Gearbox malfunction + Parking brake malfunction need help

[Ladiesman217]

Hello everybody! New to this site but dealership could not find the problem so I took it upon myself to search for more knowledge from experienced owners. About 3k miles ago, (my car is at 108k as right now), I was hit with the "Gearbox Malfunction" indicator. It happened once long before but went away the next day. This time however, was very different. As soon as I stopped at a red light I was then hit with the "Parking Brake Malfunction" which put my car into neutral and all I could do was try to unsuccessfully accelerate. I had to hold the brake, turn off the engine, repeatedly try to turn on the car after I put it in park and about the third try it finally worked. It has been happening almost every day since then. I tried looking for the same problem in these forums but was either overlooking or was the first to write about it. Car has been serviced every 10k miles like recommended and I feel as it could live a long life if this problem was nonexistent. Also, warranty ended at 103k miles. Has anyone had this happen to them or know of anything I could do to fix it?

[sebgreen]

Have you had the car scanned for error codes?


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[Ladiesman217]

Have you had the car scanned for error codes?


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No the dealership said they scanned but nothing came up. I don't have my own scanner

[14S4GWM]

No the dealership said they scanned but nothing came up. I don't have my own scanner

Just so happens that.....

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...oss-Tech-Cable

[Ladiesman217]

Just so happens that.....

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...oss-Tech-Cable

Lol is that a fair price? I was actually looking for one since I've heard all this talk about these scanner type machines. What software do I need to download to see it? Or would it just show up in some notepad type deal already installed in the computer?

[14S4GWM]

They are 350 new. You need the cable and you can download the software for free from Ross Tech. It's pretty simple to use. Check out the link for anymore questions.

http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/vag-com-faq.php

[sebgreen]

So the gearbox malfunction message is showing up but there are no codes? That's odd.

Did you take the car in the first time it happened a while age?



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[Ladiesman217]

[QUOTE=sebgreen;11521140]So the gearbox malfunction message is showing up but there are no codes? That's odd.

Did you take the car in the first time it happened a while age?



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Well the car was acting normal for a few days after until I took it to dealership about 5 days later. They looked at it, told me nothing was wrong ($100 for that) and I thought it was just a one time deal. It started happening once every week and now it seems to do it every day

[DBL R]

Ladiesman217..... I get it.

[Ladiesman217]

Ladiesman217..... I get it.

This is the first site that I could use this username without it being taken!

[sebgreen]

With no codes being thrown its hard to know what the issue it.

If it were me I would find a good independent Audi specialist ad get ready a big bill.

When my dsg box gave the malfunction error it was a "clutch overheating" error. If your park break is stuck on a bit it may be causing resistance leading to above normal clutch slipping. Just an idea maybe.


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[Ladiesman217]

With no codes being thrown its hard to know what the issue it.

If it were me I would find a good independent Audi specialist ad get ready a big bill.

When my dsg box gave the malfunction error it was a "clutch overheating" error. If your park break is stuck on a bit it may be causing resistance leading to above normal clutch slipping. Just an idea maybe.


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Thank you very much gives me an idea at least. I'll look around for indie shop

[wsr1206]

Without the faulty codes it's hard to tell what is wrong.
But from my experience, it could be one of two major issues.

1. Mechatronics gone bad
No warranty, you are looking at around $5500~$7000 with part and labor (mechatronic part alone is over $3000)

2. Position sensor gone bad (If this is gone bad, the shifter will tell that you are not in P mode even though you are)
No warranty, you are looking around $3000~$4000 (have to disassamble the whole transmission)

[Fociracr]

Hello everybody! New to this site but dealership could not find the problem so I took it upon myself to search for more knowledge from experienced owners. About 3k miles ago, (my car is at 108k as right now), I was hit with the "Gearbox Malfunction" indicator. It happened once long before but went away the next day. This time however, was very different. As soon as I stopped at a red light I was then hit with the "Parking Brake Malfunction" which put my car into neutral and all I could do was try to unsuccessfully accelerate. I had to hold the brake, turn off the engine, repeatedly try to turn on the car after I put it in park and about the third try it finally worked. It has been happening almost every day since then. I tried looking for the same problem in these forums but was either overlooking or was the first to write about it. Car has been serviced every 10k miles like recommended and I feel as it could live a long life if this problem was nonexistent. Also, warranty ended at 103k miles. Has anyone had this happen to them or know of anything I could do to fix it?

Sounds like your Mechatronics unit wiring has gone bad. There is a rebuild kid on ECS for 300-400 bucks or something. The dealer isn't replacing the whole mech units anymore either, they are replacing the wiring harness.

[wsr1206]

There is a thread about someone who replaced the repair kit (bought from ECS), but after awhile, the problem came back. I would not hesitate to get extended warraty. Or shop around for warranties.

