Problems replacing CLUTCH on '88 5ksq

[auditude at neta.com]

No manifolds have to come off for the tranny to be removed.

My tranny is sitting next to my '88 5kcstq, and the downpipe is
even stil in the car.  I thought I had to remove the downpipe, so it's
unbolted almost all the way.  Turns out the tranny got past it.

You do have to remove the driveshafts, and at least the cat.  There
is shifter linkage, and the slave cylinder to deal with.  A couple
heat shields are in the way of the stuff in the way of the stuff I listed.

What specifically is he stuck on at the moment?  I was "stuck"
many times in the process of disassembling my car.  Every single
excruciatingly tiny step seemed to be a big challenge.

My car is still apart.  I'm replacing the rack with a good one from
my donor car, and while I'm doing that I'm replacing the old intact
boost, and while I'm doing that I'm waiting for the special order rack
grease from the VW dealer.  There's been quite a few things to wait
for, a great deal of which would have been prevented if I had my
research done and had my ducks in a row before starting.

(It's ok tho', because that's exactly why I have the garage and
another car to drive.  I can fit my repairs into my schedule, or just
put it off until I feel like making progress again.)

I would say that counting actual time spent working on the car, I
have put at least a few days of solid wrenching just to get as far as
I am.  If I had to do it again, I'm sure I would do it much quicker.
Plus I have the tools now.

A mechanic familiar with Audi's might not be a bad idea, not that
it's going to do you any good at the present time.

If you can find out what stage he's at, and what the problem is,
maybe I can help.

Cheers,

Ken
''88 5kcstq
'85 4kstq project
'94 SL2
'97 5kt parts

amz at eskimo.com wrote:
>
> Thinking that I'd save a little money, I'm having an experienced
> non-Audi mechanic friend replace the clutch in my 1988 5000s quattro.
> Even got a new Bentley to help him, since he'd never done clutch work
> on one.  The brake job he did a while back was superb (and easy for
> him). ACK!  On the clutch, he is running into problem after problem
> and I don't know what to do.  He's already sunk a few hours playing
> with it. * The current problem is that he's saying he has to take off
> the manifold to get at the tranny.  TRUE?? Any advice anyone can give
> me to pass onto him would be VERY appreciated. Please cc: your reply
> to my e-mail because I only get the digest of the list. Thanks in
> advance for any help!!