My 2003 Jetta TDI 5 Speed resurrection thread!

I've got an 04 wagon in the shop right now that is downright scary at 30MPH. He's only letting me do the control arm bushings (majority of the scary) and I told him I wouldn't be able to sleep at night unless he got some new tires on the front.

IndigoBlueWagon said:

If you maintain suspension on these cars bushings last. Problem is most people neglect suspension.

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What constitutes suspension maintenance? Replacing shocks and Struts when worn?

runonbeer said:

What does often need to be replaced are:
rear position control arm bushings (as you've seen). Rarely needs front position bushings unless there was a major oil or fuel leak that took them out.
strut mounts (if not struts themselves. OEM sachs stuff only lasted about 80K on a MKIV)
sway bar bushings (these last about 30-40K. I like to buy Genuine VW bushings from the dealer. They're better)

And AJ, you're going to want to either buy a bench grinder with a wire wheel and a tub or grease or just get a suspension bolt set from one of the vendors. Northern cars do ugly things to bolts.

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The OEM struts are still in the car and are shot. I have Bilstein TC's on the way with new mounts, etc. I also have a complete bolt set ordered since some of these are torque to yield. The new ball joints are ones I had on hand and are Febi/Bilstein with new bolts, lock nut and thread ring.

297K on original suspension (if it is) would constitute neglected maintenance. I felt the OE suspension in my wagon was shot at 60K miles. I'll admit I've gone a bit overboard since I've swapped out suspension in my car 6 or 8 times in its life. But I think 100K miles on good aftermarket dampers is a reasonable service life.

IndigoBlueWagon said:

297K on original suspension (if it is) would constitute neglected maintenance. I felt the OE suspension in my wagon was shot at 60K miles. I'll admit I've gone a bit overboard since I've swapped out suspension in my car 6 or 8 times in its life. But I think 100K miles on good aftermarket dampers is a reasonable service life.

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For an historical perspective, I have the previous owner's maintenance files going back to the original bill of sale and all service done by the dealer and several independents. I also have all the invoices for parts, including the Kerma tune and associated clutch and turbo upgrade. I have a pile of parts invoices from your shop (Idparts), including the upgraded SMIC and intake plumbing parts that went with the tune. The owner did not service or purchase any suspension parts since he bought the car new, but he certainly took good care of the rest of the car.

IndigoBlueWagon said:

Rear axle bushings were replaced this year, too. Not in terrible shape. That's after 320K miles.

If you maintain suspension on these cars bushings last. Problem is most people neglect suspension.

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Only time I really ever do rear beam bushings is on early cars that had those metal-body fluid filled bushings. What a crappy idea that was.

I'm seeing more and more later cars where they are starting to tear but nothing that I would call an outright failure (scary and dangerous).

I will certainly agree that most people neglect their suspension, but strut mounts on MKIV cars just wear out. Not much you can do about it. Luckily they are very easy to change and cost less than $20.

IndigoBlueWagon said:

297K on original suspension (if it is) would constitute neglected maintenance. I felt the OE suspension in my wagon was shot at 60K miles. I'll admit I've gone a bit overboard since I've swapped out suspension in my car 6 or 8 times in its life. But I think 100K miles on good aftermarket dampers is a reasonable service life.

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I agree 297k is quite a bit, but not everybody has a shop full of parts to replace suspension every 100k.

Our 04 Jetta TDI with 250,000km = 155k miles rides really well for the age and the suspension being as it is.

I replaced the suspension twice on my wagon before getting involved with IDParts. "rides really well for the age" is precisely why people don't replace suspension. They forgive deterioration in handling and ride quality as the car ages. They also tend to tolerate random clunks and rattles.

But if you refresh the suspension and bushings the car will ride and handle as new. MKIV bodies are very stiff, and my wagon has fewer rattles than my '12 Golf did. I feel like after 14 years and over 300K I've already got more than my money's worth out of my car, and any expense I incur to keep it running well is inconsequential compared to replacing it.

IndigoBlueWagon said:

297K on original suspension (if it is) would constitute neglected maintenance. I felt the OE suspension in my wagon was shot at 60K miles. I'll admit I've gone a bit overboard since I've swapped out suspension in my car 6 or 8 times in its life. But I think 100K miles on good aftermarket dampers is a reasonable service life.

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I'm still very confused. You said that maintaining your suspension will prolong the life of the bushings. So what parts of the suspension do you swap out that prolong the life of the bushings?

Struts and shocks. Lack of wheel control from worn dampers seems to accelerate bushing wear. Makes sense.

Another thing that happens as people drive their cars a long time is that as the suspension parts age and become less efficient, your use of the car does not sense the minute changes with the ride and handling. Until you refresh the dampers and bushings and see the difference, it's easy to say your car still rides and feels acceptable (which to you it still does).

Waiting on parts

While my suspension parts won't arrive until Friday, I decided to pull the bumper cover and front fenders since the two fenders need to be replaced anyway. I have the Tiwanese fenders and paid $103.28 for the two. Junkyards wanted $75 to $125 each for used fenders and most were damaged.

Here is accumulation of dirt and leaves behind the fender liners (sam both sides):





My two new fenders:







^^^^ First fender pulled: Yo really have to ask yourself what VW was thinking putting this foam piece inside the fender. Did they forget that it would get wet, hold moisture, and then rust out the fender?

