B4/1Z to AFN conversion complete!

hgeittmann · November 3rd, 2006, 23:01

Ok, so I put a pd130 turbo on my 1Z this week. Yeah, it's not compound turbos or even a vnt20, but hey, the car is running again and I'm happy.

Before the swap I dyno'd 130hp/250tq w/ RC3, PP520s, and one of BleachedBora's gt15/17 turbos...

An AFN manifold and PD130 turbo (gt1749va) will bolt on without the rear motor mount interference that the vb turbo has (which Jeff recently posted a work-around for his vb on an A3 here). I say "bolt on" loosely as there is some fab required to make this work. Down pipe... find the flange from an A4 downpipe and take it to any muffler shop when you're all done.

Oil lines (find a hydraulic hose shop- just google "aeroquip" and find a distributor near you). For the supply line I had my stock line modified at the hose shop:

The return line may look a little scarrier... I modified my stock line, first thinking I could extend the flex section using hosebarbs and some tubing:

which didn't work at all, so I cut the stock lines where circled- there's a hump that makes a nice hose barb- and used about 11" of tube from NAPA. I forget the SAE rating, but it was decent stuff. It's holding up so far, and I have ordered a CNC oil return flange ($15 from some turbo website) with NPT fitting so I can make a nicer one someday. The stock return line is sort of a joke (what I made can't be worse)- big 90 bend that runs nearly horizontal into the block ??? Make the shortest run possible with gentle bends and try to maintain a slope downward into the banjo fitting... at least that's what Corky says.

Also needed is a an adapter for turbo-to-upper IC pipe (made it myself, but probably should've just bought Kerma's widget), adapter for PD130 intake manifold (made it myself, the PD130 IM is optional), and an A4 N75 and electrical connector. Here are my adapters:

There's one silicone 2.25-2" adapter, and one piece of 2" x 8" long to connect upper IC tubes. I don't have the stock tubes anymore, but the long hose would still need be needed for the stock tubes. With all of those pieces, everything fits back together!!!

The red dots show the vacuum line to the N75. Not pictured is an A4 vacuum reservoir.

With the GN ecu, the brake and clutch switches for cruise control need to be rewired to switch to +12vdc instead of ground. I tapped into switched 12v at the headlight switch (pin 4, gray/blue):

and then used butt splices to run the 12v to the brake and clutch connectors

The clutch switch is the black one that is easy to see, the brake switch is the blue connector in the upper right. 12v goes to pin 1 on the cruise connector, and pin 2 on the brake connector. Jeff/RC sent me the details on this, and I'm really grateful for his help.

I decided to buy Aligator's DIY tuning kit. I wanted to be able to tune everything to suit my smoke tolerance, which is low. With just the first map from Aligator I can say the power has increased significantly over the wastegate/GQ, and smoke is non existent. I will return to the dyno December 2nd and post the results.

Another fun thing about this project was collecting parts from tdiclubbers... N75 connector from Amonquag, N75 from tdiparts.com, downpipe flange from KCTDI, oil line (that got modified) from Stig, turbo from vw4motion, intake & exhaust manifolds from Aligator. ECU was converted from GQ to GN by Jeff, A4 injector bodies from NickLockard, IC pipes from tbailey4... thanks!

OK... here's the after dyno:

134hp (+4hp) and 254ftlbs (+4tq). Jeez... I was really hoping for bigger gains, but it is what it is. The new dyno shows that peak torque comes on 100rpm earlier (2237rpm vs 2328rpm) and peak power is 450rpm higher (3813rpm vs 3385rpm) and doesn't fall off at higher rpm like the WG dyno did. So, perhaps a little more area under the power curve. Smoke is gone, so no more being careful with the right foot, which definitely makes it more fun to drive, at least for me.

