Maximum TQ or HP of the 01E?

[Recklessb5]

How far can a stock trans really go? and whats the first susceptible part or parts to fail?

So i've yet to see a stock center or front diff fail but have seen rears go, and I have plenty of friends that have lost first gear.
But in reality and the range of leaving the standard four hundred or so HP and going up to the seven hundred plus mark what needs to be built up?
Cause I know its common practice to have a multi plate clutch but what is it I'm not seeing are there any guys out there with knowledge of running the straight cut gears and or dogs? And if so is it necessary to run all six straight cut gears or just the first two and upgrade the rest to some JHM syncros? Or am i just throwing cash to the winds of the demonic slow audi gods?! Thanks for the help really looking for answers for a trans build to mate with my gt28 build.

[xalents23]

I'm running a stock 2002 01E trans on my B5 S4 with GT2871R turbos. So far no issues yet, though I only got 3,900 miles on my build. My friend has also ran a stock 01E on his trans on a first generation GT2871 turbo with no issues. He was pushing 620 whp and 550 torque. He put like a would saw 40,000-50,000 miles on his setup with no issues. He has now gone to a TDI trans for the longer gearing. My other buddy is running a stock 01E with a single 6266 precision turbo setup with no issues. He pushing 646 whp and 600 torque.

All in all I would say if, your planning on running a stock 01E. Don't do NLS (No Lift Shifts) and launches on the car. And the 01E trans should be able to handle the power. All depends on how your 01E trans is of course. Only problem, I had on my 01E trans was the 1-2 collar.

[christianb5s4]

There are several improvements you can make to your 01E that will make it perform better if you want the most out of it paired with a built motor. At least have it rebuilt if it hasn't had the shift collars replaced, or you can go a step further. My 01E has the following that really helps performance in shifting quickly which is a weak point of the 01E (Xalents mentioned this):

- Advanced Automotion 01E w/ Porsche syncros (allows for faster shifting), cryo treated gears, everything is refreshed, stock 6th gear.

Granted that costs additional money so it would depend on your budget.

[Recklessb5]

Awesome info to light this subject, but in the long run I really like to beat on my cars seeing that I spend so much money on them I like to get all I can out of them from street launches to highway rolls so knowing they can hold the power just not the straight off shock and torque is a good starting point but I really want to bullet proof as far as I can thanks for the reply’s.

[zillarob]

This isnt really the trans for that.

They handle a shitload of power, but I dont think there is anything you can do about 1st gear getting noisy over time if you are going to be launching it.
One missed shift can also be all it takes sometimes to go from a 6sp to a 1sp.

[mikeb17]

From my experience the 01e tends to handle tons of power “if” you don’t abuse it. Start slamming gears without finesse and launching at every light and you will give it a quick demise.

[landfill]

Plenty of drag cars with 1,000 whp
or close to it running 01e’s. Any vid
out of Europe with an s2 with 1,000hp
& 6 speed is running an 01e.

Some notorious cars using one is Aaron
aka speeding g60 in a 2.0t coupe quattro
with 850-900whp. Strictly a drag car running
8-9 second quarter miles.

Chris Green & the USP vr6T b5 s4. It’s a built
dog box 01e with custom gearing but still an
01e nevertheless. Also no sequential shifter and
still running 8.5 1/4 mile times. Chris can fucking
drive.

034 vr6t b5 = 800whp+’and lots of time attack and
drag strip passes.

RS2 crow aka Janis with his built 2.3l
coupe quattro. 700+whp on a 6 speed
01E.

Jens Eklund in Sweden had an 1,000
hp urs4 drag car with an 01e.

Another b5 avant stateside with a vr6t
I forgot his name

Lots of coupes, urs4/s6, s2’s, rs2’s,
and urquattros in Europe with 600-1200
Whp running 01e’s.

[landfill]

There’s ways to make it stronger.
Cryo treated gears & shafts, stronger
synchros, updated bearings, dog box,
lsd diffs, lockers, welded center diffs.

[Recklessb5]

So I guess what we’ve all gotten at it is the stock box is a pretty stout MF’er but can’t hold the world and from everything I’ve seen you can throw about 20-40k in to a 01e and it’ll take what ever you want. So I guess the cases don’t have any real problems it’s just a matter of how hard you want to drive. So seeing that most gear sets are rated upwards of 1200hp my guess is for a really beefy street transmission to take all the abuse normally whooping out of a gt turbo car would be to go with 1-2 straight cut gears and dogs and make sure the rest of the gears have been gone through. Thank you to all that have replied previous.

[Scotty@Advanced]

Most of those guys you mentioned landfill are running dog gears. Technically still an 01E, but the only stock parts are the housings.

For stock transmissions I've seen diffs explode, first gears chip, a million 1-2 shift sleeve problems, a few 3rd gears missing teeth, and a few genaded diffs. It all depends on how it's treated.

[landfill]

^^^Definitely, the stock gears will
chip over time and the diffs blow up
front & rear after doing tons of drag
launches on radials.

That’s why I was saying for stupid
power you have to beef them up.
If anyone knows all the little tricks
it’s you. Everyone asking these questions
I always tell them to hit you up.

[landfill]

Me personally I’ve blown out
1st & 2nd gear a bunch of times
and busted all the synchros.
I’ve blown a stock v8 rear end
too.

