1.4 TSI Twincharger (160) Stage 1 / 2

[blower]

Hello!

I'm working on a project to upgrade my 1.4 tsi twincharger, remapping to stage 1 and then possibly stage 2.

As some people might know the 1.4 tsi twincharger is a twitchy engine, plagued with numerous early production issues that led to these engines failing prematurely - with broken pistons.
So a remap should be the last thing on someones mind.

However if various upgrades / changes are done, you should be able to safely remap this engine and get oodles of performance with great fuel economy.
A remap will unlock the power of the supercharger in the low to mid range which on stock is underutilised and doesnt offer much more than a straight turbo would give you.

My car is a 2010 1.4Tsi 160HP, Golf mk6 GT (highline).

The twincharger had numerous upgrades over the years to alleviate its primary problem - misfires along with some other issues:

The injectors were changed in mid 2010 to a newer version that has a different spray pattern to prevent scorching of the piston head and exhaust valves.
The sparks were eventually gapped at 0.8mm and changed to a different revision.
Coil packs were upgraded in 2011 to ones that produce a stronger spark.
The supercharger clutch material was changed in 2011 to one that doesnt slip/squeak in warm weather.

The upgrades I'm performing before my APR stage 1 map:

-Newer revision injectors (03C906036M)
-New revision coil packs (036905715G)
-NGK BKR7EIX or BKR6EIX sparks
-Revised supercharger clutch / coolant pump
-Golf R / Audi S3 Intercooler (newer revision non metal end one, 1K0145803BP)

 

[blower]

First up - new revision injectors:

Due to an injectors costing £200 from VW, and even new ones on ebay (suspect Chinese imports) costing £100+ each, I decided to go a different route and get some low mileage 2nd hand ones, get them ultrasonically cleaned, and renew all the seals.

Got a set of injectors for £50 from Germany, 12000 miles (or so they say, but still they didn't look in bad condition)

Injectors were sent away, cleaned and tested - came back with a report showing perfect balance, no leaks and cleaned.

I managed to pick up a Laser injector puller/seal kit for not much:

It's not the full injector renew kit that you would get from VW (T10133), but it contains the essential tools for renewing the Teflon seals.
A set of seals from VW was £12 each, so 4 sets cost nearly as much as the injectors.
Still even with cleaning and the seals, the total cost for the 4 injectors was £150, a lot better than paying VW £800.

Now onto the installation:

In order to replace the injectors you have to get to the intake manifold, and then the fuel rail - on this engine that's no easy task as all the charge pressure hosing runs over the top - going through various channels, supercharger connections, regulating switching flap. Then you got the throttle body, and a load of connectors, coolant hoses, vacuum lines in the way...

This lot had to come off:

You may notice how much oil was pooled in the intake manifold! - damn PCV pouring that crap directly into the intake, coating valves, lowering octane levels (misfires, pre-detonation - the bane of this engine).....custom PCV with decent catch can is in order me thinks.

After spending a lot of time removing this lot, it left his mess in the engine bay:

But now I was at the injectors and they came out pretty easy - didn't need a puller, they just pulled out with a bit of wiggling.

Cleaned the injector holes out with a soft brush and isopropyl and pushed the new injectors in. Some new gaskets and a couple of hours later everything was back together.

Car took a lot of cranking before starting as the fuel rail had been emptied of fuel - but it started fine and ran fine with no problems.

 

[blower]

Next up, Golf R Intercooler:

I decided to go for a Golf R intercooler, latest revision (for mk6 anyway) - as apparently it has better flow than the often used metal end tank S3 intercooler - plus it fits with no modifications or extra bolts etc.

This is another long winded job, resulting in a lot of screws & bolts being removed and some fiddly stages.

First I removed the undertray & bumper (about 30 screws).
This job was made more difficult due to having headlight washers and parking sensors.

Next was the crash barrier, radiator support and upper carrier for the lights & grill:

This was another load of bolts and screws, and some jigging around to get the bottom support out of the intercooler pegs...along with disconnecting the ambient air sensor, headlight connectors and a couple of others.

