Audi S3 3.2V6

[tom17893]

Good Afternoon,

I am buying a MK1 Audi S3 and as a project have decided I want to put the 3.2 V6 lump from either the TT 3.2 or A3 3.2. I am also being told the MK4 Golf R32 Engine is a viable option.

Does anyone know of anybody who has attempted this or know of any info that may help. I am looking to get the car at least 350bhp, maybe even 400bhp if possible.

This is a project so I don't just want to buy an A3 3.2 or TT 3.2
Any help that can be put my way will be appreciated.

Thanks.

[anonymous-user]

Why? Sticking that lump of a v6 in there which is much harder to extract power from versus the 2.0 turbo engine which is easy to mod begscthe question why?

[KungFuPanda]

I'd echo what has already been said. Why not buy a 3.2 A3 or something and swap all the S3 bits onto it?

[FurryExocet]

Or play around with the very tunable engine that comes with the S3, unless that's dead.
Unless you strap a turbo or supercharger on the 3.2 it'll be hard to get that power

[marctwo]

Just tune the 1.8 instead or buy an A3 3.2. Someone did once put the 2.7TT from the RS4 into an S3 though.

[irfan1712]

there was a mk1 s3 for sale for quite a while on ebay and on here I believe, which used a R32 lump and was also turbo'd. I believe it was red.

was very expensive but I imagine it was rather nippy!

[Dr G]

Been done a few times with lots of boost, see:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Id2O0vC7Lk

Not many people leave the 3.2 normally aspirated when extracting numbers but with a snail on the side they can really, really go.

[SuperchargedVR6]

If your aim is 350hp, stick an Edition 30 / 8P S3 / MK6 Golf R engine in it.

There really is no point using the 3.2 engine unless it's just for the noise. Even before mapping, the BYD engine in Edition 30 tune (230ps) makes 221.lbft torque at 2250rpm, vs the 3.2's 236.lbft. You would be lugging all that weight around and making it understeer more for no good reason.

I'm not against projects and kudos to you for wanting to do it, but having put an R32 engine into a Corrado, and also owned Golf R32s, it's not an engine that lends itself to power increases unless you spend a fortune boosting it, and then severely compromise an otherwise reliable engine.

Better off using an engine that was designed and built to run 350hp in the first place.

Good luck with what ever you choose to do though!

[marctwo]

My old S3 made 270bhp with just a remap. I'm sure a new turbo and a couple of other bits would see 350bhp. Try calling MRC.

[Charliesum]

i bought the s3 off kim collins with the rs4 engine in
very fast with approx 470 bhp
sold it a few years ago..often wondered if it was still on the road....it tried leaving it a few times with me driving it!!!

[Charliesum]

heres another

[aka_kerrly]

To be clear then, you want a 8L chassis early Audi S3 with a 3.2L engine installed instead of the 1.8T 210/225ps engines.

OK, since the mk1 A3 wasn't available with the 3.2 it's not something you can buy which makes it a bit more interesting an idea but it's still not that wild when the engine already in the car can be tuned to 350>hp

You will definitely want to put a supercharger or turbo onto the 3.2 if you want to run a true >350hp. Staying N/A you will find it expensive to hit 300hp.

Note there is also the 3.6L VR6 engine available with 300hp standard and with a remap/induction/exhaust system changes you can get close to 350hp N/A

A N/A r36 could then also be charged!!

[SuperchargedVR6]

Just map the 1.8T engine to it's max potential, which is around 270-280hp. That might be enough.

To add a 3.2 engine and turbo it to a good (read, reliable) standard to an 8L will cost more than buying an 8P S3 and chipping it 350hp.

[aka_kerrly]

SuperchargedVR6 said:

Just map the 1.8T engine to it's max potential, which is around 270-280hp. That might be enough.

To add a 3.2 engine and turbo it to a good (read, reliable) standard to an 8L will cost more than buying an 8P S3 and chipping it 350hp.

280 is about the limit of a K04 anyway, there are some that have pushed to 300-340 using hybrid K04s like those from Owen or JBS

Or you could ditch the KKK K04 and go for something larger like a Garrett GT30 series

[Dr G]

I say do it; it's your project and you should do what you enjoy. Following the crowd is dull.

The 3.2 is a cool engine and I guess you'll be able to use a decent amount of Audi/VW parts to make installation more straightforward/reliable.

Also you can do cool st like this:

[aka_kerrly]

^ Such a beautiful engine bay and a great example of someone who wanted to build a car their way and stuck to it even when enough people said it was a waste of time/money

Still room for a turbo in there or I rather like the TRD chager kit that allows the charger to be mounted above the gearbox

[Dr G]

Yes, that's a very neat install. Gives the potential for a tidy, factory looking engine bay.

[SuperchargedVR6]

Ah, Gareth Spiller's Vento 3.2 on ITBs. Still the only 3.2 running them in the country afaik. I remember having chats with him years ago about helping him with his DTA ECU and he was very clear on what he wanted - ITBs - and was well aware of the compromises. Kudos to him.

Back to the 3.2. As I said, a tuned TFSI engine makes more power and torque than a 3.2 pretty much everywhere in the rev range, and it's mechanically smoother too. If the OP's goal is just 350hp, that is the route I would take personally, because I have a lot of 3.2 experience and the weight / understeer compromises no longer make it a compelling argument, imo. If it's just for the noise / charisma, then it's an amazing engine and with boost, you only need 8psi to get that 350hp, versus 22psi for the TFSI, so is more relaxed.

No one has retrofitted a TFSI to an 8L afaik, but plenty of 3.2s have been done

[aka_kerrly]

SuperchargedVR6 said:

Ah, Gareth Spiller's Vento 3.2 on ITBs.

There was a mk3 Golf running a 2.8 VR6 with E36 M3 ITBs fitted , it was for sale a while back and i was tempted just to go and have a look.

I've also spotted a Vento in the US which has triple delortos and of course the was Big Ron's throttle bodied mk1 with a VR6 (which I believe may have been written off fairly recently)

I expect it is the management side which is the challenge as it is far harder to get a newer age 24v with variable timing VR6 to work with carbs/throttle bodies compared with the older 12v motor.