# We are putting a 3.6L VR6 into our 1985 Golf!



## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

The car already has a obd2 AAA 12V swap so the 3.6L will reuse axles/Wavetrac equipped 5 speed trans/motor mounts/subframe/crossmember + more

see my full thread on MK2 forums here http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...olf-Restoration-an-Mod-thread-!#post110617209

*BIG THANKS to Frank aka G60ing for his 'how-to' thread .. its a huge help!* link: http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?8028002-3-6-24V-VR6-Swap-Questions-amp-Links































ok I have a new purpose at the yards, 1st step 24V MK4 accessory bracket and belt drive parts

found one!









much needed junk









a little 12v to 24v comparison










the local dismantler of the 3.6L VR6 gave me ECU and engine harness with the motor but no accelerator pedal and chassis harness etc, so the hunt is on

fsi pedal









other bits such as in tank fuel pump (same on 2L and 3.6L) & the fuel control module ...which is different between motors but they didn't even charge me for it hahaha










playing around with Ladenhueter List (shelf warmer parts) almost got a custom 3.6L downpipe (needs a merge collector etc..) :laugh:










when it rains in socal we just can't deal










my first 3.6L junkyard find, need a MAF and 3.6 fuel control module, wiring, dipstick etc..










bingo! the warehouse is turning into a junkyard










got some OEM goodies from Autotech

MK5 GTI fuel filter, shop here: http://autotech.com/mk5-20t-fuel-filter.html

24V MK4 no a/c belt, shop here: http://autotech.com/24v-vr6-2-8l-no-ac-belt.html

(edit: 5 wire sensors are needed for downpipe) Bosch 4 wire 02 sensors for after cats, shop here http://autotech.com/universal-bosch-4-wire-oxygen-sensor.html










more junking

gathering the last bits of my wire harness before it goes to Matt @ Eurokraft https://www.facebook.com/eurokraftperformance/

beetle obd port









ce2 plugs f/g1/g2/z1 from a mk3










also got this corrado 02a trans support to help handle the big power once its in










found another passat 3.6L (this time 4-motion) about an hour away, luckily it was a 40% sale so I went a little overboard










stripping it down










got tons of hoses that the dismantlers cut and a bunch of spare goodies (hpfp, injectors, solenoids, sensors, etc)










cutting my 24V MK4 acc bracket to clear fsi injector 1










the 3.6L alternator took some 'massaging' to fit and not hit the injector, thanks Frank (G60ing) for the build thread to bypass alot of the trial & error










everything bolted up with MK4 24v non a/c belt :thumbup:
also the smaller 3.6L belt tensioner pulley was used on the MK4 24V tensioner body










some little 304SS downpipe fab goodies arrived: merge collector, cat flange and 02 sensor bungs










Here are some of the existing Autotech parts we are using to get going on the downpipe:

two MK2 16V/8V header flanges to mate to the exhaust manifold (just had to drill them out to accept the bigger 3.6L M10 studs):

shop here http://autotech.com/spare-mk2-8v-16v-tri-y-header-adaptor-flange-zinc-plated.html

and 2.25" flex couplers, shop here http://autotech.com/vibrant-2-25-x-4-flex-coupler.html










Got our ECU back from S&P
Stage 1 Malone Tune and IMMO defeat for the swap!

thanks for the quick turn around guys

S&P site: http://s-pautomotive.com/custom-parts/


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

Great job and thanks


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## [email protected] (Mar 28, 2016)

Very cool! 

Looking forward to seeing it completed


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

intake manifold before cleaning









manifold after.

debating if I should paint it black and/or re-badge to MK3 'VR6' badge or 'R36' badge, sucks the 'V6' cannot be removed without causing a hole in the plenum


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

I like the Audi panel. Ideally I’d have someone 3D print a panel with R36 or 3.6 VR6 FSI or something like that. I figure I can always go back and do it later.


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

G60ING said:


> I like the Audi panel. Ideally I’d have someone 3D print a panel with R36 or 3.6 VR6 FSI or something like that. I figure I can always go back and do it later.


it does look good, I wonder how it attaches?