Once this was off I had access to the AC condenser/Intercooler/Radiator Sandwich:

I used some random stuff to support the radiator sandwich as nothing else is holding this lot in place

Normally (according to VW workshop guides) you would remove the intercooler downwards - but this is not an option on jack stands so it has to come up up/sideways - this meant pulling the ac condenser forward and carefully angling out the intercooler.

A load more bolts later and a lot of jiggling around of the intercooler and it was out:

With that out, time to put the new one in:

This is noticeable thicker and heavier than the old one, has more cooling channels and a higher fin density - should provide a lot more cooling

Using a technique pioneered by LastHumansGarage - I cut off the metal ends of the old intercooler hoses so that I could use metal hose clamps to attach it to the new intercooler which doesn't have the crappy clip style latching connectors of the old intercooler. Just a gently cut with a hacksaw blade and a bit of prying and it came right off:

This is far better than cutting the hose, making it too short. Removing the metal end fitting keeps the hose the right length for a perfect fit

At this point it was time to put it all back together - all was going well until I tried to get the bottom intercooler pegs back into the lower carrier/crash barrier. No matter which way I angled things I could not get the damn things in - in the end a load of spray oil and a lot of pulling and pushing got it in - it only took 45 minutes of swearing and some cuts to my hands :mad0259:

Then it was just spending an hour or so putting the 50+ bolts and screws back in - all done.

No noticeable difference in performance at this stage - although I have not gone on a continuous hard run yet - plus cooler outside temperatures this time of year are going to reduce heat soak issues.

This upgrade was done to keep intake temperatures down under hard driving, especially in the summer - again helping keep this already hot running engine within tolerance after a remap.

 

[blower]

Can an op shift this thread to the members car journals please

 

[rawcpoppa]

Subscribed. Don't see too many twincharged threads on here. I have a 2012 Jetta with same engine and dsg.

 

[lee28890]

I have the same car at 44000 miles and I'm worried I'm about to experience the misfire troubles. Took it to the garage with the flashing engine management light to be told there were 17 fault codes. They told me once the fault codes had been deleted a test drive had been carried out. Revealing no faults and from what they said, more power than ever.

So I got the car back and surprisingly it did feel like it had better torque. Now 4 weeks on and with no problems when I'm climbing the revs I get a blank spot every now and again. (Assuming this is the misfire) but it's never at any certain point. It seems to be when the engine is asked to perform at low revs. for instance when I'm in 4th just under 2000 and I ask it to go. It misfires. But not every time. I do beleive super unleaded and knowing how this car wants to drive is the key to keeping this engine alive.

I enjoyed reading your thread so thought I'd pleasure you with my stresses ☺ P.s come and help me rebuild mine to be like yours ? many thanks

Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

 

[rawcpoppa]

I have the same car at 44000 miles and I'm worried I'm about to experience the misfire troubles. Took it to the garage with the flashing engine management light to be told there were 17 fault codes. They told me once the fault codes had been deleted a test drive had been carried out. Revealing no faults and from what they said, more power than ever.

So I got the car back and surprisingly it did feel like it had better torque. Now 4 weeks on and with no problems when I'm climbing the revs I get a blank spot every now and again. (Assuming this is the misfire) but it's never at any certain point. It seems to be when the engine is asked to perform at low revs. for instance when I'm in 4th just under 2000 and I ask it to go. It misfires. But not every time. I do beleive super unleaded and knowing how this car wants to drive is the key to keeping this engine alive.

I enjoyed reading your thread so thought I'd pleasure you with my stresses [emoji5] P.s come and help me rebuild mine to be like yours [emoji106] many thanks

Sent from my D6503 using Tapatalk

Change your ignition coils for starters if you haven't. I assume your spark plugs have been changed as part of routine maintenance?

 

[blower]

Done a 0-62mph run test as a base line before a remap.



This is with the new injectors and Golf R intercooler - it probably helped a bit, but until i remap i won't unleash the real power.

