and put it inside the clutch housing, and the guy at the counter didn't care and only charged me for the trans.



I'm still not sure if I'll end up using this valeo kit because I think it's an smf and I'd rather not have an annoying rattle.



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WildChild80

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May 30, 2016
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TDI
2001 Jetta TDI 2000 Jetta TDI 2000 New Beetle TDI ALL 5 speeds
I don't know what people talk about rattle, granted I have a Southbend but I couldn't be happier with a SMF. Not sure if I really needed a fluidampr but it certainly smoothed things out some

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VE1.9

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Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
I don't know what people talk about rattle, granted I have a Southbend but I couldn't be happier with a SMF. Not sure if I really needed a fluidampr but it certainly smoothed things out some

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I'd just rather not risk it and be unhappy with the SMF kit if I'm gonna do all this work. I'm the type to do things as close to OEM as possible so I think it would be best to go with a DMF. I've heard lots of good things about the Luk DMF flywheel and clutch kit, so I may end up getting one of those and sell the Valeo kit.
 

Growler

Got Soot Vendor
Joined
Nov 24, 2003
Location
Millersport, Ohio
TDI
Schmutz, 2015 Golf Sportwagen DSG & Schnurren, 2001 Golf GL 2 door 5M
does that trans have the connector for the speedometer? behind the shift tower off the diff housing iirc
 

mr.loops

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Nov 24, 2010
Location
Kelowna
TDI
2002 jetta, 2003 Bora 1.8T
does that trans have the connector for the speedometer? behind the shift tower off the diff housing iirc


The VSS on the 02J is on the top of the diff housing near the firewall


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coalminer16

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Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
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Golf 2004
You almost have to put a wrench on to make the diff spin differently for each side. Put two bolts on each flange and use a wrench. They are just a little tighter.

Your old tranny even if it didn't wear threw the case is junk as all the bearings are scratched if it was like mine was.

The smf people really need to get over as far as noise concerns. My 05 Jetta doesn't have the "quiet" kit and it is not noticeable once broke in. The quiet kit was a little less rattling in neutral at idle on my 04 golf.

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VE1.9

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Joined
Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
does that trans have the connector for the speedometer? behind the shift tower off the diff housing iirc

The VSS on the 02J is on the top of the diff housing near the firewall


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Yeah, you can even see it in the last pic I posted. It's right above the passenger side of the diff housing, same spot as on all 02J transmissions.
 

VE1.9

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Joined
Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
You almost have to put a wrench on to make the diff spin differently for each side. Put two bolts on each flange and use a wrench. They are just a little tighter.

Your old tranny even if it didn't wear threw the case is junk as all the bearings are scratched if it was like mine was.

The smf people really need to get over as far as noise concerns. My 05 Jetta doesn't have the "quiet" kit and it is not noticeable once broke in. The quiet kit was a little less rattling in neutral at idle on my 04 golf.

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That's actually what I did to spin the flanges, except I used the car's trunk struts for leverage. You can see in the last pic I still had the flange bolts in there.


I did see a post while I was researching the problem with mine, where one guy caught the problem in time and the shop was able to rebuild his trans. I'm hoping mine is still salvageable as it went from weeping to leaking just a couple weeks ago and was barely driven at all during that time.


I'd probably be one of those people. A rattle like that would probably bother me, so I'd rather just get a DMF kit rather than risk the possibility that I end up hating the rattle and be stuck with it till the next time I have to get back in there, which wouldn't be until several years. I think that unless there's someone near me with an ALH that has the same Valeo clutch & flywheel kit who would let me get some seat time in their car to see for myself how it sounds, I'm probably gonna end up getting a kit with a DMF.
 

Growler

Got Soot Vendor
Joined
Nov 24, 2003
Location
Millersport, Ohio
TDI
Schmutz, 2015 Golf Sportwagen DSG & Schnurren, 2001 Golf GL 2 door 5M
I must have been thinking about the manual trans from the BRM then... I knew that one of the PDs got rid of the speed sensor on the trans and was hoping that you didn't get the wrong one...

carry on.
 

steve6

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Joined
May 25, 2010
Location
Beaverton, ON
TDI
2003 jetta tdi
I must have been thinking about the manual trans from the BRM then... I knew that one of the PDs got rid of the speed sensor on the trans and was hoping that you didn't get the wrong one...

carry on.
It will work ok, the 04/05 from the bew is almost the same, slightly different gearing but nothing a ALH user would really notice.
 

VE1.9

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Dec 29, 2012
Location
Chicago
TDI
2002 Jetta GLX 5spd
Quick update:


I've had this transmission in my car for a week and have done about 200 miles of driving on it. I replaced a few other things while I was in there. Rear main seal, clutch and flywheel, all three engine/trans mounts, also found that the left axle's inner cv had a lot of play so I replaced it as well. I ended up swapping the control arms, subframe, and steering rack from a very low mileage (81k) and completely rust-free New Beetle (my bushings were completely shot and steering rack had severely rusted hard lines). Dropping the subframe made the trans swap a whole lot easier. I also re-lubricated the shifter mechanism both inside the car, and on the transmission end.



The car now shifts beautifully and all seems to be well as far as the transmission. It feels like a totally different car. It used to shake like crazy when taking off from a stop and made a loud groaning sound when coasting at about 2k rpm. It's been a while since I last drove the car with the old trans, but the difference in gearing seems to be very minimal. I can't honestly say I noticed any difference, but I think it's supposed the have a slightly longer 5th now.
 
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