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

so Matt from Eurokraft notified me that my engine harness was missing an important piece (that the dismantler must've cut) so I had to trek back out to the middle of nowhere to the next 3.6L (san bernardino)










I figured to play it safe I would just pull the entire harness 










after a couple of hours of ripping it apart I was left with this










and grabbed all of this for $41









and got some important lower coolant hoses/junctions/check valve for $3


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

time to clean up some carbon buildup!

before, eeeewwwww



















rigged the shop-vac up to some hoses, poked a hole for the media blaster (using walnut) :thumbup:










fun stuff, glad the shop vac is keeping the gunk out of my face










after about 30 mins... still some more work to go obviously


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

Fun stuff


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

got some goodies, cheapo B6 accelerator pedal overlay (ebay: from china) to match my TT style pedals....and Audi Q7 intake manifold cover from an Audi dismantler 



















getting the manifold prepped and de-badged for a rattle can paint job










high temp flat black









calling it done :thumbup:










swapped out the thermostat










and the H20 pump










getting the 3.6L oil cooler off so the front motor mount won't hit, smaller spare 12V cooler and cap/stud going on 










was able to fit the 3.6L water hoses to it w/o issue



















last bit of progress from the weekend was getting the injectors out for cleaning/testing


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

did a little heater core bypass, found a 180 hose at pep boys and a coupling reducer at home depot to adapt to the smaller hose off the hard pipe










should do the trick









also cleaned the carbon some more, I'm calling it a day on this one

started like this









ended like this


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

changed out some spark plugs, shop here: http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009/3-6l-vr6-ngk-spark-plug.html










also I decided to get a new valve cover (comes with new gasket, bolts, bolt o-rings, and of course a new PCV oil separator that are prone to fail) shop here http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009/3-6l-blv-eng-valve-cover.html



















I've added a bunch of OEM 3.6L related things online here http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009.html]http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009.html[/url]


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

clearing up some engine bay space with an after market slim fan setup with alloy shroud (mk3 VR6)

Also it will simplify things with my 3.6L harness










got my tracking # from Matt @ EuroKraft - I'm really excited about this harness, super plug and play:thumbup:










also got the first little portion of the downpipe going thx to Claudio


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

Looks good so far :thumbup: have you mocked up the engine in the bay to look for clearance issues? I know G60ing said the original 3.6V crank pully is too thick for a corrado bay unless you massage the frame rail


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

choobs said:


> Looks good so far :thumbup: have you mocked up the engine in the bay to look for clearance issues? I know G60ing said the original 3.6V crank pully is too thick for a corrado bay unless you massage the frame rail


The stock Touareg crank pulley won’t fit. The Passat crank pulley will fit. I just picked up a forged crank and Touareg crank pulley so I need to figure out whether I will try to get fluidamper to make a new pulley or machine down this pulley or get a passat pulley.


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

G60ING said:


> The stock Touareg crank pulley won’t fit. The Passat crank pulley will fit. I just picked up a forged crank and Touareg crank pulley so I need to figure out whether I will try to get fluidamper to make a new pulley or machine down this pulley or get a passat pulley.


Thanks for the info, starting to put together a parts list here so these details will most certainly help


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

choobs said:


> Thanks for the info, starting to put together a parts list here so these details will most certainly help


Quick update, the forged crank passat crank pulley is almost the same as the touareg pulley which doesn't fit. I might just have to have my touareg one machined.


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

the forged-crank bottom end looks cool, too bad no fluidamper solution for that yet

as for my build I got the passat BLV pulley and a fluidamper pulley on the shelf if needed (I was planned on tossing it on later to compare drive-ability improvements)


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

Making some progress on the 3.6L now

thanks Charles (-camber) and Bozzani VW for the help on the injector seals https://www.bozzanivw.com/

shop for 3.6L injector parts here:

http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009/3-6l-vr6-injector-seal.html
http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009/3-6l-vr6-injector-seal-2.html










so fresh and so clean!









figured I'd pull the HPFP and inspect the internals and the oil seal




























glad I checked because the internals were so gummed up I was unable to remove them from the cap!