I always get excellent off the line starts due to the Michelin crossclimate tyres. I can't tell you enough how good these tyres are - they are super grippy, and never wheel hop. They are a summer tyre which are also 3 peak rated for the winter - they are not to be confused with your ordinary all season tyres that are mediocre in summer and winter.

These tyres give great summer and winter performance, and have the best off line grip i have ever had in any tyre - by a mile!, no wheel hop at all - just a bit of spin then grip fast and hard. Lifespan is also supposed to be the same as a summer and so far that's holding true.

 

[rawcpoppa]

Have you gotten the new coolant pump? If so where and at what price?

 

[blower]

Have you gotten the new coolant pump? If so where and at what price?

I have yes - part 03C121004J , it will be going in soon.

I got mine off an ebay company for £140, have been on the look out for months for one to come up cheaper as they are normally around the £200 mark, so got a bit of a saving.

Cheapest i've found elsewhere is here:

http://www.shop4volkswagen.co.uk/search,b.html?q=03c121004j

lee28890
I have the same car at 44000 miles and I'm worried I'm about to experience the misfire troubles. Took it to the garage with the flashing engine management light to be told there were 17 fault codes. They told me once the fault codes had been deleted a test drive had been carried out. Revealing no faults and from what they said, more power than ever.

With regards to your misfires, check the sparks - if genuine ones are fitted make sure they are part number 03C905601B, alternatively i recommended NGK BKR6EIX for everyday driving with the odd heavy run.

And yes - only ever use super unleaded with this beasty!

 

[rawcpoppa]

My oem pump was 03C121004J and it started leaking 3 years into ownership. I bought the same one you got for 140 pounds off Ebay. It works but I believe the clutch slips so I hear a sharp noise before it grabs. I can't complain though because I have a hard time buying the oem pump with the same part number for the last 4 years that keeps leaking in various owner's vehicles.

I also have the same intercooler as you. It's great. Your mod was easier than in my Jetta however. The silver coloured coolant lines running to the AC condensor run around the radiator support on the Jetta so it's not easy to just swing the condensor away from the sandwiched intercooler.

I've gone stage 1 and it's great. I can't say I notice much more from the supercharger but definitely with the turbocharger I feel a big difference.

7 seconds 0-62 mph is great. VW seems to underrate their acceleration times because your stock map according to VW should get you an 8 second time. The Jetta is rated to 8.3 but I've gotten faster on the stock map as well.

How do you feel about your pistons? That's the thing that worries me the most about this engine.

 

[kern417]

sub'd

 

[kern417]

sub'd

 

[blower]

I actually got a genuine VW one off ebay for the 140, have had no leaks but am changing it as the one in my 2010 is the older model (03C121004E) which is known to squeak in warm weather.

Map wise i am looking to go with APR - i believe they have updated their tunes for this engine not long ago as the torque curve low down is a lot higher than it used to be:

Although i bet that's some what exagerated.

Piston wise i am only concerned with misfires as that's what tends to kill them. The car is a 2010 model so doesn't suffer from the early piston ring problem which threw a lot of pistons, and it was the hidden misfires that killed anything after that. Misfires = bore wash = piston death.

I intend to do some intensive VCDS logging just to see the misfire counts under various driving conditions.
That's the thing with VAG cars - you could be driving round with lots of little misfires and not really notice as it doesn't produce an EML unless there are a lot of them, but you log with something like VCDS and you see what's really going on.

I am more concerned with things like the chain & tensioner though. I get the occasional startup grind - which i know is the early revision camshaft adjuster sticking and not the chain problems, i would replace it but i would also want to do a full chain renewal whilst i'm there - so a camshaft adjuster, chain, tensioner, guide rails, seals & gaskets, bolts etc would cost a fortune. On top of that the work to get to the chain is immense (alternator, ac compressor, oil sump, front exhuast pipe, a load of stuff on the top, engine mount all have to come off and i would need a special tool set etc)....hmm i wish it would make the noise a lot more frequently, as i would get it done under an extended warranty.

 

[rawcpoppa]

Will you be changing your diverter valve?