The Project Pad

Checking intercooler fitment. I know a lot of people use the euro bumper, s2 bumper, or the eBay fiberglass bumper but I really wanted to use US spec B4 bumper to keep it looking as OEM as possible. To do so, I had to trim the lower grill, remove the aluminum crash bar from the part of the bumper that attaches to the bumper shocks, remove the bumper shocks and trim the center section of the bumper. This allowed me to push the bumper in and give it a sleeker look. To finalize everything with the bumper, I’ll need to make some mounting brackets to hold it all together. I also finished connecting the steering linkage to the mechanical rack. In the coming weeks, I’ll be installing the engine mounts that I built, new fuel lines, new brake lines, install the radiator/fan, and finish the last bit of electrical. Hopefully I’ll be up and running by the new year. Here are the results of my work so far.






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Didn’t get a lot done today but I did build this sweet gauge mount. Built the mockup with plywood and then did a Final Cut with 1/4” abs.



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Motor mount brackets are welded, painted, and installed.





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Nice job on fitting the IC with the stock bumper. Looks good!

jbrentd wrote:Nice job on fitting the IC with the stock bumper. Looks good!

Thanks for the kudos! I’ll be posting some more pictures this evening. Almost ready to fire it up!


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More odds and ends. Getting closer to the end.








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Got it started today. Should be on the road this weekend.


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Congrats! I bet it feels good and sounds great!

jbrentd wrote:Congrats! I bet it feels good and sounds great!

Thanks! It sounds awesome, wish I could upload videos here but I might just throw some on YouTube and link it here. I still have a handful of bugs to work out but the hard parts are done. I drove it around my neighborhood and it feels good. My steering linkage isn’t great so I bought a new steering wheel stem/bearing etc. and try to fix that.


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Came to the conclusion my mechanical steering rack is a bust… I tried adjusting camber and toe to see if that made a difference but no luck… steering rack is completely toast. Also… don’t know if one of my rotors is bad but I get a nice shake when I brake. It did it when all this stuff was in the other car but not quite as bad. Might just buy fresh pads and rotors for all 4 wheels and see if it helps. The engine swap is great though; pulls super hard, no leaks, no smoke, no overheating issues, exhaust fumes are all out the tail pipe. Overall, very happy with the engine swap. Just need to deal with the steering and brakes so I can control all this power!


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Some pictures for good measure…



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If you are anywhere near Houston you should get together with Sean, Quattrocakes on QW.
He has my, obviously his now, S4. The 2 pearl cars would look great together!

Your car is looking great and getting very close, keep it up.

ringbearer wrote:If you are anywhere near Houston you should get together with Sean, Quattrocakes on QW.
He has my, obviously his now, S4. The 2 pearl cars would look great together!

Your car is looking great and getting very close, keep it up.

Thanks. I actually live in California full time but I register my car in TX… emissions and such.


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Smart, I had a no emissions zip code.
I’m in Sebastopol, Sonoma County.

ringbearer wrote:Smart, I had a no emissions zip code.
I’m in Sebastopol, Sonoma County.

Oh nice.. I grew up in Touolome County and no emissions there either. I love Northern CA but work took me to the Santa Barbra area. Luckily I have an address in TX so I can just keep registering there. Once I get the car all good I want to do a road trip and meet up with some of classic Audi guys. Not sure if you know Rudy but he’s got quite the collection. Think he’s in San Jose.


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Can’t really beat SB, enjoy it!

The 2B Christmas party and drive is fun, I met Rudy there.

Not as much going on this side of the States.

ringbearer wrote:Can’t really beat SB, enjoy it!

The 2B Christmas party and drive is fun, I met Rudy there.

Not as much going on this side of the States.

I’ll definitely be ready before then. Might have to do it this year.


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Update:

I found a brand new (but very old) power steering rack on eBay and installed it. The steering feels a lot better even without hydraulic assist. Also, considering going the Volvo route for an electric PS pump. Right now the rack is capped off until I can get the parts I need for the Volvo PS pump.

Also bought fresh pads/rotors for front and rear, ball joints, tie rod ends, and control arm bushings. Just waiting for the brake pads to get here…

Boost is currently turned down to 10 psi and I have timing backed way off.. I’m apprehensive about throwing more power at the car until I get the drivability of the car completely figured out. The new Garret turbo sounds wicked though!

Other new annoyances: transmission and differential mounts are original to whatever car they originally came from, can’t remember what car at this point…. so those need to be replaced. Going with polyurethane something or other. Anyone have any positive or negative experience with certain mount brands?

Also kicking around the idea of a one piece drive shaft. Anyone done the conversion and able to comment on if it’s worth it?


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The 90 is running great. I wanted to dpf/egr delete, tune, and buy some fresh tires for my wife’s X5D. $3000 later… so I haven’t had a chance to get the 90 new wheels or the poly mounts for diff/transmission yet, but soon. In the meantime I’ve been driving local and everything seems solid. Looking forward to getting it out there in car shows and talking about all the work that went into it.

I also designed a fun vinyl decal:



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Finally picked up some wheels and tires that actually fit!!


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Those look nice! I’ve thought about getting some bronze wheels before. I think they look good with the pearl.


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It was really nice out today so I had to bring out the ol girl and show off.


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Well, I moved to Albuquerque for work a couple months ago. Are there any classic Audi guys from the area?


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