2000 A4 1.8T 5-speed.

Is it just me, or is the 5th gear, geared extremely low?. In 5th @ 2k, i'm going about 50mph. and at highway speed i'm @ about 3k, a little more.

I drive on the highway a lot, and i've never had a car that tach'd this high going 60-65. Its a new care for me and i'm worried there may be in issue.

 

The 1.8t transmission is geared pretty low, it's perfectly normal.

 

Will driving at 3k RPM damage or wear the engine or turbo more than if i changed it somehow?

 

Do you really think Hans and Fritz over in Ingolstadt designed a car that can't drive on the highway without prematurely wearing stuff out? They have the Autobahn there, the car can handle cruising at 60. If you're really serious about it you could swap over the tranny from a V6 which is geared a bit higher, but I'll tell you right now you're gonna hate driving it not on the highway. I'm speaking from experience here.

 

Thank you man.

This is my first car that has a Turbo. I know these things are built like tanks, but i'm just worried that i may be using the turbo unnecessarily and wearing it out.

 

Don't worry about it. A turbo spinning simply wont just wear out from spinning too much. It will pretty much last indefinitely if you change the oil regularly and warm the turbo up before using it and cool it down after using it. I see no reason, if treated properly, a turbo couldn't last the life of the car. You just need to make sure anything that has an effect on the turbo's life is in tip top shape.