jlake826

Hey everyone, I'm new on here, so not sure if this has been discussed before. I am the proud owner of a 2000 A6 4.2. The other day when I was driving home, I came to a stop sign. After coming to a standstill, and trying to accelerate the tach revved but didn't seem like the car was in gear. After I let off the gas and tried again, it seemed to engage. When I switched to tiptronic to see what gear I was in, all the gears in the dash were highlighted. It seemed to do this my whole way home, so I am afraid to cause further damage and drive to a garage to have the code scanned.

Just wondering if anyone has had similar problems, or if maybe this could be caused from low fluid or clogged filter? ( trying to rule out the cheaper fixes first ) prior to this it seemed to be running fine. If anything it shifted a lil hard into gear once or twice the last week or so prior....not really enough to cause me any worry.

Thanks for the help!

LR Audi

Is your Check Engine Light on? If you can find someone with a Vag-Com that is willing to come to your home then I recommend having your vehicle scanned. Honestly, transmission problems are very common on all the 4.2 40V models. It was discussed here not too long ago. The transmission in your car is likely the ZF 5HP24FLA which is rated at no more 300HP. Your vehicle already produces that amount so your transmission is prone to overheat and have issues. What you experienced may be a sign that transmission failure is somewhere in the future. Expect to pay in the thousands to get it repaired properly. If that situation arises, spend the extra money and have the torque converter upgraded. But for now have your vehicle scanned.

jlake826

Thank you for the reply...and yes the chk eng light is on, but it came on a week ago due to an o2 sensor. As of now the garage I bring it to ( which has an Audi/Saab cert mech ) would like to first try to drain trans oil, replace filter, refill oil properly (as required for this car ) and they want to check to make sure all bolts are tourqued properly. I didn't know if all of this made sense or if they are just going to whack me the $200 and then tell me it needs a tranny! That's why I posted....to see if what they are saying makes sense with my cars symptoms.

LR Audi

Are you absolutely certain that the CEL is on due to an oxygen sensor? You have four oxygen sensors and usually it's the pre-cat oxygen sensors that fail. What was the code?

Audi states that their transmission fluid is a "filled for life" and is non-serviceable. As discussed on this forum as well as Audiworld, this is complete utterly bulls**t. The manufacturer for these transmissions even states that they are to be serviced on intervals dependent on the driving conditions.

How has the vehicle been performing prior to this incident? Also, have them crack open the old filter to see it's contents. If you have gear chunks or plastic pieces in there then you're in for some seriously heavy repairs.

A transmission service isn't too difficult to do on your own, but you need the specific tools. And at a price of $200 you're better off simply paying the technician rather than doing it yourself. The dealer price here in Vancouver is around $800 for a transmission service. I was able to get my ZF 5HP19FLA on my A6 serviced at an independent shop for just under $200 last year. The fluid came out black!