Update 24th December 2012:

An early start, and I was able to finish the engine bay. I laid down two coats of grey primer, and three coats of gloss black. The V8 motor and 01E 6-speed manual can now be installed. Not till after Christmas though, but definitely before the clocks herald the start of the year 2013.

Pictures!

 

Update 27th December 2012:

Engine and transmission are in!

I had more issues - the tarmac in front of my garage is slightly soft. The V8 engine and 6-speed manual tranny weigh in at a combined 293 kilos. This meant the steel wheels of the crane were digging into the ground at the front. So lots of levering, and I managed to get a board under the worse affected wheel.

Tomorrow, I'll be making wooden mock-ups of the engine support brackets (one at the front, one either side) to transfer to steel. I can now begin to run my custom stainless steel braided oil lines. I also need to modify the front panel / radiator support.

Pictures:

 

Update 02nd January 2013:

I took time off to modify the lock / radiator carrier, to clear the big V8 motor. I then trial fitted the aluminium radiator. It fit perfectly, though I'm going to reverse the coolant hoses, as the radiator outlets are on the left of the engine bay.

The lock carrier is only fitted temporarily, with two bolts. It will be removed to ease running the oil filter / cooler lines. I have another Audi A4 being delivered to me on Monday, which I will plunder for some parts I need.

Pictures:

 

Update 14th January 2013:

As I already knew, the original V6 front crossmember would not clear the V8 motor. It was completely the wrong shape, as shown here. Note the interference with V8 engine lower sections:



And replaced with a modified I4 crossmember, that fits perfectly, after a bit of fettling:



V6 and I4 front crossmembers. The top one is the V6, very different shape to the I4 item below:

 

Update 14th January 2013 - continued:

Modified radiator and hood lock carrier. To clear the V8, the entire mid-section needed to be cut out. It's not a structural assembly, so not a big deal. All the central section was for was to mount the aircon electric fan, and act as a cowl for the mechanical engine-drive one. As I'm fitting a pair of electric fans on the front of the radiator, it's not needed.

Picture:



Picture showing the twin 12" electric fans temporarily mounted on the radiator:

 

Rewind to 07th January 2013:

A friend of mine had a '98 Audi A4 B5 Quattro 1,9 TDI to get rid of. The engine had been starved of oil, and was pretty sludged up. The low oil pressure warning lamp illuminated just before the engine expired with a gasping death rattle.

I took it off his hands, and it was delivered to me today. I was after an I4 front crossmember, as the V6 one would not clear the big V8 motor, so it was just in time. I've picked some choice bits off it, including the 5-speed manual gearbox, rear lamp clusters, the rain guard that covers the wiper area under the hood, various coolant hoses, central locking pump etc, and will literally pillage her for any more juicy bits and pieces.

Pictures!









I took a quick look at the engine, after removing the rocker cover. For those that ignore oil change intervals, use the wrong oil, or remove their thermostats, causing the engine to run too cool (and causing condensation to turn the oil to deadly sludge) this is the end result. This oil was so contaminated, it looked like mud:

 

15th November 2014:

After an extremely long break, I am moving on with my Audi A4 Quattro DTM race car, showing her some much needed love.

The Audi S8 4.2 V8 2xDOHC 32V motor is coming back out, making way for a later 2005 Audi 4.2 V8 2xDOHC 40V powerplant. I had this change of mind due to a number of reasons, which include a more flexible motor, more power, and best of all, there are supercharger kits for the 40V engines.

It is also DBW (Drive By Wire), Euro 4 compliant, and run by Bosch Motronic ME7.1.1 which can be flash upgraded via the OBD port.

I will keep you guys updated, with pictures to follow.

 

15th November 2014:

After an extremely long break, I am moving on with my Audi A4 Quattro DTM race car, showing her some much needed love.

The Audi S8 4.2 V8 2xDOHC 32V motor is coming back out, making way for a later 2005 Audi 4.2 V8 2xDOHC 40V powerplant. I had this change of mind due to a number of reasons, which include a more flexible motor, more power, and best of all, there are supercharger kits for the 40V engines.

It is also DBW (Drive By Wire), Euro 4 compliant, and run by Bosch Motronic ME7.1.1 which can be flash upgraded via the OBD port.

I will keep you guys updated, with pictures to follow.

 

Back to the present:

Why use a diesel as a base for my project?

The answer's simple. It's the only B5 Audi bar the S4, that comes with a 6-speed manual.

So effectively, I have all the hardware to build 2 very different B5 A4 Quattro V8's. My old car was a factory 5-speed manual, which I converted to 6-speed. I could have gone the same route, but it would mean buying an older car. My older car was a 2.6 V6, and the only petrol-engined B5 bar the S4 to come with the correct rear differential to match a 6-speed gearbox.

6-speed cars have a final drive ratio of 4.11:1. The 2.8 Quattro is a 5-speed, with a final drive ratio of 3.89:1, the 1.8T Quattro is a 3.72:1.So using any of these cars would mean I would have to source a replacement rear differential from a 2.6 Quattro or an S4.

So the TDI route made sense.

In the next few weeks, I will be sourcing another B5 Quattro Sport. This will be a fully stripped-out DTM car, with a full roll cage, plumbed-in fire extinguisher. This will be finished off in the colours and livery, either of the German Touring Cars (DTM) or the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). These were all based upon the 1995/6 model Audi A4 Quattro B5, hence my choice of an older model for this. Of course, this will be running the S8 4.2 V8 32V, and 6-speed manual. It will also sport the BTCC front bumper splitter, rear wing and 9"x18" OZ Superturismo wheels.

The new facelift TDI will be pretty much the same body spec as my old B5, so OEM Audi RS4 bodywork. This will be semi-stripped out, though not as hardcore as the BTCC car, and will have a roll cage in the rear only. No plumbed-in fire extinguishers either. The power plant will be the Audi 4.2 V8 40V, mated to the existing 6-speed manual, though I will pull it out for a refresh first.

I'll post pictures of the new arrival shortly. The previous car, N379TPF has gone to the wreckers.

 

When I picked up my Pelican Blue car, my plans to strip her evaporated. She will be OEM RS4 widebody, with all the toys. The DTM stripped-out theme will be applied to the Santorin Blue B5 Quattro.