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and,...How do they know how long the car will last? They havent been around enough years to test this theory.. Its like the 10k miles between oil changes. Works for them because if there is a failure due to old tired fluids, you're on the hook for the repairs = more revenue for parts/labor etc... The fluids are the life blood of the car.. I Change my engine oil every 5k miles at most and service the transmission every 25k-35k miles...Brake fluid every 2 years... Regardless of mileage, transmission fluids should be changed every 6 years... Just waiting for trouble if you believe Audi is looking out for your best interests..
They are probably referring to the lifetime of the transmission. Replacing your transmission's fluid regularly will not extend your transmission's real lifetime. When its time comes, it will fail anyways.
If doing it makes you worry less, it's up to you. But know you're just wasting time, money and are breaking a safe seal... at least the first time. If your car's transmission was serviced before, THEN you are doomed to service it often because the seal has already been broken and it's easy for the outside impurities and humidity to compromise the fluid.
My opinion is that you are 100% wrong. Changing transmission fluid absolutely can extend transmission life.
We are all talking about a sealed transmission the car manufacturer says no need to service unless there are leaks, right? A transmission not having any easy ways of draining and refilling the fluid, right? A transmission designed "on the car" not to be serviced, right?
Then prove me I'm wrong. My 2005 A6 C6 is 11 years old and its "sealed" transmission was never touched and it is still working well. That I can prove.
I am saying it again, changing the fluid when it's "not needed" will change nothing to the transmission's "real" life BECAUSE the transmission's parts get worn anyways as you use it. It's not the same story, but it's like changing your engine oil every day. Pointless!
I'm sure most of you who do not want to accept the obvious are the ones who have done this numerous times and have preached it over and over. I am sorry, I am not buying it. My own experience proves otherwise.
Likely because they have done their long term tests and have concluded that using the high quality fluid they know the secrets of and sealing it as it should be works! Ever heard of the Audi INKA tests? That is why the only checks they recommend on the transmission is leaks detection. If after a shock the seal gets broken and the fluid leaks, that's a different story.
Again, this is just my humble own opinion.
Please explain why the manufacturer of the transmission, ZF, has contradicted Audi and claims that the fluid should be changed at approximately 50,000 miles and that the concept of "lifetime" fluid is absurd. Does Audi know more about the ZF8 transmission than its manufacturer?
BTW, Audi also claims that the timing chain and tensioner on the B8 2.0T are "lifetime" items, but that has been proven to be BS unless one considers the lifetime of a modern engine to be 100k miles or less.
Please explain why the manufacturer of the transmission, ZF, has contradicted Audi and claims that the fluid should be changed at approximately 50,000 miles and that the concept of "lifetime" fluid is absurd. Does Audi know more about the ZF8 transmission than its manufacturer?
BTW, Audi also claims that the timing chain and tensioner on the B8 2.0T are "lifetime" items, but that has been proven to be BS unless one considers the lifetime of a modern engine to be 100k miles or less.
A transmission does not work on its own to make a car operate. There are a lot other car parts communicating with the transmission and the car's ECU for an efficient use of resources. The way the transmission is set up in some cars may be different from the way it is set up in other cars. The same kind of transmission can be used on different cars, yet, the feel, the drive, the life of the transmission would be completely different. You said ZF said these transmissions should have their fluids changed at approx. 50k miles. That's the conclusion they've come to, using their own environment and their chosen fluid. That same transmission mounted on an Audi and communicating with Audi's own hardware, using Audi's special fluid, "sealed" by Audi changes everything. Audi must have done their own tests too to come to this conclusion.
I am just trying the find out the truth like a lot other people here. When I first got my C6, the first thing that came to my mind after doing the 55K service was the transmission's fluid. I wanted to change it because I thought I had to. But I dug in and found out that the manufacturer said it is not required. Then I started to read more and until now, I haven't found anything concrete. Unless proven otherwise, I choose to trust the car's manufacturer and won't do things my own way. They made the car, they know it better than us.
Ask the C5 group about "lifetime" transmission fluid. Or the D2 group. Or the D3 group. The 5HP has a very high failure rate. The 6HP is far more reliable but people still experience issues that are almost always resolved with a fluid change. The newer 8HP's seem to be very reliable without a fluid change but not very many of these have 150k miles yet. Or even 100k miles. I plan on doing a fluid change at the 75k service on my A8. To me spending a few hundred dollars for the peace of mind is worth it. Although a reman trans is a steal at only $4,859.99 plus shipping. Actually that's not a bad price. Much cheaper than a new engine at $19,439.96 plus shipping.
Ask the C5 group about "lifetime" transmission fluid. Or the D2 group. Or the D3 group. The 5HP has a very high failure rate. The 6HP is far more reliable but people still experience issues that are almost always resolved with a fluid change. The newer 8HP's seem to be very reliable without a fluid change but not very many of these have 150k miles yet. Or even 100k miles. I plan on doing a fluid change at the 75k service on my A8. To me spending a few hundred dollars for the peace of mind is worth it. Although a reman trans is a steal at only $4,859.99 plus shipping. Actually that's not a bad price. Much cheaper than a new engine at $19,439.96 plus shipping.
I do own a C5 too but it is a manual so I never looked up info about the transmission fluid change.
I'd rather change the fluid if "I'm sure" it will save me from imminent future astronomical expenses but so far the stories out there just don't convince me. For my part, I will not purchase a car which transmission was serviced when that is not part of the car's service list. I go stock, I buy stock and I keep it stock. If there's any changes, the automaker would communicate about it. They can be wrong too. That's why there are so many recalls.
And I am not saying I am right. Again, I may be wrong. But here are the facts. And based on them, I'd rather not mess up with what works and is set up not to be touched.
I'd say do whatever you want, because there isn't enough proof. Lots of people haven't done anything and their trans is fine. Some have had issues and the circumstances are different.
My gut tells me not to touch my trans. Do what your gut tells you
What trans? 5HP? 6HP? 8HP? Without that info this poll is useless. That's like having a poll for engine failure but including all kinds of engines. Also the poll was started in 2006. The data is useless.
Let's go another route. Have you ever rebuilt an automatic transmission? Do you understand how they work? A fluid change cannot break anything that isn't already broken. All it does is swap out the degraded fluid for fluid in perfect condition. This allows the transmission to operate as efficiently as possible.
Your C6 most likely has a 6HP. They are pretty reliable and the 3.2 isn't putting out much power so it's not as if you are working the trans very hard. However my C5 has a 5HP which is prone to failure. It's also a 2.7t which is a pretty high output motor. Same situation with my D4. It's all about return on investment. If a fluid change helps my transmissions last longer it's worth it.
Since there is no information on how many miles were driven before the transmission failed, it is difficult to use this poll to evaluate the argument for or against. The whole point of me changing the ATF is to extend the life of the transmission.
The maximum warranty time Audi is responsible for is 100k miles. So it's no wonder that ZF has designed this transmission to last that long (see running life) without maintenance. If I got the money to get a new car every few years, then I wouldn't worry about it either. That's just the next owner's problem.
But I really love this car and would like to drive it for much longer than Audi's warranty period. I suspect most people that do the ATF changes also want their cars to last a long LONG time.
09-26-2016, 02:11 AM
