GTI AWD/4motion conversion

[aregister]

Recently I have seen a rise in interest in converting a GTI to a golf R.
Why do it? Well, there's a financial consideration, piecing together parts from salvage, eBay, etc can generally yield a cheaper substitute than the 15k upgrade to a golf R. While it's not necessarily the BEST decision, many GTI owners have done so many modifications that they do not want to lose that time and effort, but they want traction for more POWER. This was my case.
On this thread, I am going to try and step through the process, to give those that are curious an idea of what they ACTUALLY NEED in order to accomplish the actual conversion. I will come up with part numbers and equivalents as I get the time. Obviously the ideal scenario is finding a wrecked golf R and swapping on a lift. However, easier said than done.
Here is a quick list of major parts you will need:
1. Rear subframe (houses the rear diff, haldex, rear axles, and suspension
2. Driveshaft or in VW terms, propeller shaft
3. Front differential ( you will need this to connect to the bevel box. You can either do a complete transmission swap, or swap ring gears from the gti differential to the golf R differential)
4. Gas tank and lpfp. this is probably one of the most overlooked items
5. Bevel box, also called the transfer case, sends power to the driveshaft and the passenger axle
6. Rear brakes and rotors.
7. Complete exhaust. Turns out, the GTI downpipe and catback for that matter, wasn't made to fit around a center driveshaft (who knew, right??)
8. VCDS/VAGCOM and cable. You will need to be familiar with the modules and programs as well. You can YouTube it
9. Golf R sway bar
10. Mounting brackets for the center driveshaft support bearing
11. Driveaxles. Only the driver front remains the same
12. All necessary hardware/fasteners. This is literally just a catch-all. Many are different than the GTI because they need to be longer or thicker or just aren't there on a GTI. I know that makes it kind of a crap shoot, but it is necessary

Ok, that's a quick definitive list to get you started. I will be adding pictures and some steps once I get my wrecked conversion back from the repair shop.

 

[zrickety]

Nice start. The big question is what is the total cost? And pics!

 

[aregister]

Nice start. The big question is what is the total cost? And pics!

Thanks! I will be posting pics soon, I made the mistake of clearing out my phone and lost a lot of pictures, but I will be taking them once my car gets back from the repair shop. Total cost is very subjective! Some people can do it for as little as 5k or so. Mine cost me close to 7k all said and done, but because there was so much part buying as I went, it's hard to gauge unless I went back and totaled up everything with an itemized list. I wanted to start this thread at least, because it's not a common build

 

[kyle_h]

Left everyone hanging on this one

 

[1ashchuckton]

I'd guess he decided to buy an R. I'm sure it would be much cheaper than trying tp do a conversion. Plus it would be instant, pays your money & poof you are rocking an R.

 

[Cal2000]

I have also come across a few R owners who retrofitted DSG. Both (GTI+4 motion and R+DSG) are really cool projects after all.

 

[Joe_Mama]

Left everyone hanging on this one

Probably because it was a dumb idea. Costs way more in time and money to do something like this, rather than just buying a R.

 

[Grabbit]

Probably because it was a dumb idea. Costs way more in time and money to do something like this, rather than just buying a R.

Its not always apples to apples. For a manual AWD swap, yes likely so. An AWD DSG MK6 is a different animal though. Something will need to be swapped regardless of whether its an existing DSG GTI or a manual Golf R. I also think who is doing the work and at what pace plays a bigger role in doing something like this. If you are mechanically inclined and want to tackle it yourself, it would be a fun project. If you are willing to scour yards and piece things together, I think you'd be surprised what a swap might go for in the long run. I was quoted $3800 for a FWD Wavetrac and installation. Instead, I bought a NIB Mfactory diff from these forums to start, collected parts, planned and installed it myself with new OEM clutches for well under half that.

 

[aregister]

Left everyone hanging on this one

Yeah sorry man. I did it. I just don't get on here and I have had a lot of things happen in life that meant blogging about my work wasn't worth the effort.
Right now it's a rebuilt title because someone rear ended me at a stoplight, insurance totaled it. I bought it back, fixed it myself, and still drive it to this day. It's quick, handles great, but needs some love because I have neglected it. Two kids, a transition out of the military, and a battle with addiction will do that to you lol.
If you have literally ANY questions about doing an AWD swap, feel free to message or reply here. I can message you my number and text anytime.
Thanks

 

[aregister]

Probably because it was a dumb idea. Costs way more in time and money to do something like this, rather than just buying a R.

YOU RIGHT BRUDDA.

 

[aregister]

I'd guess he decided to buy an R. I'm sure it would be much cheaper than trying tp do a conversion. Plus it would be instant, pays your money & poof you are rocking an R.

I completed this build before even starting the thread. It's way cooler to sleep on people who think you have a Golf because your rear hatch says "Golf" but your exhaust comes out the center, boi.

 

[aregister]

 

[aregister]

Above are some photographic proof that I actually completed the 4motion GTI.
The car was on jackstands for 6 months and I learned a ton about the drivetrain and suspension. Wiring made me super nervous, but it was pretty easy. I will say that I used conduit and routed it very specifically. I used watertight connectors and pinned everything in so that I can swap out or replace lengths of wire without having too much re-wire work.
I had a friend do the welding, so if you don't know how to weld or don't know anyone that can weld, that could be a hang-up, although it is possible to use rivnuts for some things.
I ripped out my evap canister and so my evaporative emissions is terrible, so that causes a slight loss in mpg, but getting all the lines vapor tight wasn't worth the trouble in my opinion.
There are a ton of other things and I may start a chronological post, but without photos and anything written down, I am just going off of memory.

 

[BudgetPhoenix]

cool stuff

 

[Grabbit]

If you have literally ANY questions about doing an AWD swap, feel free to message or reply here. I can message you my number and text anytime.
Thanks

I'd love to know more about what wiring and programing you needed to complete this. I have a decent idea of the hardware and how it would go together but making the ECU and TCU talk together is something different (I have/want a DSG setup). It looks like you are manual but even so you would have needed to wire in the haldex controller.