90 transmission vs. 91 transmission

[TsssiAWD]

I have a 1990 TSI AWD and my trans is grinding gears. I want to have it rebuilt but i don't want a lot of down time so my buddy offered to sell me his 1991 AWD trans. that i could have built instead however i have heard that there are differences in the 1990 transmissions so i was wondering if this would even work. Will the 91 transmission fit properly into my 1990 car?

 

[DSM90AWD]

Shift arms on the 91-94 trannys are different than the 90. You can either swap the 90 arms in (one is internally mounted, one bolts on the outside) or just use the 91 arms and swap in a 91-94 shifter assembly and cables.

I have a 91 with the 91-94 shifter/cables in my 90 and love it

 

[steve]

CAPS says the spline count on the output shaft is different between '90 and 91+ but some people report it depending on when the car was build in '91 so check that first.

Steve

 

[DSM90AWD]

My 1991 was a 21-spline count, though cannot ID the build date of the car it came off.
If it is a 23-spline shaft you can either source a used 23-spline XFer case (bit stronger) or swap the 23-spline for a 21-spline.

As an FYI.. the 10th digit of the VIN on the tranny bellhousing (granted it's the orig BH) denotes the build year of the tranny: "L" = 1990, "M" = 1991

 

[Sotarts]

1. Different spline count.
2. Different shifter cables. You would need to get 1991+ shifter cables.
3. Different shifter cable brackets.
4. Different shifter arms on transmission.
5. Different shifter base inside the car. You'll need a 1991+ base.

Is it really worth the extra effort and a bastardized car?

Flat black looks cheap and incompetent.

 

[jfdid]

So basically, if you picked up the tranny, and the shifter assembly/cables, you'd be fine right? I assume the 90 console fits the 91-94 shifter assembly as well? Bottom line, you wouldn't have to open up the tranny in order to make this fit?

Thanks guys

 

[Sotarts]

So basically, if you picked up the tranny, and the shifter assembly/cables, you'd be fine right? I assume the 90 console fits the 91-94 shifter assembly as well? Bottom line, you wouldn't have to open up the tranny in order to make this fit?

Thanks guys

I don't know if the shifter's base mounting holes will align. I sold a 91+ shifter base, but never noted if holes are located in same exact spots.

Here's more information: http://vfaq.com/mods/shifter-diffs.html (Read thoroughly and carefully)

 

[DSM90AWD]

I don't know if the shifter's base mounting holes will align. I sold a 91+ shifter base, but never noted if holes are located in same exact spots

The shifter base mounting points are exactly the same. Only difference in the bracket is the the way the shift cables mount up, hence the need to also swap to the same 90 or 91-94 cables to get the full range of travel to the tranny

 

[snailed]

thanks for the help guys