Currently, I am pulling the bumper cover and have a stuck fastener that is one of the ones under the grill. The nutplate spins and looks like I will have to cut it off. Once the fenders are off and I have my suspension parts, I can get the bushings pressed in (try it myself) and install the LCA's, struts, ball joints, sway bar bushings and fenders. Paint will come later once I see what else needs done.

Once the front is in, then I will pull the rear shocks and see what the rear beam bushing looks like.

It's been nice here, with temps in the high 70's and low 80's. Wife is itching for me to start yard work (ugh).

Big update today. Parts came yesterday. First order of business was to pull the struts and get a spring compressor, which I did. The struts were pretty soft and here is a picture of a strut bearing out of one of them:



Totally rusted out. The other one was not as bad, but it was shot also.

I installed the springs and other parts on the new struts and proceeded to install them (I changed the sway bar bushings first though as the access was great). I had some trouble seating the new struts which resulted in me cleaning up the bores with a wire wheel and removing a bit of paint from the strut lower shaft area. I greased it all up and in they went.



That's it for this weekend. The LCA's will go back in this week now that I pressed in the new bushings.

Couple of points here:

1. If you are going to do this job at home, make sure you have a good impact wrench and a set of metric impact grade sockets.

2. Also have on hand some latex gloves, lithium grease, two floor jacks, 12" long pieces of 2 x 4's, some old clothes, eye protection.

3. Make sure you have a good relationship with your wife or significant other!

My OEM struts had no rebound after only 45K miles. Who would have thought they would go out so soon. Replaced with Bilstein TC's, front and back as well as front stabilizer bushings. The latter turned out to be more work than I anticipated due to a welded or epoxied, round retaining nut coming loose on the left side. Recently had the tie rod ends and front left wheel bearing changed at a shop. The bearing had a humming noise and the tie rod ends rattled on a bumpy surface. Wish I had done the tie rod ends myself since the shop replacements have grease fittings which I don't think are OEM.

aja8888 said:

3. Make sure you have a good relationship with your wife or significant other!

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Lol. That is so true. I always tell my girlfriend to double the time I tell her it's going to take and add a half an hour. Recently did my first timing belt with an expected time of around 4 hours (since I've never done one before). Well guess what, it turned into an 9 hour total two day/part job, because we had a broken belt tensioner we didn't know about and had to order one.

aja8888 said:

......I had some trouble seating the new struts which resulted in me cleaning up the bores with a wire wheel and removing a bit of paint from the strut lower shaft area........

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i ran into the same issue. did just as you did minus the grease. found out later there is a cup spreader. not sure where to get one but would have saved a lot of time and grief.

runonbeer said:

I wish we could save them all.

I just did a 5 speed swap on a beautiful 03 Jetta. White with black leather. It feels good.

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Keep up the great work guys!

The last two weeks were not productive with the car. My old employer asked me to work a consulting gig and visit some manufacturing plants in California, Arkansas, New York and Maine for a productivity study. Two weeks of travel an hitting both coasts is a tough deal, sleep wise. Anyway,back at it this weekend:

New pads and rotors:



Also, I put the new fenders on today and they fit fine. All I have to do now is paint them. (probably next week).

I did get the car off the jack stands and took it for a short ride. What a difference the new suspension is compared to the OE one that lasted 297,504 miles!

So a good fit with Chinese fenders? Alrighty! Congrats on your new ride!

SaxmanKana said:

So a good fit with Chinese fenders? Alrighty! Congrats on your new ride!

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Thanks, I'll post some pictures later this week. The fenders were surprisingly good and the seam spacing is as good as the originals. I painted the back sides and used some 3M undercoat on the vertical mount by the door pillar.

Once I order the paint and finish them, I can install the fender liners.

That car should last forever in Texas. No more road salt, yippie!

Good going!

Next steps:

Order color and clearcoat/activator for the fenders ~ $125.00

Order (already did) some new Volkswagen Fender Apron Screw Grommets for the new fender to attach the inner liners - $13.87 from clipsandfasteners.com for a bag of 15.

Clean spray gun and set up a mini paint booth in the garage (next week).

Get an alignment.

Work on the smoke issue under acceleration.

That's enough for a while.

lots of good work.

deejaaa said:

lots of good work.

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Thanks!

aja8888 said:

Next steps:
Order color and clearcoat/activator for the fenders ~ $125.00
Order (already did) some new Volkswagen Fender Apron Screw Grommets for the new fender to attach the inner liners - $13.87 from clipsandfasteners.com for a bag of 15.
Clean spray gun and set up a mini paint booth in the garage (next week).
Get an alignment.
Work on the smoke issue under acceleration.
That's enough for a while.

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That's ambitious! Git 'er dun!

Way to go,
Dave

New front fenders are fitted and waiting for paint. Note the good fit of these Chinese units:

You'd rather paint them on the car?

What exactly happens when you try to use your "non-backwards compatible" VCDS cable on the 03 car?

runonbeer said:

You'd rather paint them on the car?

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I may pull them as it only takes a few minutes to get the bumper cover off and the fenders. The fender well liners are not in as I have the new clips on order. The last fenders I painted on an 05.5 Jettta I had were painted off the car.

I did already paint the back sides black before I fitted them to the car. I wanted to tryout the suspension and didn't feel like driving around without fenders or the bumper cover.

The suspension feels "very oem" and the clunks are gone.