Hi, Everybody,

I'm thinking changing my ATF (filter, etc). I think it wasn't changed for more then 100K miles or even more. I am having really hard shifts, some whining noises when gears shift in motion, etc. I got this kit from blauparts. However, when I went to dealer, they told me - "if it works, don't touch it, you don't need to change the fluid at all in this kind of car" - WTF? are they lying to me or what. Then I went to my mechanic, and he told me that he won't do it (too risky?? or smth else?) He told me "you don't know what you're talking about". So I wonder, If you guys can give me advice, to do or not to do, even though I already bought the kit, not a big deal it was like 50 bucks. I don't want to ruin my transmission, it runs fairly good now. My level of expertise in car mechanics is not high at all. I did heater core change, timing belt change, and other minor stuff. I feel that I can do ATF change. Please, all thoughts welcome.

If the tranny is truly going bad doing a fluid and filter change will not make it worse in my opinion. From my experience doing the fluid and filter change after experiencing those symptoms will improve it. You may want to change it again in another 10K miles if you don't do a flush. If you have done a timing belt and heater core, then doing a tranny service will be no big deal for you. Most mechanics don't want to be blamed for transmission problems so they won't touch them. I have know several mechanics on each side of the issue. Some won't touch a tranny if it has never been serviced by 150K. Others say it is no big deal. The problem is some think that if you change the fluid it will dis-lodge particles(crud) in the tranny and clog up the passages/valves.

I say do it....if it is better then you might have just saved a transmission. If it doesn't get better then you were going to have to replace the tranny anyway.

Just my 2 cents.
Mark

Well after I read the FAQ about tranny fluid and gearbox fluid change I noticed that you need a special bit to change the gearbox oil. The author noted spending $40 on the bit, well if you need one I found a guy on Ebay selling them for about $20.<ul><li><a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Audi-VW-Transmission-Drain-Plug-Tool-A3-A4-A6-A8-Passat_W0QQitemZ220112257295QQihZ012QQcategoryZ439 93QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem">Follow the Yellow Brick Road...</a></li></ul>

"if it works, don't touch it, you don't need to change the fluid at all in this kind of car"

True, but:

"I am having really hard shifts, some whining noises when gears shift in motion"

doesn't sound like it's working to me.

the transmission is working, besides noises and hard shifts. It was doing it for last 30K miles, and will probably work for another 30-40K miles (you never know). However, maybe it won't. I don't want to ruin it earlier by doing fluid change and clogging the passages (how it was mentioned by eurovan5150). I've heard similar stories as well. Taking these facts into consideration, what would you suggest, one more time? Thanks.

How long do you plan on keeping the car? If you plan on just keeping it for another year or so then just drive it as-is. How annoying and hard are the shifts? How bad is the whining noise?

I still say go ahead and do it. Maybe you should take it to a reputable transmission shop(preferably someone who has worked on German cars) and have them do a flush. Get there advice on the "clogging passages" problem and if a flush will take care of that issue. Maybe they can even clean the valve body for you??? If halfway taken care of these ZF transmissions are really built well. I'm getting ready to service my tranny again. I bought the car with 116K miles and serviced it at about 125K. Now at 175K I'm a little late on my every 40K change that I promised. I hope to keep this car going with its original engine/tranny to at least 250K. Maybe more if all is well at that point.

Mark

doesn't sound good to me. Of course I've only got two of these cars, both with +150k miles, and no tranny noises or hard shifts.

...the trans should be serviced every 40K miles. Don't believe the lifetime fluid drivel. Service means drain the fluid, drop the pan, change the filter, refill with approved fluid (replaces about 2.5 liters of the full 7 liters).

I bought my 96 A6 with 80K miles. Drove it for another 40K and then started getting a hard shift to 3rd gear. Knowing the previous owner, it's likely she never had the trans serviced.

I was also concerned about new fluid freeing up the crud inside. I decided to use this approach: (1) service filter and fluid, (2) drive the car for a few thousand miles, (3) drain and refill fluid again, (4) drive another few thousand miles, (5) service filter and fluid a third time. At that point, about 80% of the total fluid will have been replaced.

My theory was that the first and second fluid replacements would gradually dissolve any embedded crud and allow it to be captured by the filter. Also, during the first service, I had to drop the pan anyway so I cleaned it really well inside. It did have some gunk in the bottom. There's a magnet stuck to the bottom of the pan that attracts metal particles in the fluid. Mine was fuzzy.

The result? After the first service, the clunk to 3rd gear went away completely. The transmission now performs like new. Silky smooth shifts. My plan now is to service the filter &amp; fluid every year regardless of miles. Cheap insurance at $60 a pop. Filter $10 and pan gasket $6 at <a href="https://www.autohausaz.com/search/product.aspx?sid=4xnip0maifgbihq35mf21sr1&makeid=800002@AUDI&modelid=1008841@A6%20QUATTRO%20&year=1996&cid=33@Transmission/Transaxle%20System&gid=8599@Transmission%20Filter">autohausaz.com.</a> Pentosin ATF1 $10 per liter at <a href="http://www.worldimpex.com/parts/pentosin-automat-transmission-fluid-1-ltr-pentosin_249116.html">worldimpex.com.</a>