mk2 gti 16v gearbox

[dern]

I have a 1991 16v mk2 gti golf with an oil leak. It looks like it's coming from the selector input oil seal... is this a standard failure point? Is it worth fitting a seal kit or shall I just sling it and get anther box off ebay?

Gearchange is generally pretty good, difficult to get into first sometimes I guess, bit of play in the diff leading to occasional clunking so instinct tells me to sling it.

Are the 8v boxes the same as the 16v boxes?

The car has done 166k.

Cheers,

Mark

>> Edited by dern on Monday 1st May 20:52

[iguana]

8v & 16v not the same mate, well nearly, 16v has dif 5th, but they have dif inlet shaft so the clutches are diferent & not interchangeable, but if you used 8v clutch you can stick an 8v box in 16v if you so wished.

[dern]

Cheers Alex, I've got a nearly new 16v clutch in there so I'll give the 8v box idea a miss.

How's tricks by the way? Got my first track day booked in 2 weeks

Regards,

Mark

[iguana]

Hi dude I'll drop you an email, but yeh all ok, tracked Snetterton in March, saved dosh in April (tho did do Hethel in Lotus & off to Spa & 'ring soon.


>> Edited by iguana on Friday 5th May 09:55

[M3 Mitch]

IIRC this gear change seal does tend to leak, if it's like the BMW shifter input shaft seal you can just put a new seal on the shaft, tap it down and the old seal will remain in the bore, not hurt anything, but you want to make sure this has not been done before so you don't get 3 or 4 seals in there.

Or you could just pull the old seal and do it right.

5th gear is high up in the box on these cars, so keep track of the fluid level, if run low they tend to ruin the 5th gear parts.

[dern]

M3 Mitch said:

IIRC this gear change seal does tend to leak, if it's like the BMW shifter input shaft seal you can just put a new seal on the shaft, tap it down and the old seal will remain in the bore, not hurt anything, but you want to make sure this has not been done before so you don't get 3 or 4 seals in there. Or you could just pull the old seal and do it right. 5th gear is high up in the box on these cars, so keep track of the fluid level, if run low they tend to ruin the 5th gear parts.

I was looking on ebay the other day and found a seal kit for a few quid so I was thinking about dropping the box to see what's what and slap a new seal in.

Cheers,

Mark

[M3 Mitch]

IIRC you don't need to drop the box to change the shifter input seal. Just take the linkage loose and (check this, I know it's true of BMW transmissions but not certain on VW) likely you can just install the new seal on top of the old one.

How bad is this oil leak anyway? From the standpoint of ROI on your work, I'd consider replacing at least the friction disc on the clutch if I took the box out.

In any case I do know that the 5th gear cluster rides up high in both 8V and 16V boxes, so keep the fluid topped up, lest you burn it out!

Take a look at the "breather" up on top, pull it off if you can and make sure it's clear. Lots of oil leaks are caused by plugged breathers (in general, not specifically the VW box) (which in my experience is not bad to leak)

[dern]

Changed the seal with the box in the car this evening. It was dead easy. I screwed a self tapper into the old seal to hoik it out and push the new one in. The breather was clear but the oil was low which I topped up and that's made the change as new again. I'll see if it cures the leak and go from there.

Thanks,

Mark