I have a 2003 Audi A4 B6 with a multi-tronic CVT (01J - GGH I believe) and 125k. I love the car but have been through all of the typical problems of the A4. Ie: wheel bearings, motor mounts, snub mount, oxygen sensors, coolant flange, timing belt, control arms, timing belt tensioner and gasket, valve cover gasket and more... and have pretty much become an audi tech myself... aquiring a VAG and the bentley manual to help me do my bidding upon my a4... only mods I have are very minor, a K&N filter, an upgraded 225 hp Audi TT Diverter valve and a race N75 valve from ECS for better airfow and that's it.

Anyway, the vehicle has been very well taken care of, oil changed every 5k miles always with synthetic AND trans fluid (with CVT fluid) performed at the 40k service by the dealer and again at 90k with a second party VW specialist that I trust and watched perform the service. Tranny has been well taken care of and not abused.

NOW... the fun part... the problems. It's been slugglish and a little 'jerky' lately and I was about to have the fluid changed for a third time (which originally was supposed to be for life according to audi) when it started acting up. While driving the PRND lights just disappear. Not flash. Not get backlit (like the typical tcm fail error) and flash, BUT DISAPPEAR completely. Then they come back, then they disappear again. Another thing Ive noticed is that the tranny seems to go into limp mode and drops the RPMs to about 1200 and doesnt respond well to acceleration. This tells me that the tranny has gone into 'limp' mode. And all this with NO MIL. No lights, no errors, nothing...

So I drove it for a day or two and would sometimes notice the problem and sometimes it wouldnt happen. I also noticed that the multi-tronic shifter becomes inactive and doesnt work when this occurs and the tranny goes into limp mode. It sux and its dangerous cause I drive 528 from the beach to Orlando on the regular and I need that power sometimes.

Soooo.... I expected to scan the car and find some codes which would tell me that the tanny TCM was bad. Which is pretty much my worst nightmare when it comes to this car. I have read all of the stories and heeded all of the warnings and took very good care of the tranny by changing the fluid often. BUT... no codes on the engine or tranny. A few codes in the electrical system refering to the door locks and the security system but I cleared those and rescaned and nothing.

So I been driving it and its still happening. What is the problem here? Has anyone experienced their PRND indicators disappearing and these issues? This isnt the normal TCM failure that I read about... is it something else?

I am stumped and dont really wanna take it to the 'stealer'. Especially if their going to tell me that its the TCM and they wanna rape me for 3k. I will lose my cool I assure you.

HELP?!?!?!?!?! Orlando/ Space Coast Fl here!

 

Well prepare to hold on to your *** because the 03 CVT is a ticking time bomb. It doesn't matter how well you took care of it, the input shaft wasn't installed correctly from the factory, they run too hot, and the clutch packs are too weak for the weight of the car. What im trying to say is no matter what you do in next few weeks, you're going to be forking someone over a few grand to fix it.

My best guess is the fluid cooked the TCM, no codes with electrical problems is a bad thing. It generally means the TCM isn't capable of giving them to you, so its most likely fried. If it were a shifter selector issue you would get a TR fault. You're best course of action given its an 03 is to buy a complete new (updated) CVT transmission, because only changing the module will only fix it temporarilly.
Slap in a new trans and sell it. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

P.S. Lifetime fluid? Audi never said the CVT fluid was a lifetime fluid, from the start it had a service life of 40k, the tiptronic transmissions are "lifetime" fluid. Which of course is all horseshit because what does "lifetime" actually mean? My life? Yours? The cars? Its stupid.

 

Thank you for your quick reply audiTech79 but ... thats NOT good news ...

Sooo basically I'm screwed.

What if I pulled the TCM and had it remanufactured here:

http://www.audiautocomputers.com/TCU...?showrnrattop=

And then put new fluid in. How many more miles do you think I could get out of it. I still owe 6k on the car.

Is it worth going to the stealer and having the argument that they manufactured a piece of junk transmission whose computer sux and fries itself and whose design cant handle the horsepower or weight of the vehicle? Im am sure they are aware of these issues. I have seen posts with multiple TSB's for these issues but NO RECALL?

Think audi will provide any goodwill if I bring up all of these issues? Call Audi of America - complain etc...

I dont think its worth putting a new tranny in for 4 - 5k. Argghhh I love this car.... this is lame. I thought this was a good car and I loved it... now its just turning into a headache. Arrghh.

 

Attacking a dealership is a failing proposition, they are private companies so getting money out of them ain't gonna happen. Plus you can't prove anything, audi IS well aware of the issues, they are the ones that have issued the TSB's. Your best bet is to call audi of america and see what they say, there may have been a large class action law suit by now about the issue forcing a recall, if there IS something in the works then the best thing to do is sit tight and see what happens if you don't want to pay for the repair.
In my opinion there should be several recalls on both the CVT transmission, and the 3.0L engine, however the government will usually only force an automaker to make a recall if its a safety issue. Since a failing transmission isn't one, it has to go to the court system.

As for that company rebuilding the TCM, i've never heard of anyone tackling one of those specifically, but its worth a try. If you could get it to work, it would work good enough to where you can sell it and get it off your hands before it actually does explode.

 

You can also try here.
http://www.bba-reman.com/catalogue/P...px?category=46

 

Was wondering if you ever got this issue resolved. I am in the same boat. All I have had so far is occasional check engine light, with transmission speed sensor code. My mechanic said I would need a TCM. Feels sluggish sometimes. My price I got from him was $933 which I think is really good. My only concern is if this is only gonna be a temporary fix, and I will have more problems. Check out www.europeantransmissions.com. Rebuilt TCM $550. Rebuilt entire CVT $3200 all with warranty. Seems like good prices. Thats where I am getting my TCM when I have to. The plus for me is they are local, but they ship worldwide.