Audi S5 tiptronic gearbox (2017)
Discussion
So I bought an S5 Sportback which arrived 3 weeks ago and after 3 weeks of use the gearbox is frustrating the hell out of me 
I had an R32 5 years ago with a DSG box and it was sublime compared to this and this is £30k more expensive!
Maybe my fault, but i never really put much thought to what gearbox Audi put in the S5. I spec'd the car up online and as there was only one gearbox option I just hit next and carried on spec'ing it and thought it will be fine.
The car is awesome, looks great, sounds great etc etc, but the gearbox is a real let down. The gear changes seem so long and it lurches when in low speeds, its like going back 10 years. The only way to drive it is in dynamic or manual. You role into a roundabout in slow, normal driving conditions and the gearbox changes down, you then press the accelerator and nothing happens, the car is thinking about what to do, so you over compensate for the lack of 'go' so the next minute the boost has kicked in, its drop down far to many gears and you lurch forward and look a 'tool' blasting into the roundabout. Manual works perfectly, but if wanted a manual I would have bought one!
Does anyone else experience this? Any rumours if Audi will look to fix this with a software update? I can't understand why Audi put this gearbox on the S4, S5 and the RS5, yet the standard A5 and S6 get the s-tronic.
I had an R32 5 years ago with a DSG box and it was sublime compared to this and this is £30k more expensive!
Maybe my fault, but i never really put much thought to what gearbox Audi put in the S5. I spec'd the car up online and as there was only one gearbox option I just hit next and carried on spec'ing it and thought it will be fine.
The car is awesome, looks great, sounds great etc etc, but the gearbox is a real let down. The gear changes seem so long and it lurches when in low speeds, its like going back 10 years. The only way to drive it is in dynamic or manual. You role into a roundabout in slow, normal driving conditions and the gearbox changes down, you then press the accelerator and nothing happens, the car is thinking about what to do, so you over compensate for the lack of 'go' so the next minute the boost has kicked in, its drop down far to many gears and you lurch forward and look a 'tool' blasting into the roundabout. Manual works perfectly, but if wanted a manual I would have bought one!
Does anyone else experience this? Any rumours if Audi will look to fix this with a software update? I can't understand why Audi put this gearbox on the S4, S5 and the RS5, yet the standard A5 and S6 get the s-tronic.
mattdsc said:
Manual works perfectly, but if wanted a manual I would have bought one!
Not in any performance engine Audi you won't. Since 2011, there have been no manual options, to keep the emissions numbers down with 'economy mode'. It was compromise I made with gritted teeth.I recently finished 3 years in a B8.5 2014 Audi and whilst I am no fan of the box and hated almost having to book an appointment with reverse gear (it took ages to engage0 , it wasn't as bad as you describe, so I wonder if your car has a problem.
My advice is to request a drive in a friendly PH'ers S4/5 and confirm that its not just your car.
There's a forum subsection for VAG and a couple of B9 threads, where you should be able to locate someone close by.
Thinking about it, one thing I did learn to do on tight RAB's, was knock the selector back into 'sport mode' so that it immediately dropped a gear. Then push back to take it back out again as I exited,.
That became an almost reflex hand movement for any tight corner after a few months.
That became an almost reflex hand movement for any tight corner after a few months.
As in I would have bought a car with manual, not spec'd one. I did state the only option was tiptronic.
My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
Why would Audi put a standard A5 and an S6 with the s-tronic and not the S5 or even RS5?
My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
Why would Audi put a standard A5 and an S6 with the s-tronic and not the S5 or even RS5?
mattdsc said:
As in I would have bought a car with manual, not spec'd one. I did state the only option was tiptronic.
My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
Why would Audi put a standard A5 and an S6 with the s-tronic and not the S5 or even RS5?
I believe the S-Tronic doesn't cope too well with the torque of the more powerful cars. That's why they went with the Auto.My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
Why would Audi put a standard A5 and an S6 with the s-tronic and not the S5 or even RS5?
mattdsc said:
As in I would have bought a car with manual, not spec'd one. I did state the only option was tiptronic.
My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
I've got a B8.5 S4 and unless I'm in traffic/pootling I pretty much drive it exclusively with the paddles. (I always avoid using kickdown as that's really just an admission you're in the wrong gear!) My uncle has an S4 with the s-tronic box in it and its leagues ahead of the tiptronic. Just seems a backward step.
Nors said:
Rather surprised by that because they specifically left it out of the RS6 for that reason. Hmmm.....
