rohit13

the seller said the car has the 4.2 v8 and i was wondering if the a8's with the 4.2 have problems with the transmission failing like the 4.2 a6's do.
the guys asking 4500 for the car.

also if you guys know any other known problems with this car please let me know. thanks!

silverd2

Yes...unfortunately notorious for trans failures anywhere from 120-180K miles, depending on how lucky you are...newer models became more and more dependable.

Other problems: eventual fuel pump failure.
Oil cooler coolant leak eventually
middle diff output shaft seal leak
97-99 4.2 engines more prone to oil leaks than later models

to name a few...other than trans, these are not expensive to fix yourself...high $ at a dealer.

rohit13

wow! so changing the fluid sooner doesnt help?

silverd2

THAT is question you'll get 100 different answer to...and the subject of 100's of pages of discussion on all A8 forums.

Statistics seem to say it's gonna happen, no matter what...BUT, for all it's worth, only the failures are reported in forums...but failures seem to be equal among serviced and un-serviced trans's. One example I know of from 2 members on another forum with the same car...one changed fluid and filter every 30K miles..the other did nothing, ever...both failed at 185K, which is considered fairly high for these cars.

If you have symptoms, you certainly do something about it...at least a filter & fluid change, hoping it corrects the issue. But many believe that it's wise not to touch it, if it's working perfectly...many do not...but the outcome "seems" to be the same in the long run.

No clear answer that I've ever found.

rohit13

so is there any clues the tranny gives before it needs to rebuilt that i could look for or is it just fine one day and dead the other? i need a car that i can put miles on. i looked at camrys and after driving my a6 the camry is just reallly dull. seems like all the older audis have problems of their own.
1.8 with the sludge
2.8 is actually the only one i can think of without probs! (-) the leaks
3.0 cats and cams
4.2 tranny
2.7 turbos
and to top it off they all leak oil! hah

MoralDK

Do rebuilt transmissions, done by a company such as ZF, offer better reliability? Or, are they simply brought back to stock spec. Several years ago I replace the tranny in my 1990 Audi V8. I researched why they went bad and came across a posting by a guy who rebuilds ZF trannies. He wrote that these trannies run an unusually high pressure in park, neutral and reverse. He also identified an undersized seal that fails and causes the clutches to fail. He hogs out the body and installs a larger, more robust seal. He then claims they're bullet proof after the fix. He also says to avoid PN&R as much as possible for existing, non rebuilt trannies. I'm wondering if any other rebuilders do this seal mod.