'97 A8 Tranny Nightmare
08-14-2006, 08:23 PM
#1
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'97 A8 Tranny Nightmare
Note:This is also posted in "Engine-4.2 V8"
Where to start? At 120K miles tranny seems to be hunting in and out of torque converter lockup at steady light load in high gear, barely noticeable. Then it starts making the dreaded metallic/hydraulic whirring sound. Taken directly to Audi in Anchorage, AK. They state they only change-out trannys, suggest we take it to a tranny shop. Finger through the Yellow Pages, (mistake?), find a shop that says they just did another A-8. Take it there, they say the torque converter is toast, and change it out. Car now defaults to the 'limp-home' mode. Audi won't touch it because the tranny shop did the work and used a non-Audi tranny oil. (Tranny shop checked, none was available in Alaska, Audi confirmed this). Audi's Scanner System is PROPRIETARY, per the tranny shop? (If I had my own VAG-COM set-up, perhaps I could have reset it?) They work with a ZF shop in Florida, (I believe), and pin-by-pin troubleshoot and reset the tranny, and get it running. By now I'm down $4K+.
Drive it down the Alaska Hwy no problem, but soon thereafter it will not shift properly. With an older automatic I would check the linkage, but with this electronic beast, I wonder if their is a problem with the valve body assembly?
I was at sea at the time, but the wife tells me the car started in Park, when she put it in Reverse the car moved forward. She then put it back to Park, then put it in Reverse and it backed-up. She then attempted to put it in Drive and said the lever felt 'bound-up'. She then called a tow-truck and put it in storage. (Some of this info I just found out, as I just returned from my job on a containership.) (Linkage once again sounding suspicious?)
???Any guidance is appreciated???
p.s.I know that I made several errors along the way, but I've got to put them behind me and move on.
p.s.Has anybody dealt with Phoenix Transmissions, on eBay, with a very high approval rating?
Where to start? At 120K miles tranny seems to be hunting in and out of torque converter lockup at steady light load in high gear, barely noticeable. Then it starts making the dreaded metallic/hydraulic whirring sound. Taken directly to Audi in Anchorage, AK. They state they only change-out trannys, suggest we take it to a tranny shop. Finger through the Yellow Pages, (mistake?), find a shop that says they just did another A-8. Take it there, they say the torque converter is toast, and change it out. Car now defaults to the 'limp-home' mode. Audi won't touch it because the tranny shop did the work and used a non-Audi tranny oil. (Tranny shop checked, none was available in Alaska, Audi confirmed this). Audi's Scanner System is PROPRIETARY, per the tranny shop? (If I had my own VAG-COM set-up, perhaps I could have reset it?) They work with a ZF shop in Florida, (I believe), and pin-by-pin troubleshoot and reset the tranny, and get it running. By now I'm down $4K+.
Drive it down the Alaska Hwy no problem, but soon thereafter it will not shift properly. With an older automatic I would check the linkage, but with this electronic beast, I wonder if their is a problem with the valve body assembly?
I was at sea at the time, but the wife tells me the car started in Park, when she put it in Reverse the car moved forward. She then put it back to Park, then put it in Reverse and it backed-up. She then attempted to put it in Drive and said the lever felt 'bound-up'. She then called a tow-truck and put it in storage. (Some of this info I just found out, as I just returned from my job on a containership.) (Linkage once again sounding suspicious?)
???Any guidance is appreciated???
p.s.I know that I made several errors along the way, but I've got to put them behind me and move on.
p.s.Has anybody dealt with Phoenix Transmissions, on eBay, with a very high approval rating?
08-15-2006, 03:15 AM
#3
AudiWorld Super User
Phoenix
I would stay away from Phoenix, at least that's what has been the conclusion based on a few member's feedback.
The noise you heard initially was the hydraulic pump in the tranny cavitating, all you needed to do was to have the fluid and filter changed, the filter was clogged. The torque converter dropout is an unrelated problem that many A8's have.
It sounds like you have linkage that wasn't connected correctly, you need to put the car on a lift, figure out what gear it is in, adjust the cable so it matches the shifter and secure the cable again.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1313.JPG">
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1668.JPG"><ul><li><a href="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/transremovereplace.html">http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/transremovereplace.html</a</li></ul>
The noise you heard initially was the hydraulic pump in the tranny cavitating, all you needed to do was to have the fluid and filter changed, the filter was clogged. The torque converter dropout is an unrelated problem that many A8's have.
It sounds like you have linkage that wasn't connected correctly, you need to put the car on a lift, figure out what gear it is in, adjust the cable so it matches the shifter and secure the cable again.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1313.JPG">
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1668.JPG"><ul><li><a href="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/transremovereplace.html">http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/transremovereplace.html</a</li></ul>
08-15-2006, 04:12 PM
#5
Paul is right. It sounds like you have a cable problem.
Put the car on a lift or lift up the front two wheels. Put the shifter lever in P. Turn the front wheels by hand, if they lock up, you know the tranny is in P. You need to remove the heat shield for the shifter cable. Two bolts, needs 10mm socket with 6"extension.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1313.JPG">
Check if the cable is securely attached to the tranny. It has a ball joint type end. Have someone move the shifter lever from P to 2 and back to see if there is something loose. Check the two adjuster bolt if they are tight. 13mm wrench.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1668.JPG">
Check when you shift from P to 2 go slow and stop at every position (engine off). Check your instrument cluster if it registers. It has to highlight each gear as you shift. If your cable is out of alignment, it will not highlight the selected gear. If your F125 switch (transmission range switch) is broken, it will highlight all of the gears. If your MAF sensor is disconnected, it will trigger the limp mode too.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1313.JPG">
Check if the cable is securely attached to the tranny. It has a ball joint type end. Have someone move the shifter lever from P to 2 and back to see if there is something loose. Check the two adjuster bolt if they are tight. 13mm wrench.
<img src="http://www.audipages.com/Tech_Articles/auto_transmission/sm_DSCN1668.JPG">
Check when you shift from P to 2 go slow and stop at every position (engine off). Check your instrument cluster if it registers. It has to highlight each gear as you shift. If your cable is out of alignment, it will not highlight the selected gear. If your F125 switch (transmission range switch) is broken, it will highlight all of the gears. If your MAF sensor is disconnected, it will trigger the limp mode too.
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