Do you mean RS5?From what I understand they've used DSG boxes in most of their performance cars for the last 10 years or so. They've been problematic in the higher output models so have changed to the ZF box in the most recent mid-higher end performance models (S4/5 and RS5) and are likely to do the same for the new S/RS 6 and 7 models.
HJMS123 said:
They've been problematic in the higher output models so have changed to the ZF box in the most recent mid-higher end performance models (S4/5 and RS5) and are likely to do the same for the new S/RS 6 and 7 models.
It's not that they are problematic by nature, they are problematic unless they are heavily modified, then the cost involved to put one into a 'cheap' car outweighs the margin. To put it all into perspective, do you see Porsche sticking ZF boxes in their high-output cars, no they use PDK which is essentially a DSG/S-Tronic which can cope with the high power.
Look at the PH Fleet articles on their B9 S4 Avant that they had for a while. The gearbox was the main issue and source of frustration, which is the same ZF unit they used in the new S5. It's not a dual-clutch like the S-Tronic and doesn't seem to be a patch on the 8-speed ZF in the M-Lite BMW's, which is supposed to be fantastic for a generic automatic.
kmpowell said:
It's not that they are problematic by nature, they are problematic unless they are heavily modified, then the cost involved to put one into a 'cheap' car outweighs the margin.
To put it all into perspective, do you see Porsche sticking ZF boxes in their high-output cars, no they use PDK which is essentially a DSG/S-Tronic which can cope with the high power.
Totally agree and that hits it right on the head. I just wonder if Audi have had complaints and if they will be able to do anything via a software upgrade or is the nature of its build that its unlikely.To put it all into perspective, do you see Porsche sticking ZF boxes in their high-output cars, no they use PDK which is essentially a DSG/S-Tronic which can cope with the high power.
Have a read of the VW sub forum. They've ceased production of the S5 and S4, and whilst they haven't given proper details, they've said they're developing new software to improve 'comfort and spontaneity'.
I think we've all taken that to mean they'll rid it of the delay (at the cost of economy and emissions).
I've got into the habit of knocking it in to sport whenever I approach a roundabout, or am pulling onto a busy road.
I think we've all taken that to mean they'll rid it of the delay (at the cost of economy and emissions).
I've got into the habit of knocking it in to sport whenever I approach a roundabout, or am pulling onto a busy road.
mattdsc said:
So I bought an S5 Sportback which arrived 3 weeks ago and after 3 weeks of use the gearbox is frustrating the hell out of me
I had an R32 5 years ago with a DSG box and it was sublime compared to this and this is £30k more expensive!
Maybe my fault, but i never really put much thought to what gearbox Audi put in the S5. I spec'd the car up online and as there was only one gearbox option I just hit next and carried on spec'ing it and thought it will be fine.
The car is awesome, looks great, sounds great etc etc, but the gearbox is a real let down. The gear changes seem so long and it lurches when in low speeds, its like going back 10 years. The only way to drive it is in dynamic or manual. You role into a roundabout in slow, normal driving conditions and the gearbox changes down, you then press the accelerator and nothing happens, the car is thinking about what to do, so you over compensate for the lack of 'go' so the next minute the boost has kicked in, its drop down far to many gears and you lurch forward and look a 'tool' blasting into the roundabout. Manual works perfectly, but if wanted a manual I would have bought one!
Does anyone else experience this? Any rumours if Audi will look to fix this with a software update? I can't understand why Audi put this gearbox on the S4, S5 and the RS5, yet the standard A5 and S6 get the s-tronic.
Have a browse on a5oc.com. lots of useful stuff on there and very helpful A55/S5 membersI had an R32 5 years ago with a DSG box and it was sublime compared to this and this is £30k more expensive!
Maybe my fault, but i never really put much thought to what gearbox Audi put in the S5. I spec'd the car up online and as there was only one gearbox option I just hit next and carried on spec'ing it and thought it will be fine.
The car is awesome, looks great, sounds great etc etc, but the gearbox is a real let down. The gear changes seem so long and it lurches when in low speeds, its like going back 10 years. The only way to drive it is in dynamic or manual. You role into a roundabout in slow, normal driving conditions and the gearbox changes down, you then press the accelerator and nothing happens, the car is thinking about what to do, so you over compensate for the lack of 'go' so the next minute the boost has kicked in, its drop down far to many gears and you lurch forward and look a 'tool' blasting into the roundabout. Manual works perfectly, but if wanted a manual I would have bought one!
