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2.7t swap in B5 2.8 FWD 5 speed... What do I need?

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31K views 32 replies 14 participants last post by  minitech91  
#1 ·
Hey guys,

So my question is pretty much in the title. I want to swap a b5 s4 engine into my passat. What needs to be done/acquired for this to happen? I can pick up a 2.7t short block for real cheap with good stock ko3's and I want to do this swap. Anyone that knows or has done it please give me input/guidance
 
#3 ·
What do you need? To use the search bar. There have been a ton of threads on this. You can read them or PM the people who have done it for a parts list. Certainly is possible (Matt I hope you read this one, I still have the pictures of yours on my phone :p), but it isn't for the faint of heart.


But in general, if you have to ask...
 
#5 ·
What you'll end up with is a dumbed down S4, better to go out and buy the real thing...
 
#8 ·
Just a FYI. Matt's 2.7 smoked my supercharged 2.8 by a lot..that 4.2 wont hang with a 2.7TT setup.
an S4 would have had no shot in hell, I raced them and can keep up with them with no problem.
Having 2wd robs way less HP.
I did have 3 people in my car and Matt was by himself...if you care.and I took off behind them
 
#10 ·
a short block won't get you far.
You need a donor car.
I recently sold my A6 2.7t for under $5k and it had a chipped engine and Eibach/Koni/Boge suspension and new Z-rated tires.
I don't know if you have a lot of time, or a cheap mechanic, but get an S4 or A6 (the latter is likely cheaper) and swap the motors between that and your Passat.
This ensures that you have all the bits needed, whether they're bolted to the engine or fender or firewall or buried somewhere.
Start with 2 running cars, and end with 2 complete cars.
Then you can get some $$$ for the running donor car when you're done, and don't have a ton of leftovers for your wife/partner to bitch about for the next 3 years while you try to unload them on Craigslist.
 
#11 ·
Oh yeah, don't forget to swap out the fuel pump too! The 2.7t and V8 share a larger fuel pump that isn't available from aftermarket. Audi Canada want almost $500 for it. I pried one from them at shop rates of $420.
Another thing that will come with a donor car if you go that route.
 
#13 ·
It's been done, IMO I like the Passat styling much better than the B5 A4/S4 or even the A6 but I would rather see it done on a V6 4motion Passat and go with a Vast 2.7T stage 3 kit while you're at it, but even down & dirty just putting the 2.7T in a B5 Passat would be cool. If someone could swap the 2.7T motor, trans & drivetrain in a Carrado you can do it in a Passat
 
#16 ·
Matt, according to their profile, it's a 1999. When was the swich over for the V6?
 
#19 ·
ya i am using the 012, i had a 1.8t one i was using till the ring gear decided to divorce itself of 3 teeth, now i am using a V6 012 should be going in this weekend.

the gearing is decent on the 1.8t but leaves a ton to be desired and you find the shorter 1.8t 3rd short comings rather quickly, 3rd is way too short given the very broad and robust torque curve of the 2.7t. i find at about 50 and doing a pull 3rd runs out too quickly but 4th is a little too low in the rpm to be a good power gear. i need to either do 35-40 in 3rd or 65-70 in 4th to get a good pull. lets not talk about 1st or 2nd those are just tire screamers when you jump on it at any RPM. i suspect it will get worse once i get off this base stage 1 file and get my high boost water/meth file :whistle:

its a whole different experiance coming from the 1.8t because i have usable torque at any RPM, you can do 55 to jail speeds staying in 5th and feel it pulling very well the entire time.

on a spirited run with gpassat03 (he dynoed 305 whp on a meth fed 2871 elim) he stared in 2nd i started in 3rd and we were dead even and we shifted into 4th at the same time. this was on my stage 1 tune only seeing 16 PSI
 
#22 ·
My 99 is a DBC, not DBW, Matt. IIRC (and I may not, due to CRS and all), the manufacture date on my car is April 99.

to add to the last couple of comments above this one... having both a stock 1.8T and a stock 2.8, and regardless of the numbers for torque and HP on the engines, I like the stock 2.8 over the 1.8T WRT torque, and also prefer the gearing in third for the V6 transmission over the 1.8T transmission - third for the V6 is definitely a longer gear, as Matt alluded to above.
 
#24 ·
Did I mention how awesome 2.7tt sounds !! No matter what you do to 1.8t it never sound good as v6 or vr6 ;)

OP if you have time and skills its a good motor to go with, even if you never upgrade to bigger turbos you will be happy :thumbup:
 
#25 ·
Only reason I don't want to do a complete engine swap is because if I put my 2.8 crank, heads, and cams in a 2.7tt block... It becomes a monster and the lower end is pretty much fully built with forged everything. Also it strokes it from a 2.7 to a 2.9. Even leaving ko3's on a setup like that will still be a HUGE improvement over a stock 2.8 and the passat will become fun to drive and make a great daily. Would all the accessories and stuff work from my 2.8 (alternator, p/s pump, etc) on the 2.7 block?
 
#26 ·
All you need is to replace the heads the bottom end you should leave stock unless you wanna put rods in it. However your biggest hurdle will be the dbc to dbw conversion you will have to do to get the engine running on the s4 management

That involves changing the pedal cluster, getting the dbw wiring to the ecu and then finally getting it all installed. And that just gets it running if you want the gauges working 100% it involves some more wiring fun or replacing the entire dash wiring harness


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#28 ·
Few months? I took my 1.8t dbc to a 2.7tt dbw in 4 days shouldn't take more than a week if you have everything you need up front


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