P0741 Code 05 Passat, Looking for advice.

[Toothreaper]

Hello everyone I have a 05 Passat I have already disconnected my transmission and have the vehicle on jack stands with an engine brace overtop. I am going to be replacing my torque converter due to the code, however I had a few questions maybe someone here with a bit more knowledge on the transmission game of these vehicles could answer. But my question was how much damage could I have done to my transmission if I neglected to replace the torque converter months ago when I first started seeing this code? Of course now it drives like a tractor in gear and has also given me serious bucking then followed by immediate loss of torque from my engine one day I was driving.

Figured id replace the torque converter and or possibly rebuild my transmission. However Id like to skip the trans rebuild to a different date if the consensus here is just a bad conv. I still was able to get decent reverse. But it would take ages to get to 50 mph after the serious bucking and kerplunking happened. I am moving soon to a new house and didnt really want the car in pieces still by the end of the month on the lot I had been renting before. It would be cool to rebuild the whole transmission but I was just thinking of least money spent to get her moved to the new spot then I can kinda relax and or do other projects like the balance shaft delete it still needs. It drove very well before this and shifted quite wonderously.

I hope I didnt do severe dmg to my trans. However I probably have enough tools and know how to rebuild it once I have the time and money. Right now it would be good to hear what yall thought about the situation and or wether we think this transmission could have survived my procrastination. Thanks in advance to anyone willing to give me time and thought about my situation.

 

[oilhammer]

Sounds like the transmission went into limp mode. You'd have to ask it why. But the torque converter lockup inhibit won't do that, something else did. And yes, you may have tooefed it.

Limp mode:

Full (unregulated) line pressure
One high forward gear (which ever ratio requires the combination of all the shift solenoids OFF, I think it is 4th or 5th)
Reverse (but since it has no line pressure regulation, reverse will "slam" into engagement)
No torque converter lockup
The display in the cluster will be lit up solid (no individual selections)
Tip function disabled

... and, of course a DTC or several DTCs stored in the TCM, to which we can only guess.

 

[Toothreaper]

Yeah Oilhammer I believe it went into limp mode my whole cluster for all gears was completley lit from Park to Reverse through all gears. After letting it sit a day or a few it came out of limp mode but wont drive worth a crap anywhere. It honestly only really worked in reverse after the incident. Would it be best monetarily to get a master rebuild kit for the tranny? Id like to rebuild mine but I also havent even opened it yet as its still under the vehicle. I have had not too many great ideas on what to do to remove it from the bottom of the vehicle. Its just seprated on a dolly below the car while its suspended on jack stands. And I suspect my jackstands arent tall enough it would be hard to get the vehicle up any higher at the current moment.

That being said while your on this thread of mine what would you say is the best transmission to seek if I decided to manual swap my beauty? I have found kits for clutches and also would prefer it to be converted. I know it may take like 2 grand from what Ive heard but I didnt see anywhere on the forums through the much reading Ive done which manual transmission would pair the best with our tdi engines considering the gear ratios. Finding clutch kits wasnt hard found some on a few sites just didnt know what they gotta get sandwhiched in there with. If you have time for an answer Oilhammer I would appreciate it. Btw Ive been a fan of these forums and specifically the information you have left all over these forums Ive been reading for years and really have appreciated all the help you have dabbled through out the forums. Some of the jobs on this passat I would have never figured out if it wasnt for you and some other notable names on here

 

[Toothreaper]

I honestly wouldnt mind going the manual route for reliability and may just decide to take the auto out and rebuild it for future as a backup.

 

[Mozambiquer]

Did you read what codes were in the TCM before disassembly? A generic obd tool won't read them, you'll need something that can communicate with the tcm.

 

[oilhammer]

Yeah, you need to ask the TCM what's going on. I don't rebuild transmissions, and I certainly wouldn't start on a ZF. I've not had any experience with manual swapping these, so cannot answer any of that.

 

[Windex]

I'm biased, so grain of salt.