[Mocke]

01 trannys are deff not bulletproof.
Scotty mantioned comon failiours. Personally i blew 3rd gear twice just by floring it at 2500rpm.
This is at 700ish wtq.
My car is also very heavy, it ads to strees
Safe torque is around 650wtq in my experience. Sedans are lighter and can get away with little more.

[Recklessb5]

^^^Definitely, the stock gears will
chip over time and the diffs blow up
front & rear after doing tons of drag
launches on radials.

That’s why I was saying for stupid
power you have to beef them up.
If anyone knows all the little tricks
it’s you. Everyone asking these questions
I always tell them to hit you up.

Yeah, I mean I don't know exactly what power I'll be shooting for in the future. Its definitely only going to be a street car with some exceptions of a few track days at the track I work for so it will strictly be on street tires and never see any all out launches on a prepped track.

So if any of you would like to chime in on this list of what I think of plans go right ahead. Stock front open diff, biased center diff, wavetrac rear diff, first and second straight cut with dogs, all JHM syncros for stock gears and a swapped long ratio sixth gear... does that sound about right for a GT turbo car shooting for around seven hundred?

[Scotty@Advanced]

For 700 wheel hp with drag racing, this is the list I would consider

Wavetrac front diff
TDI mainshaft
OEM updated synchros and collars
High bias center diff
3.50/1.89/1.32/.96/.73/.60 gear ratios
high capacity diff with pump
Cryo gears and WPC


This would get you the strongest 01E gearbox using stock internals. The top three are items you must have, the others are nice to haves but can be omitted if you are careful with the trans.

You can consider dog 1-2 but the additional cost and maintenance are something I wouldn't recommend for a street car.

[landfill]

^^^Listen to this man.

[Recklessb5]

Most of those guys you mentioned landfill are running dog gears. Technically still an 01E, but the only stock parts are the housings.

For stock transmissions I've seen diffs explode, first gears chip, a million 1-2 shift sleeve problems, a few 3rd gears missing teeth, and a few genaded diffs. It all depends on how it's treated.

For 700 wheel hp with drag racing, this is the list I would consider

Wavetrac front diff
TDI mainshaft
OEM updated synchros and collars
High bias center diff
3.50/1.89/1.32/.96/.73/.60 gear ratios
high capacity diff with pump
Cryo gears and WPC


This would get you the strongest 01E gearbox using stock internals. The top three are items you must have, the others are nice to haves but can be omitted if you are careful with the trans.

You can consider dog 1-2 but the additional cost and maintenance are something I wouldn't recommend for a street car.

Awsome man thanks for the input.

[speeding-g60]

holy shit. 2019 and they still consider me as a viable source of info.

[q20v]

holy shit. 2019 and they still consider me as a viable source of info.

I remember reading your builds on Motorgeek back in the day! Always pushing the limits. You still building cool stuff these days?

[Meow]

01E is a stupid strong trans other than the 1-2 shift collar

first gear would last longer with softer tires.

[S4James]

so far so good at 700hp.

[Monty23]

My 01e has seen 131mph trap power level for the past 30k miles. No issues.

Edit: it will now probably break something the next time I drive it lol

[aysix]

My 01e has seen 131mph trap power level for the past 30k miles. No issues.

Edit: it will now probably break something the next time I drive it lol

Nah, not your trans. My money is on the alternator.

[landfill]

What’s up Aaron. I still
follow your builds.

[rguil]

Went to the drag strip about a year ago and my first gear started whining after about 30 launches. Other than that its holding up fine. My b5 only has 220k miles on it though so i dont know why the 01E is going out so early in its lifespan.

If you didnt catch the sarcasm, the 01e is stout and lots of people argue that it has racing heritage going back to the UrQuattro. If i ever see any manual audis on the track, they always seem to have 01Es no matter what engine is bolted to them whether it be a TTRS 5cylinder, 2.7tt or a Vr6, they can handle punishment and still get you home. When i blow up the trans in my s4 i will yank it out and replace it with a junkyard trans for 500$ or rebuild mine. Whats not to love?!

[christianb5s4]

What you get in durability and strength, we give up in shifter feel (although there are now options like CAE available). One of the best upgrades I did was get the Advanced Automotion cryo treated gears and Porsche syncros. It's so much nicer to shift quickly.

[SlowSedans]

The o1e can hold well over 1000 wtq with no modifications. It is not the weak point of the drivetrain.

[SlowSedans]

holy shit. 2019 and they still consider me as a viable source of info.

Hahaha, was good to see you at woodburn the other day

[paulpas]

I'm running a stock 2002 01E trans on my B5 S4 with GT2871R turbos. So far no issues yet, though I only got 3,900 miles on my build. My friend has also ran a stock 01E on his trans on a first generation GT2871 turbo with no issues. He was pushing 620 whp and 550 torque. He put like a would saw 40,000-50,000 miles on his setup with no issues. He has now gone to a TDI trans for the longer gearing. My other buddy is running a stock 01E with a single 6266 precision turbo setup with no issues. He pushing 646 whp and 600 torque.

All in all I would say if, your planning on running a stock 01E. Don't do NLS (No Lift Shifts) and launches on the car. And the 01E trans should be able to handle the power. All depends on how your 01E trans is of course. Only problem, I had on my 01E trans was the 1-2 collar.

Can you ask your buddy if that TDI gearing made driving on the highway doable with a hills? Also, what mpg does he see on the highway? Thanks!