S Tronic and Quattro combination known issues?
Discussion
Hi guys,
Long time lurker here, after the unfortunate death of my a3 tfsi, I am looking to upgrade to an a3 quattro.
On my hunt I have become very tempted by the Dsg gearbox, but combining the quattro and dsg sounds like a very complicated mechanical and software mix?
It sounds like it would be very expensive to repair if anything went wrong.
Are there any known issues with this combination?
The car I am looking at:
A3 2.0 TFSI S Line S Tronic Quattro, 2008 with 60k miles (it is a cat D and had 6 previous owners)
Am I letting my emotions get the better of me?
Long time lurker here, after the unfortunate death of my a3 tfsi, I am looking to upgrade to an a3 quattro.
On my hunt I have become very tempted by the Dsg gearbox, but combining the quattro and dsg sounds like a very complicated mechanical and software mix?
It sounds like it would be very expensive to repair if anything went wrong.
Are there any known issues with this combination?
The car I am looking at:
A3 2.0 TFSI S Line S Tronic Quattro, 2008 with 60k miles (it is a cat D and had 6 previous owners)
Am I letting my emotions get the better of me?
That would be up to you, the 3.2 has more power and sounds great but is rather thirsty.
Personally, I like a bigger normally aspirated engine rather than a smaller turbo engine (no replacement for displacement!) and I'm a fan of 6 cylinder noise but the 3.2 is likely to be older as I think they may have stopped making them by 2008? and the road tax is higher (much higher if after 2005) due to emissions based tax.
Personally, I like a bigger normally aspirated engine rather than a smaller turbo engine (no replacement for displacement!) and I'm a fan of 6 cylinder noise but the 3.2 is likely to be older as I think they may have stopped making them by 2008? and the road tax is higher (much higher if after 2005) due to emissions based tax.
If you're going for an S-Tronic, used, at least make sure that it's had it's service at 35k-ish and 70k-ish.
I had a 2009 S4 with S-Tronic. Picked it up at 67k and had the gearbox serviced as part of the deal, but the history didn't show that it had had its first gearbox service. D1 / D2 started to play up with solutions ranging from couple of hundred (replacement valve unit, not normally offered by workshops /Audi) to many thousand to solve (new mechatronic unit / new clutch packs / new gearbox).
I had a 2009 S4 with S-Tronic. Picked it up at 67k and had the gearbox serviced as part of the deal, but the history didn't show that it had had its first gearbox service. D1 / D2 started to play up with solutions ranging from couple of hundred (replacement valve unit, not normally offered by workshops /Audi) to many thousand to solve (new mechatronic unit / new clutch packs / new gearbox).
Dr_Rick said:
If you're going for an S-Tronic, used, at least make sure that it's had it's service at 35k-ish and 70k-ish.
I had a 2009 S4 with S-Tronic. Picked it up at 67k and had the gearbox serviced as part of the deal, but the history didn't show that it had had its first gearbox service. D1 / D2 started to play up with solutions ranging from couple of hundred (replacement valve unit, not normally offered by workshops /Audi) to many thousand to solve (new mechatronic unit / new clutch packs / new gearbox).
How much did it cost you in the end? I had a 2009 S4 with S-Tronic. Picked it up at 67k and had the gearbox serviced as part of the deal, but the history didn't show that it had had its first gearbox service. D1 / D2 started to play up with solutions ranging from couple of hundred (replacement valve unit, not normally offered by workshops /Audi) to many thousand to solve (new mechatronic unit / new clutch packs / new gearbox).
What other flags should I look for apart from service history?
Given I do 65-70 miles a day five days a week, I decided that I couldn't / wouldn't take the risk and I offloaded the car, warts-n-all.
I now drive a newer, rarer, more powerful car, with full main dealer history, that is more reliable (anecdotally and literally I think). I drive a Lexus ISF.
Private sale, private purchase. It cost me a couple of thousand to change, but the piece of mind is to a degree priceless.
The problem with the S4 was that if the guy tried the valve and it didn't work, it would have been a couple of hundred down the drain. Then it would have been onto something else, most likely the mechatronic valve set, which is about £1.5k in parts alone I seem to recall. Plus labour, and the time out of the car which I need for work. And this is from an indie with no courtesy car. Even then the indie couldn't guarantee that the mechatronic unit was at fault. So the risk is that by replacing the mechatronic unit I may still be left with the same problem. Which takes you to the clutch packs, which could be another £1.5k all in as there are two sets of clutches. Again no guarantees, so you'd then be on to the gearbox unit itself which is £7k+.
So, you can see why I was not so keen to keep it.
While it was working it was fine. When that particular issue became apparent, and I dug into what could be needed and it wasn't a cheap option. The warranty I had would only cover part of the costs, and I'd still be left with 4 figure bills.
I chose to use the 'bill' to get into a more reliable motor for the same money.
All the above was specific to me and my car at the time, but S-Tronic issues are not unknown. What can you do beyond looking at the service book, I think speaking to the service centres involved at the right mileages for a gearbox service. Then if sensible I'd get a gearbox service done anyway, it only cost a couple of hundred pounds. And I'd make sure I'd got a sensible warranty that would cover potential gearbox traumas.
I now drive a newer, rarer, more powerful car, with full main dealer history, that is more reliable (anecdotally and literally I think). I drive a Lexus ISF.
Private sale, private purchase. It cost me a couple of thousand to change, but the piece of mind is to a degree priceless.
The problem with the S4 was that if the guy tried the valve and it didn't work, it would have been a couple of hundred down the drain. Then it would have been onto something else, most likely the mechatronic valve set, which is about £1.5k in parts alone I seem to recall. Plus labour, and the time out of the car which I need for work. And this is from an indie with no courtesy car. Even then the indie couldn't guarantee that the mechatronic unit was at fault. So the risk is that by replacing the mechatronic unit I may still be left with the same problem. Which takes you to the clutch packs, which could be another £1.5k all in as there are two sets of clutches. Again no guarantees, so you'd then be on to the gearbox unit itself which is £7k+.
So, you can see why I was not so keen to keep it.
While it was working it was fine. When that particular issue became apparent, and I dug into what could be needed and it wasn't a cheap option. The warranty I had would only cover part of the costs, and I'd still be left with 4 figure bills.
I chose to use the 'bill' to get into a more reliable motor for the same money.
All the above was specific to me and my car at the time, but S-Tronic issues are not unknown. What can you do beyond looking at the service book, I think speaking to the service centres involved at the right mileages for a gearbox service. Then if sensible I'd get a gearbox service done anyway, it only cost a couple of hundred pounds. And I'd make sure I'd got a sensible warranty that would cover potential gearbox traumas.
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