camoto
03-16-2012, 04:16 PM
(I wanted to write a full review in one topic with all of the information in a single post. Not to mention the other topic got cluttered up with some banter.)
My transmission had been problematic for as long as I can remember paying attention to it. (More than 30K). Most notably I was having the following regular problems:
1.) occasional Torque Converter "clunk"/"thud"
2.) gear hunting in "D" or "S"
3.) slow shifting
4.) occasional VERY uncomfortable shifts (mainly 3/4 and 5/6 and most noticeable in traffic)
I had been planning on bringing my car to Sam at 517 (http://www.517trans.com/) for the upgraded Torque Converter and Valve Body calibration. About a month ago I noticed that when my transmission was cold, I would get torque converter lockup and unlock in a cycle. For me, it would go away once warmed up, or if I put the transmission in Manumatic or Tiptronic mode.
I decided to finally bite the bullet and I brought the car down to Sam on March 3rd. He had advised me that he would drop the pan and if the fluid was burnt (stinky) that it could be an indicator of a larger internal problem with the transmission and that if it were the case he would recommend a full rebuild. Well, as luck would have it, when he opened up the pan, it was burnt, dark, stinky and there was clutch material in the pan. While I wasn't happy that my trans was fried with only 69K, I was not surprised. I do a lot of commuting in traffic and have modded at the following intervals: Stg 1: 20K, Stg 2+: 32K, Stg 3: 45K.
Sam gave me the option to either rebuild or just do the upgrade work I originally came in for. Seeing as I am planning on holding on to the car for a while longer, I opted for the full rebuild/upgrade. This work included:
New Clutches
New Steels
All new gaskets, filters, o-rings, pump bushing
Valve Body Recalibration
Upgraded Torque Converter
Here are a few pictures that Sam sent me of the work in progress which includes pictures of a couple of burnt clutches:
http://i39.tinypic.com/dlp9uh.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/8xsjgg.jpg
http://i42.tinypic.com/r9fzbm.jpg
After being able to put about 1000 miles on the trans since the upgrade, I have the following observations:
1.) Power Delivery: Power delivery is day and night. Keep in mind this is ONLY noticeable during NON lockup (as my trans was not slipping IN gear), but it is VERY noticeable. The car pulls much harder and you can even feel the TC clutch locking up and when it does the car surges forward much like a standard trans clutch engage.
2.) Downshifts: Completely different/better. Decellarating downshifts used to be a whiplash-inducing event. ESPECIALLY in Manumatic. Now they are precise and smooth as butter. Automatic downshifts are not even noticeable other than the RPM change. Which brings me to...
3.) Shift Speed: Quick, Precise and smooth. All shifting now happens VERY smoothly. I was unable to induce a rough shift, whereas before they would happen all the time even if I was driving miss daisy. Manumatic shifts occur well within a second of selection (VERY noticeable with the paddles).
4.) Gear hunting: gone. Plain and simple. It's just gone.
5.) Occasional TC "thud": gone.
6.) (newly discovered) I never used to use "S". It was pointless. All it did was rev the car and make shifts unbearable. I just recently tried "S"port mode again and my opinion has done a 180. The car is a different animal in sport mode now. My guess is that this is how it was intended to be.
Sadly, after getting the car home, I noticed a very slow leak coming from a small hole at the bottom of the transmission. (~1 drip a minute) I couldn't find any mention of this hole in my Bentley Manual, so it took me a while to get it explained to Sam. Turns out, the hole is an indicator hole. On either side of the hole is a seal. One one side is the transmission seal and on the other is the transfer case seal. (The manual does not have this.) If fluid leaks from the hole, you can tell which seal is leaking by what fluid is leaking out. The hole is in the flange plate that bolts to the back of the transmission and then the center diff bolts to it.
Not my picture, but a great description of it (taken from Audiforum):
http://i42.tinypic.com/avh34o.jpg
My slow leak indicated that the intermediate flange seal (rear transmission seal) was slowly leaking. Sam ordered the part right away and had it fixed for me. His guy brought me out to the shop showed how the seal goes in. It has to slide over the spline (spring side first) and looks like it is SUPER easy to roll over, which is what happened to mine. They fixed it in no time flat, topped off my fluids and sent me on my way. This is a perfect example of "standing by your work" and I was very pleased even though they apologized to me about 100 times. [>_<]
Some things to clear up from the other thread:
1.) The Valvoline MaxLife fluid is for the 5HP NOT the 6HP. Apparently there are only a couple of companies making the fluid and have the market cornered on it. However, it's still not "Audi Stealership" expensive. Just more expensive than the MaxLife.
2.) I talked to Sam again about TCM updates. He made a really good point: a company will make "TipChips" for our transmission if the money is there. I think it's time to collectively start pestering Revo[:D]
3.) If you have questions for Sam, call him and ask!! I know a lot of people have been "thinking about" these upgrades and I am sure Sam would answer your questions about shipping, core returns, etc etc etc. He's a very easy guy to work with.
Final Thoughts:
This upgrade is worth every stinkin penny in my book if you have an Auto. I would think that a 6MT swap would cost considerably more than this unless you had a donor car, and if you did, why wouldn't you just fix it up and have both? [:D] Not to mention that for the few of us who enjoy the comfort of an Auto but still like to actually put some power to the wheels, this is it. This isn't for everyone, but if you are going to hold on to your car, and it's tuned, you might want to consider giving Sam a call.