[jaygemson]

2. Position sensor gone bad (If this is gone bad, the shifter will tell that you are not in P mode even though you are)
No warranty, you are looking around $3000~$4000 (have to disassamble the whole transmission)

This.

Mine's got the exact same issue (Gearbox Malfunction, followed by Parking Brake Fault, followed by "N" and no drive regardless of where the gear lever is). My Audi dealer was able to reproduce it and from the fault codes determined a bad lever position sensor which as stated above is a gearbox strip-down job - 13 hours labour and specialist tools required. Painful :(

[wsr1206]

This.

Mine's got the exact same issue (Gearbox Malfunction, followed by Parking Brake Fault, followed by "N" and no drive regardless of where the gear lever is). My Audi dealer was able to reproduce it and from the fault codes determined a bad lever position sensor which as stated above is a gearbox strip-down job - 13 hours labour and specialist tools required. Painful :(

Sorry to hear that. Do you have extended warranty or paying out of your pocket?

[BMWexpat]

Hello everybody! New to this site but dealership could not find the problem so I took it upon myself to search for more knowledge from experienced owners. About 3k miles ago, (my car is at 108k as right now), I was hit with the "Gearbox Malfunction" indicator. It happened once long before but went away the next day. This time however, was very different. As soon as I stopped at a red light I was then hit with the "Parking Brake Malfunction" which put my car into neutral and all I could do was try to unsuccessfully accelerate. I had to hold the brake, turn off the engine, repeatedly try to turn on the car after I put it in park and about the third try it finally worked. It has been happening almost every day since then. I tried looking for the same problem in these forums but was either overlooking or was the first to write about it. Car has been serviced every 10k miles like recommended and I feel as it could live a long life if this problem was nonexistent. Also, warranty ended at 103k miles. Has anyone had this happen to them or know of anything I could do to fix it?

Just went through this same issue. Gearbox malfunction then when you break to slow down the parking brake error popped up and the car is in neutral with no drive. The problem kept getting worse until the car was not reliable to drive. In my case we traced it down to a defective position sensor, which by itself is a $90 part. Sadly the sensor is buried inside the transmission and requires the entire unit to be pulled from the car and opened up.

My car is a 2011 with 87K miles so it was out of warranty as well. My dealer was helpful and pointed out that there were several service bulletins on this issue and Audi had issued SB's about replacing wiring harnesses and recommended replacing not just the single sensor but all the sensors housed in the control box that contains the position sensor. All sensors involved have been replaced by upgraded units from the original parts in the car. Bottom line dealer wanted $5000 for the repair. The dealer contacted Audi USA on my behalf and we worked out that Audi pick up half the repair bill and would guarantee the repair for 12 months.

This all took about a month to work out but overall the dealer and Audi stepped up to my satisfaction. I'm planning on keeping the car well past 200K so I can live with this expense.

Overall you have two choices. Repair the car or dump it.

[jaygemson]

Here are the fault codes relevant to the gear lever position sensor failure, for future reference:

8056 - Selector Lever Sensor
P179F 00 [040] - Malfunction

00473 - Control Module for Elect. Park/Hand Brake (J540)
013 - Check DTC Memory - Intermittent

01315 - Transmission Control Module
013 - Check DTC Memory - Intermittent

Just went through this same issue. Gearbox malfunction then when you break to slow down the parking brake error popped up and the car is in neutral with no drive. The problem kept getting worse until the car was not reliable to drive. In my case we traced it down to a defective position sensor, which by itself is a $90 part. Sadly the sensor is buried inside the transmission and requires the entire unit to be pulled from the car and opened up.

My car is a 2011 with 87K miles so it was out of warranty as well. My dealer was helpful and pointed out that there were several service bulletins on this issue and Audi had issued SB's about replacing wiring harnesses and recommended replacing not just the single sensor but all the sensors housed in the control box that contains the position sensor. All sensors involved have been replaced by upgraded units from the original parts in the car. Bottom line dealer wanted $5000 for the repair. The dealer contacted Audi USA on my behalf and we worked out that Audi pick up half the repair bill and would guarantee the repair for 12 months.

Those symptoms are identical to mine! I've just booked my car in for the same repair, and like you my dealer is friendly and has arranged a goodwill gesture of 50% of the full cost. It really does pay to have a full service history and to maintain a good relationship with your dealer when it comes to out-of-warranty repairs.

The master tech at my dealer is currently of the opinion that no other components/sensors need to be replaced or upgraded though. It makes sense to me to replace anything you can (within reason) whilst the gearbox is open so I've pointed him at this thread to see if he'll revise his position. I was also consider replacing the clutch packs at the same time, but this is going to significantly increase the cost and from what I've read S-tronic clutch wear isn't a major concern. Did you consider this when you had your repair done?

[Ladiesman217]

Well everyone, good news.....I am now a 2013 S4 owner lol traded it in (would only take 14k )