luckily I had a spare cap and Autotech Internals - shop here http://autotech.com/autotech-high-volume-fuel-pump-upgrade-kit-2-0t-fsi.html



















assembled! I also threw on a new pump to cyl head gasket - shop here http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-...or-mechanical-fuel-pump-on-cylinder-head.html










time to toss back on the intake manifold, new gasket going on, shop here http://autotech.com/passat/b6-3-6l-2006-2009/3-6l-blv-eng-code-intake-manifold-gasket-06-07.html










starting to look like a motor again


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## turboit (Oct 4, 2001)

[email protected] said:


> Making some progress on the 3.6L now
> 
> thanks Charles (-camber) and Bozzani VW for the help on the injector seals https://www.bozzanivw.com/
> 
> ...


Awesome! I'm inspired to start back up on my build again

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk


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## jddaigle (May 30, 2003)

As an OEM 3.6 owner I love seeing these comprehensive overhauls. It’s a pretty goddamn stout motor. I hope it’s got a long life ahead of it in the aftermarket!


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

:thumbup::thumbup::beer::beer::thumbup::thumbup:


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

here's the "putting stuff back together" pics

routing the manifold vacuum tubing and harness for injectors etc.










I put a cool looking 08 3.6 Passat dipstick in (junkyard)










throttle body, vacuum, evap stuff going back on










plugged all the coolant hard lines for looks since B6 passat runs passenger coolant bottle and I'm going to re-use a drivers side early MK2 bottle



















ebay'd some 5 wire 02 sensors from a similar donor car










Heres the original 3.6L alt/a/c harness and a custom relayed slim fan harness (from Matt at Eurokraft) It runs off the original MK3 VR6 fan switch and will be single speed










Here's where Eurokrafts hard work really shows...the custom 3.6L to Ce2 body harness 

so on the right is all the ce2 fuse box connectors I junkyarded and a nice Tach adapter box that Eurokraft sourced

up top will be the FSI fuel controller green box wires (the only 2 wires that will not be 'plug and play') - I think I can handle that

top left is original 3.6 coolant switch to ECU

bottom left is MK3 02A reverse and starter connectors

the rest is Passat 3.6 accelerator pedal plug, 3.6 02 sensor plugs (just 2 not 4) ECU was tuned to match the deleted 02 sensors, 3.6 MAF plug, OBD port, MK3 02A VSS connector, 3.6 connector to alternator harness etc..


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

Its go time!


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## ArclitGold (Apr 21, 2009)

Awwwww yeaaahhh


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## fourthchirpin (Nov 19, 2004)

niceee work guys! hope to see yall at waterfest.


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

can't do Waterfest this year 

ok we got the old harness out 











testing the body to engine harness connection and getting familiar with everything










new Eurokraft harness going in (I had to add the wiper harness so its a little uglier)










2 wire hookup for FSI module is the only real hack with Matt @ Eurokrafts plug and play harness to CE2 m01 and m02











as it sits now with body harness installed (not very exciting yet)


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

got the flywheel re-surfaced










cool ARP pro bolts & loctite going on

shop here: https://autotech.com/golf-gti-rabbi...e-hd-flywheel-bolt-set-all-vr6-2-8l-3-6l.html










clutch back in (thanks to HD alignment tool )










GO TIME



















I'm calling it for today, so far the plastic coil-wire guard is the only thing that hits hood but the front crossmember isn't on yet


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## need_a_VR6 (May 19, 1999)

Hope you used all the loctite.


