My 2010 Audi A3. I just put a 2016 Tiguan engine in it.

by "SantaRita" (SantaRita)
Published 09/18/2017 at 16:29

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STARS: 25

When i bought this car someone on OPPO warned me I was in for some hardcore maintenance issues. I blew it off at the time.

I made it to 135K before something inside the engine showed up in the oil pan. Dealer suspected cam screens blown out or timing chain rubbing. FWIW, There is a lawsuit. I’m just curious so i’ll tear it down later. VW dealership (no audi near me) also estimated about 12K to change it out with a new CCTA engine and clutch parts, and then charged me 400+$ to get that sweet info and my busted car back.

Audi says it was a bit of a rare car.
“With the sales model code of your vehicle(2.0T, Manual, Sportback), 100 were sold in the US. There were 9 2010 A3's made in the exterior color Brilliant Red, and only two have the Luxor Beige interior.” It’s like some kind of premium mediocre unicorn. Like limited Edition Dr Pepper. This is not bad on rarity for a consumer commuter, amirite?

Wel, the dealer prices reflected it. Damn. 12K in repair scoped on a car worth about 8K on a good day. They are not doing it. I wont spend that. That diagnostic alone was rape-y.

Crap, I still owe 5500 on it. I basically could trade even for a kia soul and three more years of payments. Sorry, I like the KIA but it’s just not my kind of car. At least i wont pay that much longer to own one.

So maybe grab a used engine? even a crate motor...I slimmed it down to 3k in parts. sure. why not.That’s about what the timing service and clutch at Rapey McDealers would have cost to have done.

Hell, it’s LESS.
I guess I’m doing this shit.

Now its probably the only A3 in the USA with a Tiguan engine! Car scrappers (like car-part.com) don’t list them as compatible, but the A3 and Tiguan both shipped with CCTA engines. Just 7 years apart. I took the gamble because i wanted the updated timing internals and any other running updates. I cant be chicken about it if I want to get back running.

I got the newest lowest mileage motor I could find and when it landed I tore the old one out.

7k mile engine built on 5.15.2016, it got the harness 7/16 and with only 7k miles...i doubt it had been on the road an entire year yet. Turbo and harness were included.

I did most of this engine swap ever 5 very sleepless nights between my kids bedtime and work the next day. Something like 1030pm- 330am give or take. By the end, I was wiped out and slept overnight so the the last day was early to mid morning.

I had a very nice OEM guide for all of the torque specs.

I took my time, replaced engine mounts, filters and a few other small things as needed . Every connector got splooged with dielectric grease. I drank beer and wrenched until I hit hard stopping points.

And then I was done.
I primed it with oil.

I flipped the key.

It burbled awake immediately.

At this point, the driveline is flawless. no CEL, no BS noises. Before you ask, yeah, I sure as heck replaced the clutch/flywheel because I’m not doing this heavy lifting shit again until the car is at least paid off.

-santarita

Replies (21)

"victor" (victor)
09/18/2017 at 17:46, STARS: 6

Holy shit. This deserves to be on the front page. Job well done!

BTW, any reprogramming need to be done?

"cmill189 - sans Volvo" (cmill189)
09/18/2017 at 18:08, STARS: 4

Nice job. The first start after an engine swap is such a rewarding (and terrifying) experience.

"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/18/2017 at 18:10, STARS: 1

Wow! Nicely done!

"Klaus Schmoll" (klausschmoll)
09/18/2017 at 18:11, STARS: 6

Wow, just wow! I am speechless. ...

...

This kind of swap on such a “computerized” car...! Was it plug and play or did you have to code ....

And then doing it in your own garage. Impressive! Heroes don’t always wear capes.

"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
09/18/2017 at 18:21, STARS: 0

Wow! Nice Job!

"gmctavish needs more space" (gmctavish)
09/18/2017 at 18:22, STARS: 3

This is excellent Oppo

"I have another burner, try to guess it!" (ihaveanotherburner)
09/18/2017 at 18:31, STARS: 3

Legendary OPPO status.... achieved!

