RE: clutch advice

["Buchholz, Steven" <Steven.Buchholz@kla-tencor.com>]

> i would like to know of your advice on changing the clutch and timing
> belt on an 85' 4000 (fwd).  i have significant technical knowledge but
> do you think these are endeavors i should pursue or should i just get it
> done by a mechanic.  i already have a the clutch and all its parts as
> well as the timing belt.  could anyone give me detailed instructions
> and/or tips on changing anyone of these items.
> 
I've heard others recommend that it is easier to pull the engine than the
tranny on the quattros ... AAMOF I just heard it again today from someone in
the "biz".  

I've done clutches on FWD and quattro versions of the Audi 80 (said that
because one was an Audi Fox and the other was a 4kSQ, but both had the
license ACHTZIG at the time ... :).  I've never pulled the engine on either
car, but there's no way someone can convince me that pulling a couple half
shafts, a simple tranny linkage and a cable clutch is going to be tougher
than pulling all the electrical and fluid connections to the engine!  If I
had an engine hoist my opinion might be different, but given more people
have floor jacks tends to support my position.  The FWD tranny is also quite
light ... I was able to R&R the tranny on the Fox without a floor jack (and
I'm no Arnie S :).  One thing I do know was that the 4k FWD has a different
tranny mounting method than my old Fox ...

Suggestion:  If you don't know when the outer CV boots were last changed,
you might want to take advantage of this opportunity to take care of them.
If you choose this route you will want to remove the half shafts completely.
This makes the tranny R&R easier, but it is also possible to simply
disconnect the shafts at the drive flanges put a heavy bag over the juicy
end of the inner CVJ and tie them up out of the way.  If you do decide to
pull the shafts, loosen the hub nuts before jacking up the car.  DON'T allow
the car to roll after the nuts have been loosened ... you'll trash your
wheel bearings!

If you have the Bentley, you may want to check to see if you need to
disconnect any of the steering linkage.  This was not needed on the Fox, but
recommended on the 4kSQ.

Here's an outline of the recommended procedure (Since it's been years since
I did this I guess I'll post this so others can see if I left anything out
...

 o jack the front of the car up as high as you can and put it up on jack
stands
 o disconnect the downpipe from the exhaust manifold and cat
 o disconnect (or remove) the half shafts
 o disconnect the shift linkage (on the Fox it was possible to remove a
single bolt in the linkage that allowed the linkage to be separated without
having to loosen the wired setbolt.  (If you have a similar linkage you may
want to look into replacing the plastic parts of the pivot if they look like
they're getting hard and brittle)
 o disconnect the clutch cable (the one great feature of a cable operated
clutch :)
 o remove the front "torque mount" near the belts at the front of the
engine. (and steering linkage A/R)
 o disconnect the tranny mounts (they will probably need to be replaced too)
... at this point the engine/tranny will naturally want to pivot the tranny
down toward the ground.
 o find some way to prop the front of the engine up in its current nose high
attitude.  When the tranny is disconnected the engine will rock forward and
you'll need to find some way to bring the nose back up for install
otherwise.  I think I simply used my legs when I did the Fox, but on the 4k
I used a 2x6 across the front of the engine compartment holding an old belt
that was wrapped around the front torque mount lug ... whatever works :)
 o unbolt the tranny from the engine
 o slide tranny back and off
 o replace clutch, pressure plate, throw-out bearing, throw-out sleeve
(metal!) and pilot bearing.  Use a clutch centering tool to align the clutch
plate when installing the pressure plate.  Check Bentley, I think the
pressure plate is torqued in a particular sequence.  Make sure that all the
proper surfaces are cleaned and lubed.
 o re-install tranny and bolt it all back together.  

I think that I did the clutch on the Fox in less than 36 hours ET on a
weekend ... and that was when the car had a 5-speed installed!

On the timing belt ... even the '85 4k should still be a 4-banger, right?
You should be able to do this yourself quite easily as well as you won't
need the special front crank pulley removal apparatus.  I think Audi changed
from a tensioner/pulley that had flats on it that you could grab with a
crescent wrench to one that requires the use of a pin wrench, but the
toughest thing I had to do was keep the distributor drive properly lined up
while installing the new belt!  Very much DIY!

HTH and enjoy!
Steve Buchholz
San Jose, CA (USA)