pchansen

I think this has been brought up before but I wanted to touch base with all of you that have the 8-speed transmission. I currently have 110,000 miles on our 2011. These aren't easy miles either. Lots of stop and go, towing a 6000lb boat all over God's creation- including Mt. Hood, Oregon on numerous occasions. The car and more specifically the transmission has been flawless. That being said, contrary to what Audi says, no transmission fluid will last forever. ZF, the manufacturer of the transmission recommends 80-120,000 kilometer intervals.
So on one side of the fence, there's a voice telling me to leave well enough alone. The other voice is telling me not to wait until symptoms appear as it will probably be too late at that point.
The service will cost around $770 at a reputable independent service center. So my question is, is this money well spent and will it prolong the life of the tranny to around 200K miles or is my money better spent elsewhere.

Also, I ran across this guy explaining how our transmissions work. I emailed him and he recommended a fluid change. I just can't believe it's $770!

Sportvierwagon

Thanks for sharing. Interesting.

flynavy

I have done all my audi tips at about that mileage it is cheap peace of mind. I do think that is a bit high, my 2012 Q7 was about 600 all in, I guess my dealer likes me cause they are the only ones I allow to touch my car inc. oil changes!

B490MTL

I believe you have the Aisin transmission in your TDI, service will be a little cheaper since there is no need for ZF oil.

pchansen

You are correct. I'll have to pull the 3 letter code off the sticker beneath the spare tire but I be believe it is in fact the Aisin TR80SD. I found the ZF reference on Wikipedia of all places.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZF_8HP_transmission

smith2010Q7

What happen is the oil will break down and get very hot which will cause your sensors on the valve body to also break down.
New oil will help in maintaining transmission sensors and gears from slipping.

jriley

Highly recommend you change the transmission fluid. I'm doing it at 50,000 miles in both my Audi Q7 TDI and BMW 528i which share the same ZF 8HP.