Replacement Transmission VW Bora

[Bora03]

Replacement Transmission VW Bora

Hi everyone, MIG has suggested posting this on the Mk4 Forum to see if somebody can help, so thank you for any help.

I am new to the Forum, just joined so pretty excited to be part of the group. This is my first car group forum so forgive my lack of knowledge. I have a 2003 VW Bora v5 2.3L , which i have owned for 15 years, it has served me pretty well, bar a few cheeky problems and electrical gremlins along the way and still really enjoy driving it. Recently though the Auto gearbox has given me much trouble, it started with intermittent loss of reverse gear, which then developed into permanent loss of reverse gear, and now it is slipping in forward gear. I wanted to keep the car so i hunted around for a used transmission and have finally managed to find a compatible unit from a wrecking yard. I have called around a few auto trans mechanics about remove and replace costs and am getting varied costs and varied answers regarding the need for re-calibration. Quotes have ranged from $1100 - $3000 and some mechanics have said it should be a straight changeover ( plug and play ) where others have said it will need a new module and re-calibrating ( re-programming )...forgive my lack of tech knowledge here can anybody shine some light on this subject for me please, before i proceed? Thank you very much everyone

[beale187]

hi mate and welcome
The most common issue with the 09A is typically solonoids fail and this can cause all sorts of crazy stuff to happen.
Gears don't shift smoothly, rev hang, no reverse, can't get it out of Park etc..

The 09A box found in the AQN 2.3 V5 is made by Jatco in Japan. They make the box for a heap of manufacturers, Nissan, Jeep, VW, etc.. Which means parts are available and you can buy them without paying VW tax.

Rather than throwing a used box in and potentially having the same issue i would suggest getting it scanned with VCDS or VAGCOM (VW specialist will have this tool) and confirm what the exact issue is.

If it turns out you need solonoids, look for a repair kit to suit JATCO JF506E
JF506E, JA5A-EL, 5F31J, 09A - Jatco | Transmissions

I also have access to VW repair manuals if yourself or the mechanic doing the job gets stuck, just flick me a pm.

$3k supply and fit I could understand.
$3k just to fit is too much, it's not a new VW with mechatronics and all that bs- doesn't need hours of coding, it may not need coding at all if the old TCM (Transmission Control Module) is retained.



Good luck!

[Bora03]

Hi beale187, mate thank you so much for providing me with all that information and offering to help out with manuals, that's awesome! It's interesting, I had asked a couple of mechanics about the scanning tool to see if it was worth repairing, but was told it wouldn't have been worth any repairs given the car was found to have other repairs needed and would probably exceed the value of the car. I was honestly going to scrap it, but then came across a used trans to match mine with only 100k on it for $550 so i took a chance, hopefully i can find someone to install it for me at a reasonable price, under $1000. I will definitely keep in mind the repair manuals if the mechanic gets stuck. Really appreciate your help, cheers!