The guy at the audi dealership said this and i was wondering how true it actually is. is it like saying every 2.7t will need a new timing belt (wear item), or more like every 2.7t will need a new turbo(something that will eventually go out)? i mean are our TC's that bad?

 

NO. Well, yea, in the lifetime of the car, it might need a new TC. It's not really a wear item. I think most of the problem comes from the "lifetime" fluid killing things. Change out the fluid every 60kmi & it should last a very long time.

TC failure is rare, it does happen, but, much less so then other problems.

 

I expect to NEVER replace a torque converter in my A6.

 

Torque converters are part of the transmission. Usually if it's not the gears in the transmission that goes bad, it's the torque converter. There's always a chance of it going out depending on how you use your tiptronic. Usually time and where takes a toll on everything ona vehicle. Eventually everything in a car needs to be replaced over time.

 

Most, if not all, modern torque converters are of the locking type. There is a clutch that locks the torque converter solid when a vertain speed/gear is reached. It is this clutch that wears out over time, or, more usually, the actuating mechanism. that is why your mechanic said that all Audis will need a torque converter eventually.

Bob

 

I have a 2000 2.7 and my torque convertor went out at about 75K. Dealer charged $2600 and took over a month to fix.

 

Aaah, another one of the advantages for having a manual...

 

I'm a newbie to this forum, so I'm especially looking forward to your feedback.It seems that the original torque converters on the 2001 A6 (and perhaps other years) were defective and Audi is sticking owners with the repair bill.

Well, here's my problem: I bought my dad's 2001 A6 2.7 with Tiptronic last summer. It's a great car and has only 68,000 miles. But a couple of months ago I noticed that when I started the car in the morning and put it in Drive, the engine revs would speed up to 2000-2200 rpm, while the car would barely accelerate. It was as if the tranny was not engaged with the engine properly and only a tiny amount of power was going to the wheels.

As soon as this happens (virtually every morning at start-up), I ease off the gas pedal for a second or two, then press down again. At this point, the car drives perfectly for the rest of the day. If I drive somewhere, park it for an hour or twon, then start it again, it drives just fine.

Lately, though, the problem has become a bit more pronounced. Sometimes I can rev the just-started engine to 2800 rpm with hardly any power going to the wheels.

My mechanic checked bulletins and found that Audi redersigned the torque converter because the original design was prone to an internal seal leaking, which would cause this problem.

He called a buddy who works in the Parts dept. at the local Audi dealer who said "Yup, that's the problem", and that they stock these new replacement torque converters (at $970 a pop), since they sell one or two a week to suckers like me.

Though Audi recognizes that this is a problem, it doesn't do anything to mitigate the expense of replacing defective converters. By the way, labor is estimated to take 17 hours, since the tranny has to be removed.. so the total deal is like $2,100+... and that's using my own skilled and very fair mechanic. God knows what the dealer would charge.

Have any of you Audi owners heard of this issue or experienced it first hand? What do you think of this situation- is Audi being fair or am I being unreasonable in feeling a bit pissed off?

 

This isn't and issue with Audis in particular it's ZF transmissions of that particular vintage in general. This problem spans Audi's model range from the A4 to the A8. IIRC the TC issue was fixed around the 03 model year. There are a few companies offering remanufactured converters as well as ZF at a reduced cost to what Audi charges but you still have to pony up the bills to have it replaced.

 

Thanks for the feedback, advancedauto.

Given the installation cost, would you recommend using one of the other alternatives to Audi's TC? If so, which brand would you go with? I want to be sure that the replacement is dependable, of course.

In the meantime, I'm gonna hold off with this job and see if the symptoms get worse. Right now, it's barely an annoyance. But if past experience is any guide, the mechanical issues will increase in severity, frequency and duration. The only question is How Much Time Do I Have?