Its time...

[GR8 Ghost]

I brought my R8 in for the 15k service. It apparently is going to cost me about $7,000. Anyone have theirs done yet? THe life of the clutch is supposedly from 8000-3000. My clutch is at 3083 according to the diagnostics. I have 83 left of clutch life. Parts and labor to replace it is just shy of $5900. I can see why they don't cover maintenance after 5000 miles. It is slightly better than the expected wear on the Gallardo, but not by much. I have an R-Tronic and have only used the launch control once. I am curious to see if anyone else has done the 15k service and how their clutch faired.

[k-f-j]

I brought my R8 in for the 15k service. It apparently is going to cost me about $7,000. Anyone have theirs done yet? THe life of the clutch is supposedly from 8000-3000. My clutch is at 3083 according to the diagnostics. I have 83 left of clutch life. Parts and labor to replace it is just shy of $5900. I can see why they don't cover maintenance after 5000 miles. It is slightly better than the expected wear on the Gallardo, but not by much. I have an R-Tronic and have only used the launch control once. I am curious to see if anyone else has done the 15k service and how their clutch faired.

I know that the rs4 has an h gate transmission but did you have to do the same thing for the rs4? Did they tell you it needed to be done before you bought or did they drop that bomb shell on you at the 15k service? Sorry to thread jack

[aaaudiprotein]

sorry, cant help but i got a Q

THe life of the clutch is supposedly from 8000-3000. My clutch is at 3083 according to the diagnostics. I have 83 left of clutch life

Never heard about it, what do they mean by 8000, or 7500?

[Mike@Forge]

Is there anyone (in Germany?) making aftermarket clutches with higher than stock torque capacity?

A non-organic disk?

Carbon even?

Multi-plate?

It just seems rediculous to me that they would use such a horribly inadequate clutch, which costs so much, when there are TONS of aftermarket options for less powerful applications with higher than necessary torque capacity and even longer life expectancy.

Maybe contact Tilton about making you a triple disk setup?

http://www.tiltonracing.com/home.shtml

[GR8 Ghost]

I guess there is a way of getting an exact number of the remaining clutch life from the onboard diagnostics. The normal range for the R-tronic clutch is 3000(end of life) and 8000(new). My car has almost 17000 miles on it and is at 3083.

[Audi05s4]

thats rediculous

[quattro16]

Thats because of the way the Rtronic trans works. Everytime you slightly step on the gas its slowly slipping the clutch to make it a smooth engagment. Thats why you have to push a good amount down on the gas to even make them move alittle. Have you ever noticed the clutch smell from just driving around a parking lot? The 6 spd is just like any other manuel trans! And is better in the R8 in my opinion.

[fusionx]

don't worry, I was talking to the guys are the Porsche dealer this weekend and some guy blew his clutch backing out his carrera GT and its gonna cost him $24,000+ to get it fixed hahaha

[TonyD]

Damn, and I thought my clutch going out on my A4 at 40k miles was bad.

[CONTROL TWO]

we had the service on ours but its stick.. dunno if the rtronic burns more clutch.. ours wasnt that bad

[vividracing]

Clutch Masters does clutch kits using Sachs components for Porsche... wonder if they could do the R8?

[OverSpun]

we had the service on ours but its stick.. dunno if the rtronic burns more clutch.. ours wasnt that bad

On a manual... only a bad driver burns out a clutch that quickly. Totally different from R-Tronic.

[OverSpun]

don't worry, I was talking to the guys are the Porsche dealer this weekend and some guy blew his clutch backing out his carrera GT and its gonna cost him $24,000+ to get it fixed hahaha

on a CGT, you arent even supposed to touch the gas from a stop until the clutch is engaged. Apparently those clutches are extremely tempermental.

[quattro16]

We Just Did A Motor In A Cgt Few Months Back. 98k For Long Block. Plug And Play Also!

[RXBG]

GR8 ghost-

didn't you buy the audi care maintenance package? i know the clutch is not covered by it, but everything else should be.

[fusionx]

on a CGT, you arent even supposed to touch the gas from a stop until the clutch is engaged. Apparently those clutches are extremely tempermental.

Yeah, typical rich newport beach guy that doesnt have a clue how to drive his car haha.

the cars all carbon fiber and you can only use hand tools to work on it, no machinery tools haha. labor costs must be insane for that car

[GR8 Ghost]

I'm pretty sure it isn't available on the R8. It was never offered to me if it was available.

