I just bought a 2003 A4 with the 1.8T, CVT, and Sport package. My wife will be the main driver, but I want to do some minor bolt ons to make it more fun to drive. For reference, my last sporty car was a 2002 WS6 Trans Am that had 335 RWHP with just an airbox and Borla cat back, and it ran 12.8's at 108 mph on NittoR2 (race compound) tires, so the power of the 1.8T is a little underwhelming to me, though it sure isn't a real dog like my Focus.

I was looking at APR for a stage 1 reprogram, but being in California all we have is crappy 91 octane, so I am not sure if they have a softer tune for 91 octane, and how much performance I can expect to gain in FWHP and E.T.'s. Also, how easy is it to reprogram it back to stock if I have to bring it to the dealer (I have a 100K warranty)? I would probablyalso want to get a cold air kit and a turbo back exhaust, California legal if possible. I realize with those minor mods it won't be snapping my neck, but at least it would be a little peppier.

So far the handling seems very good to me (any suggestions for DOT R compound tires or just plain grippy street tires in the stock size?), and the CVT in manual mode is pretty impressive in how fast the upshifts and downshifts are, but I am also worried about overstressing it. Any tips on prolonging it's life and how it holds up to occasional spirited driving with the minor mods I listed above?

Thanks for any tips and suggestions for an Audi newbie.

Mike

 

The CVT doesn't actually have gears, only a high and low, they just program number gears into the computer because most people can't understand how a car can't have gears.
Anyway the CVT can't handle too much power, so a chip and exhaust is about the extent the stock CVT can handle, but that should be around 210-220 hp which will actually feel quite powerful.
Make sure to change the fluid every 40k in the CVT as well because it gets dirty very quick and you will experience problems if you let it prolong further than that.

 

Thanks for the advice on the CVT. I understand the concept of it having no gears and having almost infinite gear adjustments, but the computer does a good job of chopping it up into a quasi 6 speed in manual mode. It sure upshifts and downshifts faster than any other transmission I have ever had and holds the engine right where you want it when you click it over to the right for the manual mode, and when you leave it in drive it does it's thing and puts the engine where it deems neccesary. It takes a little getting used to when left in the normal CVT mode, but seems to wirk OK. I would have preferred a manual, but my wife is going to be the main driver of the car.

I will get the fluid changed ASAP, it has 48000 miles on it now, so I'm sure it is due, and I don't trust that the dealer or other owner did that. Any idea on the service cost of that? Maybe I'll just do it myself, but that may cause problems with the idiot dealers if I need to use the powertrain warranty. The bolt ons I listed should give it enough power to make it more fun to drive, and I won't be driving like a maniac that often, so I guess with proper fluid changes the CVT should handle the power increase without too big of a fuss.

Thanks, Mike

 

You won't be able to change the fluid on the CVT without several special tools,
You need a VAG COM to check the temp of the fluid while you fill it, you need a special anti tamper triple square socket for the drain plug, and the fill tool that gravity feeds it, you have to fill the tranny from the bottom.

 

Thanks for the reply. Sounds like a dealer thing then, or at least a European specialty garage. My Brother in law is a district sales manager for Kragen and probably can hook me up with a good shop that will cut me a deal (or maybe let me borrow the tools, but I don't want the responsibility), but either way it sounds expensive to change the fluid in the CVT. I'm so used to my archaic American cars like my Chevelle and Trans Am (a 2002 car that was based on an early 80's platform, but boy could it go in a straight line) that were very easy to work on, the only problem was you had to work on them so much. I get a lot of pleasure from driving the A4, so I think this will be worth it for the higher maintenance costs and less do it yourself factor. We'll see how that initial impression turns out, but this is easily the most luxurious and comfortable car that I have owned, and even with it's modest power it is fun to drive.

Mike