Transmission woes #3!!!

[sCeRaXn]

As most of you know, my clutch and trans has been giving me all sorts of trouble in the 4 months that ive owned the car. I finally got everything squared away around a month ago, and its been performing flawlessly for the past 700 miles. Well last night i decided to launch it since the clutch was broken in and everything seemed to be doing good. I did two mild launches at 2800-3krpms and only took it half way through 2nd just to make sure things were good, and everything went fine. So i decided to do a more aggressive launch from 3500rpms and take it into third. The launch was great, the shift to second was spot on, but i decided to short shift third(around 5krpms) just to be safe...i didnt shift it hard but it still grinded when i tried to put it in third. So i put it in neutral and cruised to the turn that goes back to my house.

I dropped it to 2nd for the turn and it went in fine, went to shift to third and it acted like it didnt want to go it. It was hard to even get out of second, and getting it into 3rd was really hard. Now im thinking its either a syncro or slider, which isnt exactly what i need right now. I was hoping it was the slave cylinder or linkage, but that was just hopeful thinking because the symptoms dont add up. If it was either of those then the problem wouldnt be isolated to 3rd gear.

Do you guys think im right in my assumption that its the slider or syncro?

[The_Jerbel]

Yup.

Sorry man, WTF is up with your tranny luck lately?

It sounds like the damage is minor. If you continue driving like that the burrs on the slider should smoothen out and you should be fine.

[gointoscott]

I dont know the history of your problemeatic transmission, but I would not launch it.

I cringe everytime I think of the stress you put on the car when you rev it up and drop the clutch. There is very little give in a all wheel drive tank that we drive.

I realize that takes a lot of the fun out of the car.

With that said I am going to the track for the first time, (dont plan to make it a normal event) on original clutch, tranny, and turbo's.

I want to run it a few times down the track to see what I'll get, but at the same time im nervous of what I"m going to break. lol I dont plan on launching it too hard, so I'm sure my times wont be the greatest, but thats fine, it still will be fun.



The biggest thing is I'm worried about is it will become addicting like heroin

So I hope I can fight the urge to keep going back to the track.

Anyway sorry for the side info, but hope you can get the tranny work fixed.

[sCeRaXn]

Yup.

Sorry man, WTF is up with your tranny luck lately?

It sounds like the damage is minor. If you continue driving like that the burrs on the slider should smoothen out and you should be fine.

Unfortunately, the luck hasnt just been with the trans. It seems to be following me into every part of my life right now lol. Its cool though, everyone goes through slumps.

I just went for a little drive and it seems to be a little better than it was last night. Its still notchy feeling, but you dont have to put the big arm on it to get it in and out of gear. Hopefully itll last until i have enough money to order the parts to fix it. Do you know about how long itll last with normal driving? Thanks Jordan

[2ndEngineS4]

. .Do you know about how long itll last with normal driving? . .

It will probably be fine as long as you continue to baby it. I drove mine for over a year after my major mishap with grinding third. It got better over the next few weeks and finally went away. Eventually, I got comfortable again and launched it too hard and the deed was done. JHM rebuild kit.

[The_Jerbel]

^2nd.

What I'm saying is that over time, as you drive the car, the burrs will wear away, and it'll go back to normal. The slider teeth will be a little rounded and worn, but it'll feel normal. It just means that you shouldn't drive and shift too hard until you can get around to replacing the parts.

So, you can drive it like that as long as you want.

[sCeRaXn]

Well its good that i can drive on it a little longer, it just sucks that i wont ever be able to use the car for what it was made for. It seems like theres always something holding me back from enjoying the car. Now im stuck at the all familiar crossroads again. Should i keep it and fix it once again, or sell it and let someone else deal with it? Is it really worth having to be down every few months for a thousand plus dollars in repairs, not to mention the amount of time i have to spend on the repairs? Ive never been so torn on a car before. Its usually pretty cut and dry, but i really love this car so its hard to make a decision. Anyone who doesnt have the love for cars that i do would(and have) call me a fool for keeping it because the cost to benefit ratio is so far out of my favor that it almost makes me cry lol.