I would swap the auto out for a manual as I have done with my wagon. I went with a 6spd O1E, and if I weren't a mechanic with the ability to yank the transmission, I would likely go with a tall ratio 5 spd due to the pinion bearing issues on the O1E.

That said, since conversion, I have put over 300,000 km on my swap with no issues on the clutch or transmission.

I went with the 240mm dmf and Sachs sre clutch for mine, and the DMF started to rattle at 300k, so I replaced it before it had the chance to get worse.

I didn't see the # of miles on your car, but have read too many threads on these GMRs where they threw a TC related code, the owner had the TC replaced only to lose reverse shortly after.

 

[Toothreaper]

Did you read what codes were in the TCM before disassembly? A generic obd tool won't read them, you'll need something that can communicate with the tcm.

Not gonna lie had used a generic obd2 tool and not a VagCom like most people use here. I should have probably used one of those before disassembly :0

However I do now have a tranny disconnected and I have much appreciated all of you input on the forums here guys.

 

[Toothreaper]

I'm biased, so grain of salt.

I would swap the auto out for a manual as I have done with my wagon. I went with a 6spd O1E, and if I weren't a mechanic with the ability to yank the transmission, I would likely go with a tall ratio 5 spd due to the pinion bearing issues on the O1E.

That said, since conversion, I have put over 300,000 km on my swap with no issues on the clutch or transmission.

I went with the 240mm dmf and Sachs sre clutch for mine, and the DMF started to rattle at 300k, so I replaced it before it had the chance to get worse.

I didn't see the # of miles on your car, but have read too many threads on these GMRs where they threw a TC related code, the owner had the TC replaced only to lose reverse shortly after.

I appreciate your reply Windex and Oilhammer. So according to what you said a good option is the 01E. I will do more research on where I can possibly get one and my Wagon has made it to 210k Roughly. The vehicle was in Ohio most of its life brought it down to Florida. Im surprised the balance shaft hasnt exploded on me yet because my cousins who sold it had told me they never did any expensive labor such as that on it. So I know its a good idea to go ahead and do that probably while my transmission is also disconnected. But I havent had an issue on that spectrum yet. I wonder where I can scoop an 01E. Gonna go do my research on that. And I again thabk all of you guys here on the forum for your time.

 

[Toothreaper]

Also Id assume if I did get clutch parts, the transmission and everything needed for the swap if I did go that route the 01E wouldnt just bolt up to the engine? I feel like there would need to be adapters to pair the transmission with the engine it never really went to in the first place?

 

[Windex]

There's a whole thread on what's needed for the 01E 6spd swap. The transmission is an EU only unit, as the B5 was never (stupidly) offered here with a manual/diesel combination.

There are also different ratios 01Es available, mine is an FRF ratio out a a 2.5L v6 tdi (again, EU only) and they have, from what i've read, a 50/50 chance of developing a noisy pinion bearing at some point. Not unfixable, but the repair parts are again EU only, and require the complete teardown of the transmission to replace. This is something I had to do on one of the 01E's I own. The other 01E came with some stamps on the case which lead me to believe it had the bearing issue addressed before I received it at some point.

Thread for the 01E swap here: https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.php?threads/bhw-01e-6-speed-swap.378108/

No adapters needed, but there is a 5.5mm spacer required if you go with the factory 240mm dmf as your flywheel choice. There are other flywheels available including 228mm and a custom 240mm SMF which allows the original starter and removes the need for the 5.5mm spacer, however some SMF flywheels have caused synchronizer damage on some cars. Some have negated the damage by going with a heavier version of that SMF and using a softer-sprung friction plate. Lots to go through.

Again, there are tall-ish ratio 5spds also available which are a little more plug-and-play, so review those as well.

Many options - read through the thread and ask any questions.

 

[Toothreaper]

There's a whole thread on what's needed for the 01E 6spd swap. The transmission is an EU only unit, as the B5 was never (stupidly) offered here with a manual/diesel combination.