Side note:
So glad I didn't do a 6MT swap and did this instead. [:p]
My transmission had been problematic for as long as I can remember paying attention to it. (More than 30K). Most notably I was having the following regular problems:
1.) occasional Torque Converter "clunk"/"thud"
2.) gear hunting in "D" or "S"
3.) slow shifting
4.) occasional VERY uncomfortable shifts (mainly 3/4 and 5/6 and most noticeable in traffic)
I had been planning on bringing my car to Sam at 517 (http://www.517trans.com/) for the upgraded Torque Converter and Valve Body calibration. About a month ago I noticed that when my transmission was cold, I would get torque converter lockup and unlock in a cycle. For me, it would go away once warmed up, or if I put the transmission in Manumatic or Tiptronic mode.
I decided to finally bite the bullet and I brought the car down to Sam on March 3rd. He had advised me that he would drop the pan and if the fluid was burnt (stinky) that it could be an indicator of a larger internal problem with the transmission and that if it were the case he would recommend a full rebuild. Well, as luck would have it, when he opened up the pan, it was burnt, dark, stinky and there was clutch material in the pan. While I wasn't happy that my trans was fried with only 69K, I was not surprised. I do a lot of commuting in traffic and have modded at the following intervals: Stg 1: 20K, Stg 2+: 32K, Stg 3: 45K.
Sam gave me the option to either rebuild or just do the upgrade work I originally came in for. Seeing as I am planning on holding on to the car for a while longer, I opted for the full rebuild/upgrade. This work included:
New Clutches
New Steels
All new gaskets, filters, o-rings, pump bushing
Valve Body Recalibration
Upgraded Torque Converter
Here are a few pictures that Sam sent me of the work in progress which includes pictures of a couple of burnt clutches:
http://i39.tinypic.com/dlp9uh.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/8xsjgg.jpg
http://i42.tinypic.com/r9fzbm.jpg
After being able to put about 1000 miles on the trans since the upgrade, I have the following observations:
1.) Power Delivery: Power delivery is day and night. Keep in mind this is ONLY noticeable during NON lockup (as my trans was not slipping IN gear), but it is VERY noticeable. The car pulls much harder and you can even feel the TC clutch locking up and when it does the car surges forward much like a standard trans clutch engage.
2.) Downshifts: Completely different/better. Decellarating downshifts used to be a whiplash-inducing event. ESPECIALLY in Manumatic. Now they are precise and smooth as butter. Automatic downshifts are not even noticeable other than the RPM change. Which brings me to...
3.) Shift Speed: Quick, Precise and smooth. All shifting now happens VERY smoothly. I was unable to induce a rough shift, whereas before they would happen all the time even if I was driving miss daisy. Manumatic shifts occur well within a second of selection (VERY noticeable with the paddles).
4.) Gear hunting: gone. Plain and simple. It's just gone.
5.) Occasional TC "thud": gone.
6.) (newly discovered) I never used to use "S". It was pointless. All it did was rev the car and make shifts unbearable. I just recently tried "S"port mode again and my opinion has done a 180. The car is a different animal in sport mode now. My guess is that this is how it was intended to be.
Sadly, after getting the car home, I noticed a very slow leak coming from a small hole at the bottom of the transmission. (~1 drip a minute) I couldn't find any mention of this hole in my Bentley Manual, so it took me a while to get it explained to Sam. Turns out, the hole is an indicator hole. On either side of the hole is a seal. One one side is the transmission seal and on the other is the transfer case seal. (The manual does not have this.) If fluid leaks from the hole, you can tell which seal is leaking by what fluid is leaking out. The hole is in the flange plate that bolts to the back of the transmission and then the center diff bolts to it.
Not my picture, but a great description of it (taken from Audiforum):
http://i42.tinypic.com/avh34o.jpg
My slow leak indicated that the intermediate flange seal (rear transmission seal) was slowly leaking. Sam ordered the part right away and had it fixed for me. His guy brought me out to the shop showed how the seal goes in. It has to slide over the spline (spring side first) and looks like it is SUPER easy to roll over, which is what happened to mine. They fixed it in no time flat, topped off my fluids and sent me on my way. This is a perfect example of "standing by your work" and I was very pleased even though they apologized to me about 100 times. [>_<]
Some things to clear up from the other thread:
1.) The Valvoline MaxLife fluid is for the 5HP NOT the 6HP. Apparently there are only a couple of companies making the fluid and have the market cornered on it. However, it's still not "Audi Stealership" expensive. Just more expensive than the MaxLife.
2.) I talked to Sam again about TCM updates. He made a really good point: a company will make "TipChips" for our transmission if the money is there. I think it's time to collectively start pestering Revo[:D]
3.) If you have questions for Sam, call him and ask!! I know a lot of people have been "thinking about" these upgrades and I am sure Sam would answer your questions about shipping, core returns, etc etc etc. He's a very easy guy to work with.
Final Thoughts:
This upgrade is worth every stinkin penny in my book if you have an Auto. I would think that a 6MT swap would cost considerably more than this unless you had a donor car, and if you did, why wouldn't you just fix it up and have both? [:D] Not to mention that for the few of us who enjoy the comfort of an Auto but still like to actually put some power to the wheels, this is it. This isn't for everyone, but if you are going to hold on to your car, and it's tuned, you might want to consider giving Sam a call.
Side note:
So glad I didn't do a 6MT swap and did this instead. [:p]