Common sense tells me that i should sell the car. In 4 months ive spent almost as much on repairs as i have in payments, which is beyond ridiculous. Ive thought about selling it for another s4, but i havent been able to find one around here thats what i want. The closest one ive found was in Fl, and ive already figured out that cars from Fl have a whole other set of issues that i dont want to deal with again. The only other one that fits my needs is a salvaged title, and NC isnt exactly easy to deal with when it comes to salvaged titles, not to mention that it was salvaged because of a massive front end collision which could hold another set of problems. Damn this is driving me crazy lol.

[The_Jerbel]

Just drive the car normally! It's not the end of the world. You might get another 100 launches before the slider fails again, you just never know.

[team_soy]

Sorry to hear about your tranny woes. Since it would be a pain to sell it just fix it and keep it. After you get all the bugs worked out it is an amazing car to own

[2ndEngineS4]

^^Hell yeah. I've been to hell and back with my ride. TB failure, turbo failure, tranny rebuild, all of the major pita problems. Now that it's all sorted out, I would NEVER trade my car. Whenever I drive it, it puts a smile on my face and knowing that it's faster than 99% of "fast" cars on the road for less than half the price is enough for me.

[team_soy]

^^Hell yeah. I've been to hell and back with my ride. TB failure, turbo failure, tranny rebuild, all of the major pita problems. Now that it's all sorted out, I would NEVER trade my car. Whenever I drive it, it puts a smile on my face and knowing that it's faster than 99% of "fast" cars on the road for less than half the price is enough for me.

+1

[sCeRaXn]

Just drive the car normally! It's not the end of the world. You might get another 100 launches before the slider fails again, you just never know.

Normal is a matter of opinion lol. But yea i usually baby the car, but there are times when im on a back country road and want to open her up. Now im not gonna want to do that because ill be afraid of it breaking and leaving me stranded. Besides, its a performance car thats meant to be driven like someone stole it...so driving it normally would mean beating the hell out of it haha.

Im trying to base this decision on monetary concerns. If things keep going the way that they are, this car will end up costing me over $30k in 3 yrs...and its just not worth that. Dont get me wrong, i love this thing. Its almost like the car was made for me...im just trying to look at it from an unbiased point of view. Ill probably end up keeping it, which means ill probably end up kicking myself in the ass in a few weeks. Im just having a hard time putting that For Sale sign on it lol.

[The_Jerbel]

If normal means beat the hell out of it, then proceed accordingly. You'll be fine

The important thing is to NOT MISS 3RD GEAR.

[sCeRaXn]

Well thats the thing that had me worried to begin with. Im not a professional driver or anything, but ive had over ten years of road racing and drag racing experience...i dont miss gears. I know that shit happends, but this misshift seemed more mechanical than human error. The shifter in this car isnt the best ever, but its not as shitty as a bunch of other cars that ive never had a problem with.

I guess i can order the JHM shifter and just hope that it helps things out.

[AMC]

If normal means beat the hell out of it, then proceed accordingly. You'll be fine

The important thing is to NOT MISS 3RD GEAR.

lol i missed third and had to replace my 1-2 synchros

[2ndEngineS4]

I guess i can order the JHM shifter and just hope that it helps things out.

definitely, do dat. it changed my life. ok maybe not, but it's the best shifter out right now. i think most will agree.

[tumtum411]

i say drop the tranny and make some1 take a look

[alias747]

Sorry for my newb moment but how do you "miss" third?

[AMC]

Sorry for my newb moment but how do you "miss" third?

trying to shift as fast as u canwithout letting off the gas, so sometimes u may end up grinding third instead of getting it in all the way

[sCeRaXn]

I definitely wasnt power shifting though. Like i said, i shifted around 5krpms and didnt try to shift fast at all. It just hit a wall and started grinding. The more i drive it the better it gets though, so im just gonna leave it be until i save up enough to get JHM's rebuild kit and shifter. I really hate how frail this car is, theres no room for error or else something is gonna break.

[The_Jerbel]

I disagree, these cars are built like frickin tanks. Sure, the 1-2 gear slider is a little soft, but unless your putting a lot more power through the drivetrain than the car was designed for, the S4 holds up to abuse extremely well.

[2ndEngineS4]

^^The man speaks the truth. I beat the piss out of my car at the track (5K plus clutch drops, spinning all the way through first gear) and since the "revisions" it's held up very well with the exception of the drivetrain mounts.