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

productive sunday at work

1st off I sold the old motor!










figured while I was there to tackle the fuel situation (eliminating the return line to the engine bay since fsi is returnless)










fully removing and replacing the black mk3 style supply line to a MK4 new beetle (bundy style) line - oem length was perfect - no mods needed!










playing with fittings and bundy connections - btw the heat gun method works great for plastic fuel lines (to press in barb fittings etc)










MK5 fsi fuel filter going into the stock MK3 filter holder











fueling done! I hope


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

had to shim down the B4 passat front cross member about 15mm, use longer bolts, and I had to trim down the rubber front eng mount, hood clears now barely










so the 4 wire (d-shaped connector) Green MK4 coolant sensor will work with the Eurokraft 3.6L harness - he snuck a 4 wire in there w/o me noticing at first

shop here: https://autotech.com/mk4-green-sensor-4-wire-coolant.html










installed










also a 2 wire sensor has to be installed after radiator exit

I used the inline T housing found here: https://autotech.com/inline-t-coolant-switch.html

then I used the grey sensor from where I just put the greens sensor 










stuck it down here by the donor check valve










got some goodies to finalize all the wiring connections










should be ready to test fire shortly


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

So it starts! Just doesn't run yet, it won't hold an idle or let me rev one










tomorrow the downpipe will get welded up, I already made some cuts and marked them


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

downpipe day was a success!

Socal people please hit up Nate at @N8Zfab (instagram) for any fabrication needs!



















The pipes are 2.25" into a 2.5" to 2.5" merge collector, all slip-fitting into my existing Techtonics 2.5" exhaust










Nate doing his thing!










finished product 



















its tight in there!










Now to get this thing running for real!


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

Lots of great progress! :thumbup:


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

When you replaced the headgasket, did you machine the head flat before reinstalling? Curious if I should look into this...


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

didn't really touch the motor internals, HG etc..


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

quick little update, the car starts then shuts off after a second or so.

We are sending the ECU out for testing, I have a feeling the IMMO wasnt fully 'defeated' but we will see

so its gonna be a week or two before its all said and done


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

New update!

I sent my ECU out to a nice 3.6 Facebook group peer with a running MK3 3.6 swap to test it out.

While it was shipping I took matters into my own hands and hit up a junkyard with a 3.6 passat to grab a 2nd ECU.

Took me almost 3 hours round trip to Ontario and back on a Tuesday morning - thanks Autotech for letting me deal with this crap on a work day, no lunch break on Tuesday haha!

Same day I sent the 2nd ECU out to someone else, IMMOSPEC in Colorado.

The next day, Wednesday (yesterday) my Facebook group friend sent me a video of my ECU in his MK3 doing the exact same thing! Cleary an IMMO issue so I sent him a label to get the ECU back in the hands of the original tuner.

To be honest I'm glad its the ECU - makes things less complicated :thumbup:

heres some pics of Tuesday at the junkyard










notice all the ash from the Holy Jim Fire



grabbed the ECU and its even the same ECU # as the 1st ECU


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

With no ECU(s) its time to work on the cooling and front end

so the slim fan shroud has to go, simply no room

keep in mind this is a MK3 VR6 radiator and a B4 passat crossmember










My only option was to use oil cooler zip ties 

shop here https://autotech.com/universal-oil-cooler-radiator-zip-tie-clamp-mount.html 



















test 










passat donor pieces should do the trick










dipstick guide tube is smashed into the fan, I think I need to look into an aftermarket dip stick solution.. Swoops Built or someone










bad pic of the rad exit setup, had to cut the oem lower t-stat hose to fit in the T from the aux coolant pump - same setup as G60ING - these are also passat donor pieces










upper rad support test, notice the dipstick is out, the rad support will need to be trimmed to fit the dipstick and another area that is touching the radiator










hood closes though, pretty stoked on that


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

after some rad support 'massaging' the front end is back on, note the 2006 dipstick, the 2008 T handle dipstick would hit the rad support

Also I bent the dipstick guide tube towards the intake manifold as much as I could

lowering the front crossmember also prevents a bolt from being used on the lower valence panel 










I was expecting it to be slammed after the weight of the 3.6L but not so much










now we wait for ECUs


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## G60ING (Jun 27, 2000)

I need to find one of those Audi covers cheap, I want to do something unique to one.


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

the place I got it from ebay wolfautollc has another at same price ($69)
not exactly junkyard price, but Q7's aren't at pick-a-part yet

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2007-2008-2009-AUDI-Q7-4L-3-6L-V6-ENGINE-COVER/142787880293


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

ok the 2nd ecu got the car running !!

