b6buckeye

i have a 2003 TT225Q with a 6sp manual. i have had zero problems with the clutch or transmission - until the other night. driving home on city streets all was fine, pullled up to a stoplight and with the clutch depressed i tried to shift from 2nd to 1st in anticipation of the light changing green. the clutch feels normal, but the gear shifter is very loose. it moves up & down, but not side to side. i cannot get into reverse or any other gear. it stays in 2nd. fortunately, i was not far from home and could drive the rest of the way in 2nd.

yesterday i went out to look at it. i took the shift **** & boot off, but i couldn't really tell if anything was wrong with it visually. i really think the clutch and transmission are fine. it seems to be a mechanical problem with either the shifter or perhaps the linkage. does anyone have any ideas? is there anyone in south florida that could maybe lend a hand with a diagnosis??

UPDATE:
after some research and work today, i am narrowing things down, but still need some help. i used a diesel geek video on youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp9ggefOjAE) to learn more and to "reset" the cables/linkages. when i got under the hood, one of the shift cables seemed fine - there was next to no play in the cable once the linkage was released. on the cable nearer the passenger side, there is 2-3 inches of play in the cable - it moves in & out between the engine bay and the cabin of the car. the cable should be attached to the shifter and not moving. it seems like it is not connected at the shifter.

i think the only way to get to where the shift cables meet up with the shifter is from under the car after dropping the heat shield, exhaust, etc. does anyone have a ETKA blow-up of this area??? i really need to know how to get to this area and once there, how to fix it - could the cable snap or is it likely a pin/bolt that came disconnected?!?!? i'm flying blind here and don't want to take it to be repaired until i have a better understanding of what's going on... THANKS!!

01TT225Q

I have had the unfortunate experiance with shift cables binding as well, all in all from the way you described it is that your shift cables are binding up, the quickest fix for this is to get a look at where the shift cable is coming out from the cabin into the engine bay through the fire wall see if your cables arent missing the grommets that hold them in place there then work your way forward, dont quote me on the grommets thats what i had on my 02 ford focus it may be plastic some sort of retaining piece between the firewall your cables and the engine bay. nvm just read your whole post, yes definately go to the dealer and get that piece that goes between your firewall and engine bay you may need to readjust ur shift linkage at this point, depending on how hard you tried moving the shifter when you were trying to put it in first, finally if you replace that piece and it still is binding get a new set of shift cables and replace the whole assy, the grommet may have fallen out due to the shift cables were already bound up and it finally popped out the grommet, it is a PITA to do but for as much as audi will charge you its worth taking the time. i have yet to tear into the engine bay of this car as i have had it only for about a week, but dont be afraid to remove some pieces to get a look at the firewall and shift linkage, if you feel uncomfortable at any time or unsure of what your doing just stop and reassemble at least you tried, but you really shouldnt have to remove anything major just like you said a heat shield from the headers and maybe some piping for intake filter but thats it. good luck and if you have any questions done hesitate to ask.

01TT225Q

so after looking at that video it appears your point of interest is going to not be the firewall but more of those brackets with the shift linkage goes through right before the tranny those retaining pieces the one i believe closest to your passenger side is going to b your point of interest . hope this helps

b6buckeye

thanks for the reply. everything in the video checked out okay as far as the connections at the linkage at the transmission. the problem is with the cable nearer the passenger side and how it connects AT the shifter. i believer it is disconnected just under the cabin at the shift tower... i need to get under the car, take off the heat shield and exhaust parts & get to the shifter...

anyone with any experience with this?!?!?!

01TT225Q

i got a tech manual let me see if i could find it then ill email it to u

01TT225Q

Found it send me your email ill send u the document.

Collin Higbee

is there anyway you could send me this information please? I'm having this same issue I'm stuck in second gear

Spencer May

Hey Collin, just replied to another thread about this same issue. I bet your issue is in the shifter box like mentioned here. It is pretty straight forward, although I've only done this in FWD VW's, the premise is the same. You'll need to get under the car, remove the exhaust around the mid section where your cats are, if you have an awd you'll need to remove the drive shaft (or possibly just disconnect the 3 12 point 10mm bolts from the quattro drive in the front and slide it to the side, again not positive if this will give you enough room, you may need to remove it). After that, you're golden, remove the shift linkage from the transmission in the front along with the 3 mounting bolts, then remove the shifter box from under the car and pull the whole thing out. If it's anything like the VW's I've toyed with, you'll just have to pry open some aluminum fins around the box to access the internals. You'll see if there is an issue inside instantly.