Oct 10, 2026, 8:32 PMIt takes a lot of fucking effort and finesse to work around the hydraulic lines in an engine bay mostly taken up by a VR6 engine. But, I was able to get everything situated in its rightful place, with some trial and error; it had been weeks since I had last been in the engine bay so I had to pull the pump off the firewall mount to have room to marry it to the control module.
Oct 10, 2026, 8:44 PMGetting all the hydraulic lines secured to the pump was a bitch and a half. I had slightly bent one hydraulic line in the process of this repair, so the flare nut would keep cross-threading. After a few hours of trial and error and being splayed on my belly over the engine, I got the line bent back into the correct shape and that last flare nut went on smoothly.
All that's left to do is get the splash guard back in place, do a bleed procedure, and pray.
Oct 10, 2026, 8:50 PMIn the meantime, please enjoy these cursed pictures of my Mk7.5 Golf R with MkV R32 wheels and my MkV R32 with Mk7.5 Golf R wheels (I had to swap 'em because I picked up a sidewall bulge on one of the Mk7.5 wheels and needed something reliable to go camping for a week)
@xan saving an R32 is a worthy cause, good on you for taking the challenge. I’ll often spend extra time
removing things just so I get good access to what ever I am working on.
Oct 10, 2026, 8:45 PM@dilletant I will never, ever, ever let this car go. It is my flesh and blood, as much as such things can be
@xan The mk5 is very cool. I had a mk6 but always wanted a mk5. The mk6 has only very small improvements over the mk5, basically cosmetic, the engine is almost the same. But the mk5 is a HUGE upgrade to the mk4, almost everything is a new technology, the suspension is truly next-gen. Everyone raves about the mk4 r32, but to me the mk5 r32 is the real star of the show and the one to have, just because of how much it advanced over its predecessor.
Oct 11, 2026, 2:44 AM@dilletant At first I was about to be like "naw they dropped the VR6 for the MkVI" but then I realised you're talking about the base and GTI Golves :P I agree. The MkV is fucking fantastic, looks and otherwise. Sometimes I lament the lack of a manual option in the US, but hey, I really do like the DSG :) As a platform, PQ35 really was just way better than the A4 in every way, nerdy and otherwise.
Oct 11, 2026, 2:51 AM@dilletant I had a MkVI Golf TDI and a MkVI GTI and I miss those cars a great deal. Especially that TDI. Man, that was a smooth ride.
@xan this is a fairly epic repair!
Oct 10, 2026, 8:53 PM@smellsofbikes The only epic part of this repair is how long it has taken me to overcome this inertia. Granted, it will get a bit more epic when I finally buzz the plastic cover off the failed module to reflow the mechanical joints and see if the only thing that failed us was the first few years of RoHS compliant solder
@xan Dealing with cross-threaded hydraulic lines, figuring out why the CAN bus was dead, and having the temerity to mess with your ABS, all are moderately epic.
I made a mistake with an ABS repair and had to take it to an authorized dealer to have the controller calibration reflashed, so I consider that some wizardry.
Oct 10, 2026, 9:09 PM@smellsofbikes Okay I will grant you that lol
@xan ooooh R32 :neocat_cute:
Oct 10, 2026, 9:09 PM@6a62 That's right 😤
I love everything about this.