Satiro · November 4th, 2006, 04:21

Hi, i will go to change my Vnt15 for a GT1749VA... what plug differences exist beetween those turbos? the oil return connection isn't same,isn't? Thanks and sorry by my english...best regards from Spain!

hgeittmann · November 5th, 2006, 07:26

Changing from from a vnt15 to the -va turbo might be plug and play depending on the flavor of 1749va you have/find, et.c. I used a -va without a manifold. If you have a vnt15 w/ manifold I bet a vnt17 w/manifold will plug right in. Now to answer your question, the the compression fitting at the turbo for the oil supply will be the same, as will the flange on the outlet of the turbo for the oil return. The lengths of the line may need to change, and that's the problem a hydraulic hose fabricator can solve for you.

Satiro · November 5th, 2006, 22:56

Ok guy, thanks a lot!

fastvicar · November 24th, 2006, 05:40

Nice write-up, Hans! Can't wait to see the dyno results in a couple of weeks.

jsrmonster · November 24th, 2006, 06:25

Hans,

Good job, don't forget the external ccv breather catchcan. You may even consider a boost valve if you decide on big fueling too. Then you'll also need an intank PD lift pump. I also recommend bypassing the thermastatic fuel tee so you don't puke the IP case relief valve. We'll talk more later about your tuning. I'd like to see a vaglog of 1, 4, and 11, for a wot 3rd gear pull.

Jeff

Greaseburger · November 24th, 2006, 17:09

I look forward to the results Hans

hgeittmann · November 24th, 2006, 23:14

thanks. I hope this will encourage a few more conversions (I'm just a software engineer and I did this in my driveway, so you can do it too!!!). I wasn't going to bump this til I had my "after" dyno, but oh well.

Jeff, you missed "replace the coat-hanger wire used to secure the IAT sensor" after I lost the oem clip ring

ccv is on order and I need to plug the weep hole in my wg mbc, but then that'll be covered too. Lift pump? Man, I thought I was done obsessing about power, but I'm already thinking about an IC upgrade.

bikeprof · December 12th, 2006, 15:51

Hans: WOW! That is how my Variant can look like under the hood also?

I am also interested in the Dyno results, costs, and hours of labor.

Next time I go back to BDR. I would like to see it/THAT!

Merry X-mas!

John

hgeittmann · December 17th, 2006, 08:56

Update: Added the dyno results to the original post. Kind of disappointing that the peak numbers weren't bigger, but I guess that just means I'm not done modding

mojogoes · December 17th, 2006, 09:20

Good job......and No worries your only using the pp520's wait untill you add some more fuel (pp764's) head studs etc ....what boost are you seeing.

hgeittmann · December 17th, 2006, 13:53

22psi sustained. headstuds went in as part of all this. Which injection pump are you (mojo) using in your 1Z? I've been reading a little about the ALH ip conversion and thinking that will be the next step. Aligator said there wasn't much more fuel that could be added in software.

mojogoes · December 18th, 2006, 15:41

Its the 11mm but i would like to use the 12mm to see what that gives in terms of power,smoke,and driveability.....if it does the same as what adding the 11mm did from a 10mm and it still rev's as good/high.......which is what others report then i'll hopefully be getting one fitted before the next re-map.

I would add the 11mm with your setup , you will get more power with probably less smoke than you did with the power you had before with the 10mm.

jollyGreenGiant · March 10th, 2008, 08:06

Bump for a good 1Z update thread. Doing a little research for my own 1Z that might want to experience some VNT action...

hgeittmann, would you have gone to 80 pin architecture if you were to do it over again or are you content with staying on 68 pin?

I've got a spare VNT-15 and an 02 80pin ECU just sitting here and I'd love to get more power, less smoke and maybe better mileage... About time I find a good hydraulic line guy too. I've got a couple good ALH 10mm pumps too, if I could get all my ducks lined up, I could knock this out in a night or two... slightly more if I go with the 80 pin although I'm still trying to figure all the logistics out there.

hgeittmann · March 10th, 2008, 10:11

honestly, I didn't know it was an option. Jeff turned me on to the AFN conversion idea, but I don't remember him mentioning 80 pin ecus at the time. What added functionality does the 80 pin ecu give? I'm still planning on upgrading to an ALH pump, just waiting for weather and family to cooperate. Also tempted to go to try one of Kerma's 18 series turbos, but having trouble justifying $1k on a car worth about $5-6k.

Good luck with your project- looking forward to seeing the results!