[RXBG]

I'm pretty sure it isn't available on the R8. It was never offered to me if it was available.

i was offered it for the same price as all the other audi's. $699 i believe- Audi Care. all labor and maintenance for 4 yr/50K miles. naturally, the clutch is not covered under warranty.

it sounds like all they are charging you for is a clutch replacement, though.

the r-tronic-e-gear does burn out clutches quickly. manual is similar to the RS4's. more of a conventional duration.

[KY_Soldier]

$699? sign me UP! did your dealer offer it or Audi of America?

Anyone know the expected life and replacement cost on a manual R8?

[GramCracker]

I really like that you put miles on your R8 rather than let it sit around and collect dust in a garage.

[Speedmonger]

GR8 Ghost - definitely don't dismiss the suggestions about contacting an aftermarket clutch company. It could be easier and cheaper to pull off than you might think.

Many years ago on a different application (tweaked AWD car making double the stock HP), Centerforce clutch worked with me to create some custom clutches. My app was more difficult than usual since I demanded that the clutch pedal pressure not be noticeably increased -- "anyone" can build a clutch with a ton more clamping force or 4 pucks, but driveability goes out the window. They understood this and came up with a good solution for me.

They can take the stock setup and then change up the clutch material, clamping force, material layout (full face, 6 puck, etc) to materially improve power handling or clutch life.

Companies like Centerforce and ClutchMasters have been working with enthusiasts for a long long time building tons of custom apps. You could probably get a "one-off" built for not too much $$.

I wouldn't mess with getting complicated like multi-disc. Just take the stock setup and focus on increased longevity, probably by making a change in clutch material to something that doesn't wear as much when the clutch is "slipped".

Good luck!

[Gr8R8]

The "AudiCare" package was $650 and covers maintenance for the first 3 years. It used to be free on Audis.

[Tiesto]

The "AudiCare" package was $650 and covers maintenance for the first 3 years. It used to be free on Audis.

Used to be cheaper too, $590 I think. Nice how it costs the same for all models (A4 owners are covering the bulk of the cost for more expensive models).

[GR8 Ghost]

This might be the ugliest thing I have ever seen. Looks like someone put a shotgun to their head and pulled the trigger.

[aaaudiprotein]

This might be the ugliest thing I have ever seen. Looks like someone put a shotgun to their head and pulled the trigger.

Who is doing it?

[fusionx]

Looks like a lot of money towards labor costs to me :P

[GR8 Ghost]

yup thats about 40% of the cost. Dealership is doing it.

[Sharkfin]

I'm guessing you already knew this but for a dealership to be able to service the R8 must put their service staff through a intense training weekend/session and my dealer shelled out 150-200k just to be allowed to service them. Good luck and I hope it goes well

[GR8 Ghost]

I wouldn't have bought the car from a dealership that wasn't R8 certified. That would be foolish, imo. These guys know their shit.

[KY_Soldier]

my dealership uses me as their guinea pig. took em two hours+ to swap sideblades out. :-P

my tech told me at their R8 training they didn't have each tech do it, they just did a set "as a team" which means one or two guys did it while the rest watched.

[Sharkfin]

I wouldn't have bought the car from a dealership that wasn't R8 certified. That would be foolish, imo. These guys know their shit.

Where is yours from again?

[GR8 Ghost]

Danbury Audi, in CT.

[|FYASKO|]

don't worry, I was talking to the guys are the Porsche dealer this weekend and some guy blew his clutch backing out his carrera GT and its gonna cost him $24,000+ to get it fixed hahaha

did u ask someone at newport porsche audi bentley? i was talking to the someone there and he told me the same thing haha.

[fusionx]

did u ask someone at newport porsche audi bentley? i was talking to the someone there and he told me the same thing haha.

yeah ahhahahahah must be the famous story there

[belinko]

So do you guys "r8 owners" get just as frustrated with AoA and your local dealerships? Or is this just a regular occurance that you are use to?

[akasch]

did u ask someone at newport porsche audi bentley? i was talking to the someone there and he told me the same thing haha.

Newport audi is pretty tight, all of my cars are from there. nice guys and their service is pretty awesome

[covertS4driver]

I usually sing Danbury Audi's praises, but my last visit left me.... :(