There are also different ratios 01Es available, mine is an FRF ratio out a a 2.5L v6 tdi (again, EU only) and they have, from what i've read, a 50/50 chance of developing a noisy pinion bearing at some point. Not unfixable, but the repair parts are again EU only, and require the complete teardown of the transmission to replace. This is something I had to do on one of the 01E's I own. The other 01E came with some stamps on the case which lead me to believe it had the bearing issue addressed before I received it at some point.

Thread for the 01E swap here: https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.php?threads/bhw-01e-6-speed-swap.378108/

No adapters needed, but there is a 5.5mm spacer required if you go with the factory 240mm dmf as your flywheel choice. There are other flywheels available including 228mm and a custom 240mm SMF which allows the original starter and removes the need for the 5.5mm spacer, however some SMF flywheels have caused synchronizer damage on some cars. Some have negated the damage by going with a heavier version of that SMF and using a softer-sprung friction plate. Lots to go through.

Again, there are tall-ish ratio 5spds also available which are a little more plug-and-play, so review those as well.

Many options - read through the thread and ask any questions.

Thanks for all of your knowledge and pointers on the situation at hand. I appreciate the links and will weigh all my options. I shall browse through more forum threads like you suggested and take an overview of my whole job see what route I wanna go with. The manual route sounds like fun to me and with all the knowledge Ive learned here its always been a blast taking on a vw job in the garage.

It seems I may have to research and save some cash, just remove the tranny for now and put together my subframe for the transpprtation of the vehicle. Ill tow it to where my new garage will be at and gather all of the parts and knowledge for the manual swap. I feel like that would be the best plan considering my hatred for autos.

 

[Zambee500]

As windex mentions, a lot of folks go the 5 speed manual swap route for more plug & play and reliability. The FHN/GGB is a popular choice with the taller 5th gear, although it seems to run just a few RPMs higher than the stock automatic 5th. But overall, the MPGs increase a bit compared to the automatic, especially for city/mixed driving, and the fun factor increases substantially.

You'll have to get the ECU flashed/tuned for any auto to manual trans swap. If you're spending that kind of coin, go with a Stage 2 tune and get the ~25% increase in HP/torque over stock/Stage 0 (Stage 1 is around ~10% power increase, but the cost is very similar to Stage 2).

Another affordable option for clutch/flywheel kit is the LUK DMF. Cascade German (trusted vendor here) sells it, and it can also be sourced any number of other places. https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/clutch-and-flywheel-kit-01e-dmf/

Common approach has been to source used transmissions from Europe from Frans (another trusted vendor here) and Frans can include whole kits (pedals, CV axles, clutch/flywheel), or can do less if you want to source other stuff States-side and/or new. I believe everything from Frans is used, but might be cleaned up with new fluids, etc. (I went with a used FHN 5-speed from Frans, and then the new LUK DMF clutch/flywheel kit from Cascade German, and I have been very happy with the results.)

Yet another option is Cascade German is now selling kits with all new parts (incl. "Old New Stock" manual transmissions) that also include the clutch/flywheel kit and other bits and pieces. They list the half-dozen items you need to source yourself separately to complete the job. A little bit more spendy, but nearly one-stop shopping and the kit is all new parts:

Deluxe Kit: https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/automatic-to-manual-swap-b5-b5-5-tdi-deluxe/

Standard Kit: https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/automatic-to-manual-swap-b5-b5-5-tdi-een/


Good luck.

 

[Toothreaper]

As windex mentions, a lot of folks go the 5 speed manual swap route for more plug & play and reliability. The FHN/GGB is a popular choice with the taller 5th gear, although it seems to run just a few RPMs higher than the stock automatic 5th. But overall, the MPGs increase a bit compared to the automatic, especially for city/mixed driving, and the fun factor increases substantially.

You'll have to get the ECU flashed/tuned for any auto to manual trans swap. If you're spending that kind of coin, go with a Stage 2 tune and get the ~25% increase in HP/torque over stock/Stage 0 (Stage 1 is around ~10% power increase, but the cost is very similar to Stage 2).