Does anyone else experience this? Any rumours if Audi will look to fix this with a software update? I can't understand why Audi put this gearbox on the S4, S5 and the RS5, yet the standard A5 and S6 get the s-tronic.
Hi,
I was just wondering if anyone has had any success on this topic?
I too have an S5 (B9) and have now covered, approaching, 4000 miles in it and am, quite frankly, totally depressed with its transmission!
In Dynamic AND "Sports mode" it is without doubt a spritely car but for everyday driving in any other mode it is lethargic and has an unpredictive response, to the point of being "Risky" on junctions and roundabouts!
Why should I have to manually downshift or select Sports mode on approach to these situations? It's supposed to be an "Automatic," the clue's in the name!!
It is NOT a sports car but a semi-luxury car with a reasonable performance, I can't help but feel it's "All or nothing" when driving it.
I'm totally up to date with all software (Or so I'm told by the Audi God's) so am not sure if there are any further avenues to explore?? HELP!!
It also has more rattles than a Mk III Escort which are being addressed this week, I'm having it appraised for a buy back at the same time but would really rather find a solution to this problem as I do actually quite like the rest of the car!
Any suggestions or thoughts greatly appreciated!!
I was just wondering if anyone has had any success on this topic?
I too have an S5 (B9) and have now covered, approaching, 4000 miles in it and am, quite frankly, totally depressed with its transmission!
In Dynamic AND "Sports mode" it is without doubt a spritely car but for everyday driving in any other mode it is lethargic and has an unpredictive response, to the point of being "Risky" on junctions and roundabouts!
Why should I have to manually downshift or select Sports mode on approach to these situations? It's supposed to be an "Automatic," the clue's in the name!!
It is NOT a sports car but a semi-luxury car with a reasonable performance, I can't help but feel it's "All or nothing" when driving it.
I'm totally up to date with all software (Or so I'm told by the Audi God's) so am not sure if there are any further avenues to explore?? HELP!!
It also has more rattles than a Mk III Escort which are being addressed this week, I'm having it appraised for a buy back at the same time but would really rather find a solution to this problem as I do actually quite like the rest of the car!
Any suggestions or thoughts greatly appreciated!!
Jonathan-zddse said:
Hi,
I was just wondering if anyone has had any success on this topic?
I too have an S5 (B9) and have now covered, approaching, 4000 miles in it and am, quite frankly, totally depressed with its transmission!
In Dynamic AND "Sports mode" it is without doubt a spritely car but for everyday driving in any other mode it is lethargic and has an unpredictive response, to the point of being "Risky" on junctions and roundabouts!
Why should I have to manually downshift or select Sports mode on approach to these situations? It's supposed to be an "Automatic," the clue's in the name!!
It is NOT a sports car but a semi-luxury car with a reasonable performance, I can't help but feel it's "All or nothing" when driving it.
I'm totally up to date with all software (Or so I'm told by the Audi God's) so am not sure if there are any further avenues to explore?? HELP!!
It also has more rattles than a Mk III Escort which are being addressed this week, I'm having it appraised for a buy back at the same time but would really rather find a solution to this problem as I do actually quite like the rest of the car!
Any suggestions or thoughts greatly appreciated!!
Sadly, that’s the compromise that you get with an auto box. The ability to knock it quickly into sport mode was the only saving grace I could find.I was just wondering if anyone has had any success on this topic?
I too have an S5 (B9) and have now covered, approaching, 4000 miles in it and am, quite frankly, totally depressed with its transmission!
In Dynamic AND "Sports mode" it is without doubt a spritely car but for everyday driving in any other mode it is lethargic and has an unpredictive response, to the point of being "Risky" on junctions and roundabouts!
Why should I have to manually downshift or select Sports mode on approach to these situations? It's supposed to be an "Automatic," the clue's in the name!!
It is NOT a sports car but a semi-luxury car with a reasonable performance, I can't help but feel it's "All or nothing" when driving it.
I'm totally up to date with all software (Or so I'm told by the Audi God's) so am not sure if there are any further avenues to explore?? HELP!!
It also has more rattles than a Mk III Escort which are being addressed this week, I'm having it appraised for a buy back at the same time but would really rather find a solution to this problem as I do actually quite like the rest of the car!
Any suggestions or thoughts greatly appreciated!!
If only they still made manuals for their performance derived cars.
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