AFAIK i am the first to have this problem.

i picked my car up last tuesday night and from the start had a hard time getting the shifter to move into the different slots in the gate. i thought it must be me. or that the car was brand new (56 miles) and the shifter was just a bit stiff. i even stalled her a couple of times from the redlight- but i chalked it all up to my unfamiliarity with a new car and the associated jitters of having a new R8.

on wednesday things remained the same except at one point when i shifted into third it did not go all the way in until the second try. the shifter remained stiff in general.

i didn't drive it again till saturday (yesterday). that morning i tried to row through the gears while the car was parked and off. it was nothing like my S4. very stiff. i finally decided it was not me, or my assumption that the car was too new, or whatever... things just were not right.

i drove it to the dealer. as i was getting off the expressway and downshifted into third and let the clutch out the engine revved and although the lever was all the way into the third gear slot the car didn't engine brake, it simply revved. i put it in neutral and coasted to the light (luckily one block from the dealer) and drove into the dealer perplexed and shocked.

i told my salesman to take it for a drive himself but after he got in the car and tried to move the lever he agreed instantly. it was not normal in any way. extremely stiff. he said it should move lightly and easily. he didn't need to drive it to see what the problem was.

didn't look good on audi because the dealership was full that day. everyone was out there looking at this gorgeous silver R8 and saying, just like me,

"W T F?"

how is it possible that a car that goes through the kinds of QC that this one does could have a problem like this? couldn't they have noticed it during the miles they put on it at the factory? my guess is i am going to need a new transmission. how am i supposed to feel comfortable with dealership techs installing a new transmission in a 3 day old 133K R8? how does this happen? seriously? i am shocked.

Mine was extremely stiff when new, and has been getting better ever since. There was another 3rd gear issue a few threads down, I hope this is not something that affects the whole line?

it certainly leaves a bad taste in the mouth, however.

It'd be interesting to see what exactly consists of their QC...but w/o knowing what the root cause is, how'd you know a new transmission is in store?

Sounds like a linkage issue and the gate not lining up with the shifter. I doubt it's a tranny issue. My R8 was buttery perfect in every way. The gate was smoother than a Toyota's box.

You were spot on - new transmission is on order. Whether it will show up next week, or next month, or next year - no idea. AoA did not commit to a specific timeline.

Needless to say - "bad taste in my mouth" is an understatement. I just spent 133K for a vehicle that was supposed to be "the perfect driving machine" where "technical precision and performance are pushed to their limits". Two weeks after driving the vehicle off the lot, I find out that there is "an internal transmission issue" (from the factory). Not good for AoA.

Perhaps I should have gone with the RS4 - it is the same engine, yet, quite a bit cheaper...

I doubt it will be fixed within 30 days. I am truly sorry to hear your story. I can imagine the anticipation and excitement being crushed by utter disappointment. I hope they make it right for you somehow.

but it probably isn't a lining up issue for the lever never moved smoothly for me. had it simply been a misalinged lever i would have been at least been able to move it smoothly where there was travel.

unfortunately, i think i may be in the same box as iab, et al. my guess is i'll need an entirely new transmission. for my entirely new car.

i'll post an update on monday.

what pains me most is that i do not think they'll be sourcing another tranny any time soon. i don't know why but i feel it. though what should happen is they should overnight two quattro gmbh techs and a brand new tranny to orlando. i don't need any apologies or "buttering-up" telephone calls. just my R8 in my driveway where it should be.

When they run it through the final tests on the rollers at the factory you'd think they would notice a hard-shifting car.

I hope they can get it resolved quickly for you. If it turns out to be a problem with the internals I really doubt they will even allow the Audi techs to open the transmission. They will probably have to ship a new one over from Italy - which would probably never get here in less than 30 days.

You may be looking at a new car...

Transmissions are from Italy built by Lamborghini. They even have the Lamborghini bull on the transmission casing.

They made a point out of that when I went on my R8 production tour a couple of weeks ago in Neckarsulm.

Lemon law can be tough - the manufacturer needs to try to fix the issue first which is what I am letting them do.

The issue at hand though is that per all Audi materials, this is supposed to be the "perfect driving machine"...

maybe that is just the final assembly point for the tranny.

Their materials are very clear as to how good of a machine this is, unreal to hear about a tranny issue that they "new about."

I have dealt with a lemon car all the way to buy-back from the manufacturer, not a fun experience, no matter the caliber of the vehicle. Laws very widely state-to-state so if it gets to be more than 30 days out of service I would seriously consider it. Maybe you can talk AoA into shipping you one of the more than 30 cars that they have labeled as Audi Corporate for your use while yours is down.

My 6MT was delivered on 2/29. Haven't noticed any problems after 775 miles, but shifting does seem "tight"...

imagine being in the hottest car on the planet in the middle of a major intersection, shifting from first-to-second-to-third, only to find out that all of a sudden third is off and you are in neutral; engine behind you revving like no tomorrow, but you ain't moving (well, you are due to momentum, but you know what i mean:)...

i sent a note to AoA - let's see what they come back with.

the dealer gave me the keys back and said that i can drive so it is not like she is "out of service". it is just painful when she is "in service":)

Hopefully, it will be as simple to fix.