We are looking at buying a 2002 A4 1.8t FWD with the CVT. 122k miles, engine was replaced at 73k due to oil sludge. Car fax showed one minor accident on the front fender which is not a concern. The only outside ding is one of the fog light lenses is broken. Inside has the light tan leather which is in great shape. The only controls that are worn through are the fan speed, light switch and window buttons. Everything else is really clean. The price of $4900 seemed too good to be true.

The test drive - Jumped on the highway and everything feels fine and the little 1.8 really moves.

Here's the issue - in town at slower speeds(25-35) the engine or tranny starts bucking. Feels just like when you have a manual transmission in too low of a gear for your speed. Dealer says that the 25-35 is where the shift point is and the car is searching for the right ratio to run in.

Online searching has overwhelmed me with info and I have determined it could be anything from a wheel speed sensor to a new transmission. Called a couple of shops and they said to walk away as the CVTs are not reliable, hard to find, and expensive to replace.

Is the bucking/searching/shift point a common issue? Can the shift points be removed? Is the transmission bad? Taking it in for an inspection tomorrow. Should I have them look at anything more specific than a general inspection?

 

The audi CVTs are a bit of a weak spot. The electronics are usually the culprit when they fail and they are NOT cheap. You should likely stay away. If you only want FWD, buy a manual. If you need the automatic trans, buy a quattro and you will have a durable conventional automatic.

That being said there are people on this forums who have had 0 issues,and others claiming catastrophic failures. So proceed at your own risk.