After just dropping $800 on a total break job overhaul, my 1997 A6 Quattro Sedan decided to have tranny problems a little later, but this seems to be a more weird issue that I've seen on any board:

It was driving fine and then on a very cold night I put it in reverse and started to pull away in Drive (it's an automatic) and the car would not move. Same deal in 3rd and 2nd, but in 1st gear it drives fine. The next day I found that I have to rev the car to about 3500 RPMs in 2nd, 3rd or Drive in order for the transmission to kick in and take off. BUT, if I put it in 1st gear, there is no issue. Basically, I'm now stuck shifting my automatic transmission like it's manual or else the car won't go....well unless I rev it to 3500 RPMs in any other gear besides 1st and let it kick in, but it literally "kicks" in / "jolts" and takes off.

Why in the world would everything be fine when starting out in 1st gear and shifting my way up? I don't have tiptronic, as I only have 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Drive. I was REALLY hoping it was just TCM, but a mechanic I took it to said they got no electrical codes, so naturally they say it needs a total tranny rebuild. Go figure. How can a transmission be shot but still work just fine in 1st gear and shift just fine as long as I do it manually? Makes no sense to me. I love the car and swore by Audi, but I see SO many transmission issues with these things! I only have 114,000k on it. I've been driving it by shifting because I've been out of work after a stem cell transplant and simply cannot afford the $1,800.00 they want for the rebuild. Any ideas or has anybody else had this problem? This is not a limp mode issue like most of the things I've seen.

Thank you much!

 

Do you know if the tranny fluid and filter have ever been changed? If not, then it might be something to consider. I believe a dirty filter would cover the issues you've described.

You should probably wait and see what others say though. Even though I've been reading like crazy for the last few weeks, I'm still an Audi noobie.

P.S. Have you read this thread? https://www.audiforums.com/forum/allroad-model-line-47/transmission-toast-35068/

 

Is the thing cold? Audi's hold low gears when they are cold to meet emissions requirements. If it does it warm and cold you might have a bad sensor or a real problem.

 

Try changing your TCU first. It sounds electrical, as you also think, and the TCU is a known issue.

Bob

 

Thanks for the replies, guys. And yes, the first night it did this was when it was below zero outside, but it still does it after it warms up, and we had a day hit about 50 degrees and it still continued to do this.

I have never had the tranny fluid or anything change. I have read that it should never have to be changed, but some people think otherwise. I should probably start there since it should be the cheapest.

And I've love to switch out the TCM but my issues are that I'm not real great with cars. Even when I tried to get to the TCM, I believe I have to take quite a few panels off and pull up some carpet since I read it's located on the passenger side foot well of the front seat of the car. (I swear, Audi put stuff in the dumbest locations possible). But even if I could get to it, I'd still have to buy one and risk that money. Wouldn't be an issue except I was recently diagnosed with severe crohn's disease and have been out of work for about 11 months, going through chemotherapy etc. So I've read as much as I can to try and figure this out and I see a LOT of people have had issues with their TCM. Had to be a huge mistake by Audi. Anyway, Audis are not good cars to have if you ever get extremely sick from a disease, and they have issues! On top of this, there is now a hole somewhere in my muffler, but that is obviously not a concern compared to a transmission rebuild.

For now I will keep shifting manually, as annoying as it is. -- The tranny mechanic I took it to explained it as there being basically latches in the transmission that have to 'hook' together when putting it into gear, and he thinks they must be worn down, so they aren't catching or locking into place. This is just what he THINKS. But it doesn't explain why I can start out in 1st just fine and manually shift. Ugh. I love Audi, but damn they are a pain to fix! Even when my headlight busted, places wanted $300 to $550 for a brand new one!

 

I am not a tranny expert, but there are no latches in the transmission other than a parking pawl, just hydraulic valves, electrical solenoids and pressure sensors. It sounds like you might have a valve body problem. I will also mention that $1800 won't rebuild this unit properly, so be careful of the advice you are getting. I don't the think the TCM is causing the problem. The elctronics are sophisticated enough that if the TCM were failing, it would tell you.