Another affordable option for clutch/flywheel kit is the LUK DMF. Cascade German (trusted vendor here) sells it, and it can also be sourced any number of other places. https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/clutch-and-flywheel-kit-01e-dmf/

Common approach has been to source used transmissions from Europe from Frans (another trusted vendor here) and Frans can include whole kits (pedals, CV axles, clutch/flywheel), or can do less if you want to source other stuff States-side and/or new. I believe everything from Frans is used, but might be cleaned up with new fluids, etc. (I went with a used FHN 5-speed from Frans, and then the new LUK DMF clutch/flywheel kit from Cascade German, and I have been very happy with the results.)

Yet another option is Cascade German is now selling kits with all new parts (incl. "Old New Stock" manual transmissions) that also include the clutch/flywheel kit and other bits and pieces. They list the half-dozen items you need to source yourself separately to complete the job. A little bit more spendy, but nearly one-stop shopping and the kit is all new parts:

Deluxe Kit: https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/automatic-to-manual-swap-b5-b5-5-tdi-deluxe/

Standard Kit: https://www.cascadegerman.com/product/automatic-to-manual-swap-b5-b5-5-tdi-een/


Good luck.

Bro you guys are the best! Thanks a bunch Zambee I appreciate the links I will check them all out. Tbh I had seen Cascade German out there as a VW/Audi vendor online and hadnt heard of them before but almost every other site this forum had reccomended in the past has gotten me reliable and authentic parts sourced for my TDI. And to be completely happy with my tranmission swap Ima probably go the 5 speed route due to my budget and the factor of not having to worry about replacement parts and axles being a pain to find later. It is nice to hear about Frans too I am most opt to buy a whole kit so I do it properly as I am not as mechanics wizard just yet.

I have taken quite a bit of auto mechanic jobs on and this one sounds like fun! I have taken a read through the links Windex provided as a preliminary read up and brainstorming session on the whole process. I will get to saving up and start broswing the options you all have so graciously handed my direction.

 

[Zambee500]

Cascade German is formerly known as BoraParts, but I think got forced into changing the name when Volkswagen-Audi-Porsche went on an Intellectual Property enforcement assault on independent vendors using their protected names. (I think IDparts.com used to be TDIparts.com and similar thing happened because VAG has "TDI" trademarked.)

In any event, all the Trusted Vendors here have been vetted and they pay a professional fee to be listed as vendors here. The fees they pay support the costs of running/hosting TDIclub, so our use of the Trusted Vendors helps them support us. All very circular. Cascade German, IDparts, Dutch Auto Parts (Frans) and several others. Most of them frequently post here too and support the community with advice and other info, and their prices are generally competitive with other online vendors that aren't registered here. So think about that when shopping online before buying from Amazon or other large faceless online stores.

 

[mkuiper]

Here is the SMF flywheel which can use your BHW starter https://whitbreadperformance.com/co...m-30lb-billet-steel-smf-for-b5-5-manual-swaps

Don't get a clutchmasters clutch whatever you do...

My car has the EEN transmission code, slightly different ratio than the FHN. At 75mph I believe I'm sitting at 2500 rpm. 2750ish for 80mph. It's pretty good and I'm quite happy with it. 38mpg on average over 17k miles in the past 4 months.

 

[Toothreaper]

Thanks again for pointers and letting me know about options from many different sources. I have always trusted the forums advice here and I have kinda noticed the circle of trust with the community and certain vendors.

 

[Toothreaper]

And definitely note that clutchmasters needs to be stayed away from hahah. Advice in axles before has saved me headaches here.

 

[mkuiper]

Southbend setup from Whitbread just went in for me. Should have it going tomorrow and will report back. 17k miles on clutchmasters - about no material left on it... Mine was the kevlar one too. SBC uses Sachs pressure plate and i believe the clutch was made in japan. Those two things make me feel more confident with the new setup already.