Video link below

https://i.imgur.com/PheanqF.mp4


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

now onto the silly accel pedal... this is a shot of my brothers MK6 (same pedal style) so I took some crude measurements










drilling away and using some ugly hardware to bolt it down










final product isn't all that bad, I capped off the ugly hardware


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

Looks real nice! Great progress. How does the pedal feel? Similar to the prior setup?


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

It feels fine, it's just kind of ugly


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

update: tried to drive it with a non-tuned ecu, that was fun, its def in some type of limp/safe mode - has no balls, delayed throttle response, back fires,
but hey it was a good test of the clutch/trans/flywheel so I guess that was a success, now just need to wait on my tuned ECU to come back (ECU #1)


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

while we all wait for ECU fixes :thumbup:










got the MK2 cluster working proper, and ditched the MK3 cluster:
Eurokraft harness came with tach adapter, and I installed a G60 speedo cable, I added 30 ohm resistor to coolant temp wire, gas gauge will read 1/4 tank off (MK3 tank/pump), ce2 fuse box to ce1 cluster harness made with help from A2resource.com


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

Finally got the MK2 tach working properly, here is the link to the "Tach-Adapt" only $70

https://www.pelicanparts.com/More_I...MI7KHk3qTt3QIVA57ACh2cygETEAYYASABEgLjffD_BwE

So as far as CE2 wiring running CE1 4 Cyl MK2 cluster (should also work for MK1 and early G60)- using a signal off a single coil on plug this should help with setup:

thanks Matt @ Eurokraft and 3.6L facebook group and Bob Ashlock (tach adapt) for the help on this


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

so after about 4 or 5 drives around town in limp mode, the ECU came out of limp mode with no rhyme or reason:screwy:

hello 300hp! (BTW this is ecu#1 Malone tune)


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## choobs (Jul 4, 2016)

[email protected] said:


> hello 300hp! (BTW this is ecu#1 Malone tune)


Nice work! How do you like so far?


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

its super fast, just have to work out a few things before its track ready :thumbup:


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

added an Instagram account for the car so I'm not flooding the Autotech page 

follow me here

https://www.instagram.com/85golf36l/?hl=en


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

bought a spare MK3 VR6 front Motor mount bracket from ebay since I was lazy and didn't do it right the first time, oil cooler cap is smashed into it right now










testing it out on a spare VR6 trans we have here, the upper left ear needs to be flush to clear oil cooler cap










ABA upper starter bolt should do the trick once its slim










N8zfab doing his thing



















done!


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## Mk4GliR32TwinT (Sep 12, 2017)

So can I throw that same engine into my mk5 gti?


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

You sure can!


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## [email protected] (Jun 23, 2006)

well my car pee'd the curb the other day, big motor and MK3 VR6 radiator didn't like each other



















guess I didn't trim the rad support back enough



















did a week of waiting for new rad, added a little coolant temp sensor (for VDO) gauge, on top rad hose










new radiator and slim motor mount bracket both ready to go on at same time










old vs new



















had to get a new floor jack, HFT once again










of course the new rad is slightly bigger making it even more difficult to clear the rad support










still too tight










hacked this thing for way too long










finally all set, I had to support the hood catch with a brace in between top of rad and hood catch since most of the structure is gone (squishy)


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## GXL (Mar 31, 1999)

Almost a year, give us an update.


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## turboit (Oct 4, 2001)

No longer has the 3.6. It now has an R32 motor swapped in its place.

https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?8756417-!-the-Autotech-Sport-Tuning-1985-Golf-Restoration-an-Mod-thread-!/page19


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## moejav (Mar 23, 2002)

*MKIII Jetta GLX*

Hi Nate... I have a 97' Jetta GLX with a 2.9 fully built (JE Pistons, Manley rods, Schrick 264/248 cams) VR6... I'm really wanting to sell the engine and turbo, and turbo accessories and do a 3.6 VR6 swap... and was interested in your build... I'm guessing since you have a MKII and the 3.6 VR6 fit in your MKII it would surely fit in my MKIII Jetta GLX? Did you have to do any fabrication for it to fit in a MKII? Thanks!


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