"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
09/18/2017 at 18:59, STARS: 5

Too good for GO, they’d rather argue about mah property valyoos

"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
09/18/2017 at 18:59, STARS: 2

Is it for sale? :D

"victor" (victor)
09/18/2017 at 20:16, STARS: 1

I sort of really want that car too.

"BaconSandwich is tasty." (baconsandwich)
09/18/2017 at 21:42, STARS: 0

Wow. That’s seriously intense! Massive kudos to you for pulling it off!

"His Stigness" (HisStigness)
09/19/2017 at 03:16, STARS: 1

No one prays harder than a person starting a new/rebuilt engine for the first time.

It also takes a while for your butt to unpucker since shit can still go wrong even after it fires up.

"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
09/19/2017 at 07:10, STARS: 0

well done, good job.

"SantaRita" (SantaRita)
09/19/2017 at 09:52, STARS: 1

hello and thanks. I’m really just happy that it was as smooth as it could have been. The harness mated right up and routed along the body right to the ecu in the same way. I did a lot of homework on the platforms/engine codes up front, and figured that a worst case would mean moving a ton of sensors over. I did need a new oil pan because mine has an added sensor there, but it comes from the body harness. I didn’t want to reuse my old/rusted one and they sell a higher capacity one through my local parts store, so I went with that for the extra oil volume.

The ecu plugged right in. Prior owner added an APR tune so that may matter. no reprogramming. no idiot lights. zero, nada zilch!

turn key and go.

"SantaRita" (SantaRita)
09/19/2017 at 09:53, STARS: 2

waiting for leaks. weird smells. creaks. maybe an axle will fly off. yeah i know these feelings.

"SantaRita" (SantaRita)
09/19/2017 at 09:55, STARS: 0

hand tools, patience and a shit ton of labeled ziplock baggies. No ecu issues,plug and play!

My place was looking like a drug dealer had opened a hardware store.

"SantaRita" (SantaRita)
09/19/2017 at 10:08, STARS: 0

everyone has a price but my plan is to keep it another 100k or more.

"His Stigness" (HisStigness)
09/19/2017 at 11:18, STARS: 1

For me, it’s odd noises and then weird smells.

Generally, though, if I’ve gotten the car to start without an immediate CEL then I am usually good.

And when I haven’t been, I’m always glad when I know what the problem is. Speaking of which, I want to punch assholes who convince me to take shortcuts.

"Dave the car guy , still here" (a3dave)
10/04/2017 at 12:54, STARS: 1

I own its larger engined cousin. My 2008 3.2 quattro is one of the 725 in Lava Grey which was the highest production color and most sold in US , Asia or Australia from what I’ve been told. At that time Europe had the S3 and RS3 so from my searches many of the European sales may have been in UK, Germany may have received more of the higher performance cars. It was low production world-wide for the VR6 engined cars. Only 42k miles and likely hanging on to it for another 8-10 years. I’m pretty certain only about 8k 3.2 cars were sold all over during the 07-2010 run. We only got DSG trans cars in the states, elsewhere there are some ultra rare MT cars.

"SantaRita" (SantaRita)
10/04/2017 at 15:14, STARS: 0

That’s a great color, that’s why it sold so well. You must not have a kid to haul around with those miles. I had a v6 A6 Quattro Avant before this and wanted the 2.0 for simplicity, easier maintenance and the tunability. Plus the downsize for handling sake. My old a6 was a thirsty boat.

I do sometimes wish I had kept AWD, which I guess was barely available the next year A3 (2011) with the 6MT. Not many people buy an upscale car and then want the MT, I think they just get a GTI, or spend less and get a Golf R. From a performance standard the MT is an old dog compared to the DSG, But it’s my dog so I love it.

"Dave the car guy , still here" (a3dave)
10/04/2017 at 15:45, STARS: 0

You are correct. My kid is grown and has a 2012 A4 2.0t quattro . Her second car was a 2000 A4 1.8t quattro. I’ve also owned a 1998 A4 2.8 quattro. That V6 was thirsty but went 145+ miles with me before it became a winter commuter car for a guy from Cleveland.

I’ve done just enough tweeks to get about 270 hp from the 3.2 and MPGs actually improved. Also swapped rear sway and several bushings front and back so it corners way better than you see in most sportback reviews.