Honestly, you would be better off trading your car in for a model with the 1.8t. An engine swap would be cheaper to do than to turbocharge your 2.0, but the cheapest and most reliable option by far is to just sell your car for one that's already turbocharged.

You can find a take-out 1.8T engine from a 98-01 Jetta for under $2000 complete. Pay a shop about $1000 to install it and you would have a turbo 1.8t swapped in for around $3000.

Kinetic used to make a turbo kit for the 2.0L 8V MK III, but apparently it's been discontinued. It was about $3000 by itself, then add another $1000-1500 to have it installed. You would make a little more power than a stock 1.8t, but not a lot, and the driveability would be much worse.

Finally, you could buy a 1.8t model for no more than $1500 more than what yours is worth.

A custom turbo kit that including all the plumbing for your engine, along with new injectors and a computer mod runs about $5,000. You'll love the new power........

until your engine blows up.

Normally aspirated engines aren't build to handle a turbo.

Actually it may be as expensive to turbo your engine as it would be to do an engine swap. A lot of Audi's & VW's came with the 1.8t (which would be a step up from what you have).

There are many things which you need to know and consider before installing a turbo, too many to list in this small answer box.

It would be must smarter to just swap in a 2,8 L V6 vw eng, the cost would probably be about the same or less, then much less chance you blow up your engine.

I own a 1998 Volkswagen Jetta Wolfsburg Edition 5-speed. My 2.0 is too slow and I would like to invest in a turbo. Stating first, I don't have the kind of money to replace the non-turbo engine with a turbocharged one, although would be nice. I'm not looking for a turbo to race or get from point A to B in half the time, just for a little more pick up and some extra horses. I would like to actually feel some pull when shifting into 2nd instead of falling forward...lol. I know engine knock has a higher chance of happening adding a turbo to a non-turbo engine, but I read there are ways to prevent it like using higher octane fuels, lower compression ratios, low boost levels, water injection +others to stay safe and able to have the exciting feel of a turbo. Does a turbo kit include everything I need? What turbo would be best for my engine? Would I have to replace anything (trans,..?) on my vehicle for the turbo to work properly?

Please answer and include anything else I did not mention, ask, or need to know when adding a turbo to a non-turbo engine.