 

OOps, I meant to preface this by saying that it would pay to get the fluid level checked before anything else. You will need a shop to do this for you unless you have equipment to raise the car on the level and monitor the tranny fluid temp with the engine running.

 

Thanks for chiming in as well, oldmots. I wish I could just take my car to the Audi dealership, but those clowns charge at least $60.00 just to hook it up to their computers. It's ridiculous. And I have a feeling they will tell me I need a new tranny no matter what. Funny thing is I spoke with an Audi service guy and he said that they (the Audi Dealership) doesn't even have the tools to rebuild an Audi tranny! The guy said "It takes a special set of tools to rebuild it, and we don't have them here. You may want to call a place that specializes in working on European imports." Apparently they will only buy get them brand new! That blew my mind. And I have only taken it to one place, but it was AAmco, who specializes in transmissions, and they quoted me $1,800 to rebuild the whole thing. IF it does need a rebuild, that is actually a good price, but like I said, their "diagnosis" was something about them thinking the levers or latches (wish I could remember the exact phrase)...but said they think they aren't catching, because when it switches gears, there are things that have to "catch" or "latch". But things work just fine when I manual shift. So my plan now is to get the exact computer codes that they got and research them. I know one of them had to do with a brake sensor being messed up, which they said must be a whole different issue. But I do believe they said another read out had to do with an oxygen sensor?? Or some type of sensor, if I'm not mistaken. I almost sure they said it was some sensor type of readout. But they then said since they didn't get any electrical error codes, it couldn't be as simple as a messed up TCM.

The sad thing is that I actually dropped in that I have been out of work for a year because of health issues, and that I have to get doses of chemotherapy once a week and these Remicade infusions every 4 weeks blah blah blah....and I still think they just jumped right to the "we will have to rebuild the tranny" as an answer, as it would be the biggest money maker for the shop in this situation. Maybe I'm too skeptical, but I happen to believe that unless you know your mechanic personally, there is a VERY good chance you are going to get ripped off and taken advantage of.

BTW, maybe my quote for a tranny rebuild was $1,800 because I live in Omaha, Nebraska. I'd imagine it's quite a bit cheaper here than to get it done in a place like California or New York etc., for example. Just a guess though. But thanks again for the help! It gives me more stuff to research and be armed with when I go to the next tranny shop. And when I learn more, I will post because I have seen a TON of Audi owners who have had tranny issues. It's obviously a screw up Audi themselves. Wish I knew this a few years ago, I would have bought the nice Eclipse for the same price and lower mileage!

 

If you are out of a job, what else do you have to do other than take a few panels off your Audi? It isn't that tough. Start by getting a can of DeOxit and using that to clean the TCU. It won't hurt and could fix the problem. If you don't want to do it yourself, find a local high school kid to do it for you for $20.

It COULD be your governor, which controls fluid flow to the valve body parts that force automatic shifting. It COULD be that one of the circuits to the automatic shifting is blocked by some debris or a check ball is stuck in place. It is doubtful that you need a full rebuild since you can shift by hand. AS Oldmots said, a simple valve body rebuild could solve your problem. Talk to a couple of transmission shops to see who would do that for you and at what price. Most willl be reluctant to do so since they are honest people and will want to stand behind their work and CAN'T DO SO on just a valve body rebuild. If they have been in business for long, they have had someone come in, have a partial job done then sue them for the cost of a new transmission SO BE UNDERSTANDING. You are taking the risk!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My last word of advise is to sell the car. You cannot afford it and you have other issues to deal with. Buy a cheap Ford or Chevy to get you through your current situation. And concentrate on getting well. There will always be another Audi.

Good luck,

Bob

 

Since you are out of luck concerning ZF Distributors - you'll have to take the car/tranny to either Colorado, Minnesota, or N. Mexico -closest states - and probably you can't work on the car yourself due to the unfortunate illness, I think Bob's advice is fairly sound.