Transmission is bloody scarin me

[jamestpc]

OK, so i picked up my 01 4.2l back in dec. I'm loving the bloody thing, despite all the horror stories of transmissions dying and whatnot.

I've read/heard/talked to several people about whether to service the transmission fluid or not (place in mississauga, on does a full service - flush, run, flush, refill, for like 5 bills). Audi says lifetime, so do a few mechs...i don't buy it. BUT i've also read somewhere that it's 'lifetime for the warranty period'.


My car shifts a bit strangely. Like it wants to shift eariler than i think it should ...

Been reading about how people need to check the unit to see if it's damaged or not (water)...but i've also started reading people have swapped out the tcu for a performance one that smooths everything out.


1 - what's the consensus on transmission fluid servicing/changing?

2 - TCU upgrade - worthwhile? Common?



Also, somewhat related. The cabin filter under the engine tray....is that supposed to have a cover itself? Mine is just wide open.

Thanks a bunch...

[MCargill12]

This thread has some good info on the ATF in it http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php/534266-ATF-fluid-question. As for the TCU, its located under the passenger seat carpet. Pull it out and take a look. If its had any contact with water give it a nice clean and make sure all the pins are intact. Also another thing you can do is disconnect your battery and let it sit for a while. This will reset your tcu's memory, it might shift a little weird at first but it will even out. Do that to start if it still shifts funny pull the tcu.

[Scotty@Advanced]

When a manufacturer says "Lifetime" it's generally meant to be 5 years or 100,000 miles. Some manufacturers consider it to mean the life of the warranty period, which in any case is too long for Auto trans fluid.

The only cover over the cabin filter is the large plastic plenum cover.

By all means I'd recomend a flush.. However flushing a trans can expose existing problems hidden by the thicker more viscous fluid.

[EErie B6]

Change it. Lifetime is for the lifetime of the warranty. Audi does not care if it craps out after that. Even if it needs it and they determine it can make it to the end of the warranty period before it quits, they are going to say "lifetime"... cause that keeps service costs down which makes them look good on paper.

IMO: Fluid and Filter every 50-75k miles end of story.

[4ringsa6]

When a manufacturer says "Lifetime" it's generally meant to be 5 years or 100,000 miles. Some manufacturers consider it to mean the life of the warranty period, which in any case is too long for Auto trans fluid.

The only cover over the cabin filter is the large plastic plenum cover.

By all means I'd recomend a flush.. However flushing a trans can expose existing problems hidden by the thicker more viscous fluid.

Is flushing dropping the pan, filter change and refill? Or is flushing something else?

[Scotty@Advanced]

Flushing is draining fluid, refilling with fresh, then draining, change filter and refill.

[jamestpc]

Flushing is draining fluid, refilling with fresh, then draining, change filter and refill.

I'm up in canada...apparently there's a shop in mississauga that does a servicing where they actually run your car thorugh the gears, and then drain the first flush out, then refill and filter.


I have a feeling i'm gonna do this. I wil check the tcu first though.

[threeputtpar]

I posted in the above referenced thread about a flush vs a fluid exchange. If they even mention adding any type of cleaner, run away. Any machine they use should only collect the old oil coming out of the cooler line and pump new fluid in through the other cooler line. No reverse flushing or solvent cleaner, ever.
Also have some recommended fluids that won't bankrupt you, too.

[Scotty@Advanced]

I posted in the above referenced thread about a flush vs a fluid exchange. If they even mention adding any type of cleaner, run away. Any machine they use should only collect the old oil coming out of the cooler line and pump new fluid in through the other cooler line. No reverse flushing or solvent cleaner, ever.
Also have some recommended fluids that won't bankrupt you, too.

There are also some machines that just filter the oil through some super dooper filtration stuff, but stay away from that kind of machine.

[lucio_liu]

Flushing is draining fluid, refilling with fresh, then draining, change filter and refill.

if DIY, is it a better idea to drive a few hundred miles between first draining and second draining?

I thought the fresh fluid will dilute the old. And the second draining will displace the mixed fluid yet keep about 20% old fluid in the pan(which is good imo)

[jamestpc]

So my 'shifting' mystery wasn't the transmission at all.

One of the intake flaps was jammed, so when it shifted at about 50km/h, it'd shudder quite a bit.

I've cleaned it out, and broke the bloddy arm connection points in the process - bought some steel ones to replace, and all is well.

Car is becoming likable again. :)